Will a playthrough of Xenogears revive the Enix forum!?
Probably not, but I'll do it anyway!
I payed the money on PSN for this, but have been sitting on it for a few months. Finally, I shall embark on the quest of Xenogears!
I'm going into this expecting slightly dated gameplay, and given when it came out I'm kind of expected a fairly spotty script as well.
Though it gets enough love, and while Wolf has some bizarre tastes sometimes, he is mostly trustworthy on whats a good game. So, Xeno shall begin now!
Do you mean the Square Enix Forum?
Xenogears is a great game. Keep in mind that it is a very long game. It has been noted for being a little slow at the beginning, but there are plenty of gameplay and story segues to keep you interested even if you might be a little confused.
I believe in the power of humanity.
Long RPG's are my preference, and I can deal with a slow beginning so long as it has promise.
However, this game opens up with a guy who looks like a balding dwarf midged (Dan, I know he's a child, but I see him as a midget :P) trying to get me to smurf his sister, and delivers the freakishly awkward line "And this is just between you and me, but she's well endowed too! Heh heh heh". The laugh makes this scene extra awkward.
I, however, shut down his crazy plan. Cause even if we take him as a child over a midget, that pitch about his sister stil creeps the smurf out of me.
Edit: And the local barskank wants my penis.
This already sounds like the less creepy option then going along with Dan.
Well you're already in it, but I'll echo the slow beginning, just enjoy the classic RPG atmosphere and stick with it for a while, it will be worth it.
As far as script, I think it was one of the best localized games from that era, nowhere near the awkwardness or just plain errors of FFVII.
If you have a PSP you might want to transfer saves and play there every now and then, because while the PS3 has issues displaying older games, even on the TV's they were originally made for, these PSOne Classics look amazing on PSP, as if they were just released for it in fact.
I just got to the point the first town is pretty much leveled.
And I can't bring myself to care.
The only character you really grow to like is Doc Uzuki. You know he loves that one chick, but really only because the game pretty much flat out tells you. You don't really feel a connection between the two in the slightest.
It does, however, work as an event ot get the plot moving. So while it's not really impactful at all, It's not really wasted per say.
The translation is semi-good. It doesn't have awkward dialogue but a ton of the religious terminology got butchered in translations so I would suggest looking up some words if the reference stumps you.
The beginning is slow but not as bad as some other games I can think of (Persona series comes to mind, as well as the Wild ARMS series) course it isn't as bad as Xenosaga Episode 1...
The gameplay is dated but you'll be familiar with it since it's a mix of Chrono Cross and Xenosaga Episode 1. I highly recommend learning all the deathblows because they are fun and make the Gear battles more interesting. Did you meet up with Lucca in Lahan?
True beauty exists in things that last only for a moment.
Current Mood: And it's been a long December and there's reason to believe. Maybe this year will be better than the last. I can't remember all the times I tried to tell myself. To hold on to these moments as they pass...
I don't recall the name Lucca, so probably not.
I just got to the first town after the forest. I found out that one shop doesn't have Military grade gears, and am looking for info to find them.
Big Joe amused me when I saw him at the bar.
I do have a couple problems with the game. The biggest one being some of the more dramatic type scenes have felt like they just kind of happened.
The town getting destroyed leaves me with little to no impact. I had no time to care about any of these people, and really only know that they are sexist and tie their women down. Not doing a lot to make me care here game.
And the scene when you first meat Elly is kind of awkward. 'I will kill all you sheep on sight! How do I get out of here!'. They get their whole calling Lei a coward scene, but it comes from this person I know nothing about, and moments later you realize she was just being a coward by calling him a coward. All of this just kind of happened, yet I have not been given any reason to care about Elly or her plight and motivations.
Now none of these scenes are bad, mind you, just a little head scratching in presentation. The game makes up for it with keeping you interested in the plot going on, even though little has happened, and with Citan. This guy is awesome. His dialogue has been noticably better then anyone else, and I am very interested in his past and why he knows so much.
The other is the Deathblows. I like them in principle, it's learning them. I don't really understand the how they are building up the ranks to 100 to learn it. I know you need to be a certain level, but how do you build ranks? You can do it without typing in the exact command, since I had ranks built up in it. Yet it was a 5ap move, and I only had 4 available at the time. o_O
This is the only thing I am using a guide for though, since I am the guy who will sit down and do every last button combination to figure out what will raise me. This just saves me extra grinding, though I'm a grind whore anyway, as Lei is already 11, and Citan 10.
