10 Things You Didn't Know About Xenosaga (I, II & III) - No Spoilers-

[@whitewolf3051]

Who wants these remastered physically to modern systems including the Switch? I certainly do.

[@Taikaru]

I own them all but would glady buy again if remastered! My favorite series of all time.

[@Tython82]

@@Cheeky_WABUU Why would it be a downgrade? The Switch is far more powerful then the PS2 which the games came out for originally.

[@jonathann.5754]

@@Cheeky_WABUU Lol

[@thetruerevo8951]

What I truly want us the continuation if the stroy

[@XanderVJ]

Unfortunately... not many people. Harada tried to get a HD remaster collection done in the early 2010's after the success of "Xenoblade", and it turned out that this series' fanbase is passionate as hell... but unfortunately, way smaller than what we fans would like to admit.

[@newageBoundhippie]

I really hope KOS-MOS gets into Smash as a fighter....and that one of her victory animations includes her saying "Shion, I need to be cleaned"....

[@IxCloudxIx]

physical appearance down 30%

[@azurekite3870]

nope,sadly never happened

[@blackmanjrpg17]

One of my favorite series of ALL TIME! It sucked that Xenosaga 2 and 3 failed the way it did as I thought they were actually good except for the battle system in Xenosaga 2

[@camendiv]

That battle system is why a lot of people fell off, myself included. Still finished it eventually.

[@camendiv]

Also f#$! Albedo xD

[@blackmanjrpg17]

Why switch the system up even though there was a new team doing the development...... And yea F$*K ALBEDO!

[@fanofall9319]

Why is there so much hate for albedo???

[@camendiv]

@@fanofall9319 He does things. To people. Young people. o.o

[@rubedo_jr]

The greatest trilogy ever made! Jr has always been my favourite character but yeah KosMos is an icon. Xenosaga became an obsession for me at a certain point when i wanted to understand and find every possible information about the series (i even read the whole script for pied piper, and it's amazing) so i alrealdy know everything said in the video. I want to precise that the 3 games we got covered only TWO of the original 6 games project. So we know only 1/3 of the story... i really hope they'll have the opportunity to finish the series because ep3's ending though great (imo one of the greatest vg endings ever) clearly needs to be continued

[@thetruerevo8951]

It makes .e sad to think about haha

[@blaire4115]

I'm thinking they have to condense overall story to 3 episodes, especially the third game. So we probably already seen all major story beats and intended series ending. It just that many stuff in between was cut.

[@thetruerevo8951]

@@blaire4115 true, but the series did leave off with a cliff hanger

[@rubedo_jr]

@@blaire4115 no actually there is a website (xenosaga study guide) that explains the developement of the series with all interviews by monolith where they clearly say that, unable to accomplish their original project, they wanted at least to finish shion's story arc, which they did. But originally they should have continued with another story arc. About episode 3 what you say it's true, because after the first 2 episodes, whose rhythm were very slow, they expected two more games in order to finish shion's arc but then namco allowed them just one more episode, that's why they compressed the story in what became episode 3. It's quite complicated but if you're interested you can look at the website

[@rubedo_jr]

@@thetruerevo8951 yes, the next story arc should have taken place on Lost jerusalem, where according to chaos lies the key to save the universe

[@sarahmatthews8013]

I love this series so much and have replayed all three titles consequently numerous times. I forgive the artwork and gameplay of the second game due to the amazing story line arc.

[@Jack_80]

i actually liked the combat in part 2, not as much as the first game but it was nice that they changed it up and was really fun once you understood it.

[@yaibanisenctien9746]

The music here is so nostalgic love your vids man ❤

[@josealejo4638]

It tortures me to think how these games ended up. Xenosaga 1 was a masterpiece like no other.

[@josealejo4638]

@GamerGirl 1 You know, I've heard from multiple people now that 3 was as good or better than 1. But i remember playing them and thinking 3 was just awful. I remember hating the ending. But now that I reflect on it I find that I don't remember it. I think I will go back and try the trilogy again.

[@DGP406]

X1 a masterpiece?? the game doesn't even have ambient music lmao

[@josealejo4638]

@@DGP406 I wasn't aware that masterpieces required ambient music. I'll have to call the Russians and let them know their classical literature is shit.

[@technomage6736]

@@josealejo4638 I mostly agree. My only big complaint with the 3rd title revolved around the ending, primarily the Mary Magdalene thing was underwhelming.

