Xenosaga Episode II

Darksider · Post by **Darksider** » 2005-03-06 04:35pm

Has anyone else bought this game yet?

I think it's turning out pretty good so far.

Still feels more like an interactive movie than a game though...

Temjin · Post by **Temjin** » 2005-03-06 06:30pm

I just got it a few days ago. It's a good game so far, just not as good as episode 1.

I'm disappointed with a few of the changes they made though.

I miss that old U.M.N database that explained those obsure references from the cutscenes.

I miss the e-mail system. Now it's been replaced with that stupid GS campaign shit, which just so happens to contain all the sidequests now.

And while I'm on the topic of the GS campaign, let me just tell you how stupid I think alot of the quests are. Most of them seem to be "Find this person". Of course, they don't even give you a hint of where to find this person. Is he on Second Milta? The Durandal? The Kukai Foundation? So your stuck for the half hour looking for this dumbass. Oh, and on GS 2, it's entirely possible to give the letter to someone your not supposed because the guy who told you to deliver them didn't even tell you the names of the people your supposed to deliver them to. Nope you can't retry it. I'm just lucky I had a save from before I delivered the letter.

But the thing I miss the most? Money. They have totally gotten rid of cash. And what does that mean? No stores. The only way to get items now is from what enemies drop. Who the hell thought this would be a good idea? Almost every single RPG out there has those two things. They're standard!

The only changes I like so far is the new battle system, and the new designs for KOS-MOS, Shion and MOMO.

SAMAS · Post by **SAMAS** » 2005-03-06 11:44pm

Temjin wrote:I just got it a few days ago. It's a good game so far, just not as good as episode 1.

I'm disappointed with a few of the changes they made though.

I miss that old U.M.N database that explained those obsure references from the cutscenes.

I miss the e-mail system. Now it's been replaced with that stupid GS campaign shit, which just so happens to contain all the sidequests now.

And while I'm on the topic of the GS campaign, let me just tell you how stupid I think alot of the quests are. Most of them seem to be "Find this person". Of course, they don't even give you a hint of where to find this person. Is he on Second Milta? The Durandal? The Kukai Foundation? So your stuck for the half hour looking for this dumbass. Oh, and on GS 2, it's entirely possible to give the letter to someone your not supposed because the guy who told you to deliver them didn't even tell you the names of the people your supposed to deliver them to. Nope you can't retry it. I'm just lucky I had a save from before I delivered the letter.

But the thing I miss the most? Money. They have totally gotten rid of cash. And what does that mean? No stores. The only way to get items now is from what enemies drop. Who the hell thought this would be a good idea? Almost every single RPG out there has those two things. They're standard!

The only changes I like so far is the new battle system, and the new designs for KOS-MOS, Shion and MOMO.

I agree with the GS subquests, but to tell the truth, I don't miss the money all that much. Without money gained from easily-defeated enemies, I don't have many items stockpiled anymore. Which means I don't have 99 Med Kits, of which I'll only end up using maybe twenty by the end of the game. I don't have those ueber-healing items that you always save for "when I really need it", but are still sitting in your inventory by the time the final cutscene rolls.

Even so, I've still managed to amass a good stock of items, with judicious use of the Psycho Pocket Ether. That stock dwindles pretty fast at times, though.

SPOOFE · Post by **SPOOFE** » 2005-03-06 11:49pm

Okay, lemme get something straight: Is Xenosaga a sequel to Xenogears? If so, should one have played 'Gears before 'Saga? Should one play 'Saga I before playing 'Saga II, or is it relatively easy to get into?

Azazel · Post by **Azazel** » 2005-03-07 12:00am

Haven't beaten episode one yet, just kinda lost touch.

SAMAS · Post by **SAMAS** » 2005-03-07 12:00am

SPOOFE wrote:Okay, lemme get something straight: Is Xenosaga a sequel to Xenogears? If so, should one have played 'Gears before 'Saga? Should one play 'Saga I before playing 'Saga II, or is it relatively easy to get into?

Yes, and No.

You see, the guys who made Xenogears left Square, and wanted to continue the story in the game.

Unfortunately, Squareenix still holds the rights to Xenogears. So they went back and made Xenosaga.

Xenosaga is both prequel and re-imagining to Xenogears. The events of Xenogears are supposed to be roughly analogous to Episode V of Xenosaga, but when/if they actually get around to making Xenosaga Episode V, it won't be a remake of Xenogears(unless maybe the somehow get permission/rights from Squareenix).

Oh yeah, while you can possibly play Episode II without playing Episode I(they have a thing you can check out near the beginning of the game that recaps the story, and some people who preordered Episode II got a DVD with a condensed version of Episode I's story scenes), I wouldn't recomend it. After all, you may not get the answers given in Episode II if you don't know Episode I's questions.

Datana · Post by **Datana** » 2005-03-07 01:18am

Hmm... Played through the Japanese version, but the long load times, "streamlined" gameplay, and the incredibly annoying G2 Campaign really hurt it in my eyes. I hear that the first issue has been somewhat fixed in the U.S. version, but I'll likely give this a rental at most -- more to see how the new English cast works than any desire to play through again.

Sporkzen · Post by **Sporkzen** » 2005-03-07 08:06am

Now i loved xenosaga ep 1.

Sadly..... i only played xenosaga through in order to see the story. First of all wtf is up with the lack of stores. They even tease you with the closed store with the robot out front. The battle system seemed to me to be dumbed down and made more complex at the same time. Unfortunatly i did not enjoy the 5-10 minute minion battles on the way to the final boss....... that just got damned irritating. Though honestly the game is just average but i expected much more, but still its a solid game.

Oh and wtf is up with jin patting his shoulder all the time. It was funny in one scene on the elsa where they all are looping animations he keeps tapping on his shoulder repeatedly.