Xenosaga: Was mi�riert

I get what you're saying, but it's the only good AWGS in the game and is actually capable and shit.

Co-sign. And if it weren't for Gogglebob revealing lots of things there'd be no way of knowing coming in blind, I'd be another order of magnitude more lost.

Or maybe it's Kamino.

Thanks for coming this far in the Xenosaga trilogy! I can tell from reading this LP that I would never, ever actually play these games myself, but it's great to get a breakdown of the story/characters.

This issue reaches an arguable peak in Episode III, understanding of which hinges on a thorough grasp of the events of a game between II and III that never got made.

Well we got a summary of what happened there. K-kinda.

...on a website that I don't think was officially translated into English.

(I'm still kinda cheesed off about that entire scenario since it involves a character that's implied to be related to Ziggy's past, but Ziggy never ever gets to even interact with her in Episode III)

There was also a text summary in the game if you dug through the options menus to find it.

Reviewing that game for X-Play was one of my better efforts. The lead I think went something like, "If the final boss were a quiz on the plot of the series, no one would ever see the credits roll."

Previously on Xenosaga: Everything. Everything happened. Let’s talk about that in vaguely listicle form.



What Happened Here?

I actually went back and re-read my introduction to this LP this (written nearly five months ago now) before writing, and, to quote myself:

“Probably the best known feature of this trilogy was an inscrutable storyline full of religious imagery that could put Evangelion to shame...”

So let’s look at the plot first. Is it “inscrutable”? At this point, I’m going to say no. Yes, there is already an absurd amount of religious imagery (some of the first text in the game is directly quoting Genesis), but the base plot, as it currently stands, is still something you could explain to your deaf granny. To wit:

• Shion built a robo-person, and is very concerned about that person. Complete with the X-Buster, this plot, at its core, is practically Dr. Light and Mega Man, and the gnosis are Robot Masters. It’s sci-fi 101. KOS-MOS even gets a variation on the typical robot, “What is love?” with her “What is pain?” query when she decided to go all genocide on the gnosis.
• There’s a bad guy organization, U-TIC, and they menace the heroes in pursuit of some macguffin. Depending on the interpretation, they want a way back to (old, lost) Earth, and/or the Zohar, which is effectively the Holy Grail of space. Kidnap princess, get the treasure: typical villain motives.
• Speaking of villains, there’s Albedo, who appears to be a wildcard in the bad guy power structure, but is basically there to be the evil twin brother of one of the heroes. His entire job is trolling the universe. Three guesses on how this plot is going to resolve.

And that’s basically it. On paper, Xenosaga Episode 1 is pretty straightforward.

However, the devil’s in the details, and that’s where everything goes a little… Albedo. This game seems to delight in generating minor mystery after mystery. Who is sending KOS-MOS orders? Why are Shion and KOS-MOS part of the Y-Data? What are the gnosis? What is Wilhelm up to? chaos? Testaments? What does the Zohar do? What did Ziggy “see” when he died? Why is Junior ageless? Why is Albedo invincible? Does Allen have more than one onesie?

These are all relevant questions, and, I assure you, I spent roughly ten million hours on Gamefaqs and alike discussing these finer plot points back in the day. I’m sure I’m not the only one, but for me, Xenosaga was my Lost, a series that I spent days pouring over the faintest glimmer of an idea and expanding it into a grand unifying theory of everything. There might not be any polar bears in this story, but those unicorn gnosis have to mean something.

And, come to think of it, that Lost comparison is more apt than ever, because the real show in Xenosaga Episode 1 is the characters. This is something I’m only able to identify with full knowledge of what comes next and not a four year wait for the finale, but the story of Xenosaga Episode 1 really cares about its characters and their interactions. It’s not perfect (“Ziggy? You’re still here?”), but it became abundantly clear over this playthrough that the gnosis, yes, are important, but what’s really important is the relationship between Shion and KOS-MOS, or how MOMO feels about her absent parents. Once you separate out the chafe of all the mysteries that will eventually be solved with varying degrees of satisfaction (“chaos is… an apostle of Jesus Christ? Did anybody guess that?”), you realize this game is much more concerned with the emotional state of its characters than if they ever learn anything interesting. In a way, that makes perfect sense, in another, well, it would be nice if Shion asked why, say, the ship just got covered in angel wings. Does everyone just assume that’s a typical feature of the Elsa?

Shion, actually, is a fine example of how Xenosaga Episode 1’s story sucks sodium. Shion would actually be a pretty neat heroine in nearly any other medium… but she’s the star of a JRPG, and, thus, pretty much the player’s surrogate. She’s terrible for that role. She’s an interesting, independent character with concerns and baggage of her own, but part of her own issues is that she very rarely looks for information below the surface level (because, ultimately, she’s afraid of being hurt worse by the truth), which is awful when your audience wants some stinkin’ answers. The epitome of this would be when Shion is running constant diagnostics during the “beach episode” to see if KOS-MOS was experiencing something like emotions earlier, but she never even attempts to determine exactly where KOS-MOS’s mysterious orders are coming from (which, spoilers, would lead to her undead fiancée, and is not something the good doctor wants to deal with right now). You, the player, are expected to just go with the flow with Shion’s (and the entire party’s) lack of curiosity, and it’s frustrating when every third character is spewing a nonstop stream of mysteries.




On two different occasions, Shion distinctly states that she has no idea what’s going on… and she never does anything about it!

