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Xenosaga Episode II, Baten Kaitos Unveiled

Posted by simoniker on from the hurrah-for-unpronouncable-RPG-names dept.

Thanks to GameSpot for their article revealing the first details on Xenosaga Episode II, subtitled 'Jenseits von Gut und Bose' ('Beyond Good And Evil'), and a follow-up to the popular, if long-winded PS2 sci-fi RPG from MonolithSoft/Namco. Screenshots reveal the major characters have returned, "..and some of them have been given a more-mature look for the new game." In related news, GamePro reported on new details and screenshots from MonolithSoft's GameCube-exclusive RPG, Baten Kaitos (named after a star in the Cetus constellation), which is "set in a collection of five floating continents in the sky", and surprisingly, has a "..fighting system [which] will involve the use of cards." Both are likely, but as yet unconfirmed for release outside Japan.

2 of 25 comments (clear)

  1. Xenosaga ep. 1 by Mprx · · Score: 4, Interesting
    After all the hype, Xenosaga episode 1 was a major disappointment. The combat system was boring and repetitive, and non-interactive parts took up far too much time. There's nothing wrong with having non-interactive parts, but if you're going to rely on them as much as Xenosaga does the story must be exceptionally good. Unfortuantly, Xenosaga's story is bad fanfic quality. Characters were cliched and predictable, and all the "deep" philosophical stuff wasn't. Xenogears did this type of game much better, and Xenogears is overrated itself.

    Here's a quote from the caltrops.com review of Xenosaga ep. 1:

    "Here's something that Gamespot (and not me) said. Tell me if you think this seriously makes sense. They mention that the game, as it's been admitted by everyone who plays it, has extremely long cutscenes. Gamespot's 8.1 OMG GAME SO COOL ANIME RULEZ review says that they do occasionally get boring. So if the entire game is mostly cutscenes, and they get boring, wouldn't that just make the game plain old boring?"

    Episode 1 was the biggest waste of money I spent on a PS2 game yet, I won't be making the same mistake with episode 2.

  2. Re:Is Namco going to repeat the mistake... by devnull17 · · Score: 3, Informative

    I don't know where 'Jenseits von Gut und Bose' came from, but the subtitle of Episode I, 'Der Wille zur Macht,' was pulled from the writings of Nietzsche. He spoke German. :)

    The Xenosaga series is targeted toward the hardcore RPG fan demographic. People like that won't care if a game has a German title, and people who do care would most likely not enjoy the game's long-winded and extremely complex story.