When you lead off your PR email with “Spiritual successor to Chrono Trigger” you’ve got my attention and skepticism. For RPG players who lived through the 16 bit era of gaming, the Squaresoft RPG which boasts the art direction of the late Akira Toriyama is held on quite a high pedestal. So Riyo Games really needed to hit it out of the park with their reveal trailer to their 2.5D JRPG, Threads of Time.
Needless to say they pointed at the stands and sent the ball over the wall (ok, I’m done with the baseball analogies)! Given their trailer debuted during the Xbox Showcase during the Tokyo Game Show it should’ve been an indicator that the folks at Microsoft saw something that they liked. The trailer shows our heroes fighting across several time periods each with beautiful pixelated characters with modern touches such as reflective water and lighting. Eagle eyed viewers will notice Threads of Time even has a system in which party members can do combination attacks much like the dual techs from Chrono Trigger.
This one is definitely one to watch and if you want to keep track of this title you can wishlist it on Steam. However PC isn’t the only place you’ll be able to play the game, I mean it did debut on the Xbox Showcase of all things…so it will be available on the Xbox Series X|S. Let’s hope the title will expand its console presence to other platforms as well.
While there isn’t a release date for the title, I would recommend following the team on social media via platforms such as X, Instagram and Discord. For a company whose mission statement is “Crafting retro-infused RPGs that awaken treasured childhood memories”, they’re off to a great head start, I’m looking forward to seeing more!
Threads of Time screens:
Threads of Time | Official Announce Trailer | TGS 2024