In the end, I feel this goes back to Xenosaga’s original concept, and how this was supposed to be game one in a more-than-three part series, and Xenosaga “Episode 1” was supposed to include a lot of plot from (what we eventually received as) Episode 2, but the team ran out of time, money, or over-highlighted Bibles before “finishing” Episode 1. XS1 is crap for answers, but you’re expected to just go with that (like Shion and co.) because answers will arrive eventually. We promise! Everyone is fine with a complete lack of resolution, right?

So, long story short, as of Episode 1, the “prelude game”, Xenosaga has not yet become “inscrutable”… depending on your interpretation. There are mysteries, but there’s also a story that’s very human, and we’re supposed to just take it on faith that the big mysteries will be solved later. We’ll see how that goes as we proceed.

Points for presentation?



What is wrong with your faaaaaace!?

Aside from featuring PS2 era anime faces, I really have to give high marks to Xenosaga Episode 1’s overall production. Yes, there are something like ten hours of cinema scenes, but the direction does everything it can to make those scenes actually interesting. It was mentioned earlier, but, compared to the modern age of non-Final Fantasy JRPGs, I am downright impressed with how many scenes are more than two heads and a series of text boxes. Once again using “working late” scene as an example…



Or when Shion is affectionately caressing KOS-MOS’s space coffin…



There’s a lot of incidental “acting” from the characters that adds to the story. Shion is downright giddy when she’s working late with her fiancée/boss. Shion tenderly touches KOS-MOS’s bed in the same way a mother might stroke the hair of her sleeping child. It adds something to the scenes without requiring (even more) talky talk.

And, just to be clear it’s not all sunshine and rainbows…



Every damn thing Albedo does is creepy. I’m literally disappointed when he’s strapped into his mech, because when he’s out prancing around…



You know you’re gonna have a fun time. Okay, maybe fun isn’t the right word.

Point is, for a game so lousy with “put down the controller, it’s time to watch a movie,” there’s a lot of reasons to actually enjoy that downtime. So another mark in Xenosaga Episode 1’s win column.

In the “boo” column, however, we have Xenosaga Episode I’s music.

XS1 has a lot of great music… unfortunately, it’s primarily relegated to cutscenes. I’ll admit there’s a number of XS1 tracks that I have had on my playlists for the last fifteen years because, frankly, they’re good tracks. Unfortunately, I just did an inventory, and I realized that only two of those tracks (Last Battle and UMN Mode) are from actual gameplay. Additionally, I saved Battle (the battle theme, duh) and Life or Death (the song that plays through a number of “danger is happening” areas) not because those songs are particularly good, but because they’re practically drilled into my brain thanks to repeated usage throughout the game (This is also the same reason I have Chrono Cross’s abhorrent battle theme on my playlist). Everything else I enjoy about the soundtrack plays almost exclusively during cutscenes, which is a pain because, well…

Click here to listen to the main theme of the Cathedral Ship dungeon

Oh, I’m sorry, does that link not work? That’s because there is no music in the Cathedral Ship. It’s a nearly three hour dungeon (more if you have a lousy sense of direction), and, aside from the battles and cinema scenes, there is no music. None. Just silence and footsteps, the whole stupid dungeon. Sometimes there’s the sound of a door opening. Woo.

This is inexcusable, and I have to mention this is probably a contribution to the “worst dungeon ever” issue of this and a few areas. Xenosaga Producers, did you forget? Was there supposed to be music, and, whoops, never made it in there? And, no, the silent parts are not deliberately moody areas any more than Final Fantasy’s Marsh Cave. I think we could handle a little accompaniment.

Though, to close this section on a positive note, I really appreciate the voice acting in this game, and, more importantly, that it’s all in English. This is a problem I’ve had with some modern JRPGs and Fighting Games, but I get really annoyed when everything is in English… but battle quotes and victory cheers are untranslated (and worse, not even subtitled) (and even worse, KOF-esque lengthy battle intros that are completely incomprehensible). Everything is in English here, right down to the grunts and “Spell Blade!” shouts. In fact, stuff like signange…



Is also wholly in English. This is actually really important, as certain scenes…



Lose something if you can’t read what’s going on in the background. This flashback takes place on the planet Ariadne, which is never mentioned, but there’s a literal sign as to the location in the background. Show don’t tell doesn’t work if you can’t read what’s being shown.

Isn’t this a video game?

So, the presentation is overall good, the plot is bearable (YMMV)… but should Xenosaga Episode 1 be a video game?

Honestly… I want to say no.

Don’t get me wrong, Xenosaga Episode 1 isn’t a bad JRPG. I have played much worse. Much… much worse. Video game consoles as magical girls! Why did that happen!? Why does that keep happening!?! How are there nearly ten of those games? HOW!?!

Er-hem.

What I mean to say is that, while Xenosaga Episode 1 might not be a trailblazer in any amazing JRPG innovations (its battle system, when you get right down to it, is barely distinguishable from Final Fantasy 1, and its town/dungeon structure is the same as it’s ever been… Hell, I’d argue that Xenogears is more innovative than Xenosaga), it’s still perfectly competent. Despite some really difficult areas that primarily arise because a boss might not exactly be balanced with its surrounding dungeon, Xenosaga Episode 1 pretty much (emphasis on the qualifier) goes down smooth.

That said, being a JRPG doesn’t really add anything to Episode 1.

