Chrono Trigger Gets Ultrawide 21:9 PC Update (But Still No Nintendo Switch Release)

In an age of retro emulation, I've become less and less upset about retro titles not being released on modern consoles.
But wow Square Enix is leaving some serious money on the table by not releasing Chrono Trigger on Switch.

I'm hoping for a Chrono Trigger remake in the HD-2D style. With them rereleasing Chrono Cross I can hope but in the meantime I have my DS copy avilable.

I thought these ports were terrible? That's what I heard when this game released anyways.

It is odd that the game isn't on Switch yet, given the popularity of Square Enix's other releases on the system it would basically be guaranteed money, not sure what the hold up is.

@Joeynator3000

It was originally. But a combination of official patches and more importantly fan mods have really improved them.

The fan mods did WONDERS for the iOS to Steam ports of FFV and FFVI. Not the Pixel Remasters but the ones with the funny sprite work.

Maybe it will come to Switch.

“...How come Chrono Trigger just got an ultrawide update before a Switch release? Come on!”

Preach!

Square-Enix has been odd lately. LIVE A LIVE gets announced and instantly has a release date. DioField gets announced and we already know which consoles it will be on and that it is slated for 2022.
Meanwhile, Dragon Quest 2D-HD gets announced back in May 2021, fans go wild, but now in March 2022 we still haven’t even been told which consoles it will be on let alone a prospective release time.

Obviously it should be on Switch but honestly, it’s on DS/3DS, Steam, iOS and literally anything capable of emulating SNES. If you really wanted to play this game then you would.

Wonder if this means an Android release at that ratio too, since Sony has been pushing 21:9 phones lately (which do work well for wide videos in that ratio)

The iOS port got the update too.. Though It doesn't look any different really, it's still rather ugly there.

Step 1: Buy Chrono Cross Remastered when it comes out.
Step 2: Buy the Live A Live Remake when it comes out.
Step 3: Respond to Square-Enix's recent survey asking for suggestions of other classic SNES games to give the "HD 2D" remake treatment, and tell them you want Chrono Trigger.
Step 4: PRAY TO WHATEVER GOD YOU SERVE THAT IT HAPPENS

Misleading title. It’s not expected for Switch…yet.

Well FF1-6 isn't on Switch either and those games were also Nintendo exclusive for awhile.

@Diogmites this comment lol

CT is 4:3 and nothing else.

Well Chrono Trigger is now 27 years old, in Japan. Birthday update.

You're not missing much, this version is vastly inferior to the SNES original.

Remember Chrono Cross remastered still doesn't had a physical release yet. I believe Square Enix may plan to release Chrono Trigger later on following Chrono Cross release and then make a physical collection there after similar to the Grandia 1 & 2 and Final Fantasy VII & VIII remastered collection. Don't give up hope just yet.

Come, lets talk about this...
https://www.nintendolife.com/forums/nintendo-switch/chrono_trigger_remastered

I've got CT on the Wii, and I downloaded it to my snes mini, but yeah, I don't know why it's apparently so hard to make this classic game as widely available as possible. It came to Wii towards the end of it's life cycle, was never ported to the Wii U, and they certainly seem to be dragging their feet when it comes to bringing it to the Switch. Do they have to pay Akira Toriyama massive royalties or something every time it's re released?

@Link-Hero Visual consistency for the most part. Character sprites are blurry, fonts don't fit the game's UI neither its "retro" look, certain animations aren't as smooth, pixel scaling don't match the menus and backgrounds. It's serviceable if you don't care about these details and just want a cheap nostalgia trip, but the game lost so much charm in the transition that it doesn't feel/play the same.

actually just got to the added content on the ds version - I've played through it back in the clinton administration - but I never got through the remake until now - I mean I'm at the black omen part

@mwatcher hmm, you may have a point there, I didn't consider that it could be read like "it's getting this, THEN a Switch remake"!

It's meant to read as "I can't believe it's getting this before it gets a Switch remake". I may tweak it to clear things up!

@nessisonett Well... I have only Nintendo Switch and Android OS low-cost smartphone. And I have some vision problems, so I can't play videogames on my smartphone for a long time. Rarely(?), some JRPG games requires a fair amount of time for grinding. Because of this, playing JRPG games on smartphone is not a good idea for me. Yeah - playing videogames on regular Nintendo Switch in handheld mode while having vision problems is not a good idea too, but I don't have options to play it in TV/docked mode. Well, it's better than nothing. Hm... So... Not everyone have at least just WEAK computer/laptop to run Steam and games on it. I had a laptop with 1,5GB RAM storage and used it from 2018 to 2021. Can you imagine - using a laptop with 1,5GB RAM storage in 2020? It's even not a 2GB RAM storage! It had a very weak processor and very, very weak graphical processor(video card). It is good to play videogames on big screen, will it be a monitor or TV screen. Especially good if you have some vision problems. Also, why game can't be widely available on current platforms, including PS4 and Xbox One? Can you complain about Minecraft and Terraria wild availability on gaming platforms? Or DOOM(1993) wild availability on gaming platforms as well? Also, there comes questions about the game's optimization and work on PC/Android, because it's not a closed OS like iOS and consoles' own Linux-based OS. It is easy to optimize games on iOS and consoles. But I can't say the same thing about optimizing games for PC and especially for Android. There is no a 100% chance that the game will work good on Android smartphone. Well... I said enough. Maybe I even went too far... Sorry.