[@thefanmark5165]

Indeed. Easily the most fantastic thing and it should’ve been so much better. How did they make such a mistake. My heart is sad for this game

[@sjtheoldone]

I still have all 3 discs. Nice memories and sad ones at the same time.

[@CycloneFox]

But they're five discs. o.o

[@sterlingarcher8072]

@@CycloneFox tf

[@technomage6736]

That 3rd game is worth quite a small fortune!

[@sjtheoldone]

@@CycloneFox I meant all three games lol

[@jonathanvogt4341]

I have all 3 plus 2 sets of backups, I am not going to go without one of my favorite game series.

[@raelaurenmccoy803]

Episode 3 had me in my feelings. That soundtrack was EPIC! Especially, the fight with Margulis in Levi!

[@SubduedRadical]

The Rescuing/Saving Shion (I never remember the name) song was the reason I went online an bought the first videogame soundtrack I ever bought...of course, that song SOMEHOW wasn't on the soundtrack. I have no idea why. But the rest was still amazing too. Correction, Lybrinthos, SEARCH for Shion: Labyrinthos - Search for Shion kzbin.info/www/bejne/d4Omcnqog9OFqpo There's also Godsibb (yeah, like I ever remember how to spell THAT) or another one that I just CAN'T remember the name of, but has like a 15 second bit that is so sweeping and fast paced (Da da da dada, da da da dada) that little piece is just incredible to me. Totally worth it.

[@kaparaomer7751]

Episode me had me crying even before i bought the game, because selling you kidney on the black market is still a sad experience to own this games

[@Jack_80]

i never got around to playing 3. surprisingly i just found out about this new ps2 emulator and have restarted the series with part 1 on my phone, and it's actually running perfectly. i've only had it for a few days now and every time i play i'm in disbelief that xenosaga is running perfectly on my phone.

[@Theycallmetomu]

Man, that music, my nostalgia brain cranking at full blast here.

[@Genethagenius]

How do you make a JRPG fan depressed? Tell them about a cool game or series followed by the words: “Only in Japan”...

[@lambertar]

@@FredMaverik Nice way to tell everyone you didn't bother to watch the video.

[@agipson101]

Lol but it wasnt...it was released everywhere

[@Genethagenius]

Alex Gipson If you watch this channel a lot, you’ll notice that “Only in Japan” gets mentioned a lot! And I was referring to the “Xenosaga I&II” release for the Nintendo DS that was never localized outside of Japan.

[@Genethagenius]

lambertar If you watch this channel a lot, you’ll notice that “Only in Japan” gets mentioned a lot! And I was referring to the “Xenosaga I&II” release for the Nintendo DS that was never localized outside of Japan.

[@JoaoVictor-hh9dx]

By having some garbage games released only in japan. Sometimes "only in Japan" is a barrier that protect us from radoiactive garbage.

[@God12322]

Man I'm happy there's people like u tht can relate too these gems hard too find hardcore rpg players

[@lordmetallium9678]

We really need a HD remaster for Xenosaga, for SWITCH if possible

[@darkaoshi27]

I'd rather see Xenogears remade.

[@SirBoopBoop]

@@darkaoshi27 Why not both? Both would be good.

[@sakaririchard8810]

@@darkaoshi27 Monolith can’t remake Xenogears. The IP is owned by Square. That’s why it’s still only available on the PS1, even after 20+ years

[@sakaririchard8810]

Xenosaga as well, is not possible. The IP is owned by Namco.

[@lordmetallium9678]

@@sakaririchard8810 I know just wish it happen, Kos-Mos deserves a comeback

[@Tython82]

Xenogears needs a full remake or at least a remaster with a proper disc 2

[@Demokaze]

Its creator left Square on bad terms and Square got Star Ocean after merging with Enix which is very similar to Xenogears so I wouldn't hold my breath on that.

[@Nagalior]

they can't even if they want to, Squaresoft(SquareEnix) owns the rights to Xenogears. Unless Monolith or a company supporting Monolith is willing to buy the rights of that game.

[@NelsonStJames]

I'm in the midst of replaying that one now. It's one of my favorite PS1 games.

