Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power is notorious for a few things. The first is that it radically changed the gameplay style from its predecessors, segmenting the fan base in the process. The other is that the relative failure of the game nearly bankrupted developer Frozenbyte. Costing roughly three times as much as Trine 2, the polarizing reception and lack of sales left the future of the series up in the air.
After working on a few smaller projects in the interim, Frozenbyte announced late last year that Trine 4 was finally happening. Returning the series to its 2.5D roots, the game would be a continuation of what fans found so endearing about the original duo of titles. All of the physics-based puzzles and co-op shenanigans would be present as well as a new four-player co-op option. This title sounds like a real winner on paper.
I recently got to sit down with Frozenbyte’s vice president Joel Kinnunen and marketing manager Kai Tuovinen to see the first gameplay reveal of Trine 4. As well as getting caught up on how it looks and plays, I was able to ask a few things with regards to how Trine 3‘s failure shaped the development of this new entry. It seems all the backlash has been taken to heart, as both guys repeatedly stated they looked at what made the original games so good in the first place.
Source: Destructoid Trine 4 seems to be on the right path