Chronotron
Encyclopedia
Chronotron is a flash video game developed by Scarybug Games.
Chronotron launched on the Kongregate
website in May 2008.
It is notable for having been selected as one of ten games in the PAX 10 2008 out of over eighty entries.
It has been described as innovative.
The protagonist is a robot named Chronotron which travels back in time to cooperate with himself.
The main character must fetch an item before moving to the next room.
Solving the puzzles requires sending the main character back in time to coordinate with previous selves.
The gameplay requires thinking ahead.
Chronotron records the control input, not the protagonist's position.
As a result, actions by later selves can interfere with earlier selves.
A number of web sites have licensed Chronotron, including Kongregate
and MTV's AddictingGames. It was featured on the front page of Kongregate.
The game appears on over 2,000 web sites
and has been played more than seven million times.
The developer splits advertising revenue evenly with Kongregate and has made more than $1,000. The developer has made nearly $15,000 in profits from the game.
based Scarybug Games, which consists of a single person: Joe Rheaume.
Rheaume was the sole developer of Chronotron.
Development for Chronotron took seven months.
Chronotrons sponsorship support was handled through FlashGameLicense.com.
Interest in sponsoring Chronotron allowed Scarybug Games to hire Romanian artist Bogdan Ene to replace the graphics.
Royalty free music was purchased for the game.
The music's author is Helge Krabye.
Sound effects came from the Freesound Project.
Chronotrons time travel elements was inspired by advertising for the Xbox
game Blinx: The Time Sweeper
and an article on Braid
.
Rheaume claims to not have played Blinx.
Chronotron was released before the release of Braid.
Rheaume claims to have "thought of the idea of recording input and going back looping on yourself."
Rheaume wanted there to be no limit on how many times you could travel back in time.
The game contains references to time travel stories including Back to the Future
, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
, and Doctor Who
.
The puzzle platformer elements were inspired by The Lost Vikings
.
Rheaume notes the similarity between cooperating with your self to the cooperation between the three Vikings in The Lost Vikings.
Puzzle pacing, with later puzzles building on what is learned earlier, was inspired by Portal.
Portal also inspired the use of humorous signs in game as hints.
Rheaume is a Flash developer for his day job.
Chronotron was built as a hobby.
As a hobby, Rheaume can develop ideas which don't fit the ideas, time constraints, and budgets of his regular job's client projects.
Chronotron was developed because Rheaume thought it would be fun to play.
Rheaume developed it further because he "thought it really had legs."
Interest from other people kept Rheaume going.
The name of the game and the protagonist comes from "chrono" for "time" and "tron" as a generic term for "robot."
Joe Rheaume was an invited guest to show Chronotron to the Penny Arcade Expo
in 2008 as part of the PAX 10.
Chronotron was selected as one of ten games from over eighty submitted.
Chronotron is the only browser-based Flash game in the PAX 10 2008.
Chronotron has been described as "a very deep, complex game involving time travel and past selves."
Game designer Greg Costikyan
described Chronotron as "a simple, satisfying, and enjoyable exploration of the effects of one novel mechanic on a well-established form."
A review on Jay Is Games
described Chronotron as "a platform puzzler with a really innovative (and addictive) twist."
The same review said of the "rewind mechanic", "the concept is refined—and executed almost to perfection."
A reviewer on Rock, Paper, Shotgun said "Certainly I feel worn out after wrapping my head around a few levels, but also satisfied and pleased — you really should go play this."
Kotaku
called it "a hell of a fun flash game."
Gawker.com
rated Chronotron "Pretty pretty good" and said "If you loved Portal, you'll like this enough for two lunch breaks."
Jamie Fristrom of Torpex Games, a fellow honoree at the PAX 10, said, "Chronotron is actually my favorite of the PAX 10."
A GameCyte author "wholeheartedly recommend[ed] Chronotron to any and all puzzle fans."
Hecklerspray described Chronotron as "incredible" and "so impressively playable that it'll probably kill your productivity for the day stone dead."
The developer believes the "biggest" and "fairest criticism" are problems with synchronizing robots actions between time loops.
Chronotron launched on the Kongregate
Kongregate
Kongregate is an online games hosting website owned by Gamestop Corporation, which allows users to upload user-created Adobe Flash or Unity3D games. It features an API that Flash and Unity developers can integrate into their games which allows users to submit high scores and in some games, earn...
website in May 2008.
It is notable for having been selected as one of ten games in the PAX 10 2008 out of over eighty entries.
It has been described as innovative.
The protagonist is a robot named Chronotron which travels back in time to cooperate with himself.
The main character must fetch an item before moving to the next room.
Solving the puzzles requires sending the main character back in time to coordinate with previous selves.
The gameplay requires thinking ahead.
Chronotron records the control input, not the protagonist's position.
As a result, actions by later selves can interfere with earlier selves.
A number of web sites have licensed Chronotron, including Kongregate
Kongregate
Kongregate is an online games hosting website owned by Gamestop Corporation, which allows users to upload user-created Adobe Flash or Unity3D games. It features an API that Flash and Unity developers can integrate into their games which allows users to submit high scores and in some games, earn...
and MTV's AddictingGames. It was featured on the front page of Kongregate.
The game appears on over 2,000 web sites
and has been played more than seven million times.
The developer splits advertising revenue evenly with Kongregate and has made more than $1,000. The developer has made nearly $15,000 in profits from the game.
Development
Chronotron was developed by Madison, WisconsinMadison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
based Scarybug Games, which consists of a single person: Joe Rheaume.
Rheaume was the sole developer of Chronotron.
Development for Chronotron took seven months.
Chronotrons sponsorship support was handled through FlashGameLicense.com.