[@Jack_80]

@@NelsonStJames i played xenogears for the first time pretty recently and i got into it but didn't find it as amazing as most people seem to. the combat system was extremely repetitive, you just keep doing your most powerful tech attack over and over until you unlock a new one, then you do that every turn until you unlock a new one. once you unlock the last one that's all you do every turn, there's no depth or challenge to it at all. also there are some characters and story segments that were unnessessary and uninteresting, that they easily could have cut so they wouldn't have been so rushed and had to leave the game partially unfinished. still a pretty good game, but there are a lot of ps1 rpgs i think are better.

[@Joao-de9gl]

What would be the current price of the Xenogears IP? lol. We could maybe make a fundraise and hire the creators to properly finish it

[@chapterblaq]

I randomly got Episode III at GameStop as a teenager. It was the only one of the trilogy I could get my hands on back then and I thought the characters were firr.

[@Vrais23]

The first game was before it's time with the ideas, themes, and storytelling. The second game improved graphics and battles but the story was so complicated. And the third game was a love letter to fans. A masterpiece of sci-fi rpg and storytelling. I love you xenosaga. You blew my mind as a kid and young adult and got me through tough times with loss and how to handle hardship. Thank you. ❤️

[@ricardolujan5571]

This trilogy is a masterpiece!!!!I will be happy the day they release something about Xenosaga!!!

[@ChaoticPhantasy]

My heart melt when I heard that song start at 6:39. So many fond memories.

[@Jed_the_Malamute]

Fact #128. In Xenoblade Chronicles 2, during a side quest, you can see a character called Astelle who is based on Shion Uzuki!

[@tigmo55]

Wonderful video man! I personally adore the Xenosaga trilogy with the first and third episodes being among the greatest games I have *ever* played. This is a criminally underrated trilogy of RPGs that is an absolute feast for gamers who value music, story, and characters above everything else. The gameplay is quite solid too! In any case, thanks for another terrific video.

[@Taikaru]

I knew pretty much all of these, but loved hearing them anyhow! It totally baffles me that Xenoblade got the commercial success but not Gears/Saga, which have a far more compelling story to me. In fact, they are my favorite series of all time, and if I ever came into some real money I would buy the rights and fund their continuation before doing anything else. Hoping there are others who feel like me and will eventually get it done.

[@heir2themonado422]

Gears was a commercial success, square just didn't give a shit and cared more about final fantasy than their other IP's (no shame to ff fans but bruh give me Chrono trigger remake)

[@Jack_80]

@@heir2themonado422 that's not entirely true. the director for xenogears kept adding new shit into the game when they were already over budget and not going to make the deadline. and honestly there was a lot of unnecessary stuff in gears that could have been cut and nobody would have missed it. the story was definitely interesting but unnecessarily convoluted. people complain about ffxiii being convoluted but it was much easier to follow than xenogears imo.

[@Kaitou1412Fangirl]

Dang, that last one... Xenoblade really is a miracle of a game considering this and the situation that started Operation Rainfall.

[@johnnyt9884]

Ah games of my childhood. it feels nostalgic and new at the same time to hear facts about these games I used to play that I dont even know about. Your content really speaks to me sir

[@stashmerkin9576]

Great timing with this video! I just picked up a sweet silver PS2 slim with a couple games. One of them Xenosaga 1. Never played any of them and now I have a little background on the series. Thanks Erick! (I ended up ebaying a silver controller for matchy-matchy)

[@krys9463]

I miss this game. If they ever rereleased this game I would buy it in a heartbeat.

[@KratosAurionPlays]

Same here.

[@azurekite3870]

well you always emulate them on pc

[@Jack_80]

@@azurekite3870 I'm actually emulating them on my phone right now, and unbelievably it's running perfectly, on my phone. i never tried it before because there was only one emulator and it got mediocre reviews, but a new one just came out that got really good reviews, and it's free. i've tried about 7 or 8 games so far and all but one play perfectly. that one game that lagged so badly it was unplayable was hot shots golf fore. weird cuz that would be the last game i'd expect it to struggle with, it's running ffx, ffxii, xenosaga, and onimusha with no problem, but a simple golf game is too much. hot shots is a good looking game on ps2, but not on the same level as those other games.

[@tamodolo]

Xenosaga 3 is really awesome. The story they tell there make me cry at the end. It was beautiful and intense. The last female oriented Xeno game. Xenoblade came at the time as a bad hit for me at the time of anouncement. How they are making a Wii exclusive? And that wasn't even remotely near what xenogears and xenosaga represents. It was bad, and I hoped nothing from it. Worser, the game wasn't being localized to a language I could understand (yep, english isn't my native language) Then I decided to play it. And it was unexpected intriguing. It stimulated my curiosity and I couldn't stop playing. This was the first shonen game of Xeno series. And was special. The best game of the generation. And properly tied with other xeno games (danm you Takahashi!!!)

