Cronos: The New Dawn is Leaving Money on the Table By Not…

With Cronos: The New Dawn, developer Bloober Team has created a terrifying new world for its latest survival horror title. The studio's previous project was the Silent Hill 2 Remake, which obviously had its setting and story already in place. But following that successful endeavor, Bloober swiftly announced its next project, Cronos: The New Dawn which marks the first fresh IP in Bloober's lineup since 2021's The Medium.

Cronos The New Dawn screenshot traveling looking out at orange ruins

However, it also pays homage to some of the genre's greats, particularly Dead Space, as developers pointed to Visceral Games' 2008 classic as a major template for much of Cronos: The New Dawn's core design and style. Dead Space' s shadow indeed looms quite large over Cronos, as is apparent in aspects of its presentation and gameplay design. And with this being the case, there is another way that Bloober could take a cue from its Dead Space inspirations for Cronos via an animated adaptation similar to the former's.

Cronos: The New Dawn is Ripe For an Animated Adaptation Like Dead Space: Downfall

Cronos new dawn Traveler with orphans in background

Dead Space: Downfall is an Oft-Forgotten But Excellent Animated Tie-in

Produced by production house Film Roman and released shortly after the original game, Dead Space: Downfall is an animated prequel that fills out some of the background and behind-the-scenes happenings leading up to the start of the game. It covers the events on the doomed Ishimura prior to Isaac Clarke and the crew of the Kellion arriving to investigate the bloody aftermath of the Necromorph outbreak. Dead Space: Downfall features a compelling cast of characters and storyline that adds context and connects to the plot of Dead Space. It may not be as remembered as the game itself, but it is a quality piece of ancillary material and helps inform the franchise's greater universe.

Dead Space actually received more tie-in material in the form of a graphic novel series penned by Antony Johnston that was also published ahead of the first game. A second animated movie, Dead Space: Aftermath, was then released alongside Dead Space 2, again acting as a prequel to the second entry.

How Cronos: The New Dawn Could Follow its Clear Dead Space Ambitions into an Animated Film Like Downfall

Cronos new dawn Traveler in safe room w gun

Cronos: The New Dawn's plot is split between two timelines, one in a post-apocalyptic future and the other at the start of the 1980s when things first started to go awry. A hypothetical animated adaptation of Cronos ala Dead Space: Downfall could build upon the story of the mysterious time-traveling protagonist, The Traveler, and their partner, The Warden, as the two strive to complete their mission of combing the past in search of the humans known as "Essences." These are figures who were present during the onset of the cataclysmic plague called the Change, and are apparently somehow linked to finding the potential cure, and could also form the basis of a new tale.

There are thus multiple avenues left to explore in the world of Cronos: The New Dawn, each of which could be further fleshed out in a full-length animated work similar to Dead Space: Downfall. An adaptation of this kind could then further showcase the creativity and vision behind Cronos' interesting premise and universe. It would also allow Bloober to tell new stories and provide fans with additional tantalizing information that adds to or recontextualizes the existing lore, especially as some of the details remain vague even after thoroughly seeking out various notes and analyzing environmental clues contained in the game.

Cronos The New Dawn Bloober Team Brutalist Art Design

Finally, an animated adaptation would create an opportunity to bring in new fans or even possibly set up a sequel down the line if it proved popular. It would be especially fitting in this case, given Cronos' clear Dead Space influence. And while Bloober has not announced any plans at this time regarding future projects for the IP, Cronos: The New Dawn's distinct world and characters contain a lot of untapped potential, and there are some good ways they could be expanded on through an excellent animated project akin to Dead Space: Downfall.

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