As an easy example, I cannot imagine Earthbound or Mother 3 working nearly as well as anything but JRPGs. The conventions used and abused in both of those games come from a place of understanding the genre as a whole, and like Watchmen did for comics, both of those games are practically impossible to imagine working as effectively in other mediums.

There is exactly one spot in Xenosaga Episode 1 that I feel is enhanced by being a video game…



And it’s the destruction of the Woglinde. Here, thanks to your fear of death (or a Game Over), the gnosis are perceived as just as deadly to “you” as they are to the common humans of the Xenosaga Universe. You’re panicked, fleeing from terrible, unknown creatures just like every other resident of this ship, and it does a lot to drive home the threat to everyone that is the gnosis.

… And then you spend the rest of the game slaughtering gnosis wholesale. But! In general, the threat of the gnosis going forward is their menace to the common man (like the Kukai Foundation town invasion), so, while you may become empowered, you understand why it’s up to you to rescue survivors.

Other than that, though? I just played through this whole game, and I can barely remember a moment that had to be in a video game. Say what you will about ridiculous minigames in Final Fantasy 7, but slapping around Scarlet did feel good, “resisting” Sephiroth did feel futile, and vrooming out of Midgar did feel appropriately tense. Here, we’ve got a (near) final boss that barely flinches after a heated battle, and it’s back to cutscenes, like nothing ever happened. No omnislash for you, Junior.



And, yes, I’m kinda downplaying the fact that you’re spending a minimum of twenty hours with these guys, so of course you’re going to be more attached to The Realian Justice Warriors and their various and sundry issues than you would with the cast of a 26-episode, 12 hour “passive” television series. But aside from the general attachment one gains through playing a video game, there’s not much cause for the “game” here.

Which circles back to…

Xenosaga Episode 1 and Me (Or how I learned to stop worrying and love the bomb)

As I’ve randomly alluded to, I adored Xenosaga Episode 1 at its release. No, I didn’t play the game through any more than once, but I did strive for 100% completion in the “post game”. All segment doors unlocked, all (non missable) equipment collected, and all techs leveled up. I also heavily analyzed the game, not from a “character” perspective, but in an effort to “figure out” all the mysteries of the story, and somehow generate answers before the next release. I truly believed there was some Xenosaga Master Plan at work here, and, with my friends from THE INTERNET, we all mined the game and minutia of random conversations and UMN database entries to attempt to grasp the whole picture.

It… was pointless. But, hey, I want to say this was my first “unknown” fandom. I was already a giant nerd for “complete” works like Dragonball Z, Sailor Moon, and any given Final Fantasy game, but this was my first fandom for something that was ongoing and still a mystery. This wasn’t like the previously mentioned Sailor Moon where the series was already over in its native land, and it was just a matter of talking to some wizened old 30 something about that time he played the SNES RPG, no, we were all in the same pot for this one, with holy wars starting over whether Xenosaga would directly tie to Xenogears, chaos’s true motivations, or whether or not Great Joe was supposed to mean something. In retrospect, it all seems so very, very worthless, but in its time, it was like the most important thing on my mind.



Which brings me to that clear data save. Literally no one knew the purpose of that clear save. Like everything else with Xenosaga Episode 1, there was rampant speculation, but no one could say for sure. Some believed everything would carry over, others, nothing. I wasn’t taking any chances, and I already liked the game, but I wasn’t sure I’d want to revisit it by the time Episode 2 was released (and, in my fantasies, apparently Episode 2 would just drop randomly from the heavens, and I wouldn’t be privy to weeks and months of advertising touting its incoming release). So, in an effort to “be prepared”, I grinded that stupid card game to generate as much in-game cash as possible, bought every last item in every shop, and made sure everyone was leveled up to at least 50 to be ready for the challenges of Episode 2. Whatever that clear save transferred, whether it be items, weapons, or levels, I’d be prepared.

That clear data save… unlocks a pair of swimsuits in Episode 2. That’s it. Finish XS1 at level 1 or level 50, and you get the same, trivial thing.

That would likely be the exact moment I stopped 100%’ing games.

Next time on Xenosaga: The real, final post on Xenosaga Episode 1. For everyone curious about the plot minutia, I’ll analyze all the major players, where they started, where they are now, and what they seem to want. This will serve as a review of what happened that also doubles as a handy guide to anyone coming into Xenosaga Episode 2 without reading everything else, because, what, you don’t have hours to pour over XS1? Weirdo.

I can't wait to try to play Xenosaga 2 alongside the LP and then inevitably give up.

I remember the opening of the game was by far the single coolest thing I'd seen at the time. I also thought Ziggy was a weird dumb old man. So clearly, I was 1000000% incorrect.

You were 50% correct. The opening IS pretty badass.

The game just fails to live up to it. Hell, the storyline sure as hell isn't even its own entity. It's XenoSaga Episode 1: Part 2.

I remember enjoying, or convincing myself I enjoyed Episode II's combat and character growth systems. I also remember that as soon as I started to get a feel for them, the game ended.

I've never seen a composer's talent used more awkwardly than XS1. The track "Proto Merkabah", which seems intended to be a looping dungeon track... is used in the cutscene for Proto Merkabah, and "Inner Space" (I think) is used in the actual dungeon. Also, I think no music would have been an improvement in the Song of Nephilim, because wow, that is not a theme that should be looping over and over for an hour. I giggle when I hear it now because a friend got stuck in the Song while I was watching, and we started singing wailing/warbling along with it whenever it looped.