[@ElZamo92]

Otávio Módolo hey, STFU and buy Xenoblade DE. It’s AWESOME.

[@tamodolo]

Already playing. Until now I didn't see much a diference. It's the same game at least in the beginning. I'm a bit disapointed with resolution. I was expecting at least 1080p... This way the game is very blury and don't make justice to how beautifull it really is. Probably will play again when that emulator is good enough to run at 4k (the original Xenoblade at 4k is eye opening)

[@Aenashi]

Thanks Professor Landon! A lot of things i didnt know about that series!

[@lightskinninja9340]

Thank you for making a video on this series! Xenosaga is a series that means so much to me. It’s a series that I think could’ve been something so much bigger had just a few things gone better. Now I’m just hopeful that one day we will see a remaster or a remake on modern systems. I know it’s a pipe dream but xenoblade is coming to switch so maybe there is hope. Regardless thank you again for making a video on these games here in 2019.

[@Jack_80]

i just started playing xenosaga on my phone with a new emulator, and it's running perfectly. i still can't believe it.

[@jonthunder2216]

Why they haven't remastered this, is beyond me.

[@Nagalior]

Funny story from my experience with Xenoblade Chronicle (for Wii) was that, I could get a copy only because the store miscounted their inventory and found a copy in their warehouse, otherwise almost no game store around my region ever bothered to keep multiple copies for sale.

[@CycloneFox]

The thing with the six episode plan isn’t entirely true. Or at least, it’s a little more complicated than that. The plan with Xenogears was to tell the story in six episodes. With Project X, they changed the universe into three arcs each consisting of two episodes. The first arc would have been the first episode of Xenogears with mankind in space, the second arc would have been a changed reboot of a world similar to Xenogears and the final arc would have been episode six of Xenogears, surrounding the end of the universe or the return to Lost Jerusalem. However in the end they noticed that there was too much story to tell in that first arc alone for two games. So they left arcs two and three aside and concentrated on arc one. That was now planned as five episodes, which are almost what we got. Episode I was produced as planned. Then came the restructuring and Episode II only captured half of the planned Eisode II. The rest of that was done in Pied Piper. When Nintendo bought Monolith Soft and they still had to conclude the series under Bandai Namco for the PS2, they put the first half of Episode III out as “A Missing Year”, but sadly again only on Japan. The rest of Episode III was put together with Episodes IV and V as the last and best part of the PS2 trilogy: Xenosaga Episode III: Also Sprach Zarathustra. In other words, the arc told in Xenosaga is actually complete. The six episode plan is outdated and would have been drastically different. But thank god we got the story of the five episode plan in its completion. Arc 2 already exists in Xenogears. And arc 3 might be Xenoblade 1/2 and whatever comes in the future.

[@danielsuarez3198]

One of my all-time favorite!!!

[@LunaP1]

Thank you for doing a video on this series.

[@StarscreamSigma]

To be brutally honest...I bought the Trilogy back when the first episode came out in the 2000s because KOS-MOS looks like a sexy badass wielding dual minigun. I still own the Trilogy and I refuse to sell it to anyone, especially that Episode 3 cost over $100 on Amazon on a *"Very Good"* Condition which, if you are lucky, it includes the manual.

[@buckroger6456]

I bought each of the games the day they came out. The 1st one was just so good but the 2nd was a let down for me. The 3rd game was good but at the time you could tell it ended to soon an later found out it was to be 6 games not 3. The 1st game felt more like a hardcore rpg while the other 2 felt a little to easy.

[@Jack_80]

when i was younger i almost bought the whole trilogy factory sealed for $150, and i've regretted not buying it ever since. that was actually a steal at the time and now it would likely be impossible to even find all 3 games new.

[@ZlothZloth]

Awww, didn't cover the "no blood" controversy! When the 3rd game came out in the USA, Walmart was a major vendor for the game but they refused to sell games that were rated M. The game had that heart-ripping scene where young Schion was trying to catch the blood from her mother so they could put it back inside her but that was way too bloody and intense for a rated T game - so they censored out the blood to maintain the T rating. The result was a scene that made no sense at all.

