Chrono Trigger anniversary announcement stokes hopes for a remake

By Patrick Hearn Published March 11, 2025

The colorful main cast of characters in Chrono Trigger. — Square Enix

Today marks 30 years since Chrono Trigger released, and Square Enix is celebrating by making announcements about the future of the franchise and hosting several different events over the days ahead. The first is a 33-hour long live performance that will be streamed on YouTube from March 13 starting at 7 PM PT until March 15 around 4 AM PT.

Square Enix announced the celebration through a post on X. “Today marks the 30th anniversary of Chrono Trigger‘s release in 1995…To mark the 30th anniversary, we will be launching various projects that go beyond the world of games over the next year as a token of our gratitude to everyone who has played Chrono Trigger so far.”

Recommended Videos

To no one’s surprise, the “various projects” line has fanned the flames of hope for a remake. For years, fans have wanted to see Chrono Trigger brought back in a new form, perhaps in the same HD-2D style as Octopath Traveler.

Chrono at the fair with Marle. — Square

There is a lot of potential for a remake, or even just a re-release. While you can play Chrono Trigger on Steam or mobile, it’s not currently available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, or Nintendo Switch. Its sequel Chrono Cross was released as the The Radical Dreamers Edition in 2022 with modern improvements like upscaled graphics, a fast-forward mode, and several other improvements.

That said, there are a lot of games that capture the same feel as Chrono Trigger. Sabotage Studio’s Sea of Stars is heavily influenced by the game, and it has a new DLC on the way soon.

Square Enix says its projects will go “beyond the world of games” over the next year, and that could indicate anything from an anime adaptation to something like a board game or trading card game.

There’s no guarantee of a remake, but the 30 anniversary of a game is an excellent time to release one. Chrono Trigger has had a lasting influence on the RPG genre as a whole, and it would be

Technology Writer

Patrick has written about tech for more than 15 years and isn't slowing down anytime soon. With previous clients ranging from…

Topics

Tech News

Entertainment

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 gets a visual upgrade but stays wonderfully familiar

THPS 3 + 4

The year was 2001, and I was flat on my back in the middle of the street after bailing hard from a failed ollie.

Once I dusted myself off, I decided to try again, but in a safer, more digital aspect. Two decades ago, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 devoured my free time, and now the remake is back and doing the exact same thing. An excellent remake, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 brings two classic titles to a modern audience but adds little to the original experience in a way that leaves the game feeling curiously anachronistic.

Gaming

The best PlayStation launch games, ranked

best ps1 games sony ps1

The most important time in a console's life is its launch. This is when a new piece of hardware needs to prove that it is worth investing in, which always comes down to games. Launch titles are rarely the best games on the system, although some of Nintendo's launch games buck that trend, but at least need to show off what the system can do. PlayStation always had a secondary selling point with its consoles, such as doubling as a CD player or DVD player, so it is interesting to speculate how successful those early consoles would've been judged solely on their games. We now have launch titles from the PS1 all the way up to the PS5 (and soon to be PS6) to look back on with fresh eyes to see just how good those first games were.

Air Combat - PlayStation 1

Gaming

The Switch 2 is the perfect example of why console launches don’t feel special anymore

The Switch 2 being unboxed.

I will never forget the unbearable excitement I felt on that early morning on my 7th birthday. It was 1998, and Pokémon was the biggest thing in the world, especially for an elementary school kid like me. Except that I didn't have a single card or game to my name. In fact, I didn't even have a Game Boy. That, plus Pokémon, was the only thing I asked for that birthday, and I knew I would get it.

I can still remember lying awake half the night, unable to sleep while my imagination ran wild with unrealistic machinations of what the game would be like. I woke up just as early to the sounds of my parents and sister setting up decorations downstairs and bided my time before I could go down. It was a school day, but they could sense my excitement well in advance and agreed to let me open one thing before school.