Ask any aging gamer about the hallmark RPGs of the 16-bit “golden era,” and Chrono Trigger is bound to be near the top of their list. As an original tale focusing on the trials and tribulations of a motley cast of characters transcending both space and time, it stands out to this day as a unique title whose simple exterior belies its surprisingly deep plot and character development. For these reasons, along with the ability to invoke a nigh unlawful amount of nostalgia, Chrono Trigger DS is one of the few remakes this year whose sales don’t rely on flashy graphical upgrades, a revamped script, or new areas that make the game suddenly fresh again. Instead, it prides itself on being undyingly faithful to its source material; opting to create the ultimate edition of this must-own title with additions that never distract from the innovations that made the game a classic in the first place.

Instead of a linear tale that sees your party trekking from point A to B, Chrono Trigger takes your characters 1300 years in the future and 65 million years into the past in order to unweave the mystery surrounding the world’s eventual end. Even though the progression from eon to eon is initially straightforward, towards the end of the game you’re allowed to let loose to explore the ages and observe the way in which your actions affect the future. Planting one sapling could result in an entire forest, while placing a single stone in a cave for millions of years may yield enough power to fuel the planet. Seeing the progression from age to age is downright fascinating, as it makes one planet’s entire time span an eternal puzzle for the solving.

Chrono Trigger further differentiates itself through its carefully chosen cast of characters that each brings something unique to the story and the battlefield. There are no palette-swaps and party-fillers here - from the lovably logical Robo, to the fanatically loyal Frog, every character feels purposeful and adds an emotional dimension to an old-fashioned, well-told story that blows past many of today's flashy cinematics. Each character has its own specialties ranging from brute power to status buffs and curing, but due to the way that they synergize with one another through battle techniques, you’re never left feeling penalized when a plot event demands the use a certain character.

Equally liberating is the game's insistence that the player actually experiment and explore elements (and areas) of the game. While battle takes place on a traditional turn-based field, the biggest innovation comes in the way of each player’s “Techs”; character-specific abilities and traditional magic spells that are unique to the majority of the 6+ characters. As your party grows with different combinations of party members, characters combine their powers into Double and Triple Techs to bring a whole new world of hurt down onto unsuspecting fiends. This makes assembling your party a balancing act between trying out new configurations and utilizing existing strengths, as not only do you have to consider what elemental, physical, and magical strengths a character would bring to your party, but their level of compatibility with others as well.

I understandably run the risk of coming off overenthusiastic about this game, but I can’t help but be impressed at how it lives up to its inspiration. The new touch controls work surprisingly well for party and menu navigation, and the "hot buttons" that instantly take you to a menu choice are a godsend once you're used to using them. Even more impressive than the new play style's effectiveness, however, is the way that Square Enix left the gameplay choice entirely up to the player. Don't want to touch the touch screen for the entirety of the game? Set it to "Classic mode" and you’re sent back to ’95 - it's really that easy.