[@seraphlazuli6251]

ZlothZloth First few times I played through the game, I honestly thought she was so traumatized that she was hallucinating a soul in her hands, then thought she dropped it and screamed.

[@tigmo55]

The censorship in Episode 3 was ridiculous! I'm not one for unnecessary blood/gore but in Episode 3 it was essential in two key scenes (one being the Shion scene with the other happening during the game's heart-wrenching ending involving one of my favorite characters in the series).

[@Moon-rune]

after Xenogears i did not know this serie existed until the 2 came out (the only one that got release in europe ) i instantly loved it and after a long while i finally got the 1 and 3, i love them all :) i would love to try one of those other games where kosmos is thought, good video :)

[@sukamadik5983]

I wish more people would talk about this amazing trilogy. Thank you for being one of the few.

[@Jack_80]

i'm playing xenosaga on my phone right now with a new emulator and a ps4 controller, and it's running perfectly. every time i boot it up i'm in disbelief that i'm playing xenosaga on my phone, and it plays exactly as it did on an actual ps2 all those years ago when i first played it.

[@AKERAZGO]

Good vid. I never care to look for the meaning of the subtitles, but now I know thanks to you. :)

[@patsg1146]

The very first trailer for Xenosaga 1 was 8 minutes-long and includes scenes that will later be put by the END of Episode 2, like the Jin vs Margulis fight. His vision for a 6 episodes series looks like it was much bigger than what we've got!

[@Taikaru]

I know! And I really want to see the rest of it. Still have that old trailer saved on my PC.

[@patsg1146]

@@Taikaru It's on KZbin, actually. It's the "8 minute trailer" from TGS.

[@o0Avalon0o]

I loved the first game but I didn't know it even had more parts. This is one of the few times I would've been grateful for more advertising.

[@xenochaosxc]

I love the whole series. The music is awesome throughout, the game themes gripping, twisting, dark, intriguing; the gameplay solid and engrossing.

[@bloody4558]

#2 The popularity of KOS-MOS. I can confirm, she is still my Firefox theme for more than a decade already

[@Linkwii64]

KOS MOS is the only Android wiafu I feel in love with.

[@tommyzorera]

Xenosaga III is the best Xeno anything in gaming. What a masterpiece.

[@NP-ip3nj]

I am sure am glad I got these when they came out.

[@SacrificAbominat]

With the rumors about KOS-MOS being in Smash I've got my hopes up for a remaster or a full on remake of this series. Though I do think Xenogears deserves a remake more, as it's story was more realized and less of a mess, even if it was through a ton of exposition on the second disc. Xenoblade is really popular right now and it would be a shame if Bandai Namco and Square didn't jump on the remaster/remake bandwagon to get pretty big sales from the new fans of the series.

[@AtotheZness]

I hunted down each episode for collectors sake in hopes that the PS5 will be backwards compatible. Having played these when I was younger, I remember fondly how unique the story was. Good stuff!

[@azurekite3870]

sadly the ps5 is not and only play ps4 and 5 games:(

[@SuiteLifeofDioBrando]

I hope they release Xenosaga remaster.

[@whitewolf3051]

To all modern systems including the Switch, physically.

[@KratosAurionPlays]

We can all hope.

[@Jack_80]

i've been hoping for it for years, i've kinda given up hope on it at this point. i'd be happy if they just released the ps2 versions on the playstation store, and check both the ps3 and ps4 stores occasionally, hoping they will pop up.

[@LoveHestia_]

I've been hoping for a long time! Will we ever get remasters for these. Xenosaga deserves it games were so good even with their flaws.

[@reshi606]

Real shame indeed. At least Monolithsoft still holds the rights to most of the characters so I hope they keep bringing them back in their future games like they've been doing with KOS-MOS.

[@jaredhanks7632]

Eric!!! You read my mind. I just started playing the saga again & was wishing you would do a video on the games.

[@joaopaulopaes4859]

Oh man, the nostalgia hits hard

[@ForceKen]

Loved these games...They had such a dark feel to them, they were really before their time. :)

[@ForceKen]

@Final Fantasy Yea I probably did. I also am sure you probably meant "I'm sure you MEANT* ahead of their time." You also forgot a period. ahahahaha

[@ForceKen]

@Final Fantasy However I didn't say it in the present, it was literally 2 weeks ago. :P lol Apparently you did feel like it was an essay. No one in this world would have misinterpreted the meaning of the words I was typing,outside of purposefully doing so. What was actually intended is the same meaning of the words that you said. Saying "before their time" serves the same purpose, implying they were made too early to be appreciated.

