Chrono Trigger

クロノ・トリガー (Kurono Torigā)SNES, PlayStation, Nintendo DS, Wii +31995

  1. JP1995
  2. NA1995
  3. EU2009
  4. RU—

Chrono Trigger kept the same name worldwide (クロノ・トリガー in Japan), though in North America its PlayStation version was sold inside Final Fantasy Chronicles. Today the easiest legal ways to play it are the Steam version for Windows and CHRONO TRIGGER (Upgrade Ver.) on mobile, both based on the content of the 2008 DS release.

Chrono Trigger is a role-playing game made by Square's 'Dream Team' of Hironobu Sakaguchi, Yuji Horii and Akira Toriyama, who conceived it in October 1992. It came out for the Super Famicom in Japan on 11 March 1995 and sold two million copies there within two months. For the North American release, Ted Woolsey translated the game into English in roughly thirty days.

The game has been re-released many times. The 1999 PlayStation version added anime cutscenes and reached North America in 2001 as part of Final Fantasy Chronicles, together with Final Fantasy IV. The 2008 DS version added the Lost Sanctum and the Dimensional Vortex, a new ending tied to Chrono Cross and a new translation, and it was the first official release in PAL regions. Versions for iOS and Android followed, and on 27 February 2018 a Windows version appeared on Steam without prior announcement.

In a 2019 Famitsu reader poll of the best games of the Heisei era, Chrono Trigger came first. In Russia the DS version was distributed by 1C with a Russian cover and manual, while the game text itself stayed in English.123

Names and releases

RegionTitle on the boxPlatformDatePublisherSrc
NA Chrono TriggerDate flagged 'citation needed' on Wikipedia SNES Aug 22, 1995 Square Soft 1
NA Final Fantasy ChroniclesCompilation with Final Fantasy IV PlayStation Jun 29, 2001 Square Electronic Arts 1
NA Chrono Trigger Nintendo DS Nov 25, 2008 Square Enix 1
JP クロノ・トリガーKurono Torigā SNES Mar 11, 1995 Square 1
JP クロノ・トリガーAdds anime cutscenes PlayStation Nov 2, 1999 Square 4
JP クロノ・トリガー Nintendo DS Nov 20, 2008 Square Enix 1
AU Chrono Trigger Nintendo DS Feb 3, 2009 Square Enix 1
EU Chrono TriggerFirst official PAL release Nintendo DS Feb 6, 2009 Square Enix 1
JP クロノ・トリガーVirtual Console (SNES version); US 2011-05-16, EU 2011-05-20 Wii Apr 26, 2011 Square Enix 1
WW Chrono TriggerJapanese Wikipedia gives 2011-12-09 for Japan iOS Dec 8, 2011 Square Enix 1
WW Chrono TriggerJapan: 2011-12-22 Android Oct 29, 2012 Square Enix 1
WW CHRONO TRIGGERSteam; released without prior announcement Windows Feb 27, 2018 Square Enix 1

Also known as: クロノ・トリガー JP4Final Fantasy Chronicles NA1CHRONO TRIGGER (Upgrade Ver.) WW5

Box art by region

  • Chrono Trigger box art, North America release
    NA Chrono Trigger
  • クロノ・トリガー box art, Japan release
    JP クロノ・トリガー

Box art © its publishers, shown to identify each release. Scans: libretro-thumbnails.

Version differences

  • CensorshipSNES (NA)

    Nintendo of America had dialogue about breastfeeding, alcohol and religion changed in the English SNES release.1

  • TextSNES (NA)

    Ted Woolsey localized the game in about thirty days, and some of his script had to be cut for space. The DS version replaced it with a more faithful translation by Tom Slattery.1

  • TextSNES (JP)SNES (NA)

    Some names changed in English: Marle's default full name Marledia became Nadia, Lucca's mother Lala became Lara, and characters no longer shorten Crono to 'Cro'.6

All differences (8)

Translations

  • English Official

    Square (Ted Woolsey)1995SNES · Japanese versionReleased · complete

    The original English localization for the SNES, written by Ted Woolsey at Square in about thirty days.1

  • English Official

    Square Enix (Tom Slattery)2008Nintendo DS · Japanese versionReleased · complete

    A revised, more accurate English translation by Tom Slattery, introduced with the 2008 DS version.1

  • Spanish Official

    Square Enix2018Windows · DS-based mobile/PC versionReleased · complete

    The 2018 Steam version lists Spanish (Spain) among its nine supported languages, and the iOS version also lists Spanish.7

  • French Official

    Square Enix2008Nintendo DS · DS versionReleased · complete

    International DS cartridges include an official French translation alongside English.8

  • Russian Fan

    ШЕФ-Net (Chief-Net)2006SNES · US versionReleased

    A Russian fan translation of the SNES game released by the Chief-Net (ШЕФ-Net) team in August 2006. A later review calls it the most technically advanced, although character renaming is disabled.9

  • Russian Fan

    MaXVeeL2023Windows · Steam versionReleased

    A 2023 Russian fan translation for the Steam version by MaXVeeL, installed by replacing a data file and distributed by its author through a Telegram channel.10

    Project page: steamcommunity.com

  • Russian Fan

    LeonisSNES · US versionReleased

    A Russian fan translation of the SNES game by Leonis, described in a 2012 comparison as the best written, though it does not run correctly in every setup.11

  • Russian Fan

    2RTEAM & DreamSoftSNES · US versionAbandoned · partial

    An early Russian fan translation of the SNES game by 2RTEAM & DreamSoft that turns into garbled text partway through.11

Where to play legally today

  • App Store Purchase

    CHRONO TRIGGER (Upgrade Ver.)

    mobile version (DS-based content)

    Checked: 2026-10-135apps.apple.com

  • Steam Purchase

    CHRONO TRIGGER

    2018 Windows version (DS-based content)

    Checked: 2026-10-137store.steampowered.com

Best version

The 2008 DS version is generally considered the most complete: it keeps the SNES game and adds the PlayStation anime scenes, two new areas, a new ending and a more accurate translation. The mobile and Steam releases carry over this content and add more languages, but the Steam port was heavily criticized at launch and only improved through patches up to 2022. The SNES cartridge remains the original reference.1

Reception

Chrono Trigger sold two million copies in Japan in its first two months and was the country's second-best-selling game of 1995 after Dragon Quest VI. Across all versions it had sold more than five million copies by March 2025.1

In lists

Sources

  1. 1en.wikipedia.org
  2. 2stopgame.ru
  3. 3dtf.ru
  4. 4ja.wikipedia.org
  5. 5apps.apple.com
  6. 6tcrf.net
  7. 7store.steampowered.com
  8. 8tcrf.net
  9. 9emu-land.net
  10. 10steamcommunity.com
  11. 11anothersite.ru
  12. 12store.steampowered.com
  13. 13ja.wikipedia.org

Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13

Spotted a mistake? Write to atlas@old-games.net.