@Vyacheslav333 At this rate, there should just be one article on this site saying ‘Every game ever should be ported to Switch’. It would save a lot of time.

@nessisonett Ha! It's sounds like a good idea. 🙂

4:3 is the correct ratio for retro games.

I have two theories:

1. They're working on another Chrono Trigger remaster/remake/port, or just an update in anticipation of the CC remake and they did this quite easily as part of other work. They were like, hey look what we can do, and released it.

2. Some guy working for Square Enix wanted to play CT on their big ass monitor and just put it out.

To be honest, it's been so long I do hope they have something special planned for releasing this on Switch. Secret of Mana 3 got a remake AND the original translated. I would be happy for this game to get similar treatment

This patch was released on the 27th Anniversary of the game's initial release. With Chrono Cross Remastered on the way, it seems like a way to keep fans engaged with the series. I've tested it out, the 21:9 mode isn't bad, but you lose some Vertical resolution to offset the extra Horizontal resolution. I would call it a very playable release of the game, better than a lot of Square Enix's previous mobile->PC ports prior to the FF Pixel Remasters.

@nessisonett
I feel like legacy remasters and re releases do make more sense to wish for switch ports over something like elden ring, FFXIV or FFVIIremake especially with a lot of square-enix's other recent retro remasters (outside of the FF ones) being multiplatform, i do feel like in those cases its at least realistic compared to something like that other article about switch ports which had quite a few unlikely games like the yakuza games or Tales of Arise.

especially with the VC disappearing and its replacement not having the option to buy the games i appreciate these kinds of retro re-releases and compilations all the more.

I love that there is now at least one save slot per ending.

I've played enough Chrono Trigger on SNES emulator and DS, so I'm not too bothered about the switch version, but I'd love for other players to experiment it. I'd buy a HD-2D remake in a heartbeat though

I think the reason it's not on Switch yet is because they're working on a HD-2D remake. I just don't see them doing one for Live A Live but not Chrono Trigger.

@rushiosan While this version was bad at launch, they actually released a lot of patches to fix its issues and make it a solid way to play the game. Preferring the SNES version is absolutely fine, but it's not a "vastly inferior" way to play the game anymore, especially with this release being easily accessible since just about any computer can run it.

The fact that people still think the Steam version is bad, even after they patched it all up nice, shows why companies should be more careful not to release games in an unfinished state with the philosophy of "we'll just patch it later." The initial bad press gets solidified online.

@rushiosan
I played through the game for the first time on PC last year and absolutely loved it. It may not be nearly as perfect as the original SNES release, but with all the patches over the years it has gotten pretty close. (Obviously it would've been better if they had just released it like this in the first place, but I digress.) While the SNES or DS versions (which I've since played) would be preferable, the PC version is not a bad way to play the game at all if it's your only option, especially considering how cheap it is compared to physical copies. Personally, I'd say the worst things about the PC version are the irremovable meter overlays during battles, and maybe the new exclamation mark feature added in this update if it is also irremovable. Other than those two things, there are no major flaws. I would encourage giving the PC port a second look.

The article's tagline "But Still No Nintendo Switch Release" has the same energy as "But you're still hungry" from Chrono Trigger.

So they're pretty much just using the same wide aspect ratio tech that emulators released a few years back. I know NES and SNES emulators have allowed 16x9 extensions for most games that look like this given the battle menus aren't extended. I will say seeing a game that hasn't a received a update in about 2 years suddenly receive, this makes me think it is going to have a console release soon. It only makes sense with Chrono Cross

Am I the only person that really hates this aspect ratio? I'm glad it's there for people that want it, or have a monitor that necessitates it, but it's been pushed into so much now. I can't even find a good phone with 16:9 anymore.

@OldManHermit Square-Enix for some reason only felt like releasing Wii U and 3DS VC games in Japan. Fairly sure it got released on Wii U at least over there. Probably New 3DS as well (I know the Final Fantasy and Romacing SaGa games are on the JP 3DS eShop.)

I have no doubt that Chrono Trigger will get a release on current consoles as well as the Pixel Remasters.

@bonjong23 If they were remaking Chrono Trigger, they would delist the original like they did with the Pixel Remasters. In which case this update would be a waste of time and money. They aren’t remaking Chrono Trigger. They will release it on current consoles with this new update though.