[@5r3t5n0m]

Perhaps my favourite rpg story-wise. Never played it, never watched the gameplay, but watch cutscenes from all episodes, twice. That's about 50 hrs, lol

[@jonathann.5754]

Xenosaga Also known as the ps2's most impossible to obtain (legally) JRPG for Europeans

[@kylestanner]

Unless you bought part 2 when it came out like i did. Though it does have a dvd of the first ones cutscenes with it to give a little context also.

[@jonathann.5754]

@@kylestanner But the dvd was notorious for it's restructuring and incompleteness Also no xenosaga 3 Aaand xenosaga 1 is one of the few discs you cannot play using swap magic

[@kylestanner]

​@@jonathann.5754 Yea but back then not everyone had easy access to the internet so it was better than nothing I guess. Myself I bought part 3 when I bought a new ps2 imported from the us in I believe 2012.

[@foxmulder4318]

It's too bad this series didn't have commercial success. As a good story driven series, which I personally love about it, I found it excellent. I know the 2nd one is not as good as the others, but it's not bad at all. It doesn't deserve to get shat upon like it had.

[@Taikaru]

My favorite series. Don't understand how it failed... it is so much deeper and more interesting than so many series that are far more commercially successful.

[@buckroger6456]

I remember being blown away by the graphics of the 1st game when it came out. The 1st xenosaga is definitely my favorite rpg from the ps2 era.

[@Jack_80]

yeah, it blew ffx out of the water imo. sadly ff blew it away in sales for simply having ff in the title.

[@JvsEvil]

Xenosaga 2 and 3 had to come out in Europe, I sure I saw the game covers in pal format

[@karleclaire]

Oh I'm really enjoying these kinds of vids. Please make more! :D

[@greedkingcobalt200]

I miss this series.

[@NeberusBeta]

miss this trilogy (still have my ps2 originals) but this need a remaster and multi console release even pc

[@fishnutz5196]

Developers shoot themselves in the foot by not localising games. If you brought back the og trilogy for the Switch it will blow up in sales

[@HeavyTitanium]

Played the Xenosaga trilogy along with Xenoblade earlier this year. Great games. Hope to get Xenoblade 2 for Christmas.

[@jasperhighwind6119]

Real shame actually. I loved this series, from Xenogears to Xenosaga Ep 3. In fact, I still have all 4 games. Would have enjoyed seeing it all tie together.

[@Jack_80]

all 4 games? what's # 4?

[@kira516]

​@@Jack_80xenosaga freaks, its just a comic relief spin off

[@squallleonhart1463]

I have played only the second since I live in italy, I really wanted to play the third....

[@kalandarkclaw8892]

I super enjoyed all 3 games but I enjoy 1 the most

[@Jed_the_Malamute]

#11 Xenosaga should be on the switch with the blade games

[@TheHeroExodus]

If I had the money, I'd fund a full xeno series remake. Upgraded graphics, story , voice acting and extras including extra scenarios and cut content like xenogears 2nd half.

[@bigrazo5098]

This game NEEDS to be remastered

[@WoWisdeadtome]

I own all three games in the mainline series and the first one really felt like it was laying the groundwork for an awful lot of stuff to be covered in the later titles. The thing is episode 2 was very delayed with all the production issues. I blame the delay at least in part for the drop in interest, people just forget about it after so long. I bought episode 1 as a classic title after it had already sold over 1 million units (it was cheap so I took a chance on it) and still had to wait several years before episode 2. Then you can feel where the series was shortened to 3 games and the writing staff changed as it starts to feel rushed and some plot threads from the first game just get dropped. The third game was better but moves at a blistering pace compared with the first game and a half to a kind of "rock falls, everyone dies" ending to ensure that it's over. Honestly the biggest surprise to me about all of this is that since I still have the cases and instructions to all these games I could sell episode 3 on ebay for $100 or the series for about $250. Not the rarest of games to be sure but still a lot more expensive than most of my PS2 library is worth in 2019.

[@UltimajaCrystal]

There was some sort of visual novel, I think it was called "The missing year"? That tells the events between Xenosaga 2 & 3.

