Topic: So uh...does anyone remember Trauma Center?

I just had this weird flashback today to me playing Trauma Team on the Wii when I was much younger and looking up videos of it I remembered that the Trauma franchise was one of the best Atlus franchises out, the characters in that game were genuinely well-written, voice acted by big-name actors, the art and presentation was outstanding and the story was also impressively unique and touching.

Combine that with the different styles of gameplay (forensics, surgery, detective work) and I remembered a fantastic game, which unfortunately didn't sell really well when Trauma Team hit store shelves. I was just wondering if anybody here shares the same sentiment towards this game/series or if it's just like my other obsession with Endless Ocean where nobody even knows what I'm talking about.

Is this something people want at all from Atlus or is everything Atlus makes now going to just be Persona and SMT? Since SEGA has bought them out it doesn't seem like they've been deviating much from their popular mainline series, which is a shame because the Switch with its touchscreen and pretty much two functioning wii-motes could make great control schemes for a new game in the series.

To add onto this, it's really making me think how many overlooked Wii franchises there are which haven't received a follow-up since their debut on the system. Thank god we're getting No More Heroes 3, but there were so many cool games on the Wii which just went completely MIA. Remember Conduit? What about Zack & Wiki??

EDIT: Also just gotta mention this really quick, Trauma Team chronologically takes place in 2020 and is primarily about a deadly virus. Just saying.

I played the original on DS, but haven't touched the series since. I felt it was the first great game that used dual screen functionality for gameplay and not just for menu navigation or a mapping system. As for Atlus's development output? I think they've struggled slightly with developing HD games. Comparatively, their output for DS, 3DS, PSP, and PS Vita was tremendous.

Yeah, I loved New Blood on Wii. Always meant to buy Trauma Team, but never got around to it. Last I checked, used copies had gotten pretty expensive. Endless Ocean was cool too.

Wii got shat on for lacking "hardcore" games, but it had a very unique library. You had to sift through some crap, but with a little research the gems were not hard to find.

I played both DS entries, but didn't have a Wii at the time to try those out. I did manage to get my hands on the Trauma Team disc at a yard sale semi-recently, gotta go back and try that one out.

It's definitely a series I'd like to see come back but... it really needs IR controls for precision. I'm hoping the Switch's successor has IR built into the dock so games like that can return. There's already an IR sensor on the controller after all.

@Knighty_IX Oh, the difficulty of the Trauma games is absolutely nothing to poke fun at. There aren't that many S-rank videos even on YouTube to find, especially when playing on the hardest difficulties. There was a ton of replay value in those games.

@Magician The thing is, Atlus doesn't need to go all out on presentation with a game like a Trauma Team follow-up. It's not their biggest franchise, and their previous games were done in essentially a stylistic slide-show with very basic 3D models and effects for gameplay. Of course they can improve a lot on the presentation from those entries, but it doesn't have to be the next Breath of the Wild in terms of graphics and the resources it takes to make. I just want to see more obscure Atlus games, which they have so many of and they don't seem to even remember half of them.

@link3710 I think you should definitely give it a shot, it was one of my favourite games as a kid and back then I didn't understand half of the game and themes. I'm watching playthroughs of it at the moment and it's surprising how much story and drama they were able to squeeze into a nice doctor minigame collection.

Trauma Team deviates a little bit from the originals by adding something like a Phoenix Wright game in the middle but with a much more serious undertone and it's really cool that these 6 characters with their own issues and personalities fit together into an intertwined story, it shares a LOT of Persona's DNA in writing, but with a much more down to earth, realistic and serious tone.

The game series was probably the bigger western franchise that Atlus owned as the games were some of the only ones in their catalogue that performed better overseas than in Japan. For that reason Trauma Team is also based in America rather than Japan.

Needless to say it also has fantastic music as per standard with Atlus games and the ending theme 'Gonna Be Here', as anime as it is, is actually very catchy. Maybe that's because of my nostalgia for the game, but yeah if you have free time, definitely give it a shot. As the other person said it may not be as easy to find copies of this game around anymore.

Only reason I'd tell you not to play it is if you are sensitive to blood and drug use and such. The game itself isn't gory or anything, but because it's grounded in reality it harbors a stronger sensitive reaction out of me than something like Dead Space, Outlast or Silent Hill. Crime scenes especially may involve a lot of suicidal imagery, which isn't fully shown but explained in a lot of detail.

@Varkster Nah, I definitely plan to play it. I already played 1&2 after all, I know more or less what I'm getting into.

Also, as for them making a modern one, I think they'd be best off just using some high-def 2D artwork for the story segments and background, and only having the actual bodies in 3D. There's no need for multiple camera angles or the like, leaving it as a nice looking visual novel is fine.

It's kinda like how 3D models in Phoenix Wright probably contributed more in cost than they actually added to the series. The HD remakes of the original trilogy look better than 5/6 for that reason.

@link3710 When you play it, I suggest maybe following a roadmap to play it in chronological order, the game does a good job setting up how the timeline works but for biggest effect it's recommended to play in a certain order of events since the game is split up between 6 characters.

As for a new entry, I agree. It makes sense why they didn't want to make one for the Wii U because of its utterly low install base, especially since the game performed better in the West.

I wouldn't even mind if they re-released the games on the PC with mouse controls, but something tells me Nintendo would have tight grips on that and wouldn't allow Atlus do this on their own.

If anything, I'd be happy with them even remastering the games for the Switch with altered control schemes. There is a certain character in Trauma Team which suffered greatly because of the Wii control implementation. It could easily be changed up for gyro control and the two thumbsticks.

In terms of 3D models, wholeheartedly agreed. 3D would probably hurt the stylised approach to the game. I would like them to refine the 2D aesthetic. Also putting more detail into bodies you operate on and deviating from the surreal kind of feel to them would more than likely bump the ESRB rating up and drive a lot of sales away from the game.

Keep in mind also that Trauma Team is actually quite lengthy. You're probably looking at a good 30h of game on your first playthrough if you're not using a guide.

yeah i use to play it on wii with the wii remote, i liked it but was not mad about it, i think it was a big thing cause you could use the wii remote sensor with it.

I've only played New Blood on Wii, which I bought upon its Australian launch back in the day.

It was stupidly difficult and I had only managed to complete the main story at the easiest difficulty, from memory. I did not dare approach the ultra-difficult "plus" missions. The main stages were bad enough. It feels like a lifetime ago now as it was one of my earliest Wii purchases.

Trauma Team was never released in Australia/Europe, unfortunately, so I never had a chance to play that.

I would absolutely leap at a new game on Switch though. The IR camera and HD rumble could make the experience all the more immersive.

@Silly_G The Phoenix Wright sections of Trauma Team were actually surprisingly complex and well-written, I suggest looking gameplay up if for nothing else but story if you're interested. I wasn't even aware they didn't release a European version of the game

@Varkster : Phoenix Wright was in Trauma Centre?????

Holy crap!

@Silly_G I might look like a smooth brain replying to this because I don't know if you're joking hahaha but I meant there are sections which are essentially detective work that play out a lot like Phoenix Wright. Just written in Atlus style.