Interview Chris Avellone Interview at Hold The Line

[Duraframe300]

Firefly seconded.
I would not be against Crono, but they would be restrained to make it a pure JRPG. I would prefer something of a mix in the vein of Torment or Kotor 2. And no, they aren't JRPGs.

RTWP?

 

[Zed]

It took me a day but I finally remember what this news had me thinking of.

 

[Rake]

Firefly seconded.
I would not be against Crono, but they would be restrained to make it a pure JRPG. I would prefer something of a mix in the vein of Torment or Kotor 2. And no, they aren't JRPGs.

RTWP?

I love the IE RTwP. In fact with SCS2 i had more fun with BG2 combat than ToEE.
As long as it isn't full realtime, i don't have a preference between TB and RTwP.

Forget that. I would prefer RTwP for the in Codex alone...

If they want Obsidian TB, they should buy South Park

 

[crawlkill]

If he means the post-2000 series, all they'd have to do is make an adventure game in which "use sonic screwdriver" is the solution to every puzzle.

tap A to disregard suffering of supporting characters. hold X to be unconcerned as to their fates.

 

[Crooked Bee]

Who the fuck cares about a new Chrono Trigger?

I do. Boy, an MCA-written Chrono Trigger game would be AWESOME. Actually, I'd love him to do his take on any established JRPG franchise, especially since he's so bad at the quintessential WRPG that is Arcanum.


(Full disclosure: I didn't enjoy the original Chrono Trigger that much.)

 

[Jasede]

I didn't enjoy the original Chrono Trigger that much.

Blasphemy.

 

[Crooked Bee]

True that. I tried though!

 

[Clockwork Knight]

Boy, an MCA-written Chrono Trigger game would be

A treatise on how time-travel will not actually solve your problems.

What I'd like to see is a MCA-written Chrono Cross.

Short summary:

Spoiler

 

[Haba]

The Wire RPG has already been made, Chris!

 

[Jasede]

Crooked Bee
I was like that. Played it when I was, what, 17 on an emulator. Finished it. Shrugged. What was the fuss about?
Years later, I replayed it. I noticed things I had missed. For some reason, it was endearing. Still, what was so special about it?
Much later, I replayed it again, couple times.

Music stirred me to tears; the graphics were beautiful, the story sad and in some ways extremely clever- there was the whole Zeal business, and Magus and everything- I don't know.

I think what's so special about it is that it's good at everything: the random encounters are not too many; the combat fast and fun; the combo abilities neat, the music amazing, the plot worth replaying multiple times, the graphics lovely, the characters pleasant, the sprites gorgeous- I don't know. It's more than the sum of its parts and the parts are all great. I still don't know how come I didn't like it way back then and why I like it so much now. The game grew as I did, I guess. It really was the love child of some very dedicated Japanese men that were not restricted by money.

It's like with this song:


It meant nothing to me on the first time through, or the second time. But- I only much later sort of... understood. The sadness, the decline- the song is Zeal, is change. I don't know. My rambling words can't do it justice. You just have to awaken to it, like CHIM- I don't know.

Frog's Theme and Wind Scene are so-

See, that's the thing. I can't even describe why it's so good. As a kid I thought Chrono Trigger was a B+ game- fun, but I didn't see. Now I struggle to explain why it's stellar. Maybe it really is just a B+ game- but a B+ so far removed from what is associated with a B+ that, even though in a way it is that, it is at the same time something utterly exceptional.

Do you know what I mean? No? Good, that's Jasede for you. Rational and assburgers half the time and yet somehow moved by inexplicable artsy shit that can't be reasonably rationalized.

 

[Infinitron]

I must have been around 15 when I played CT on an emulator and I pretty much instantly realized it (together with FF6) was the finest example of its genre. You guys are weird.

I think I can guess why Bee doesn't like it, though - it sheds off most of the JRPG genre's visible Wizardry/dungeon crawler heritage.

 

[abnaxus]

Fuck Chrono Trigger, there must be Vagrant Story 2 by Obsidian.

 

[Lhynn]

Fuck Chrono Trigger, there must be Vagrant Story 2 by Obsidian.

Are you sure you didnt mean Xenogears? ive yet to play that game, but the premise sounds pretty awesome. Not sure obsidian could pull off a worthy successor tho.

 

[Rahdulan]

Fuck Chrono Trigger, there must be Vagrant Story 2 by Obsidian.

That's actually one example that could work considering the original game. It's a far cry from your typical JRPG and plays well enough into Obsidian's hand if they expand the story a bit.