I think the clear data also transfers some character progression skill points in to Xenosaga 2's system.

On the topic of battle musics, before the game came out I had downloaded the soundtrack and I was convinced 'Life or Death' was the boss battle theme because it sounded like it could fit the part and there were only two other tracks actually labeled as Battle and there had to be more than that, right? .....Right?

In a lot of ways Episode II felt like a response to the main criticisms of Episode I, and one way is certainly its soundtrack. We'll get to it when we get to it, but the OST of Episode II is certainly... uneven. On the plus side it has like five battle tracks (I think) and that's an improvement over two.

Also I remember reading someone claim that 'Last Batte' from Episode I is a nod to 'One who Bares Fangs at God' from Xenogears, but I can only sorta hear it. I ain't good at articulating why something sounds like something, but it's probably intentional. Just about all the blatant Xenogears references are behind us with Episode I finished, though.

Well, besides a certain character's outfit in Episode III that was just a bit TOO on the nose...

Also, on the topic of the music, don't nobody forget that the game literally just plays Greensleeves whenever That Little Red-Haired Girl is onscreen. I like Greensleeves well enough, but it's a weird choice?

Been lurking the LP and enjoying it lots, btw!

Not only does final boss look like deus, but the theme is pretty reminiscent of the deus boss fight iirc. I'm too lazy to verify.

e: looks like I did skip it from literally two posts before mine... sorry spoony but I promise I don't reflexively ignore your posts or anything. So yea I guess that's a fairly well known claim? maybe worth looking up. I'm listening now and it's... not terribly similar. Maybe it's just the vocal samples throwing everyone for a loop but that's not very specific to the xeno-series. Idk, there's some similarity in the melodies and I guess anything that sounds like mitsuda just sends everyone to the same spot. I almost feel like there was some place where mitsuda claimed it was a reworking of the theme, though.

Also, I still love this game. I really might end up playing it again. I did just finish xenoblade x and there's enough minor references that maybe I'll just play xenogears and xenosaga again. See you all again in one decade.

Xenosaga Episode 1: Cliff Notes

Title

The full name of the game is Xenosaga Episode 1: Der Wille zur Macht. Translate that from German, and you’ve got “The Will to Power”, a prominent tenant of the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. If you’re unfamiliar with the concept, it’s basically what everyone experiences if they decide to get off the couch: the drive to be the very best, like no one ever was. There’s a couple of different interpretations as it relates to the game:

1.




It’s entirely based on Albedo’s explanation of his etheric powers during the finale. Albedo is able to focus his will into blue energy (?), and thus ruin everyone’s day. Albedo has reached a higher echelon of understanding than everyone else, and leaves the party to catch up over the next two games.

2.



A significant component of “The Will to Power” is the simple desire to live and thrive. Arguably, the entire party comes around to various reasons to live through this adventure, which is significant, because by today’s standards, over half the party has more in common with calculators than living organisms. Reminder: the only significant, permanent death in this game was Cherenkov, a man who literally gave up on life.

3.



KOS-MOS and chaos both distinctly decide to leave their comfort zones to save everyone’s ass as a result of this adventure. KOS-MOS has power enough to demolish a planet, but she uses it to save the Elsa (three times!). chaos seems to have a non-interference policy, but he singlehandedly gets the party out of jail, and then saves KOS-MOS and the Elsa. Arguably, it is the desire to see “the party” thrive that fuels these decisions.

4.
Nietzsche quotes sound cool.

Take your pick.

Now let’s look at the characters.

Dr. Shion Uzuki



Where we met: Shion is the director of Vector Research and Development, and is anxious to get the KOS-MOS program completed. Well, maybe anxious is the wrong word. She seems to be alternatively stalling and rushing the project, probably because the last time they got KOS-MOS up and running, she killed nearly everyone in the room, including her dad. Mom is concerned about that.

What we learn: Shion has more issues than Cat Fancy. Shion has watched practically everyone she has ever cared about die, and her remaining support group appears to be a brother she constantly derides, and Allen, who doesn’t require the effort of deriding. It’s no wonder she clings to her beloved bot like a lifeline. Not only is KOS-MOS Shion’s life’s work, she’s also the last link Shion has to her dead fiancée. Well, presumed dead, but it’s a pretty good presumption, considering she watched him get riddled with bullets shielding her from harm.

Where are they now? After learning that KOS-MOS literally has the power to destroy planets, Shion has digested that information and determined that she doesn’t give a damn. She’s going to stand by KOS-MOS no matter what, and literally proves that when she risks falling out of a spaceship just to give KOS-MOS a hand. All that said, the point of this little adventure was to make it back to Second Miltia and “return” KOS-MOS to Vector. We just landed on Second Miltia, so I wonder how that’s going to go.

Best Moment: Arguably, Xenosaga Episode 1 is a greatest hits album of Shion’s absolute worst moments. Even her “healing” of Cherenkov seems to be something that is instantly repressed in the face of his violent (we helped!) end. That said, I want to say Shion gets nothing but net shortly thereafter when she’s consoling MOMO on the Durandal. Not only is Shion doing what she loves (consoling AI-based lifeforms), but KOS-MOS also joins in an empathetic way, and, considering all Shion seems to want out of life is a karing KOS-MOS, she’s elated. Shortly thereafter, it’s time to revisit the death of her parents… so, ya know, respite.