[@karechan]

Yep it was, and it was published in two versions: Flash "animation" (it's most known one, there is fan translation of it, it's more from Shion's PV) and short Novel printed inside some magazine (the story is from Jin's PV and together with Shion's flash animation it gives better view on MY story). There is also amazing side story that takes place during ep1 released as Drama CD, and it flashes more on Ormus charas or Richard and Hermman, as well chaos meeting Elsa's Crew and joining them, Shion recalling her past living with Jin, a lot nice Jr and MOMO moments and other things.

[@michigana1]

Thanks for the great video, many things I did not know! I played Xenosaga1 and really loved it, maybe it is just me, but i played that card game for hours, my gnosis killer deck was invencible lol, I really liked. hope someday I may play the other 2 xenosaga games. I have watched the anime as well, very nice.

[@DanteL1983]

*Cries in american Xenosaga fan*

[@paullavoie5542]

how video game companies get in the way of the success of games.

[@pallafox]

These are very well known facts! especially for fans. I'm surprised you didn't tackle the huge censorship episode 3 received and how Episode 1 had more gore in the North American release. Not to mention that the trilogy's incomplete storyline had to be fleshed out in a book that was released 1-2 years after Episode 3 called the Xenosaga ep 3 Perfect Guide. Also Xenosaga I & II in the DS was remake was not just the first 2 games + new content... it was different take on story flow and with huge changes on certain scenarios.... overall same plot, this was reimagining based on the original story given to the first 2 episodes. Also you failed to mention how the series originally was supposed to revolve around 2 arcs in which the 2nd arc was dependent on the commercial success of Episode 3 and how the 2nd arc would initially start thousands of years after the events of Episode III and how its supposed to start in lost jerusalem. Not to mention how episode 3 brought back actors from the first episode to help elevate the game's success in sales in favour of preferences to vocal talent. You could've done a little more research into this seeing how this series was much more bigger than the 3 episodes that were released. More bigger than the 3 Xenoblade games. This was Takahashi's dream game yet the constant staff changes tarnished the whole presentation especially on how the story is told. Hence why the Xenoblade games are no longer released in episodes (as observed by Nintendo) but in one off versions that share the same themes but different stories.

[@NukeA6]

Episode 3's censorship was so clear as day, he didn't have to cover it. I can't be the only one who was annoyed of young Shion holding a pile of invisible blood from her dead parents.

[@prince_dogboy]

Didnt episode 1 have the violation of MOMO changed?

[@NukeA6]

@Prince Dogboy Nope. The only things censored out was Albedo's knife (which made his decapitation more disturbing, ironically) and him breaking a Kirschwasser's arm.

[@NoxHypnotic]

@@NukeA6 "Let's not have him cut his head off with a knife, let's have him TWIST HIS HEAD OFF barehanded" lol

[@thiagogoncalves2892]

Congrats!!! Another excelent job. ☺🤘

[@willanrac]

I always said that Xenosaga I had the best cut scenes, xenosaga II had the best story, and Xenosaga III had the best gameplay. I still love the series and have a ps2 around just when I feel like I want to put one of them in.

[@gaignum792]

A truly wonderful albeit wierd series. It took itself very seriously, which is rather endearing, and the attention to detail in each game is outstanding. Rubedo forever.

[@jeremidiaz6048]

you should make a top 10 of the best RPG with the best story

[@michigana1]

he already did it, look out for in his channel

[@CC_Reads]

something not listed here was that you can actually see footage of the games before they got seperated into 3 parts instead of 6. theres a 7 minute xenosaga 1 trailer that has scenes from xenosaga 2 in it, in its original art style including the fire flies scene with Shion's brother

[@ffx5846]

Man I miss these games so much. The 3rd one specially was superb!

[@LightFykki]

Why Xenosaga for me was always special, is for the fact that it is one of the rare (at least good ones) RPGs series that are set in space and and with that are more sci-fi based, not to mention philosophical. It is a great series, but too bad that we never saw the vision for it that was originally planned.

