Console RPG Ramblings
This will be of interest to console RPG fans only, so if you're not into 'em, you're probably better off skipping it.
...
...
...
Oh, are you still here? I guess you're interested in paying attention to the senile ramblings of a doddering old man gamer after all. You freak. ;) Let's just hope for your sake that I don't get going about the "good 'ole days".
So anyway, I finally finished FFX yesterday. I bought the game when it had just come out, and played it pretty hard core for a while, until I got to the calm lands. Then I just stopped. Other things grabbed my attention I guess, and it sat around collecting dust for a while. Then my father borrowed it for a few months. So I got it back a little while ago, and since Xenosaga was coming out, I decided to buckle down and actually finish it. And I did. But lets not dwell on such old news, I'm sure most of the people that actually have the patience to read along this far into my babbling have already finished FFX themselves and know all about it. Good for you. :)
So, in my roundabout way, I finally get to the point. Xenosaga. I picked it up Friday, but refused to touch it until I finished FFX. So, of course, within 10 minutes of the final credits ending, I was watching the intro to Xenosaga. Eight hours later, at 2:30 AM on a school night, I was still at it. So I guess you can figure out which direction this review is going. But let me break it down for you anyway.
Graphics: Bloody awesome. They strike me as being even more polished that FFX's, which makes sense since it's about a full generation ahead. You can barely tell what's a cutscene and what's not, aside from camera angles. And it's not that the cutscenes look bad, it's that everything looks good. Detailed character designs, good animations, snazzy effects. Everything you would expect from a decent RPG. But still, it's all just eye candy. Let's move on to the meat.
Gameplay: I don't have a whole hell of a lot to say about this, most of the staples are here. Levels, character advancement, etc. You all know the drill. It's handled pretty well though. The battle system is nice, with an action point system where you can save up AP's over turns to unleash more powerful attacks. Also, one of my favorite things, No Random Battles! You can see enemy groups on the map and your radar, and there are ways to avoid most of them. There are some pretty cool sequences of sneaking around enemies, MGS style. But except for one in the very beginning, you can always plow through head on if you want to. There are even many spots you can lure an enemy group into a trap and blow up a canister next to it before engaging. This gives you certain advantages in the fight itself. And you can fight in mechs too. Super sweet. I guess I lied, I had a lot to say after all.
Overall I'm quite happy with the gameplay, even if there's less than you might expect. I'll explain that as I move onward to...
Story: Playing Xenosaga is almost like participating in an interactive science fiction anime series. Much of the story is told through cutscenes. In fact, probably half of the 12 hours or so I've played so far has been me just watching. Not that I'm complaining, the cutscenes are quite good, as is the story overall. I would surmise that the game was intended for proper, story loving RPG fans. But, for those out there (like Drew) that can't stand to wait, and must get to the killing, it is possible to skip past cutscenes. I wouldn't really recommend it though, because you'd be missing out. For those of you who don't know, this is episode 1, a prequel to the Xenogears game that Squaresoft put out on the PS1 a few years ago. It was episode 4 or so, I believe, and one of my favorite games of all time.
And I have to say that although I love fantasy too, it's nice to see something else for a change, especially when it's done so well.
Synopsis: I like it. :)
Ok, I'm done, for now.
Move along, there's nothing else to see here.
...
...
...
Oh, are you still here? I guess you're interested in paying attention to the senile ramblings of a doddering old man gamer after all. You freak. ;) Let's just hope for your sake that I don't get going about the "good 'ole days".
So anyway, I finally finished FFX yesterday. I bought the game when it had just come out, and played it pretty hard core for a while, until I got to the calm lands. Then I just stopped. Other things grabbed my attention I guess, and it sat around collecting dust for a while. Then my father borrowed it for a few months. So I got it back a little while ago, and since Xenosaga was coming out, I decided to buckle down and actually finish it. And I did. But lets not dwell on such old news, I'm sure most of the people that actually have the patience to read along this far into my babbling have already finished FFX themselves and know all about it. Good for you. :)
So, in my roundabout way, I finally get to the point. Xenosaga. I picked it up Friday, but refused to touch it until I finished FFX. So, of course, within 10 minutes of the final credits ending, I was watching the intro to Xenosaga. Eight hours later, at 2:30 AM on a school night, I was still at it. So I guess you can figure out which direction this review is going. But let me break it down for you anyway.
Graphics: Bloody awesome. They strike me as being even more polished that FFX's, which makes sense since it's about a full generation ahead. You can barely tell what's a cutscene and what's not, aside from camera angles. And it's not that the cutscenes look bad, it's that everything looks good. Detailed character designs, good animations, snazzy effects. Everything you would expect from a decent RPG. But still, it's all just eye candy. Let's move on to the meat.
Gameplay: I don't have a whole hell of a lot to say about this, most of the staples are here. Levels, character advancement, etc. You all know the drill. It's handled pretty well though. The battle system is nice, with an action point system where you can save up AP's over turns to unleash more powerful attacks. Also, one of my favorite things, No Random Battles! You can see enemy groups on the map and your radar, and there are ways to avoid most of them. There are some pretty cool sequences of sneaking around enemies, MGS style. But except for one in the very beginning, you can always plow through head on if you want to. There are even many spots you can lure an enemy group into a trap and blow up a canister next to it before engaging. This gives you certain advantages in the fight itself. And you can fight in mechs too. Super sweet. I guess I lied, I had a lot to say after all.
Overall I'm quite happy with the gameplay, even if there's less than you might expect. I'll explain that as I move onward to...
Story: Playing Xenosaga is almost like participating in an interactive science fiction anime series. Much of the story is told through cutscenes. In fact, probably half of the 12 hours or so I've played so far has been me just watching. Not that I'm complaining, the cutscenes are quite good, as is the story overall. I would surmise that the game was intended for proper, story loving RPG fans. But, for those out there (like Drew) that can't stand to wait, and must get to the killing, it is possible to skip past cutscenes. I wouldn't really recommend it though, because you'd be missing out. For those of you who don't know, this is episode 1, a prequel to the Xenogears game that Squaresoft put out on the PS1 a few years ago. It was episode 4 or so, I believe, and one of my favorite games of all time.
And I have to say that although I love fantasy too, it's nice to see something else for a change, especially when it's done so well.
Synopsis: I like it. :)
Ok, I'm done, for now.
Move along, there's nothing else to see here.