With Chrono Odyssey, at least a major MMORPG for PC and consoles is set to be released in 2025. Now the developers have published a 20-minute video in which they talk about their ambitious MMORPG for the first time in this form.
What do the developers of Chrono Studio reveal? Below, we summarize the most important insights from the 20-minute interview about Chrono Odyssey, dividing these into thematically appropriate sections. If you want to watch the interview video yourself, visit YouTube or click start below:
Goals, Setting, and World of Chrono Odyssey
For the developers, it has been a high priority from the beginning that the basic character development during the leveling phase is as much fun as the later endgame. Another focus is on offering players a limitless world without loading screens.
In this world, you will be able to wander through forests, chop down trees, fish, or battle strong monsters with other players. While nature has been designed to be as realistic as possible, extraterrestrial structures continually provide a strong visual contrast.
In Chrono Odyssey, there is no typical fantasy setting. There are influences from cosmic horror, as well as a threat to humanity reminiscent of the Zerg from StarCraft. In fact, many scenes from the video and previous trailers recall dark fantasy soulslikes like Lords of the Fallen.
Similar to Black Desert, Chrono Odyssey features a parkour/climbing system, allowing characters to access the roofs of houses or the walls of ruins. Exploring the world plays an important role. Therefore, the game also refrains from holding your hand and leading you to your goal with flashing indicators.
Chrono Odyssey and Time
In the world of Setera, past, present, and future collide. The resulting threats are meant to manifest not only through the challenges in the game but also be supported by an “epic narrative”. In Chrono Odyssey, there is a main quest line that should give players more freedom than in other MMORPGs.
As for the impact of time on gameplay and the world, the RPG classic Chrono Trigger is an important inspiration for the team. Also in Chrono Odyssey, you should use time to prevent a cataclysmic event.
For time manipulation, you use the Chronotector. With this, you can reveal hidden paths or restore destroyed routes while exploring.
Below you will find the trailer for Chrono Odyssey, setting the stage for the upcoming beta in June:
Leveling, Crafting, and Dungeons – the Activities
The activities in Chrono Odyssey include crafting, trials, and Chrono Gates for single players and expedition dungeons, as well as fights against world bosses for groups. Since everything is rewarded with experience, you can level up through gathering resources and crafting items if you wish.
In Chrono Gates, you will face tough bosses that you must defeat one-on-one. Trials, on the other hand, are meant to offer more than just combat. There, soloists will also find traps, puzzles, and random mechanics often tied to the time manipulations.
Expeditions, on the other hand, are dungeon challenges for 3 players, where each member must take on a specific role. World bosses, however, are aimed at 5-player teams or even larger alliances.
Additionally, there are so-called labyrinths, meaning rifts in time and space, where special challenges await you, focusing on exploring an area, overcoming obstacles, and uncovering secrets.
Through time portals, you switch to the past, giving you access to rare materials and items linked to the history of the world. The bounty hunting offers goal-oriented quests for the open world.
Instead of large sieges and arena PvP, Chrono Odyssey relies on a PvEvP system, where smaller groups compete for world boss loot. Overall, the group content of the MMORPG is designed for rather small groups of 5 players.
Through crafting, you can create and further enhance armor, among other things. The materials for this are gathered through exploration and battles. According to the developers, every play style is meant to lead to the goal. In other words: Those who avoid combat and focus on crafting should still be able to obtain the best possible equipment.
Classes and Combat in Chrono Odyssey
The character selection will likely take place at a card table, where six heroes sit, representing the different classes. The Berserker is visible, who can specialize in the three weapon types “Chain Blades”, “Twin Axes”, and “Battle Axe”. Next is the Assassin, with possible specializations for “Sabre”, “Wrist Blades”, and “Musket”.
A quick look at the character creation of the game shows that the models are very detailed:
The class system with the various weapon categories is meant to provide you with a lot of freedom, allowing you to take on different roles. In groups, for example, you can heal and deal damage solo.
The combat system relies on switching between two weapons and active dodging and parrying – similar to what was done recently in Throne and Liberty – so that not only the values of the character determine the outcome of the battle. The skills have cooldowns. If you rely solely on one weapon, you will only have part of the possible skills available, which can quickly cause problems with elite bosses.
According to the developers, the skills are often designed to serve multiple functions, meaning you should use them situationally to get the most out of them.
The Beta of Chrono Odyssey
Finally, the developers talked about the further roadmap. The upcoming beta will be the first public test of Chrono Odyssey. The aim is to gather as much feedback as possible to improve the game before launch. Unfortunately, they again did not provide a clear date for interested players. The only certain thing is that the test is scheduled for June 2025.
What the developers emphasize, however, is that after the launch, the game will be regularly expanded to offer new regions, classes, and activities. Chrono Odyssey is set to be released in 2025 for Steam, Epic Games, PS5, and Xbox Series. If you want to participate in the test, you can find the known information here: Closed Beta of Chrono Odyssey starts soon – here’s how to participate and what’s included
