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[SonOfABeep]

I feel asleep multiple times playing this game back when it was released.

I remember i got both it and Pokemon Blue the same christmas - we had like 7 days off school for this huge snow blizzard and I put an absurd amount of time into Pokemon while I have never gotten more than a few hours into xenogears.

Worth trying again?

Did they make that fucking text scroll any faster?

Worth $10 just for the music? I remember that being quite awesome.

 

[May16]

Worth trying again?

Yes.

Did they make that fucking text scroll any faster?

No.

Worth $10 just for the music? I remember that being quite awesome.

Yes.

Anyone who enjoys turn-based JRPGs should at least give this a shot. I reckon you're a somewhat different persona than you were 12 years ago, yeah? Worth a try. I like several games now, that I never would have back then, and vice versa.

 

[CerebralTiger]

I played it a while ago, used epsxe. Sprites looked like shit, everything else looked good.

It's because of this that I chose to keep myself away from playing Xenogears via epsxe. Probably one of the rare cases (with PS1 games) where emulation is as harmful as it is beneficial.

 

[SonOfABeep]

I guess i'll give it a try. I just remember the story being boring as shit and that text scrolling speed putting it over the edge.

Seems to be common sentinment from back then, oh well it's only $10 and I do like playing PSOne games on the PSPgo a lot more.

 

[Alucrid]

Wait, so is the combat similar to Xenosaga?

 

[Noisepurge]

damn you all! with all the glorious ravings, you forced me to buy this from PSN ! ;D

 

[Leckan]

Epic is a word that is used far to often these days. But this game is the very definition of it. So many crazy off-the wall moments. So many memorable set-pieces and plot twists.

Just the best.

 

[B.K.]

Wait, so is the combat similar to Xenosaga?

Just Episode I. Xenosaga Episode I's battle system is basically a reworked version of the one in Xenogears.

 

[thundr51]

I still have my disks for this (and Vagrant Story). I remember I stopped playing it when my 3rd party memory card corrupted all my saves. I was at the end of Disk 2. Don't know if I have the time or willpower to go back...

 

[Trojita]

Oh if anyone wanted to know a supposed "Disc One Game Breaker" I will put it in spoilers.

Spoiler

There is an accessory called Ether Doubler that you can buy in Nissan, that when equipped does 2x the damage of an Ether attack while using 2x the Ether Points. If you equip these on Elly and then use the move Aerods while she is in her gear which uses fuel instead of Ether Points, she will do 2x the damage using Aerods while not consuming twice as much fuel.

 

[lordmrw]

Just occured to me that I still have my save file from 2001 that i backed up on a disk using a dex drive. Maybe some day i'll get back to it, but at this point 10 years later I'm better off starting from the beginning as I remember next to nothing about the game.

 

[Vorador]

It's because of this that I chose to keep myself away from playing Xenogears via epsxe. Probably one of the rare cases (with PS1 games) where emulation is as harmful as it is beneficial.

Well, it was more of 3D graphics looking too clean. I kept the sprites unfiltered and the contrast is....noticeable, to say the least.

And in that playtrough i realized just how much some abilities are broken.

Spoiler

Aerods + Power Magic + Ether Doubler = 4000 or so of damage per turn. When i fought Seibzehn in Solaris, it lasted me two turns.

 

[ULTROS!]

I see a Tifa poster.

 

[Trojita]

I see a Tifa poster.

Any idea on who the person on the left is?

 

[ULTROS!]

Lupin?

 

[DMeisterJ]

Just got around to starting my replay today and made it to first meet Elly... God, the music brings back memories.

 

[B.K.]

God, the music brings back memories.

Xenogears has one of the best soundtracks in a Square Enix game. Small Two of Pieces is the best vocal song in a Square Enix production ever.

 

[Zaraki_Kenpachi]

I now have 4 copies of this game!

 

[LProtag]

Spring break just technically started for me. Guess I should get playing. Nostalgia all over the place.

 

[Zwei]

I now have 4 copies of this game!

