Chrono Odyssey Closed Beta First Impressions – A Glimpse Into Time
As a gamer that's always had a soft spot for RPGs, Chrono Odyssey had stood out with its amazing visual trailers. Not wanting to really spoil it, I went into the Chrono Odyssey closed beta with fresh eyes, no developer deep-dives, no expectations. Sometimes, that’s the best way to approach a new MMO: completely unspoiled.
Character Customization
Right from the start, the character customization stood out. Not because there were a lot of customization defaults per se, but because there were options to make a truly unique character especially when it came to the details and body shape. It's always a plus when an MMO gives you room to express yourself visually right out of the gate.
Visuals and Animation
That said, the animations felt a bit rough. It might’ve been server lag, but the video sequences and character movement and some combat effects lacked polish. What should have been scary or gory was... funny in a way because of how rough it felt.
Combat Mechanics
Combat, at least in the early stages, was simple but promising. Attacks had a satisfying weight to them, and while it wasn’t particularly complex yet, I get the sense there’s room for growth. You can wield it seems two sets of weapons to toggle through, and you earn mastery of each type of weapon depending on the class you choose. This along with other assets hints at deeper mechanics that probably unlock as you progress.
Gathering and World Interaction
There’s also a basic gathering system implemented—mining, collecting herbs, and such—but it felt a little flat due to minimal animation feedback. I picked up random plants from the same type of bushes, and wasn't able to mine anything due to lack of a pick axe - and almost died for doing so. Hopefully that’s something that gets fleshed out in the final version.
The battlefield is filled with the fiends along with soldiers... again for me the individual graphics looked great, it's just the overall motion and cohesion needs a little work to make it fully immersive.
The map looked expansive, with you unlocking each section at a time. You have skills to follow I guess is the "flow of time" which in the beginning wasn't really necessary due to the handy navigation bar on top.
There is fall damage, and areas where you can or cannot jump up or climb up, etc is blurred so you just have to try and hope that it works.
Story and Worldbuilding
As for the story… well, it’s hard to say. The intro drops you into a world full of monsters and chaos, with a relic that sends you back in time. Some of the beginning sequences are chaos... and not in a good way. Your head honcho dies like a noodle by the big monster "boss" that moves around clunkily only to be annihilated by a blow by a pretty looking girl who for whatever reason sends me to the past even though it seems like she can just one shot everything... Beyond that, there wasn’t much context or exposition. I’m assuming more of the lore and narrative unfolds later, but at this stage, it feels a bit disconnected.
The voice acting stood out to me, but there wasn't much dialog and what there was failed to make me connected or invested in the characters, that I found myself more or less just skipping through the quest dialogues.
Final Thoughts
All in all, Chrono Odyssey shows potential. There are glimpses of a rich world and interesting systems, but it's definitely still early days. I’ll need to spend more time with the game to see if it all comes together—but for now, it’s a cautious watch this space.
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