Chrono Odyssey is a game that immediately caught my eye with its initial visuals, ambitious scope, and flashy action combat when it was revealed a few years ago. The action MMORPG promised to deliver a lot, but it has been stuck in development for a while. However, in response to the closed beta held on June 20th, the developers have announced a huge overhaul for most of the game’s systems in response to feedback.

The number of changes here is quite staggering, but I will do my best to provide an overview of the highlights. For starters, combat will be receiving numerous tweaks to animations, hit feedback, weapon swapping, and overall hitboxes to enhance seamless action. Camera and lock-on features are also being updated to reinforce this philosophy. Additionally, enemy AI will see some improvements to enhance difficulty and encourage strategic play patterns rather than simply forcing players to mash attacks and dodge over and over.

You can also expect adjustments to improve controller functionality. The current UI was not mapped around either setup, resulting in lots of confusion. Moving forward, the team will design controls and HUD based on each control scheme individually, rather than an awkward combination.

Second dungeons and side quests are being modified to enhance the quality of rewards, enhance distinct visual identity, and make player exploration worthwhile. This is a great decision. There have been many live-service games that have fallen into the trap of offering a lot of content that feels repetitive and loot that isn’t unique outside of increased stats.

The team is also placing a heavy emphasis on performance with a variety of technical adjustments. This was another big concern I had for the game, as its impressive visuals built in Unreal Engine 5 looked like they would tax even high-end PCs if not optimized correctly.

Finally, by far the most shocking change for me is the team’s decision to overhaul the game’s main narrative and sound design. The team stated that “the goal is to deliver a story that allows players to become more deeply immersed in the world and its lore.” It’s surprising to see such a radical change from a project that looked rather finalized in the beta. It is nonetheless a good sign that the team is committed to delivering a quality experience.

No doubt these changes will result in the full game being delayed for another few years, but I’m sure most people would rather the game launch in a playable state rather than be rushed out as most titles are these days. Developed by Chrono Studio, Chrono Odyssey will be published by Kakao Games and will be available for PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PS5. If you are interested in following Chrono Odyssey, you can wishlist the game on steam and read through the list of comprehensive changes that will be instituted following the beta.

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