Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean | A Quick Retrospective

'Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean' is considered by many in the JRPG community to be a cult classic these days. On first glance from the beautiful visuals, it's not hard to see why. It's been nearly 17 years after its initial release and I've been really curious lately to see how it holds up all these years later. Does it stand the test of time, or are people merely blinded by nostalgia and a pretty exterior? Find out in this week's retrospective video over 'Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean'
Thanks for watching everyone! Hope you enjoyed it! As always, links to our Patreon/Instagram/Twitter are below for those that wish to follow or support us there.
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Edited by: Evan P.
Narrated by: Corbin P.
Here below is Jay RPG's video on the Baten Kaitos pronunciation. Thanks for taking the time to do this dude!
• How Do You Pronounce B...
'Til next time everyone!
#BatenKaitos #JRPGs #GameCube

[@kaganluvstacos]

Came here after the nintendo direct. This game was one of the big stand outs for me. Can't believe this flew under my radar for so long. Super excited to play!

[@dobadobadooo]

A severely underappreciated gem, this one. The soundtrack, visuals and story are all top tier, and the battle system is so much fun as well. While I can't say I love it as much as the other three GC RPGs you mentioned, those three are all in my top 10 games of all time, so I'm by no means saying this isn't an amazing game as well.

[@GamingBroductions]

I agree, it sounds like we have similar tastes. SoA and ToS are in my top 10 as well so I do slightly prefer those, but with that said BK has some standout features that are better in some ways. As an overall package though I just prefer the other two. All incredible JRPGs regardless that any fan of the genre should play

[@neorxz4952]

I remember me and my brother didn't found a seed from a tree or something like this and we bought the guide for the game so we could find it 😁 shortly after this there came insert disc 2 and me and my brother were shooked,like wtf how long is this game, it was so good and the ending was beautiful too. Just a must play and its really challenging 😁

[@GamingBroductions]

Haha I remember exactly which part you're talking about! I also know the feeling of finding out a game is much bigger than you originally thought, such an unexpected yet satisfying surprise

[@BloodyHowl69]

The fight after disc 2 made me reevaluate how to play the game. My brother, cousin and I also tried to make it multiplayer by giving each other the controller whenever it was "our" character's turn to fight.

[@momokawashima9464]

So Baten Kaitos is not actually fictional. It, like alot of things in the game, are based on star names. The star known as Baten Kaitos is located in Zeta Ceti. There are alot of references to star names, I believe some of the Quzman family have star names, the Church has a star map to complete, and other various characters in the game have star names

[@Timbeon]

Would also add that "baten kaitos" is Arabic and loosely means "the belly of the whale," based on its position in the constellation Cetus.

[@pilarcases4190]

Baten Kaitos is a great RPG 😎

[@gmtfender]

The combat system in this game was so much fun to learn, and the process of understanding it to deeper measures was incredibly satisfying. I miss this game so much

[@yEAiMtHATcOOL]

One of my favourite games! Great summary of the game. The only thing I have to say though is about the sound: they actually made it sound "tin-y/echoy" on purpose, to add to you being a character from another world. If you change the sound setting from "stereo" to "mono", it actually gets rid of that and you can hear the voices a lot better. For your next play through ;)

[@MrVince329]

IT'S REAL

[@Lost_In_Neverwhere]

IT'S ALIVE! LET'S GOOO!

[@GamingBroductions]

You already know to expect an Origins retrospective around when the remasters drop 👍

[@justintucker331]

So Kalas is quite literally.....callous? Never actually looked at his name that way until you pointed out how "savage" he can be.

[@justpuchi1099]

Thank you for making this!! Hoping more people discover this amazing gem and spark interest for a sequel someday

[@GamingBroductions]

We hope so too! It looks like a month ago a trademark has been filed for Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean and Baten Kaitos Origins in Europe.

[@senbonzakurakageyoshi662]

@@GamingBroductions Who knows? Maybe a remake on switch of the 2 games will arrive sonner than we think? (It's the remake/reboot period)

[@manoflight2943]

I recently happened to start listening to the more relaxing tracks of the OST during work and this video later popped up in my suggestions. Thanks for making the video. Truly an underappreciated game.

[@captainmemes2831]

Fun fact: There is a bug in the game in which causes the voice acting to sound like it is going into a can or box. This is because the glitch is associated with the stereo sound option in the game. Changing it to surround sound somehow fixes it? A weird ass oversight if you ask me. Great vid tho

[@julioguzman5925]

Was looking for this comment. Was always the first thing I did when starting a new game back when I was a kid/ teen. Played this game so many times

[@thedappermagician6905]

Do you mean the echoey sound how everyone voice sounds? It's cause you're a spirit.

[@chrissiecupcake1882]

I adore the first game, it being my favorite game of all time. I'm always listening to the OST. Seeing this video makes me so happy that someone's talking and hyping it up. I wish they would give this game the full remake it desveres and fix the voice acting.

[@GamingBroductions]

A remake or even a remaster would indeed be amazing. I did hear Bandai Namco renewed the trademarks for both this one and the sequel earlier in the year so there could still be hope yet!🤞

[@hickorydickoryhk]

@@GamingBroductions Rumors are surfacing again in recent days of a remake or remaster of either just the first Baten Kaitos or perhaps even both for Switch, so it’s good to keep that hope alive still ❤️❗️Fingers crossed 🤞🏻✨❗️

[@hickorydickoryhk]

@Chrissie Penguin 🐧 I adore the game(s) too, and am also always listening to the OST. It’s perfect comfort food for my ears and soul ❤👂🏻🎶✨.