I really dig the in battle animations too. While those couple problems bother me, I'm already enjoying myself quite a bit for having done so little.
I want to say I've disliked the gear battles I've done, but I want to reserve judgement until I get further in.
Ah, that was one of the cool Easter eggs in Lahan (among many things), you could talk to Lucca from Chrono Trigger which is where I felt she actually went instead of getting taken out by a chump like Lynx in CC.Originally Posted by Uncle Big Hands
I don't recall the name Lucca, so probably not.
It's mostly designed to make you interested in the characters not empathetic, I think the shock of destroying your home town is just that, the initial shock of actually being responsible for something that bad guys in these types of games usually do. I like how the game puts that trope on it's side.I do have a couple problems with the game. The biggest one being some of the more dramatic type scenes have felt like they just kind of happened.
The town getting destroyed leaves me with little to no impact. I had no time to care about any of these people, and really only know that they are sexist and tie their women down. Not doing a lot to make me care here game.
And the scene when you first meat Elly is kind of awkward. 'I will kill all you sheep on sight! How do I get out of here!'. They get their whole calling Lei a coward scene, but it comes from this person I know nothing about, and moments later you realize she was just being a coward by calling him a coward. All of this just kind of happened, yet I have not been given any reason to care about Elly or her plight and motivations.
Now none of these scenes are bad, mind you, just a little head scratching in presentation. The game makes up for it with keeping you interested in the plot going on, even though little has happened, and with Citan. This guy is awesome. His dialogue has been noticably better then anyone else, and I am very interested in his past and why he knows so much.
Elly's situation is really more for getting you wondering about her, this setup pulls through later when you really begin to explore her backstory.
Citan... could be selling Dos Equis in the Xeno world...
There is no specific science for raising them to 100%, the usual strategy is to alternate between doing the Deathblow you are trying to unlock, do the deathblow that comes before (if applicable) and doing the deathblow that comes after it. Any of them raise the levels, though I have a feeling doing any of the proper deathblows will raise them regardless where they fall in line on the deathblow list.The other is the Deathblows. I like them in principle, it's learning them. I don't really understand the how they are building up the ranks to 100 to learn it. I know you need to be a certain level, but how do you build ranks? You can do it without typing in the exact command, since I had ranks built up in it. Yet it was a 5ap move, and I only had 4 available at the time. o_O
This is the only thing I am using a guide for though, since I am the guy who will sit down and do every last button combination to figure out what will raise me. This just saves me extra grinding, though I'm a grind whore anyway, as Lei is already 11, and Citan 10.
They get more interesting once you start getting more deathblows and actually doing the Gear dungeons.I want to say I've disliked the gear battles I've done, but I want to reserve judgement until I get further in.
True beauty exists in things that last only for a moment.
Current Mood: And it's been a long December and there's reason to believe. Maybe this year will be better than the last. I can't remember all the times I tried to tell myself. To hold on to these moments as they pass...
Okay, so Citan goes off to get the gear parts in the sand buggy.
You decide to chase off after him, mug a helpless man in the middle of the desert to steal his bike, and get caught by Aveh.
Citan, being the bad ass he is, shows up in your gear to save your ass. You, in your quest to save him, have attracted more enemies.
God Fei must feel like a complete dumbass right now.
have fun with calamity bro
To be fair, Fei might be the most cursed video game character. He is pretty much a magnet for trouble.
God Fei must feel like a complete dumbass right now.
True beauty exists in things that last only for a moment.
Current Mood: And it's been a long December and there's reason to believe. Maybe this year will be better than the last. I can't remember all the times I tried to tell myself. To hold on to these moments as they pass...
Currently I'm under the desert with Bart.
So my party members thus far have been Fei, Citan, Elyham... and Bart? Where the smurf did that name come from?
And to be unfair, that was solely his own stupidity that caused that particular event. ;p
The beginning is a little rushed, the game gets better at build-up as it goes on, IMO.
Gear battles aren't that great, but I don't like either of the combat modes in this game, so that's just me.
Protip: there's going to be a couple segments in these early hours that will be hard to get beyond if you don't have proper gear equipment and recovery items. Flying Arrow tried playing this game last year and literally got stuck with no earlier save to fall back on.
You've been warned.
Gears is the only thing that i really liked about Xenogears, what is your problem with Gear battles?
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