KOS-MOS



When we met: KOS-MOS is an anti-gnosis weapon created by Vector R&D, and specifically engineered primarily by lovers Shion and Kevin Winnicot. Despite being little more than a weapon and a serial number on paper, KOS-MOS is a fully-functional android, complete with preprogrammed emotional responses and heels… for some reason. KOS-MOS’s activation is one of the first significant events in Xenosaga.

What we learn: Surprisingly little. KOS-MOS is full of mysteries, chief among them KOS-MOS’s occasional need to change her eye color and switch from cold and calculating to disturbingly masochistic. More subtle is the fact that KOS-MOS appears to be receiving orders from somewhere, and Shion doesn’t have a clue where. Other than that, she’s an android, what more do you need to know? It’s not like we have any reason to suspect she’s a reincarnated Biblical figure.

Where are they now? After losing her Hilbert helmet and saving the Elsa, KOS-MOS decided to soak up a few rays on the bow of the Elsa before heading back in to be cleaned by Shion. Shion looked almost happy when she was handed a toothbrush.

Best Moment: While the whole of the finale is an obvious choice, I’m going to say it’s a tie between her activation (when she’s flipping around the ship of “invincible” gnosis and generally making her mark in blood [salt]) or the X-Buster “tummy laser” event when she, once again, turns all gnosis into pudding. Either one highlights KOS-MOS’s inherent danger (Good thing she’s on our side!), and her practically genocidal dedication to the mission.

Allen Ridgeley



When we met: Allen is Shion’s gopher. … Am I using the right word? I mean to imply that Shion believes Allen to be an inconsequential rodent that will eventually be exterminated if he bothers her even slightly. In the meanwhile, I guess he’s good for the soil.

What we learn: Allen wants Shion. Wait, no, I’m sorry, that came off as crass. Allen wants Shion to be happy… with his penis. Alright, yeah, that’s accurate.

Where are they now? Allen is, as ever, aboard the Elsa with Shion. Allen, I can safely say, accomplished nothing over the course of this adventure, and if he thinks he can “nice guy” into Shion’s heart, he doesn’t understand the object of his desire. Hell, at this point, I’m fairly certain Tony has more “relationship points” with Shion.

Best Moment: Were this a video series, I’d probably put together a montage of Allen utterly failing to do anything set to yakety sax. …. I still might do that. Regardless, Allen’s actual best moment was probably on the bench with chaos, when someone, anyone finally validated Allen’s efforts to “cheer up” Queen Repression. chaos claims that one day Shion will notice Allen, and, frankly, “hope” is about all Allen has at this point. Well, other than his soiled onesie.

Ziggurat 8 aka Ziggy



When we met: Ziggy is a cyborg-for-hire tasked with rescuing a kidnapped Realian girl. Ziggy is at least a century old, and is a reanimated suicide victim. Ziggy has one goal: to one day be 100% machine, and, thus, legally dead. Ziggy is crap at birthday parties.

What we learn: After nearly single-handedly demolishing his way out of a crowded U-TIC base, Ziggy joins the party and softens dramatically, primarily thanks to MOMO. Heck, the man that wants to be a machine is already cracking jokes by the time they hit the Elsa. Ziggy is also really good with kids, and, as we learn when Junior wants to run off on a suicide mission, seems to care about the rest of the party, if only in a gruff, paternal way.

Where are they now? Ziggy’s mission was to recover MOMO and return her to Second Miltia… and here we are on Second Miltia. Guess a lucky someone is finally going to have his brain meats scooped out!

Best Moment: Ziggy’s introductory area is never topped. By the time Ziggy and MOMO are hightailing it through space, it’s abundantly clear that Ziggy cares a lot more than he lets on, and also has the skills to backup his ace reputation. Also, he stood up to a dude with a flaming sword to protect a girl he just met, and that’s always good.

MOMO



When we met: MOMO is a 100-series Realian that is the mechanical child of Joachim ‘n Juli Mizrahi. Unfortunately, thanks to her heritage, she’s a popular kidnap victim, because Papa Mizrahi smuggled the Y-Data into her operating system, and some people are really anxious to get their hands on that. But she’s more than just a macguffin, she’s one of the most emotional Realians in the universe, and is effectively a roughly preteen girl. She can also summon meteors for some reason.

What we learn: MOMO might be the only character in the series with more parental issues than Shion. As a result, MOMO is very hard on herself, and worries continually that her heritage makes her a monster. It’s a lot to carry on MOMO’s tiny shoulders, but she does continue to fight and help the party. As hokey as it sounds, she does seem to believe the tale that her father told her: through committing good deeds, MOMO will become human. I don’t think she’s taking it literally, but she doesn’t have far to go to be a real girl. Not that kind of real girl.

Where are they now? Aboard the Elsa, with Ziggy, ready to be returned and hooked into the UMN to yank that Y-Data out, potentially making her life a lot easier. Will Mama Mizrahi be there to greet her? MOMO sure hopes so.

Best MOMOment: After a brutal raping at the hands of Albedo, MOMO turns the tables on her captor and unleashes a portion of “his” power she siphoned off. MOMO not only deals a cathartic blow to her tormentor, but also saves her boy-that-is-also-a-friend Junior, and, potentially, the rest of the party. MOMO will not be some shrinking cherry blossom, she’s a big fat peach, and she’s gonna kick some ass when she must.

Dr. Joachim Mizrahi



When we met: Pretty much from the first time Mizrahi is mentioned, we’re told he’s a mad scientist that doomed the universe. But he understands the Zohar, and built MOMO, so I guess he has some redeeming qualities.

