Review for Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht

[Jarulara]

Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht
also known as:
Xenosaga Episode I: The Will to Power
Xenosaga 1
Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht (JPN)
Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht (PAL)


Developed by Monolith Software (the same team that assembled the controversial 1998 RPG Xenogears; the universe of which this newest game is loosely based),Xenosaga is an epic six-part story that's rumored to span three different consoles and almost a decade of time before it finally reaches a conclusion. The story of Episode I, unfolds over 80-plus hours of gameplay and movie cut scenes. An in-depth experience system, allows players to develop different skills, spells, attacks, and combos. Legendary game composer Yasunori Mitsuda (whose work includes classics such as Chrono Trigger) provides the score for this epic game.



Ign: 8.8
Gameinformer: 9.5/10
Gamespot: 8.1
Gamepro: 4.5/5
PSM: 5/5
Mine: 9/10

 

[Arczu]

XenoSaga: More than that

I know this review was quite an age ago, but I think there is more to this game than what has been stated above.

First things first, this is in no way a sequel to Xenogears. While there are similar elements (A.G.W.S instead of Gears, Tech Attacks instead of Deathblows), it goes through a deep and different story than gears.

Be prepared for a long sit however. Those cinematics above me are true. I'd say that the average cinematic or scene is about 5 minutes long at least. I think one spanned over 15 minutes! This is a factor that really gets some people pissed off. They want to play the game more than they want to watch it. But those cinematics can be skipped. This is only useful if you have seen it already, otherwise, you will miss key elements in the game, and might end up in a battle without knowing why or what to do.

The story is definately more intense than what I have seen in most Role-Playing games. This one is set in space, and Xenosaga took a shot at christianity in this one. Example; The "Zohars" each have a name based on the same name of the deciples of Jesus. And the whole idea of a God is evoked within the story too. Realians (or artificial humans) exist and preform all sorts of romedial tasks.

The graphics in Xenosaga are a definite redeeming quality of the game. Some may not see it, but when a critical cinematic is executed, there is a blackout back to the same spot using a different rendering table of some sort, which makes the FMV effect visible. The in game lighting and effects add to the stunning scenery you will see in some areas..

Gameplay is a bit different though. In-battle, There is a Group Turn Window which will show anywhere from 1 to 4 squares. Character panels indicate who's turn it is and when your other character's turns are, and when the enemy turns are. There is this feature called boost. Basically, the moment you choose one of your characters to do it, then your turn is brought next, but you can only do it once you have accumulated enough of it to make one complete guage. The big problem with this is that a) Your character who you want to boost must not appear in the Group Turn Window, and b) The enemy can boost too. And boy can they boost...

The enemy (unlike your party) do not have to build up 'gauges' and such, for they can boost whenever they damn like! They can also preform counter-boost in wich their turn will be executed next over yours, and counter boost gets priority over normal. This is a problem later in the game, especially when there are 5 enemies on screen. In a few cases, They can boost one after another and end up attacking your party 6-10 times before you even get one.

AP is brought over, and you get 6. Each turn you are given 4 AP. Attack for example will consume 2 AP of your 4. If you choose to Guard, your turn will end but you will recieve less damage from attacks. You can only initially preform Tech attacks with 6 AP. And so many other things from the other game like Ether attacks acting as the "Magic" of the game.

Oh, there are also minigames. 2 of them suck hell, seriously, and the other 2 are decent. The Casino is good for getting some rare items and artwork playing Poker and Slots. The card came is kinda cool, but it's so complex that the explanation spans on for 50 pages!

This is a very good game, but I wouldn't reccommend it for everybody. The long cinematics may be a turnoff, but the story is good, and the gameplay is unique. If I was finished the game, I'd go on longer, but I'm stuck in a dreadnought right now...

 

[William]

I got this game the other day and it's just simply amazing.

I don't mind the cinematics since you can skip over them if you wish to do so, but I enjoy them nonetheless.

The only thing about the game that I don't get though is the whole Boost thing...I can't figure out how to do one; but I'm doing fine without it.

I can't wait until Xenosaga II comes out next month (supposedly). It's going to have some of the same characters in it, and a continuing story to part I, which is really neat.

 

[Arczu]

Boosting is really simple. You see, when you hold onto one of the L or R buttons, then a word "Boost" should appear near the bottom-right of the screen. If any characters appear around the word, then they can boost at that point. The button you press corresponds to the position they are in. (Either triangle, x or square). So if Shion's icon appear down there in purple, the press sqaure to boost her turn next.

 

[Dark]

I never got past the blast dragon boss. The one with the two side cannons.

 

[Khan Y.]

Xenosaga is before Xenogears.

You see, after everyone in Xenosaga dies, there will be a ship called the El Ridge that will crash land for earth, and there was only one survivor: Abel. He came into contact with the Will Wave and thus as a kid, he did the most sensible thing, he wished for his mother, hence the genome named "Mother" was formed. Later, that figure split into two different beings, Miang, which is programmed into all woman, and she will awake in a suitable host that will assist her, and "Elly", which was the one that truly came into contact with Able.