The Future of Chrono (One Possibility)

[Darth Magus]

No, this is not about what happened in 1005 AD (although I will mention that).

This is about the future of the series at large.

I've been thinking about a way to bring back the Chrono Series for years, and eventually I formulated an idea that I would like to share with the Compendium.

Make Chrono the new Final Fantasy. 

It goes like this:  We have Chrono Trigger, with it's time travel, Lavos, and mutiple endings.   We take those three points, and make them the Chocobos and Moogles of Chrono.  In other words, make future Chrono games take place on other planets, infect each planet with Lavos, and have our new heroes travel through time to prevent the destruction of the future (or past.  After all, what's to stop the protagonist from being born after his/her planet's Day of Lavos?)  They could make each game as different as the FFs are by making each story original, and each Lavos different, with hints on the origin of the Lavos species and how the Lavoids work in each game. 

Since Square Enix announced that FFXIII would be the Final Fantasy, and they would concentrate on remaking the old games on new consoles, I see no reason why they cannot put their efforts into reviving Chrono in this way.  The only thing standing in their way is Masato Kato himself, as he may have plans for Chrono Break that involve our friends Chrono and company or Serge and company.  I personally feel they should make a mini-RPG detailing the Fall of Guardia, and make that the 15th ending in a future remake of Chrono Trigger.  However, Kato's plans regarding Guardia's future may need to be bigger than an extended ending of CT.  Meanwhile, I can still hope.

Discuss.

[V_Translanka]

Hello 20% of Chrono fanfics! Hell, even one of my own Chrono fanfics is based on this idea...It's kind of an obvious path to take. Since the end of Chrono Trigger (& then after the end of Chrono Cross) people have been saying that the series should go into space after other Lavos on other worlds. Some people don't like the idea of having Lavos (any Lavos) constantly being the final boss, though and I can sort of understand that...

FFXIII isn't going to be the final anything except maybe them deciding making big fuckfest compilations for each new installment might not be the best idea.

I don't think the Fall of Guardia needs to be a game in itself, but a new game can chronicle what happened there, especially if Crono & Marle aren't dead...or maybe if they just make it so you can actually go to Zenan again...>_>

Oh yeah, and I totally pulled that "20%" out of my ass...

[Jutty]

If Final Fantasy XIII is the last Final Fantasy I'll change my name to Luke Perry.

[Darth Magus]

If Final Fantasy XIII is the last Final Fantasy I'll change my name to Luke Perry.

Fine, I'll look it up again and either laugh in all your faces, or get laughed at.  Let's see.

EDIT: Never Mind. 

Actually it's not confirmation of FFXIV, but it does confirm that Square is not done yet with it's numbered babies.

You may begin the humiliation. 

I still think it's a good idea though, and FF can't last forever...

[V_Translanka]

I'm pretty sure they've at least bought websites for up to 17 or some such...or at least that's what I heard a while back...

And, yes, it can because 1) they don't need any connectivity between the sequels (besides maybe Magic & Chocobos or something), 2) they don't need the same teams behind them, & 3) PEOPLE CONTINUE TO BUY THE FUCK OUT OF THEM!!! It's hard for a series that's really hardly an actual series to lose any sort of popularity...People'll find at least one they really like, latch on to that and hope the series somehow pumps out another one like that again...

[mav]

Trust me, even if FF doesn't last forever, it's going to last for quite a while. Look at SE now: they're revamping, re-releasing, and porting older releases, they're adding new installments, sequels, and prequels to some of their releases and a little gaiden here or there, and the best part is that they don't need a formula for success: people just buy these games for whatever reason.

The biggest thing working against more CT installments is the desire to keep the same team working on the project, if we could overlook this aspect then some of the politics keeping this series from growing could be dealt with.


I gotta say that I like the idea of more stories in the series, but wouldn't releasing stories that aren't necessarily connected turn the Chrono series into another FF series? I'd personally like to see them preserve the greatness of this series by keeping some focus on continuity. I mean look at the Mana series--it started out with some great games, but what the hell is it now?

[Chocobo_Fan]

Yes, Final Fantasy is going to last until the end of time. Like V said, they don't need continuity, and they don't need the same teams working on them. And of course, there's the MONEY MONEY MONEY. We can't forget that. It's so popular and the games are so diverse that people simply buy, and buy, and buy. And buy.

It's an interesting idea, though I think the Chrono universe should put a different spin on it: Continuity. Making each game on some other planet where Lavos has struck is a good idea, though that could get tiresome after a while. I would like games that build and expand on each other, and we keep learning more and more about the universe. Perhaps you could even make one where the main villian isn't Lavos, something else...something interesting. (As much as I like Lavos, one of the things I find annoying about him is that he can't talk. We can never see his goals and views through his perspective. Though that can be a good thing) However, continuity means that, eventually, the series must come to a close...

