Xenogears, is it still worth playing?

Back in the day I missed out on the Playstation original because I got an N64 instead. 2 years ago I bought a PS2 and this year I got a PS3 and the games have been so good that I regret never experiencing Playstation original. I bought a used copy of Xenogears to play on the PS2because I heard it was an amazing game (and because I really enjoyed the Xenosaga Trilogy for PS2).

I played it for about an hour, but given how spoiled I am with modern graphics and sound etc. I found Xenogears to be virtually UNPLAYABLE and I gave up on it. Is this a premature assessment? Should I stick with it and actually give it a fulltry? I value any ones opinion who has actually played this game...my big question is despite the graphical limitations and lack of voice acting and cut scenes (all the things you get in more current games) Is it still worth playing this game in 2009?

Thanks!!!

Back in the day I missed out on the Playstation original because I got an N64 instead. 2 years ago I bought a PS2 and this year I got a PS3 and the games have been so good that I regret never experiencing Playstation original. I bought a used copy of Xenogears to play on the PS2because I heard it was an amazing game (and because I really enjoyed the Xenosaga Trilogy for PS2).

I played it for about an hour, but given how spoiled I am with modern graphics and sound etc. I found Xenogears to be virtually UNPLAYABLE and I gave up on it. Is this a premature assessment? Should I stick with it and actually give it a fulltry? I value any ones opinion who has actually played this game...my big question is despite the graphical limitations and lack of voice acting and cut scenes (all the things you get in more current games) Is it still worth playing this game in 2009?

Thanks!!!

fscobie

I found a copy of Xenogears at a local gamespot a couple years ago and picked it up. I had played Xenosaga, but never Xenogears. Suffice to say, it'st the greatest JRPG I've ever played. It has a slow start and tbh I'm not particularly fond of the character design. But it's definitely solid gold in terms of both story and gameplay. I was blown away.

As for the graphics, I thought it looked pretty good. The characters are somewhat blocky, yes, but they're animated extremely well and I found then nice to look at and fun to watch in battles for that reason.

Anyways, I would suggest that you stick with it at least through to Solaris. You'll know what it is when you get there. If you're not excited and engrossed in the story by then, quit playing. It's a very long game and it has a slower start as a result. I logged roughly 120 hours onto Xenogears without grinding or anything.

If you can't stand playing it you shouldn't bother with the game.

As for me, Xenogears was one of the best rpg games I've played. Game had a great story which might be confusing during first playthrough. I loved how the game dealt with politics, evolution, religion, darwinism, and had sci-fi theme. I found Xenosaga to be no where near as good as Xenogears,

Xenogears is awesome is is definatly still worth playing one of my favorites games of all time:D

Thanks for all the sagely advice everyone. It looks there are mixed opinions as to my little dilemma. If it wasn't for the fact that there are a couple more current games I really wanted to play I might have stuck withXenogears longer. I think I will give it a bit more of a try, maybe if I find myself in RPG limbo near the end of this year (I think FF13 is still a long way from being released and the PS3 is a bit light on the RPG's rightnow so then might be a good time).

Thanks for all the sagely advice everyone. It looks there are mixed opinions as to my little dilemma. If it wasn't for the fact that there are a couple more current games I really wanted to play I might have stuck withXenogears longer. I think I will give it a bit more of a try, maybe if I find myself in RPG limbo near the end of this year (I think FF13 is still a long way from being released and the PS3 is a bit light on the RPG's rightnow so then might be a good time).

fscobie

How far are you exactly? I really suggest you give it a try. The gameplay and the story both improve over time. I didn't see what was so amazing about it at first either.

You'll get used to the graphics as you play it more. It's a great game once you get engrossed in the story...even though you'll be confused, pieces of the story unfold and you'll want to keep playing to find out more. It does have a few dull parts, but overall it's one of my favorites.

Xenogears is not a perfect game, but it also happens to be my 2nd favorite RPG. The mixture of 2D and 3D graphics help it age better than other games of the PS1, and the story is one of my favorites ever. I'd love it if SquareEnix would let Monolith Soft remake the game and add in the things that Square's budget cuts forced them to leave on the floor, but it's still amazing.

Are you running it in smooth mode? It actually makes quite a difference in that game.

Yeah, I only gave it about an hour. The intro cut scene was awsome and the prologue to the story was really cool, but once I got into the actual game play I just started thinking to myself hmmm this is kind of dated. All I really did was talk to a few people in town about a wedding occuring or something like that and then I went outside of town and fought some Kobolds.

I am a firm believer that story is what makes a game great and everything else is secondary, so i think I will at leastgive it more of a try and see if it pulls me in. I think just the initial shock of going back to a game with 1998 graphics kind of turned me off...but I really should give this game a fair chance especially with how highly regared everyone says it is.

Thanks for all your input everyone!

Oh and thanks for the suggestion Mailer_Daemon, I will try it in smooth mode...I didn't even know such a thing existed.

Oh and thanks for the suggestion Mailer_Daemon, I will try it in smooth mode...I didn't even know such a thing existed.

fscobie

i do suggest you keep playing, once you get into the gear battling and the combo mastering for the characters the battles get much more interesting, and the story is indeed where the game shines, although it might be confusing, thats why you can look up "xenogears perfect work" there is a fan translated verison somewhere on the net.

Yeah, I only gave it about an hour. The intro cut scene was awsome and the prologue to the story was really cool, but once I got into the actual game play I just started thinking to myself hmmm this is kind of dated. All I really did was talk to a few people in town about a wedding occuring or something like that and then I went outside of town and fought some Kobolds.

I am a firm believer that story is what makes a game great and everything else is secondary, so i think I will at leastgive it more of a try and see if it pulls me in. I think just the initial shock of going back to a game with 1998 graphics kind of turned me off...but I really should give this game a fair chance especially with how highly regared everyone says it is.

Thanks for all your input everyone!

fscobie

Oh, the very beginning is boring like that. Keep going, I'm sure you'll appreciate it especially when you get to the more SF areas.