What we learn: We finally see Mizrahi about halfway through the adventure, and he’s ranting like a loon and getting tossed off a building. That’s not a good sign. Also, we learn that he effectively founded U-TIC, invited the gnosis into the universe, and had a protégé that is probably still creeping around the place. Maybe assuming he’s a dangerous lunatic is the right thing?

Where are they now? Everybody is in a mad scramble to obtain Mizrahi’s research, because Mizrahi himself has been dead for the last decade or so. Odds are low we’ll ever meet, but then again, that Dr. Light fellow seems to keep foiling Sigma’s plans.

Best moment: Did you see when he got blown off a building? Whammo!

chaos



When we met: Dude! That kid teleported in and then vaporized a gnosis with his bare hands? What the hell!?

What we learn: Pretty much nothing. After chaos’s bombastic introduction, chaos is barely spoken to again, and proceeds to simply chime in with fun facts and reactions during later scenes. The audience (but not the rest of the party) are privy to the fact that chaos communicates with noted ephemeral beings like Nephilim, so obviously something is going on there, but who the hell knows what. And, no, there isn’t the slightest hint that he’s the immortal disciple of Jesus Christ.

Where are they now? chaos just saved everyone aboard the Elsa with his angel wings tech… and then, I guess, booked it up to the bridge so no one would notice his absence/contribution (he can teleport…). More importantly, I suppose, he made the decision to do such a thing, so maybe we’ll see a more “unleashed” chaos in Episode 2 (no we won’t).

Best moment: It’s either his introduction or the ending, because he does practically nothing else during the game. I suppose he did knock over the guards during the incarceration caper, but if chaos hadn’t volunteered for that duty, Ziggy likely would have figured something out.


The Rest of the Elsa Crew



When we met: Captain Matthews, Tony, and Hammer (along with chaos) staff the Elsa, a transport/vulture ship in the employ of the Kukai Foundation. They seem to do the dirty jobs that Junior wants done...

What we learn: … But for Xenosaga Episode 1, they’re basically just a ferry. The Elsa is home base, one way or another, for much of the game, but there isn’t much development for the ship or its occupants. Remember when the Elsa gets separated from the party at the Cathedral Ship, and they’re, what, stuck in a gnosis for a couple of hours while the real party has an adventure? What happened then? Nobody cares. I don’t think anyone even asks. I guess it’s nice to have a support network, but these guys could be replaced with three “Times are tough” NPCs and a (space) boat.

Where are they now? The Elsa has fulfilled its mission of bringing a pack of weirdos to Second Miltia. Will the crew (and ship) stick around for further adventures? I mean, they have to have something else to do, right? Or Junior could at least get a better ship out of his entire fleet…

Best moment: That Captain Matthews sure does like Shion’s curry!

Wilhelm



When we met: Wilhelm was introduced to the audience immediately after chaos. They also kinda look alike. Anyway, every time Wilhelm pops up, he talks about fate this and portents that and he gets exhausting real fast. He’s got like a combined ten minutes of screentime in this game, but it’s pretty clear we’re supposed to care about whatever he’s doing. He’s also got color-coded flunkies.

What we learn: Wilhelm has to be bad, because at least one of his servants is a super-duper racist cannibal zombie. However, the only time the party even comes close to encountering Wilhelm directly (seriously, the main party never interacts with Wilhelm the entire game, Helmer gets closest), he’s pulling the party’s fat out of the fryer by rolling up with his official Vector Death Fleet. So, shocker, it appears that Wilhelm is playing both sides against each other. Speaking of playing, he also appears to have some control over KOS-MOS… which does make a certain amount of sense. As President of Vector, he is, effectively, Shion’s boss.

Where are they now? Still hanging out in the ol’ space pyramid, still droning on about keys and compasses and maybe he just really wants to play a universal game of Zelda.

Best moment: The unveiling of the Dômmerung and its attending death ships was pretty badass. I mean, Wilhelm barely leaves his chair for the event, but it’s nice that he decided to bring company.

Junior aka Rubedo aka Gaignun Kukai Jr.



When we met: Junior is the cocksure VP of the Kukai Foundation. While his younger, older-looking brother handles the day-to-day operations, Junior gallivants around the universe collecting Zohar Emulators and getting into shootouts with enemy soldiers. Yee-haw!

What we learn: Junior is actually a mutant (sorry, Shion), and, more specifically, a URTV. A URTV is apparently a member of mass-produced “clone army” that was intended to destroy U-DO. They failed because Junior had a panic attack, cut off the “mental link” between URTVs, and left his brothers to die and/or go crazy. Rubedo (Junior) and Nigredo (Gaignun Sr.) survived, and now they’re ridiculously successful business people that have productively amassed all of the Zohar Emulators… for some reason. Eventually they discover that Albedo survived, too… and that’s gonna be a bad time.

Where are they now? Junior is aboard the Elsa with the rest of the team. Unlike the rest of the party, Junior had no real reason to go to Second Miltia, and he was along either for his own interests (The Kukai Foundation is in danger!) or to deal with Albedo. Now that Albedo isn’t an immediate threat, Junior could just head back to the Kukai Foundation and sip a few Shirley Temples with his feet on his desk.

Best moment: Junior is ACTION BOY, so it’s nice when, before the final battle, Junior finally admits to his own fear and being the reason URTV army broke down. Junior really obviously masks his emotions behind bluster and firearms, so that scene might count as a breakthrough. Good job, Little Master.

