There are countless other RPGs out there to buy that are more fun and rewarding than this piece of frustration
Firstly the graphics in Xenosaga episode 2 have improved when compared to Xenosaga episode 1, however still the graphics are poor. Character renders and models look great, but the environments and backgrounds were poorly done. There were some areas that were passable, however the majority of environments and backgrounds are plain, simple and lacks details, texture and depth. If you played the first game (because you should in order to understand the storyline) the first thing you should notice different, are the characters look more mature and modern, rather than the anime “big eye” style of Xenosaga episode 1. The cut-scenes in the game do look great because the character models look great, however once again because of the simplistic backgrounds, the graphics takes a plunge. One cannot judge a game on the character models and renders only.
Gameplay wise, the power up and level system from Xenosaga episode 1 & Xenosaga episode 2 are both different. This is a plus when comparing games that continue directly into another and retain the same style of power up and combat systems like Kingdom Hearts and Digital Devil Saga. You can load your data from Xenosaga episode 1 onto Xenosaga episode 2, and you will unlock some sweet bonuses. The dungeon style of the game remained the same as episode 1, solving puzzles by destroying various obstacles Enemies that can be seen on screen and avoided. Mech turn based battles. The game is still heavy on storyline and you will be spending a lot of time watching a lot of cut-scenes, many of which will puzzle you (even if you played the first game) or are irrelevant.
Now let me mention why this game got such a poor rating. This game is brutally hard especially with the boss battles later on in the game. You will be tearing your hear out and shouting forbidden curse words at your PS2! Firstly the first few hours of the game are really enjoyable. It will take you around 10 hours to complete the first disc. However once you progress about half way into the second disc not only are the enemies brutally difficult, but some of the bosses are down and dirty ridiculous. Leveling up doesn’t work because you level up really slow and it doesn’t matter your level, because if you don’t know the strategies of the bosses and their weakness, you will want to break your PS2 in two. Xenosaga episode 2 became more frustrating than fun, a real shame because I really loved the Xenosaga episode 1 and Xenogears (for the PSone)
Lastly I only recommend Xenosaga episode 2 to hardcore of hardcore RPG gamers. It will take the hardcore RPG gamer around 35 to 40 hrs to complete this game. If you’re a casual RPG gamer, now breaking into the genre or a person who loves RPG, don’t buy this game. If you’ve played every RPG out there, then attempt this game. This has to be THE hardest RPG I ever played! There are countless other RPGs out there to buy that are more fun and rewarding than this piece of frustration.