[@Ultimateunit34]

I remember playing XenoSaga 1 and watched a bit of the anime episodes but, never finished it after Xenogears on PSX1. I know I've beaten Xenogears 6-10 times. I love the music, story and game play. It's a shame I never got into 2-3 of XenoSaga. I didn't really watched 2nd one. Although I have watched the 3rd one on KZbin a walkthrough of it just for the story. I've played the DS handheld version of Super Robot Taisen OG Saga Endless Frontier, that one was fun! Was nice to see KOS-MOS in there! I was really happy then. Real-life costing alot of my time to even play videogames these days. I feel so old. I still play videogames on/off like the Playstation 4 console, Dark Souls series, Dead or Alive Xtereme 3: Fortune, BloodStained: Ritual of the Night, Code Vein and many more etc. I do missed the old Era early 90's to 2000.

[@litlclutch]

I've owned all three and yet never played them ... but I am finally work thru my backlog of PS2 RPGs I've always meant to play but never did ... so after FES is done in a week or so I"m gonna be starting Episode 1 ... I'm excited since I've heard good things about it.

[@r01d2]

I believe Xenosaga II had problem with battle system, I can't finish the game because each puny soldier was strong as mid-boss, I finished I and III without II

[@redrath298]

You left out the part where the UK/Euro release of Xeno2 came with the DVD explaining the events of Xeno1, the thing was what 3-5 hours of footage. So you're not entirely right about the bit where the Europeans were caught unaware. Plus JRPG's were not distributed in large quantities (3 to 10 units per store) throughout the stores in countries as this genre has a limited market. But due to the uncommoness of the game and its pop-culture status, it might very well be interesting to see if they make a HD varient in the future.

[@kronnusalpha8480]

If I not mistaken, I saw an old interview where the devs mentioned that the 3 Xenosaga games cover just the 1st of the 6 episodes previously planned. But the project was too big and money too short to make everything, so they split the game. Something like the original Xenogears Project mentioned in the Perfect Works, then EP2 flopped and the rest is history...

[@willmarinho123]

Just seen this now!! Great video wanted for a while!!!

[@Anthonyelmio2]

I still have my copies even the xenosaga 3 edition with the lenticular T-elos/Kos-mos picture

[@mattthegymratgaming211]

Awesome video Eric!

[@AshandrielTV]

Glad I own these and my fat PS2. Just started playing again. This series deserves a remake by someone. Such a shame.

[@fracturedraptor7846]

Xenosaga. I just started playing the episodes again because there's no good modern RPGs. In my opinion it's one of the best RPGs to ever be done, alongside Legend of Dragoon and Legend of Legaia. I'd include Final Fantasy VII but that's a given by now. Personally I loved how much story there was in the game and it's a good story to boot. Most of my friends, back when it launched, didn't like it too much because of that. I wasn't too fond of how much the combat mechanics changed from game to game but it was still fun to play and still is. KOS-MOS was a great character. I loved her evolution over the saga. One of my best gaming memories is seeing her use her X-Buster for the first time against the fleet of Gnosis ships.

[@Seven7swords]

I loved all three Xenosaga games. Bought them all day one. I will admit that 2 is my least favorite with the character model changes and the changes to combat being a little jarring. However, 3 was my favorite out of the series and I regret selling it because I still have a PS3 and I could still play it. Glad Nintendo saved Monolith Soft. If it's one thing about Nintendo they are willing to throw money at developers that have great I.P.s but not the money and luck to survive. I remember reading that Nintendo saved Platinum and the Bayonetta series, too.

[@ShiniKimura]

We just finished our playthrough of Xenosaga on my Twitch channel and I'm so sad there isn't really a proper conclusion to the game. I loved #1 & 3 (#2 has it's moments, but the battle system can go to hell).

[@broden4838]

I'm for KOS-MOS for Smash. And hell, an HD edition of the entire trilogy would be nice as well (even though it could be rated M and on the Switch only)

[@antoniodivicino4563]

It's a shame a series like that will not get a remake or a remastering. Still hoping some day this dream will eventually become true

[@Anasthy]

The grind in these games!!

[@JameboHayabusa]

Man it's really a shame that Xenosaga didn't get it's 6 game release like it was supposed to. The time skip form 2 to three was so evident of that, and the story definitely played like, "we gotta wrap this shit up!"

[@HitsuTwistedTalong]

Nice vid man i have alot of memories with xenosaga episodde 1 and 2 didnt play 3 becoz my ps2 broke..but ilpove the series.

[@kiyote437]

You know, you could say literally anything about Xenosaga and it would ring true for me, since I've never heard of it before.

[@justin188541]

I still miss FEI and ELLIE. I wish we could Shenmue a fully fleshed out redo of XenoGears!