Helmer & Gaignun Kukai & Mary & Shelly



When we met: Junior effectively has his own support cast. Mary & Shelly are the Alia & Layer to his X, and Gaignun is the big (little) brother and guy who keeps the home fires burning (through cash). Helmer isn’t officially an employee of the Kukai Foundation (he’s with the Second Miltia Government), but he’s sympathetic to the cause, and has known the URTV cast since they were kids.

What we learn: Aren’t these guys swell? All four of these folk seem to exist entirely to prop up Junior (and the party by association). Helmer had a mole in the Space Government for years just to blow it on, what, buying a spare hour for the party? And Gaignun and the rest may as well be wearing cheerleading uniforms.

Where are they now? All chilling in their respective offices, chatting about what’s going to happen next. Must be hard to be a NPC in a PC world.

Best moment: It has nothing to do with anything, but I love how Mary and Shelly always, always act like Gaignun is the only man in the universe. Sure, rescuing our heroes from jail is great, but what’s Gaignun got besides looks, money, power, suits, and freaky mutant powers?

Albedo



When we met: Who’s that strange guy hanging out with the Realian kid? I guess he works for U-TIC? Do they have an albino outreach program?

What we learned: Albedo is the worst. Albedo apparently works “with” U-TIC, but plainly has his own agenda that involves the Y-Data and potentially killing everyone in the universe. He threatened an entire planet with the Proto Merkabah just to test a theory. He menaced a highly populated area just to kidnap one Realian. And he apparently screwed with an entire harem of Realians, what, just for giggles? Albedo is the worst. Oh, also, he’s immortal/invincible.

Where are they now? Albedo escaped the Proto Merkabah well in advance of the heroes, and he’s currently bopping around some unknown section of space, reviewing the damage he’s wrought. He’s got the Y-Data, he just plucked an entire orbiting death station out of a double black hole, what’s next on his bucket list?

Best moment: From a strictly audience point of view, Albedo’s initial speech to MOMO, complete with random amputation/decapitation, might be the deranged highlight of the entire game. From a character perspective… nah… same answer. You always get the feeling that Albedo really enjoys what he does, and menacing Realian children is what he does best.

U-DO



When we met: We have no damn idea what U-DO even is… but we know we don’t like it.

What we learned: KOS-MOS is potentially destined to destroy U-DO… and an entire planet while she’s at it. Junior was literally born to combat U-DO. Albedo interacting with U-DO elevated him to his current level of utter insanity/invincibility. U-DO is ultimately the reason Old Miltia isn’t around anymore. U-DO is bad news for everybody… but nobody seems to have a firm grasp on what “It” is.

Where are they now? Old Miltia, I guess. For all the fear of U-DO going on, It doesn’t seem like It is very active.

Best moment: U-DO

The Gnosis





When we met: From the beginning, the gnosis were spoken of in hushed, fearful tones. This is mainly because they seem to utterly destroy everything in their path, and reduce humans to either their component, bloody pieces, or… salt. They’re fond of salt.

What we learned: They’re also made of salt. Despite the fact that there is an entire industry dedicated to eradicating the gnosis (KOS-MOS, AGWS, 100-Series Realians), nobody seems to know much about them. We now know (and have seen it proven) that at least some gnosis are former people that… gnosified. We also know that Shion is inexplicably immune to this condition. Beyond that, they may as well be scientifically classified as angry ghosts. They’re definitely responsible for their share of bloodshed.

Where are they now? Everywhere. Okay, wait, that’s hyperbolic. Despite the fact that the gnosis seem to follow the party like lost puppies, the gnosis are still, across the universe, widely believed to be a myth. And by “myth”, I mean “global climate change isn’t real, my cousin knows a scientist that said it’s all bunk.” As we saw with the Kukai Foundation, if the gnosis wanted to attack an entire planet, it would end poorly for the planet, so let’s hope Shion’s luck as a gnosis magnet improves.

Best moment: Any time before the Cathedral Ship… which pretty much confines it to the Woglinde. The gnosis do, as you’d expect, get gradually less scary to the player as time marches on, because how can anything be scary when your inventory is full of their salty, separated body parts? The gnosis are still a threat to the universe, but to your six protagonists, they’re currently right up there with slimes and cactuars.

Margulis & U-TIC



When we met: U-TIC kidnapped MOMO, and U-TIC’s apparent leader is Margulis, a harsh fellow that doesn’t give the tiniest damn about humanity. He doesn’t want to kill everyone, he just believes that the vast majority of people are insects crawling along the kitchen floor that is the universe, and he will one day reclaim and hold aloft the dropped piece of ham that is still good (Lost Jerusalem).

What we learned: U-TIC is all about obtaining the Zohar and returning to Lost Jerusalem for… some reason. I don’t know, maybe someone left the stove on on Earth, and they’re anxious to turn it back off. Whatever. Other than that, U-TIC is a religious organization of some kind, and Margulis is leading his contingent of U-TICkers with an iron fist and a flaming sword. Dude destroyed a planet just to see what would happen.

Where are they now? U-TIC kind of fell off the map when Albedo showed up (seriously, they weren’t even checked during the credits), but presumably they’re still waiting for Albedo to return with the Y-Data “they” sent Albedo to retrieve. Might be a long wait.

