As Chrono Trigger celebrates 30th anniversary, spiritual successor Threads of Time gets fresh gameplay trailer

The Chrono Trigger-inspired retro RPG Threads of Time has received a new gameplay trailer, showing off more of its time-travelling narrative.

From Canadian developer Riyo Games, Threads of Time was first revealed at last year’s Tokyo Game Show. Now, a year later, this new trailer was shown at the PC Gaming Show Tokyo Direct and it looks to be progressing nicely.

As with Square Enix‘s iconic classic, Threads of Time will take place across a number of time periods, from prehistory to a cyberpunk future, and is presented similarly to the Octopath Traveller HD-2D aesthetic.

One minute the adventurers are strolling through a bustling medieval town and battling the sort of fluffy or botanical creatures you’d typically expect in an RPG; the next they’re exploring sci-fi facilities and a rain-soaked futuristic metropolis with flying cars overhead.

There are some beautiful animated scenes chopped in too, though I hope the character designs don’t lean too heavily on Chrono Trigger nostalgia – I’m looking at you, robot.

What’s really struck me, though, is the look of the battles. These are turn-based, but have a strong sense of depth with a perspective sitting between Octopath and Dragon Quest as characters fight across the foreground and background with some evocative environments.

There’s no release date yet, though presumably it’s set for release on PC.

It’s also well-timed, following the critically acclaimed Sea of Stars from fellow Canadian studio Sabotage as another Chrono Trigger-inspired retro RPG. That game’s DLC Throes of the Watchmaker was recently released, if you need an excuse to return.

What’s more, Square Enix is this year celebrating the 30th anniversary of Chrono Trigger and promised various projects would be released, sparking hope for some form of remake or remaster.

It’s still unclear what’s happening there, even as fans cry out for a re-release on current hardware. Until then, Threads of Time could well fill the gap.