Interest in sponsoring Chronotron allowed Scarybug Games to hire Romanian artist Bogdan Ene to replace the graphics.
Royalty free music was purchased for the game.
The music's author is Helge Krabye.
Sound effects came from the Freesound Project.
Chronotrons time travel elements was inspired by advertising for the Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
game Blinx: The Time Sweeper
Blinx: The Time Sweeper
Blinx: The Time Sweeper is a platform game developed by Artoon and published by Microsoft Game Studios. It was released for the Xbox on October 7, 2002...
and an article on Braid
Braid (video game)
Braid is a platform and puzzle video game developed by independent software developer Jonathan Blow. The game was released on August 6, 2008 for the Xbox 360's Xbox Live Arcade service. A Microsoft Windows version was released on April 10, 2009. Hothead Games ported and released the game to Mac OS...
.
Rheaume claims to not have played Blinx.
Chronotron was released before the release of Braid.
Rheaume claims to have "thought of the idea of recording input and going back looping on yourself."
Rheaume wanted there to be no limit on how many times you could travel back in time.
The game contains references to time travel stories including Back to the Future
Back to the Future
Back to the Future is a 1985 American science-fiction adventure film. It was directed by Robert Zemeckis, written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale, produced by Steven Spielberg, and starred Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover and Thomas F. Wilson. The film tells the story of...
, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure is a 1989 American science fiction–comedy buddy film and the first film in the Bill & Ted franchise in which two metalhead slackers travel through time to assemble a menagerie of historical figures for their high school history presentation.The film was written by...
, and Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
.
The puzzle platformer elements were inspired by The Lost Vikings
The Lost Vikings
The Lost Vikings is a side-scrolling puzzle/platform video game series which was developed by Silicon & Synapse . The first game, The Lost Vikings, was released in 1992 by publisher Interplay Entertainment for DOS, Amiga, Sega Mega Drive and SNES among others...
.
Rheaume notes the similarity between cooperating with your self to the cooperation between the three Vikings in The Lost Vikings.
Puzzle pacing, with later puzzles building on what is learned earlier, was inspired by Portal.
Portal also inspired the use of humorous signs in game as hints.
Rheaume is a Flash developer for his day job.
Chronotron was built as a hobby.
As a hobby, Rheaume can develop ideas which don't fit the ideas, time constraints, and budgets of his regular job's client projects.
Chronotron was developed because Rheaume thought it would be fun to play.
Rheaume developed it further because he "thought it really had legs."
Interest from other people kept Rheaume going.
The name of the game and the protagonist comes from "chrono" for "time" and "tron" as a generic term for "robot."
Reception
The game was selected as one of the ten games for the prestigious PAX 10 in 2008.Joe Rheaume was an invited guest to show Chronotron to the Penny Arcade Expo
Penny Arcade Expo
The Penny Arcade Expo is a semi-annual gamer festival held in Seattle and Boston. PAX was created by Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik, the authors of the Penny Arcade webcomic, because they wanted to attend a show that gave equal attention to console gamers, computer gamers, and tabletop...
in 2008 as part of the PAX 10.
Chronotron was selected as one of ten games from over eighty submitted.
Chronotron is the only browser-based Flash game in the PAX 10 2008.
Chronotron has been described as "a very deep, complex game involving time travel and past selves."
Game designer Greg Costikyan
Greg Costikyan
Greg Costikyan, sometimes known under the pseudonym "Designer X" , is an American game designer and science fiction writer.Costikyan's career spans nearly all extant genres of gaming, including hex-based wargames, role-playing games, boardgames, card games, computer games, online games and mobile...
described Chronotron as "a simple, satisfying, and enjoyable exploration of the effects of one novel mechanic on a well-established form."
A review on Jay Is Games
Jay Is Games
Jay Is Games is a game review website that features daily updates and links to casual games, browser games and flash games of wide interest to casual gamers...
described Chronotron as "a platform puzzler with a really innovative (and addictive) twist."
The same review said of the "rewind mechanic", "the concept is refined—and executed almost to perfection."
A reviewer on Rock, Paper, Shotgun said "Certainly I feel worn out after wrapping my head around a few levels, but also satisfied and pleased — you really should go play this."
Kotaku
Kotaku
Kotaku is a video games-focused blog. It is part of Gawker Media's "Gawker" network of sites, which also includes Gizmodo, Deadspin, Lifehacker, io9 and Jezebel. Named to CNET News' Blog 100, Kotaku is consistently listed in the top 40 of Technorati's Top 100...
called it "a hell of a fun flash game."
Gawker.com
Gawker.com
Gawker is a newsmagazine/blog based in New York City that bills itself as "the source for daily Manhattan media news and gossip" and focuses on celebrities and the media industry....
rated Chronotron "Pretty pretty good" and said "If you loved Portal, you'll like this enough for two lunch breaks."
Jamie Fristrom of Torpex Games, a fellow honoree at the PAX 10, said, "Chronotron is actually my favorite of the PAX 10."
A GameCyte author "wholeheartedly recommend[ed] Chronotron to any and all puzzle fans."
Hecklerspray described Chronotron as "incredible" and "so impressively playable that it'll probably kill your productivity for the day stone dead."
The developer believes the "biggest" and "fairest criticism" are problems with synchronizing robots actions between time loops.
External links
- Chronotron on Scarybug Games (download)
- Chronotron with bonus levels on KongregateKongregateKongregate is an online games hosting website owned by Gamestop Corporation, which allows users to upload user-created Adobe Flash or Unity3D games. It features an API that Flash and Unity developers can integrate into their games which allows users to submit high scores and in some games, earn...
(download) - Scarybug Games