The most infuriating thing about chrono trigger for me is the android port. I bought it on android, played it on my phone and it was great. Now I have android tv so I am thinking hey I should play it again on the tv but not find oh no it's not supported by android tv. How hard could it be to let me play it on android tv.

@Crono1973 We'll see, bud. I still think it'll happen by CT's 30th anniversary.

Square Ennix just don't make sense

@Diogmites I needed this so much. Thanks for the great comment!

NINJA APPROVED

Thanks for the tip, I don't have an ultra-wide setup but would like to check out the other tweaks.

One of my favorites for sure. Having missed it the first go-round, I was introduced to CT in my 30s. Even without the selling point of nostalgia, it held up as an amazing adventure

Man, I literally JUST played through this on Steam and got every ending! Now they add this cool update?! 🤣🤣🤣

As much as I would love to see Chrono Trigger as is on the Switch, my heart yearns for a real remake in either a style similar to Trials of Mana or HD-2D Live A Live

As a not to wise man once said "don't you guys have phones?" If anyone cares that much about it they'd be playing it in 5 minutes.

Ahh the old hacked Classic SNES…. And you all laughed at it when it released. 😄😈

The android version just got updated, too.

Personally, the idea of making one of the best looking Pixel masterpiece games of all time in the current fly-by-night trendy style is blasphemy. The 2DHD style was cool for a couple of games, but with every release it just gets cheaper. The notion of making every game look exactly the same is abhorrent. The idea of reviving the series or doing a remake is likewise.
I played I Am Setsuna, it sucked. That's what a chrono trigger game looks like without the dream team. A hollow shell that constantly makes call backs to what it wishes it was. Hard pass.

I've been with final fantasy and square soft since the beginning so I'm not as basic as the average square enix fan of today. I've had enough of the remakes. They need to consistently make good new games instead of taking way too long to put out something mediocre and then making the cash back with remasters.

Yeah definitely need this on Switch, HD 2D or not, I don't mind.

A better candidate for the HD 2D treatment would be Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth though. Such a great game. Now that a new Valkyrie game has been announced it'd be a pretty cool thing to have...

@LittleGhost They need to consistently make good new games instead of taking way too long to put out something mediocre and then making the cash back with remasters.

Ok but if they are making their money with remasters then the audience is telling them that they prefer the older games remastered than their new games.

For example, I wonder how many prefer Final Fantasy Tactics over Triangle Strategy or Final Fantasy VI over Octopath Traveler. Chrono Trigger over I am Setsuna.

@Crono1973 All of those games you mentioned from the golden era happened before they started doing remakes remasters and porting over. ( I just refer to the collective as remixes) Everybody prefers those games without a doubt, but those people don't work with the company anymore. That's the real big hard hit. That's why I'm saying don't revive those series. However, the new intellectual properties with the old school elements are a lot more well received than trash like Babylon's fall which is the type of game I was originally referencing. I'm not pooping on triangle strategy or octopath traveler, That's exactly what I want more of. I want less of stranger from paradise and Babylon's fail. And as much as it's cool for them to have a safety net of Remixes to fall back on every 5 years, I think that they need the motivation that comes with constant creative drive and not just revisiting and reworking other people's stories that no longer work there.

@LittleGhost They just can’t make games like they used to and that’s why the remasters/ports are needed. Wishing that they could make hit after hit again is not going to change reality. They just can’t do it.

One problem with modern RPG’s is that there really aren’t storage limitations and therefore they are bloated. They are in need of editing. Also modern rpg’s love to waste your time and are complicated for the sake of complexity. You can’t just buy or find new equipment anymore. In modern RPG’s you have to collect a bunch of junk to craft or upgrade your equipment and items.

I wish Nintendo did any kind of widescreen support for all its legacy content on the Switch. Black bars on the side of the screen are bad enough, but the Switch Online UI elements you can't turn off are even worse.

I hope for Chrono Trigger AND Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster on Switch.

Square Enix has this tactic of making mobile and PC users betatesters before the eventual console releases.

They will probably eventually release Chrono Trigger on Switch and other consoles after this update.

@SergeEXE The vertical resolution on the PC version is 192px, the same as the DS screen, as this is based on the DS version.
It just gets scaled to fit the resolution.

The SNES has a 256x224p resolution, so you are losing a bit of vertical resolution compared to the DS even in 4:3, since the DS already had a 4:3 screen (which even had the same horizontal resolution as the SNES).

The maximum aspect ratio of the PC version is 2.40:1, which is greatly expanded over the DS' 4:3.
This would be great for a 3840x1600p ultrawide screen.

@Crono1973 Yeah. Basically what you said. It's so hard coming to terms with that after like spending my whole life with the series. It's like burying a friend. The Golden Age is gone. Gotta take what I can get now I guess

Why isn't this on Switch yet? C'mon, Square Enix.