The idea was to portray the story as is, but removing the Chrono references, and polishing it with newer forms of ideas
And with the project only a couple of days old, we already have our first dispute.
There's no harm in it.
Always best to set things clear and find what works for everyone, before you work hard on a project only to find it stagnates at the end stages. Besides, despite the fact that proposition would lose here, I still believe I have a place to state my opinions which -- even if not taken -- would somehow benefit the discussion (say, themes, or characters, or concepts, etc.). Sometimes great art begins with great arguments.
Tush, the thing is, turning CT:CE into just Crimson Echoes requires a metric crapton of work. Why go through all that in order to create something that's just a step away from the original source? If people want to play CE, they can find a way to do so as is. What's the benefit that the team would get out of all their hard work?
Fine, then. I take your point. (I'm still kinda disappointed, though...)
As for working with the fan community as directly a you propose, I'd propose that a good game is a bit like a magic trick or like a sausage: the consumer is happier not knowing what does into it.
Here I would disagree. This is only true for consumers who are indoctrinated to "simply accept" what comes their way are aren't fond of going the unconventional route unless "everyone's doing it". The consumers you're speaking about are usually those who are often used to the barrage of closed-source programs and, despite their annoyances with it,
re-wire themselves to simply accept it.
I'm certainly not those kind of people. I'm a born rebel. I make choices as most people would do with their groceries (like, picking up an apple and considering it only after checking if it's fresh, and checking the price tag, etc.) and I realize that there are a whole lot of people like me out there (many of whom work as reviewers and critics, and even creative productions and marketing). Working with "just any crap" won't work for us. Consumer won't consider something if it doesn't work for them. Plenty these days opt either for simplicity, fun or freedom. Many go for "efficiency", which is why I'm selective about what I use in the first place (and if it doesn't work for me, so long as it's Open and community-influenced, then I'll HELP them get better, as I've helped Synfig and the like). Working with OpenSource developers, like those who programmed Plume Creator, has shown me enough how important creative feedback is between phases rather than after the final product is done, because nobody knows the product better than the ones who will essentially consume it (or the programmers who "dog-feed" it, like Microsoft workers). Sure, once in a while you're gonna get PATHETIC responses, like "why can't this turtle fly", but often the kinds of feedback you get is so out-there that even the developers inside often scratch their heads wondering, "Why didn't I think of this before?"
You couldn't possibly imagine how much a single contribution from a community member can benefit so many people out there, especially with the professional development of Blender and all its countless plugins and scripts.
This is often why a lot of developers (at least the emerging kind) often work with the consumers, asking for advice and brainstorming. Not to please them, mind you, but to get
ideas on how to make things better.
Why?
Because no matter how right you think you are, there are plenty of times you're absolutely wrong. And nobody knows this better than myself (and Square Enix... well, probably).
As Alfador said, a project like this would need talent beyond the community. Thus a leader would be needed with connections beyond the community. Connections, talent, vision, and a passionate drive: that's a tall order.
Which is why we need to balance: We need the best of community, as well as the best of development professionals. Here,
let's not regress into the old-fashioned, traditional approach to business. Instead,
because we're born from community first and foremost, community itself -- despite a professional team we have -- can help propel us further. Here, we look no further than the inception of Celtx (which has... really regressed in its business model, but it began from a pretty awesome phase first) and Canonical (who, despite their recent transition to newer projects, have always worked closely with the community, which essentially helped them do the impossible).
A program like RPG Maker or GameMaker Studios could help simplify that process. I have access to both, and GameMaker even allows exports to the other devices (for a fee).
Other options to explore would definitely be
Unity and
Blender Game Engine -- both of which are free, unless you really want those Pro features.
But that doesn't answer our biggest question: what platforms are we targeting? PC / Consoles? Web? Mobile?