I know that feel. I now have 3 copies myself.

-Original Black Label copy (bought on day 1)
-Green Label Greatest Hits copy (bought in 2003)
-PSN Digital copy (bought a few days ago)

...And I'm loving it.

 

[LProtag]

I can't find my original copy, but the disc freezes anyway.

Still, I had fond memories of getting it. My grandparents got it for me as a gift while I was shopping with them and staying with them while my parents were out of town. I read the instruction manual a billion times because my Playstation wasn't at their house.

Ah, memories.

 

[Trojita]

I was thinking about making an entry in the OP about how the graphics old up today.



What I'd like to find out and if anyone could do this experiment it would be great. Suposedly because the PS3 forces the PS1/PS2 games to Progressive the graphics get messed up. The other thing I have heard is that it is possible your TV might be a better scaler than the PS3 which is automatically converting it from Interlaced to Progressive. I realize that sometimes HDMI, VGA, and Component cables each displaying the same image on the same resolution can look wildly different to begin with.

The experiment would be to run a game like Xenogears on your PS3 through component cables on 480i and compare that to how it looks through HDMI on 1080p/720p.

CRT with component cables/S-cable = Great as far as the game will look exactly like how it used to.
HDCRT = Great?
PS2 with component cables on HDTV = ?
PS3 with component cables on 480i = ?
PS3 with HDMI = ?

 

[AwRy108]

I feel asleep multiple times playing this game back when it was released.

LOL, so did I--the text speed was way too slow and their was way too much of it.

 

[ocadman]

Game is still as good as I remembered.

 

[DIrtyWeasel]

This game looks pretty bad on my 40" TV, but it looks great on the PSP Go.

 

[MoonsaultSlayer]

I'd commit sins for a fully realised anime/cartoon/cg series which explores the entirety of Xengears' lore.

Spoiler

Boo to anyone who mentions Evangelion

 

[Munsu_88]

Just finished the game for the first time. and oh boy, this was definitely the best gaming experience I've ever had. It's hard to believe that a game with such scale and ambition, in terms of story, exists in "the world of video games".
My only gripe with the game was the battle system. I kinda got bored with it by the end of the disc 1 but thank god for disc 2 !!
with that said, this game is/will be? my top game forevaaar <3


Here's hoping that the Xenosaga series is as half as good Xenogears !

 

[SentientStone]

Would the PSN release work on firmware 6.20 (or 6.20 TN-D) on the PSP Go?
I can't get the rip to work on the Go, so I may just rebuy it again if it works on 6.20.

 

[Edgeward]

Here's hoping that the Xenosaga series is as half as good Xenogears !

Do not play episode 2, whatever you do. It's just awful and the battle system there is tedious for regular enemy encounters.

 

[The Praiseworthy]

Here's hoping that the Xenosaga series is as half as good Xenogears !

I don't care about all the hate... but IMO Xenosaga 1 and 3 are as good as Xenogears and you will enjoy them so much if you loved XG ( Saga 3 is one of the best JRPG of the last decade ).

Xenosaga 2 is an "ok"... it's the reason why the series was cut in half ( damn you namco for middling -_-" ).

 

[Zwei]

Xenosaga I had the potential for unbridled greatness, but too much shit was cut from that game and put into Episode II. (or just cut entirely)

 

[Lafiel]

Here's hoping that the Xenosaga series is as half as good Xenogears !

Pfft you are going to be disappointed with 1 & 2 with that kind of expectation. (like i was) But rest assured if you can suffer through 2, you will get a experience that is IMO as good as xenogears with episode 3, and to boot, i actually find XS3 to have way better gameplay and pacing than xenogears ever did.

 

[kaizoku]

wish SE would do a better job of updating these games for new platforms. Capcom do it with RE, Nintendo do it a little where necessary, Beyond Good and Evil just got the treatment.

There's nothing I find more distracting than graphics that don't hold up well and I find this PS1 era of graphics really off putting so even when they do update older games they end up making them look just the way I hate!

