Xenosaga Episode II may not be the most remarkable game around, but it's charming story will win you over.
User Rating: 7.3 | Xenosaga Episode II: Jenseits von Gut und Bose PS2
Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht came out roughly two years ago now, and while it was met with both high critical praise and a good target market that ate it up, it put off a lot of gamers in a number of ways. Japanese styled Role-Playing Games are often pegged with the notion that they’re more or less interactive movies rather than full blown games. While this isn’t true for the majority of the turn-based RPGs, in the case of Xenosaga, it often felt like it was. Now that brings us up to the release of the long-awaited sequel, Xenosaga Episode II: Jenseits von Gut und Bose (Beyond Good and Evil) has finally come out. A lot of the hype surrounding both of the Xenosaga titles comes due to the 1998 RPG masterpiece, Xenogears from SquareSoft. Xenogears, at the time, was at the top of it’s class, really only rivaled by games like Final Fantasy VII and Grandia. It was an unbelievably epic game riddled with controversial overtones filled with religion, historical, and philosophical references. While Xenogears was pinned with the title “classic”, Xenosaga Episode I was pinned with more of a “mixed reactions” feeling. The nature of Xenosaga Episode I and Episode II isn’t to really make you play through the experience, like Half-Life 2 or Metroid Prime have you do, it’s almost more like you’re supposed to experience the experience, if that makes any sense. See, the two games borrow so much that we’ve come to know and love from past RPGs on the PlayStation and Super Nintendo through long-winded dialog sequences and beautifully presented artwork. However, Xenosaga doesn’t just stop there, it goes to the next level and takes cutscenes to an extreme. The first game had maybe 45 minutes of actual gameplay in the first six hours, while the rest was full-blown computer animated cutscene. It’s safe to say that if you didn’t like that about the first one, you’re going to want to stay far, far away from Xenosaga Episode II. However, if that was your thing, like it was for many people, Xenosaga Episode II is right up your alley. Because it’s probably the best turn-based RPG since, well, the original Xenosaga came out in early 2003. Episode II, like the original, focuses so much on it’s extraordinary cinematic narrative that it almost really does feel like an interactive movie. The game picks up right where the second one left off. Actually, that isn’t entirely true, but it gets there pretty quick. In the very beginning of the game you’re reintroduced to Chaos, the strange, white haired young man from the first game. He’s coupled with a stern Realian – or android, if you’re new to this sort of thing – named Canaan. Miltia is being torn up by the Realian population having some sort of malfunction and going crazy, ala I, Robot. After a few pretty awesome cutscenes you find yourself meeting up with Jin Uzuki (last name sound familiar? It should), who is the embodiment of bad ass in the game. Right when that section hits it’s climax, you get yet another long cutscene that eventually transcends fourteen years in the future to our favorite group of characters. You know, Shion, KOS-MOS, Ziggy, Jr., MOMO, and all of the others, it’s like a family reunion! Without spoiling anything important, the story follows a few different parties all out for the same purpose. To secure that ancient Zohar that was in discussion throughout the last game. Right off the bat the game skips through all of the fluff we had to sit through during the first game and goes straight to the good stuff. It’s a much more competent, interesting, and enjoyable story overall. And when you’re sitting through dozens of long cutscenes, which are admittedly awesome, that is a very, very good thing. Here is where Xenosaga II’s biggest fault is, and really, it’s a big problem from the first one too. The actual gameplay of the game, well, it’s hardly there. Like stated before, it’s almost like an interactive movie, literally. A large portion of the game you’re going to be leaving your controller on the floor, or sitting next to you, as you watch all of these cool cutscenes. If that’s not going to fly with you, stop reading right now and don’t even both with this game. Monolith software hasn’t done much in the way of changing their beloved formula from the first game, and for good reason too. They want an incredibly story driven and cinematic epic for RPG and anime fans alike to really get in to and enjoy. There is, however, a little bit of good news. The actual length of cutscenes seems to have dropped a little bit, however, instead of being longer, they’re more frequent. The trade-off is apparent, but it doesn’t really change that much. The combat system in Episode II is very different from the first one. There are still those unique combos that we first saw in Xenogears in 1998, however, the game takes the Suikoden III approach to combat with more of a reliance on character interaction and dual attacks instead of singular moves from each character. It’s done pretty well, however, it’s a pretty large change. Characters can also “stock” their attacks, which means they can save up attack turns to unleash pretty wild attack moves that will allow them do deal supreme amounts of damage on the foe. Even though the combat has changed a fair amount, at least in its focus, you’ll still at home. The game’s mechs, also known as A.G.W.S make a return, as does the boost system from the first one. Generally, if you could handle the first one, you’ll catch on pretty quick here. If there’s any noticeable change from the get go, it’s the look of the game. Graphically, this game is great. Xenosaga Episode II is a visual masterpiece and it completely fits with the epic nature of the game. With games like Metal Gear Solid, Final Fantasy, and this, it really shows that digital storytelling is going to new heights. If Xenosaga does anything really well, it’s telling a great tale through fantastic cinematography. Textures, character models, animations, and environments all look stellar when put up against the first one. The characters all look far more mature and detailed and it really does away with the childish, anime look the first one had. Some people might dislike that, but seriously, it’s for the best. Now, audibly speaking, it’s another case. The game’s score is better than Xenosaga Episode I, however, the voice acting is sometimes atrocious. The main characters all sound pretty good, but every so often you’ll hear some monotone guy behind a voice and it makes you wish it was 1998 again so you could be reading text bubbles instead. Overall on the technical side, though, Xenosaga II meets the mark. It’s probably the best looking RPG on the PlayStation 2, even if it isn’t the best sounding one. There are going to be a lot basic comparisons to this game, it’s predecessor, and 1998's Xenogears. It’s not better than either, however, it’s on par with Xenosaga Episode I. It’s really hard to know how they’re going to tie these two games in with Xenogears (called Episode V by the end of the credits), if at all. If they don’t loop them all together, that’s fine. Xenosaga Episode II is a wonderful game that plays off the first episode perfectly. If you were looking for a sequel that, instead of reinventing itself, just expands on what was really great about the first, Xenosaga Episode II makes the mark. It’s not just the best RPG so far this year, it’s the best one in the turn-based genre since the first one came out over two years ago. Some might be a little disappointed by its short sub-30 hour campaign, but most people will find it forgiving because this game has so much heart and soul that it will be remembered long after it’s beaten.