Best moment: Cherenkov’s memories reveal why U-TIC has gained support: they’re basically the premiere hate group of the future. Hey, you’re a dangerous mass-murderer? Come on down, sign up, we think you’ll work out just fine. We’ve got a few planets we need disappeared, and maybe a murderbot to screw with… you in?

Professor, Assistant Scott, and Erde Kaiser



When we met: Professor is an excitable person who needs help building a giant robot. We help. We do what we must, because we can.

What we learned: Professor is a childish alcoholic, and Assistant Scott is a masochistic codependent, but together they form an invincible fighting robot, and, really, can you say you’ve done anything any better in your life?

Where are they now? Just chilling, back on the Kukai Foundation, confident that Erde Kaiser was instrumental in the destruction of that orbiting death station everyone else seemed so panicked about.

Best moment: I love it when a robot comes together.


Next time on Xenosaga: I’m taking some time off.

There were a couple of years between Xenosaga installments, so I feel like that entitles me to a couple of weeks. Did you know that sometime around early January, I was literally having dreams about this game? I find that… disconcerting. So, in order to decompress, I’m taking at least two weeks off, maximum of four. It kind of depends on how much the “urge” to return to the project influences my decisions, but I’ll definitely be back and posting on this by April or so.

In the meanwhile, we’ll take a vote: Xenosaga Episode 2, without exaggeration, picks up like a half hour after the events of Episode 1. That said, pick your poison: should we have a new thread for each episode of Xenosaga, or should it all be one “giant” thread, presumably with links to each Episode wedged into the initial post? Up to you, I don’t really care either way. Make your voice heard!

So, Episode 2 coming soon.

Episode 1, complete.

I need to be cleaned.

(Oh… and there may be… an intermission somewhere in the hiatus, too…)

I say new thread for each game but any intermissiony stuff should go on the end of the previous one (ie anything you post now prior to Episode II should go here, and whenever you finally finish Episode II anything you post prior to Episode III should go in Episode II's thread), but that's just how I'd do it, you do you.


Speaking of intermissiony stuff, will we be looking at the trailers at all? Episode I had this big 5-minute dealy before it came out but I don't think it got nearly as much attention as the multiple trailers for Episodes II and III, all of which were actually quite spoilery (hell, didn't one of Episode III's trailers straight up use the final boss BGM?).

I'm nostalgic for Episode II's trailers especially because I, uh, watched them... many times before it came out.

Whichever you do, can you put up links to the start of each update in the OP?

Yeah if it's gonna be all kept in here then some sort of ToC on the first page is a must.

"All great things must first wear terrifying and monstrous masks, in order to inscribe themselves on the hearts of humanity."

Well... There might another reason why he wants to stick around...

I echo this.

So, I had no idea the final boss of this game was the final boss when I reached it. I beat Albedo, and then there was this other boss fight out of fucking nowhere... but it had a trippy background and a unique awesome music theme and wait is this the final boss? I distinctly remember thinking there would be at least one other obvious dungeon after this one, though I can't remember what I actually thought that would be. Then boom, blindsided.

XS2 elevates this disparity to truly astonishing levels, with what I think is my single favorite game- or anything-soundtrack by Yuki Kajiura... which is specifically ONLY in the cutscenes, and the single worst elevator muzak RPG soundtrack I've ever heard for the entirety of actual gameplay.

That said, I still think that overall Mitsuda's work on the XS soundtrack is pretty phenomenal. It's no Chrono Trigger (what is?) or Xenogears, but it's still good stuff. I think Last Battle is still one of my single favorite final boss songs, if not #1 favorite, in any JRPG. Something about violins.

Honestly, I like a lot of the non-cutscene music in XS2.

Not ALL of it by any means, but I like the battle themes and some of the dungeon themes. XS2 had three composers, Kajiura, Shinji Hosoe, and some other one who I never got the name of. Kajiura did all the cutscenes, while everything else was split up between the other two.

I'm not sure who did what, but I've heard some of Hosoe's other stuff and I'm pretty sure all the other tracks that I like a lot were done by him and everything that sucks was done by the other one.

But even though I do like some of the non-cutscene music in XS2, the overall OST of the game is very uneven as a result of the different musical talent, and XS3 at least is consistent by just having Kajiura doing all the things.

Apparently, the gameplay ST was all Hosoe: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_...aga#Episode_II

Hm, I was sure I read somewhere that there was a third composer working on the OST, but I could be mistaken. If that's the case then Hosoe really went all over the place on his side of the OST.

Also, Kajiura did the best anime OST this side of one of Yoko Kanno's works, El Cazador de la Bruja.

Junior is the most interesting protagonist in this game by a decent margin, competing only with Ziggy, and Shion has only MOMO to compete with for least interesting. Ultimately, Shion wins that title simply because of MOMO's relationship to some of the game's key figures.

So why did Xenosaga decide to make Shion the viewpoint character? I can think of a few good reasons -- reinforcing the theme of humans versus robots versus realians, for example -- but I'd rather play a game about Junior than one about Shion.

And that's pretty impressive, given that A) the man is named Jr. of all things and B) he looks like he's twelve years old.

Near as I can tell, GoggleBob just did that.

And he's about to do it again!

I'd say it's probably because she fills the sci-fi role of being someone very much integral to the story, but who is disconnected enough that she learns alongside the player. Junior is pretty well experienced in most plotlines in pre-start history that he doesn't necessarily need to learn about the world.

course, the game betrays that a bit by having shion never expressively concerned about all the inner workings, but that's part character trait part this game should have been longer for its scope