I do find it hilarious how back in the day Ashley Riot was apparently deemed too manly by the Japanese audience.

 

[ghostdog]

Are you sure you didnt mean Xenogears? ive yet to play that game, but the premise sounds pretty awesome. Not sure obsidian could pull off a worthy successor tho.

Yeah, well I played it and found it subpar. Endless cutscenes with a rather childishly written story trying hard to seem mature. It's not shit, for a jrpg story at least, but frankly at some point I just got bored with it. X is one of those games that can easily amaze an adolescent with its anime story, but as an adult you'll probably not find the same merits.

Chrono Trigger is immensely better. Its design and gameplay is miles ahead of X and as far as story and presentation goes, it's one of those few creations that can appeal to both children and adults equally. I actually appreciated it even more as an adult. While X tries to be "deep" but remains at pretentious soap opera level, CT can be both profound and entertaining at the same time.

 

[Duraframe300]

What's also great about CT and doesn't get mention too often is the ability to challenge the endboss for a good chunk of the game. (Nearly the entire on NG+)

And even without metagame knowdledge as you get the info about when he appears early in the game.

 

[Mantic]

Non-Japanese people aren't allowed to write JRPG's, it's against the rules

 

[Lhynn]

Yeah, well I played it and found it subpar. Endless cutscenes with a rather childishly written story trying hard to seem mature. It's not shit, for a jrpg story at least, but frankly at some point I just got bored with it. X is one of those games that can easily amaze an adolescent with its anime story, but as an adult you'll probably not find the same merits.

Chrono Trigger is immensely better. Its design and gameplay is miles ahead of X and as far as story and presentation goes, it's one of those few creations that can appeal to both children and adults equally. I actually appreciated it even more as an adult. While X tries to be "deep" but remains at pretentious soap opera level, CT can be both profound and entertaining at the same time.

Reading this is kinda disappointing, it treats a lot of themes that are not in any other game, and there was so much fuss about it that i was kinda expecting a fair treatment of them.

 

[ghostdog]

Reading this is kinda disappointing, it treats a lot of themes that are not in any other game, and there was so much fuss about it that i was kinda expecting a fair treatment of them.

It sure is ambitious since it does try to tackle philosophy and religion, but in a very epidermic way, at least as far as I got to see, 35 hours into the game. I just can't picture many adults enthralled by its story. And as far as actual gameplay is concerned even if it has some interesting ideas, it's pretty simple and repetitive. Anyway, give it a try and see for yourself, it's not a bad jrpg per se, maybe you'll be more tolerant than me.

 

[Crooked Bee]

I must have been around 15 when I played CT on an emulator and I pretty much instantly realized it (together with FF6) was the finest example of its genre. You guys are weird.

I think I can guess why Bee doesn't like it, though - it sheds off most of the JRPG genre's visible Wizardry/dungeon crawler heritage.

I could never get the love for FF6 either, so yeah, I guess I'm just weird like that. I do enjoy a lot of RPGs, both W- and J-, that aren't dungeon crawlers though, so I dunno. CT just always bored me in its first couple of hours and I could never muster the willpower to go on with it.

I do admit I'm wrong in that though; Jasede's post has made me want to give it another chance - and I will.

 

[Cosmo]

Crooked Bee
See, that's the thing. I can't even describe why it's so good. As a kid I thought Chrono Trigger was a B+ game- fun, but I didn't see. Now I struggle to explain why it's stellar. Maybe it really is just a B+ game- but a B+ so far removed from what is associated with a B+ that, even though in a way it is that, it is at the same time something utterly exceptional.

I've played the game once in 96 and this music has been following me ever since.
So yeah, Chrono Trigger... I think the reason why it's so good is because it encapsulates pure childhood fun somehow.

I could never get the love for FF6 either, so yeah, I guess I'm just weird like that.

What did it for me back in the days is Amano's art i think, and the fact that the cast was a dynamic one and felt alive...

 

[Ninjerk]

I'd say probably because FF6 introduced so many characters and although many got less "screen time" than others none of them felt cheap or empty. Also FF6 perfected the cinematic set pieces for SNES.

 

[Lady_Error]

The Wire RPG has already been made, Chris!

That's a good one. The Game of Thrones 16-bit RPG they have is also hilarious.

 

[Ninjerk]

I'm playing CT again, and I didn't realize the first time I played it how easy it is.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

So he's not keen on working on the Donut RPG?