Hm. It's interesting, I'll say that much. It needs polishing, though. We'll have to see what CT DS has in store for us.

[MagilsugaM]

Hello 20% of Chrono fanfics! Hell, even one of my own Chrono fanfics is based on this idea...It's kind of an obvious path to take. Since the end of Chrono Trigger (& then after the end of Chrono Cross) people have been saying that the series should go into space after other Lavos on other worlds. Some people don't like the idea of having Lavos (any Lavos) constantly being the final boss, though and I can sort of understand that...

FFXIII isn't going to be the final anything except maybe them deciding making big fuckfest compilations for each new installment might not be the best idea.

I don't think the Fall of Guardia needs to be a game in itself, but a new game can chronicle what happened there, especially if Crono & Marle aren't dead...or maybe if they just make it so you can actually go to Zenan again...>_>

Oh yeah, and I totally pulled that "20%" out of my ass...

Yeah but since Lavos would absorb DNA from another planet. His evolution will be different in every planet. For example if Lavos falls in FF7 world he will absorb mako energy and become invincible. 

[Boo the Gentleman Caller]

But there should always be an air of mystery around Lavos.  I LIKE that they leave him vague; it allows the imagination to run free.  Personally I don't want to know much more about Lavos.  Maybe the universe, yeah, but not about Lavos/Lavoids.

It's like Cthulhu mythology in Lovecraft's books - keep the monsters shadowy and mysterious. 

[Dunsparce]

I only like the first six FF's anyways...

One thing I don't want to see is the Chrono Series becomign the next FF. The fact that there are key storyline elements that connect the three Chrono games together is a good thing.




btw, even though Radical Dreamers was replaced in the main continuity by CC, it still is a Chrono Game, which is why I said three, not two.

[Darth Magus]

I only like the first six FF's anyways...

One thing I don't want to see is the Chrono Series becomign the next FF. The fact that there are key storyline elements that connect the three Chrono games together is a good thing.

FFVII was good, but Cloud is emo and should have been dealt with appropriately.  VI was the best.

As for the rest of your quote, you all have convinced me that it would be a bad idea.  I still think they could use the idea for DQ-style trilogies, but unless they get it perfect, we would get tired of always knowing it's Lavos at the heart of the problem. 

On that note, let's say they made a third game to build upon CT and CC, like a DQ-style trilogy, only with more plot connections.  Who would be the final boss?  Lavos -> Time Devourer -> ???.  How do you one-up a being that devours Time and Space itself?  And in another trilogy, it could be the same Lavos -> Time Devourer -> ??? scenario, but with different models this time (remember, sprites are extinct).  So yeah, it needs to be absolutely perfect, or the whole franchise goes downhill. 

Personally, I am the exact opposite of a graphics junkie, having grown up on the Game Boy line rather than any console, so I might not buy these flashy Hi-Def Chrono games anyway, if they ever get made. 

[placidchap]

hi-def sprites would be bitchin'.

Did the TD devour space as well?  I thought it was just the Time Devourer?  Not the Space-Time Devourer...or does one go with the other.

the ??? could be the entity, shown to be a 1337 Nu with mad skillz.

[mav]

I agree that topping a time-devouring beast would be tough, but a boss villain doesn't necessarily have to be a destructive monstrosity: anyone with an ulterior motive could function as a good villain for the series. I think we've gotten too used to the idea that a game needs to end with destroying some huge being, perhaps a new installment in the series could be something a little less RPG and a little more James Bond--someone with devious means gets control of something powerful and uses it to their own advantage. Obviously that something powerful would be anything that controls or affects time, and the possibilities with using it to their own advantage are basically endless.

[V_Translanka]

Well, through RD we know that it doesn't exactly have to be Lavos at end game, yeah? Although, personally I think the origins of the Lavos species might be interesting...I've always been one who's liked to think of them as a world warfare biological weapon gone wrong kind of thing...or maybe it was originally a dying planet's attempt at saving the genetic material of their world (like a Superman origin if Superman didn't suck)...but maybe Boo has a point with the whole mysteriousness of the origin...I just can't help but think of that as being a cop-out...

[TimeJammer81]

What trips me up is how people can think the FF series will end so SOON when it's still obviously going strong. It's brought up with every installment. I remember when FFXII was announced, you had all these people saying, "Oh, this must be the FINAL Final Fantasy!". LOL, not the case. If anything, most interviews with the FF developers seems to state otherwise. I believe one had Kitase stating that he'd love to be involved with FF games up until he dies. Others basically said that as long as there are fans out there wanting FF games, Square will make them.