Although this one doesn't look too bad I remember not being able to sit through the original for more than an hour cos the graphics and random battles pissed me off. Might try it again...but worried my patience for random battles is even lower now.

 

[SolidusDave]

I was thinking about making an entry in the OP about how the graphics old up today.



What I'd like to find out and if anyone could do this experiment it would be great. Suposedly because the PS3 forces the PS1/PS2 games to Progressive the graphics get messed up. The other thing I have heard is that it is possible your TV might be a better scaler than the PS3 which is automatically converting it from Interlaced to Progressive. I realize that sometimes HDMI, VGA, and Component cables each displaying the same image on the same resolution can look wildly different to begin with.

The experiment would be to run a game like Xenogears on your PS3 through component cables on 480i and compare that to how it looks through HDMI on 1080p/720p.

CRT with component cables/S-cable = Great as far as the game will look exactly like how it used to.
HDCRT = Great?
PS2 with component cables on HDTV = ?
PS3 with component cables on 480i = ?
PS3 with HDMI = ?

I think in most cases the PS3 will do a better job at upscaling 480i to 720p/1080p than a HDTV. I remember when comparing PS2 games, I fed my HDTV with 480i via RGB and it looked shitty (even though my HDTV has good SD scalers, Of course, that can differ for each input type).

I have:
PS3 via HDMI (1080p)
RGB Full Range: On (tested if it works with my HDTV)
PS1/PS2 Smoothing: On
PS1/PS2 Upscaling: On, set to Normal (keeps 4:3 ratio)
40" Bravia: most (all annoying) post processing stuff off; no Overscan; colors etc. tuned to my likings

and it looks... good I guess. You can't expect any wonders on a big HDTV with the PS3 not actually enhancing the old (SD) graphics, but at least for me that's the best setup possible.

 

[Sophia]

Pfft you are going to be disappointed with 1 & 2 with that kind of expectation. (like i was) But rest assured if you can suffer through 2, you will get a experience that is IMO as good as xenogears with episode 3, and to boot, i actually find XS3 to have way better gameplay and pacing than xenogears ever did.

The only reason why I don't personally rate Xenosaga 3 as being higher then Xenogears itself is because it's the essentially middle point in a series that never got finished.

But, my god, playing this again and listening to Myth is like a nostalgia trip of everything that made jRPGs good.

 

[Spwn]

About 11 hours in, just got through the Sewer Horror segment. The game is easier than I remembered, but it's probably because now I actually understand what I'm supposed to do. My English wasn't at it's best when I was 13. I'll definitely finish the game this time.

I'm playing the game on a 37" full HD Bravia. I had to change the aspect ratio to 4:3, because the game looked stretched on the default 16:9 ratio. Now it look ok, at least I'm happy with how it looks.

I remember being very disappointed when Xenosaga E1 wasn't released in Europe. They just released Xenosaga II with Xenosaga I's cut-scenes on a DVD or something for players to catch up. Never played any of the Xenosaga games because of this. Seems like Episode 3 was never released in Europe either.

 

[MoonsaultSlayer]

I've recently repurchased Xenosaga I after giving up on it when it came out. While looking for II and III, I was told to skip II by theGS employee. Does III have a recap or encyclopedia of some sorts? I'd hate to miss story bits.

 

[Tigel]

I've recently repurchased Xenosaga I after giving up on it when it came out. While looking for II and III, I was told to skip II by theGS employee. Does III have a recap or encyclopedia of some sorts? I'd hate to miss story bits.

You'll definitely want to play Episode II before III.
The gameplay is tedious, the game is also short (~20 hours) but bear with it. You'll miss much in term of story if you skip it. And yes, Episode III does have, like, the most comprehensive in-game encyclopedia ever.

 

[Pinko Marx]

You'll definitely want to play Episode II before III.
The gameplay is tedious but the game is also short (~20 hours). And yes, Episode III does have, like, the most comprehensive in-game encyclopedia ever.

Don't listen to this man. Skip II.

 

[chris-013]

Ep II have a shitty gameplay but a very good story (Albedo).

