Obsidian Wants to Work on Chrono Trigger

[gatotsu911]

http://www.siliconera.com/2010/07/06/obsidian-would-like-to-work-on-chrono-trigger/

Feargus Urquhart and his development studio, Obsidian, have said that they would like to make a "westernized" version of Chrono Trigger. Despite Feargus having one of the most awesome names known to man, I'm going to have to say I'm against this. While I've yet to personally play any of Obsidian's games, I've heard primarily bad things about them, and I think the Chrono games are of a type that is very Japanese in flavor - I can't think of many Western developers who could replicate the "feel" of the games (let alone the design expertise). Hell, I can't think of many JAPANESE developers who could replicate the feel and design of the games, possibly including Square Enix itself. If Square Enix does outsource a new Chrono game, it should absolutely be to Monolith Soft. In fact, I'd rather have Monolith work on a new game that SquEnix themselves. Provided Kato, Mitsuda and Yasuyuki Honne are involved, of course, but seeing as the first two have collaborated with Monolith in the past and Honne WORKS THERE, that hardly seems like an obstacle.

[FaustWolf]

Thanks for posting this! Yeah, there's been a lot of pushback against the idea. One would hope Obsidian could get Kato and Mitsuda on board for the project.

[SuperAlan]

It's very hard to decide how i feel about this. On the one hand Obsidian has made some good games, notably Kotor 2, which could have been awesome had it not been rushed by Lucas Arts. I think Masato Kato and Mitsuda are a must for every Chrono game though. i think i'd like to see Masato Kato and Obsidian Entertainment make an original game together before i could decide if they could properly handle the Chrono Series.

[utunnels]

Hmm, I haven't played any their game yet, so I don't worry about that at least for now.

[Nangbaby]

You know, when I first read this forum post, I thought any negative backlash would be an overreaction.  If they were "Westernizing" the aesthetics, music, or the characters, I would actually welcome this.  There's nothing wrong with branching out the look, feel, or even, yes, the  themes and story.  Chrono Cross was far from a carbon copy of Chrono Trigger in that regard and was easily just as good of a game.

Then I looked at the link and saw they want to "westernize" the gameplay of a Chrono sequel...

...this is epic FAIL.

The people who like Chrono Trigger and Chrono Cross like them because they are JRPGs.  Although there's a lot of exploration and openness, it's not that "open world" and "create-a-character" junk that defines Western RPGS.  Does Square Enix really think that completely redoing the series in a manner that is more popular will bring in sales, especially when doing so would undermine the existing innovative elements they have in the Chrono franchise?

Don't get me wrong.  A radical gameplay departure is not always the end of the world, and given the time that has passed between the last original Chrono series game and now, there will be radical changes if the franchise is ever revived.  But this is an actual genre shift in a long dormant series, so this approach is the worst of both worlds.  It would alienate fans who love the series, and it wouldn't draw in new fans as new fans will be drawn to newer properties.
 
There are Chrono Trigger fans who never got over the battle system overhaul in Chrono Cross.  Heck, there are Chrono Trigger fans who never got over Chrono Cross.  Of course, any new sequel is going to have its critics just by virtue of being new, but to actually antagonize the fan base is not a good idea.

[nightmare975]

Having enjoyed Alpha Protocol (and can't wait for New Vegas) I would really like to see Obsidian make a Chrono game.

Hell, Square Enix sure won't.

[RoxSilverFox]

Obsidian haven't really created any 'bad' games... they just haven't created any games that aren't in some way glitched (I may be wrong). I'd personally like to see them take on a Chrono game, but, that is to say I don't want to see them westernise it... or do I?

Anyway, as of late I've been working on a Chrono-esque game of my own for the iPad and possibly PC. I'm keeping it very close to the workings of Chrono Trigger and Cross in almost every way I can, without making it look like a total rip off.

[Sourkeys]

Here is an additional article posted on Kotaku
http://kotaku.com/5580833/obsidian-wouldnt-mind-tackling-a-chrono-trigger-sequel

I personally don't see a problem with this except the comment comparing it with Star Wars and space and what not. I know Xenosaga games weren't really that bad at all, but the direction they took by going "into space" really bothered me. I don't mind space being involved in Chrono games because they've already introduced time and dimensions, but there is a right way to introduce space and a wrong way. After all, the entire Chrono series takes place on the same planet in different time periods and in different dimensions. Space would have to include some kind of origin story for Lavos or something of the like.

[ShoeMagus]

They're not saying, "Put Chrono Trigger in space." They're saying that Star Wars is a mash up of science fiction and fantasy (fantasy in space!) and that its similar to the way that Chrono Trigger has both elements of a fantasy story (magic, demons, swords), and sci-fi (time/dimensional travel, alien entities, robots).

I'm not so bothered by this. My big concern would be pulling in the original developers, but I don't think Kato ever had any objection to a sequel or doing a sequel. Mitsuda had expressed interest already. Not sure on Honne's thoughts, but I like to think no one would want to miss out.

I am curious as to what "western elements" they'd want to bring to the game. It sounds daunting, but its not necessarily a bad thing. Granted I disagree with applying the whole "Create-a-Character" concept to the Chrono series. Then again, it wouldn't be entirely wrong considering that Chrono is characterized by the silent protagonist with no personality anyway.

So overall, I think this is good news.

[Truthordeal]

Bear in mind, people, one of the most used arguments against Chrono Cross is that it didn't "feel" like Chrono Trigger. True, it didn't, but that's irrelevant because it was still an extremely good game. It was just darker.

So yeah, I'd like to see them try. Square Enix obviously isn't going to do anything with it. Sands of Destruction proved that Kato and Mitsuda could work together on a game that wasn't Chrono, so it's not an impossibility.

[Sourkeys]

Actually, my biggest concern is getting Yasunori Mitsuda to score the game's music. I'm sure he would do it, but the problem is whether or not Obsidian might ask him to even do it or not. Masato Kato is also a very important asset to the story and if they do ask either one of the two to work on the project I can only hope it's a pair package deal.

That, alone, is a scary enough thought to just maybe not want a sequel without met demands by the fans.

Edit: I now see the redundancy of my post. Well then sirs, we find ourselves in agreement =P

[gatotsu911]

I think some people are taking this a bit out of context. This is all just talk; Obsidian is saying that they would LIKE, THEORETICALLY, to work on a Chrono game - it's not like they're in serious negotiations to make a sequel. And probably for the better. Again, I'd be curious to see a WRPG developer create a "Westernized" version of a JRPG, but not Chrono.

[SilentMartyr]

It certainly is an interesting idea...however, I don't really think they would follow through with it. The question was answered with such haste that it was obvious he thought of his answer on the spot. It's not exactly like he made a public announcement during a conference.

If SE did sack up and put some effort into the series my sentiments are basically carried by forum. Kato + Mitsuda = Min requirements for Chrono game, period.

[ShoeMagus]

I'll probably get booed off the board for this, but I don't even require Mitsuda. As long as the story lives up to what Trigger and Cross have done.

I mean, anything else is really just fan fiction. Fan fiction is a fine medium, but if some company is going to put out a Chrono game, it has got to go along with the main story developers. Or it becomes a hit-or-miss situation like Final Fantasy.

[Sajainta]

Space would have to include some kind of origin story for Lavos or something of the like.

Kind of irrelevant, but if (and that's a pretty huge if...  :/ ) a new Chrono game was made, I would love to see this.  See where Lavos came from, maybe see some of the other planets he has sucked the life out of.  That would be fascinating.