Obsidian Wants to Work on Chrono Trigger

[Chrono Master]

This is a bad idea if you ask me, I can't really say I have played ANY western RPGs and liked them in fact I would call it a miracle if the Cust. Char. sets have anything decent looking (shudders thinking of Elder scrolls: Oblivion Cust. Char. faces) also I belive graphics will suffer from this we won't get to enjoy good CG with the amount of space that the Cust. Char. sets will take up as well as clothing options for your character. also usually when the CG is good the games story then suffers and if not that then the music or game play. then again this may be the one game out of 100. if this comes to be, Obsidian creating the new Chrono game, I hope it is.

[Lennis]

This article looks to me like a "feeler".  Obsidian is throwing this idea out there to see how Square/Enix (and more importantly, gamers) react.  It's clearly not an announcement of something in the works, but Chrono Trigger fans should still be a bit concerned.

I am by no means a purist - completely opposed to changing any aspect of Chrono - but the thought of a western-style character creation system in a Chrono game makes me shudder.  The fact that the original Crono was a mute character without any personality probably makes some western developers think it is perfectly okay to create Crono however they want through use of a character creator.  This would be a BIG mistake.  One of the main things that was lacking in the original game was a defining personality for Crono.  Character creation would not address this.  It would just make Crono look different.  To give Crono real depth, you need to give him dialogue.

Dialogue trees would be interesting to see in a Chrono game, but only if they are handled in a certain way.  A "light side/dark side" mechanic seen in many Bioware titles would not work.  Can anyone envision Crono acting like a jerk in front of Marle?  That would completely ruin the story.  By necessity, Chrono Trigger would have to be fairly linear in its presentation to do the most justice to the story.  Any dialogue tree should be focused mainly on things relating to quests and rewards, or finding out more about your companions.  It shouldn't grant the opportunity to change your character's personality.

What concerns me the most about a western developer tackling Chrono Trigger is a misinterpretation of what the game really is.  Contrary to popular conception, it is not an RPG in the truest sense of the word.  You do not role-play.  You do not choose your own adventures, and you do not choose your friends.  You guide pre-generated characters in a pre-generated world along a pre-generated path (with a few side quests sprinkled in).  In short, it is an interactive STORY.  If a western developer decides that a new Chrono Trigger should be more of a role-playing game with sandbox elements, then they will completely destroy what made the original game so great.  If you want to improve on Chrono Trigger, first acknowledge it as an interactive story – i.e. an adventure game – then build on that.  There is no need to reinvent the wheel, here.

But can a western developer understand this?  Let's face it, the ideal development team for a new Chrono is the one we already know.  Square/Enix is more than capable, with the right people.  They just have to be willing to see it through.  In my opinion, one of the most important duties of the Compendium to convince them to do just that.  Let this Obsidian article serve as a wake-up call for all of us.  The fact that Obsidian is even talking about this demonstrates the strength this IP still has.  If we don't convince S/E to take the reins, then someone else will.

[V_Translanka]

But Crono, as a representation of the player, CAN act like a jerk to Marle at several points in Chrono Trigger itself! He can even mess with her head by suggesting Robo be named the very thing she wants to avoid naming him!

[utunnels]

Perhaps a fallout style game about the bleak future of Lavos timeline.
 

A red spiky haired dumb dude awakes in a shabby bed inside some ruined building, no clue what his name is, no memories of why he is there.
A hunchbacked old man who introduces himself as Doan, tells him that he was ambushed by a gang of highwaymen and seriously got wounded in the head... So our silent protagonist begins his journey to recover his memory...

[Lennis]

But Crono, as a representation of the player, CAN act like a jerk to Marle at several points in Chrono Trigger itself! He can even mess with her head by suggesting Robo be named the very thing she wants to avoid naming him!

Are you serious?  You can do that?      What does Marle say if you try to name him R-66Y?

[gatotsu911]

Nothing; in fact, she acts all excited about it anyway. (I should know, I did it for one of my DS playthroughs, along with naming Frog Glenn, Marle Nadia and Magus Janus.) Still, though, it's the thought that counts. You can also bump into her, say you were tempted by her riches, not bring her to Death Peak to revive Crono, etc. Doesn't change too much, but at least you can make those decisions.

I don't think the silent protagonist works in every type of game (for example, I think it stood out like a sore thumb in Half-Life 2) but it works very well in the Chrono games.

[Samopoznanie]

This is really pleasant news to login to... between being busy and not being able to post w/ the recent glitch, I'm a bit behind on things.

Obsidian didn't ring a bell for me immediately (had to look them up).  I'm not a great fan of the whole Neverwinter Nights, Fallout, Baldur's Gate style stuff, but if they got Kato on board, I'd be pretty interested.  I do wonder about the character designs... I'm not much of a fan of anime styles, but it would be bizarre to see a more Americanized take on their faces, hair and such (assuming it had any recurring characters.) 

I'll also go out on a limb and say that I think there's a real chance that a game made by enthusiastic fans / developers who grew up with CT (coughcoughCrimsonEchoescough) might be better than a Kato / Mitsuda led effort, in the way that the first two Star Wars sequels were superior to Lucas' new trilogy. Sands of Destruction, as someone else mentioned..... I tried so hard to like but it just didn't even come close to what was expected.  It honestly made me wonder if they still had the chemistry, 15 years later. 

I don't see a negative side to the prospect of Obsidian taking a shot at the franchise.  Sure there could be disappointment, but that chance is always there... Heck, for some folks like me CC was a letdown.  The franchise has been ignored by SE for so long now, I don't think there's any such thing as bad publicity. 

Ideally, IMO, Obsidian's interest would prod SE into realizing that the interest is out there, and they'd just take on the project themselves... I'll keep dreaming in the mean time...

[gatotsu911]

I should mention regarding Sands of Destruction that Kato encountered some serious executive meddling in regards to his working on the game, and it should be noted that the developer he was working with (ImageEpoch) have shown themselves to be thoroughly resistant to originality, innovation or ambition in any aspect of their games. I don't know how much the game deviates from Kato's original concept, and I don't know whether anything can excuse how unbelievably disappointing it was, but I just thought I should bring that up lest the blame for that title be laid entirely on Kato's shoulders.

[Nexus]

At this point I'm sure that fans of the Chrono series would like to see any new development of a game. Though I would be slightly hesitant about one being developed without any influence from some of main figures of the Dream Team. R Obsidian is a decent developer for games that already have an established setting and I would love to see their take on it. Still to me this seems very unlikely from ever happening. Since even Square-Enix just seems so adamant about ignoring the Chrono franchise except to make some extra money with ports.

[Hayden]

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.

Well i wanna give you Good Luck, Just to say, If you can try: make the 1000 A.D Map have the Style of the 2300 A.D i am working on that But My thing keeps Screwing up and i do not know how to make New Houses...