What I have done ? First RPG where I used cheatcodes to kill everything in one hit after about 10h than you can enjoy the story.

 

[Tigel]

Ep II have a shitty gameplay but a very good story (Albedo).

What I have done ? First RPG where I used cheatcodes to kill everything in one hit after about 10h than you can enjoy the story.

I remember normal battles lasting somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes. So tedious...

Don't listen to this man. Skip II.

Whatever :| If you skip it, at least find a way to watch all of the cutscenes. That's what matters!

And the final scene is well worth the pain.

 

[The Praiseworthy]

Sure Xenosaga EpII battle sucked compared to the others two... but the Break system was so amazing and fun to do, cut a lot of times in long bosses fights.

 

[zoukka]

Played this back in the day and got stuck in some stupid cave and quit. IIRC the battles were extremely simple, but I liked mechas and JRPG's.

 

[DMeisterJ]

Recapturing Aveh right now, while also recapturing my childhood. God this game is still amazing and holds up pretty well for a PS1 game.

 

[Yaweee]

I remember normal battles lasting somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes. So tedious...

Only in the last dungeon or two. Battles in the rest of the game were pretty easy.

 

[Dynedom]

Bought and finished the game for the first time via PSN.

Incredible story (the best of any JRPG I've played and probably of any video game I have played). The whole thing was philosophical mecha-anime porn and I loved it.

I wouldn't put it up there as one of the best ever games I've played and certainly not the best jrpg I have ever played, however. Far too many questionable to terrible design choices in this game. I could go in detail but I think people need to just play this game though once to experience the story alone. The story was good enough that I overlooked what was largely mediocre (if not terrible) gameplay and chugged through to the very end. I think that's testament enough.

Will I play this game again? Probably but not for quite some time and probably not in the frequency I replay other j-rpgs. In fact, I can't see myself replaying this for years.

 

[Zwei]

Bought and finished the game for the first time via PSN.

Incredible story (the best of any JRPG I've played and probably of any video game I have played). The whole thing was philosophical mecha-anime porn and I loved it.

I wouldn't put it up there as one of the best ever games I've played and certainly not the best jrpg I have ever played, however. Far too many questionable to terrible design choices in this game. I could go in detail but I think people need to just play this game though once to experience the story alone. The story was good enough that I overlooked what was largely mediocre (if not terrible) gameplay and chugged through to the very end. I think that's testament enough.

Will I play this game again? Probably but not for quite some time and probably not in the frequency I replay other j-rpgs. In fact, I can't see myself replaying this for years.

Interesting read. Having played Xenogears way back when (1998), it's always fascinating to read someone's opinion who has recently completed it. Too bad you won't go into further detail about Xenogears' terrible gameplay, though.

 

[mattp]

Here's hoping that the Xenosaga series is as half as good Xenogears !

save yourself the disappointment and just pretend those games don't exist

 

[Bebpo]

Bought and finished the game for the first time via PSN.

Incredible story (the best of any JRPG I've played and probably of any video game I have played). The whole thing was philosophical mecha-anime porn and I loved it.

I wouldn't put it up there as one of the best ever games I've played and certainly not the best jrpg I have ever played, however. Far too many questionable to terrible design choices in this game. I could go in detail but I think people need to just play this game though once to experience the story alone. The story was good enough that I overlooked what was largely mediocre (if not terrible) gameplay and chugged through to the very end. I think that's testament enough.

Will I play this game again? Probably but not for quite some time and probably not in the frequency I replay other j-rpgs. In fact, I can't see myself replaying this for years.

Yeah, I don't think the gameplay holds up that well. I find for replaying it, it's much better to play it with cheats to blow through the gameplay stuff and just enjoy the story.

XG is my favorite game of all time, but it's 75% for the story, 15% for the music, and 10% for the visuals. 0% for the gameplay

 

[mattp]

i never understand when people say the gameplay is terrible in xg and to only play it for the story
sure the jumping is awful, but i think xenogears has one of the funnest battle systems. not to mention two of them.