[@ChangedFigure]

*Spoilers* To be fair, I feel like everyone forgave Melodia so fast because it was implied if not stated that she was being manipulated by the end magnus when Duke Calbron used it to save her life. She became tainted with Malpercios' influence and was guided into ressurecting him.

[@DSan-kl2yc]

Yea I agree. Same for kalas. You can see a dramatic change. Yea he was working for his own goal. But black wing kalas is definitely not in his right mind.

[@guff_tm]

I believe I've read somewhere that the muddled sound quality of the character voices was a deliberate choice from the developers. It was apperantely done that way to represent the fact that you, the guardian spirit, isn't actually completely in the world of the game. (It is also possible to remove most if not all of the effect by switching the games audio from stereo to mono iirc) The voice acting itself is still easily one of the worst parts of an otherwise amazing game though. Also, Baten Kaitos is not a term made up by the developers, it is the name of a star/star system. It comes from an arabic phrase meaning "belly of the sea monster". (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zeta_Ceti )

[@kaitoudark1]

100% agree with all of this. And thank you for posting a source link for the name! Glad others know about the name's origin as well!

[@olivejhin95]

One of my all time favorite games. Replaying it now and its made me remember how much I loved Baten Kaitos.

[@DFtoke]

You nailed it . This game has so much LIFE to it . I could play this game forever.

[@skrillex544]

I loved this game as a kid, thank you! Please give a retrospective of the sequel-prequel 🙏🏽

[@acefox2064]

I loved this game, I never got to play Disc 2 sadly. The OST in this game is sooo good!

[@GamingBroductions]

It is damn good! If they ever release a remaster it would be the perfect time for you to go back and finish it

[@blakegrodecki1928]

Great review! I never finished the game as a kid either and I can't remember why I stopped playing, but I know it was shortly after the big twist moment. The few things I really remember from the game all these years later are the cards and the amazing OST. This video brought back a lot of deeply buried memories.

[@GamingBroductions]

Thanks man! That’s funny, that’s around where I remember stopping as a kid too. There’s some really cool locations later in the game that are worth seeing though. Yep the OST seems to be a favorite of many for good reason, very memorable for sure. I do have to give the developers huge props for somehow managing to make card based combat a lot of fun, not the easiest to do in my opinion as I’ve always found it difficult to get into other card based systems in games

[@HyperGirl81]

Good news! We are going get a Remastered collection of these games for the Nintendo Switch! Hopefully we get a steam port as well!

[@alexiere]

I love your content. This channel deserves more views and subscribers, they're really missing out on this awesome content.

[@GamingBroductions]

Thank you! We're slowly starting to pick up some more steam so hopefully it's only a matter of time :)

[@SeveredLegs]

This one should be remade with better voice acting, new cut scenes, same music, slightly modified card shuffling, and some minor remaining. But keep the card system overall, it was super fun. The special card combination moves should be easier to figure out, though.

[@JadeLecarde]

This game is extremely overlooked. Remember getting almost to the end as a teen and then getting stuck somewhere. I still love the soundtrack of this game and listen to it from time to time. Sakuraba did an immense job on this one!

[@TianZhaoHeavenlyFortune]

Kalas was so callous!

[@MakeAmericaLiftAgain]

Bro the OST is so good (great homework or work music).

[@MRDUALITY]

They honestly dont even have to remaster this, just make it available for the switch!! 🙌🏼🙌🏼 Great video! I love Baten Kaitos, I beat both games and I even Dungeon Master a D&D game that is based on Ravnica (a Magic:the gathering setting) where I introduced a mechanic which includes Magnus cards where they can obtain the essence of creatures and items in cards like Baten Kaitos. Its supposed to link the concept of cards into a D&D game lol

[@GamingBroductions]

Haha dude that's awesome about the Magnus cards being incorporated in D&D! Love to see when people combine interests like that. I just started a new D&D campaign with some friends myself, I'm new to it all but it's a lot of fun so far

[@jovanni1676]

Great video. Didn't know this series was a thing other than the one song it has in smash bros. Underrated channel, keep up the awesome videos!

[@GamingBroductions]

Thanks dude, appreciate it! There's only 2 games in the series but they're really great nonetheless.

[@monsieurdorgat6864]

Dang, I am so surprised to see a review of this game this far from it's release! I feel like this game gets slept on way too much. The battle system is probably my favorite jrpg battle system of all time. Stringing together number combos while avoiding elemental conflicts is like crack for me! Also Xelha is best girl. Fight me she is so cute.

[@GamingBroductions]

It gets slept on for sure. I wouldn't say it's underrated as the people that have played it usually appreciate its quality, but it is an overlooked game that more people should play. The battle system really is addicting! I can see how it would be your favorite. It's up there, but the first two Grandia games may hold that title for me

[@monsieurdorgat6864]

​@@GamingBroductions In all fairness, it's my favorite because I haven't played as many RPG's as you - so I'll trust your opinion on the matter! It's high on my list of turn-based RPG's because I kind of get bored with the various forms of "Pokemon spam earthquake" strat that's hard to get away from, but you can't do that with Baten Kaitos and you have to constantly adapt mid-turn while also pre-strategizing to manipulate the odds of a cohesive strategy working. But that kind of involves my experience and skill with trading card games, which lots of JPRG fans may not be interested in. My brother once had a max-class (so I think 9 card) number straight. It was a very exciting moment for us. He did a lot of damage.

[@Chelaxim]

@@monsieurdorgat6864 I've played at least 150 JRPGs and while not my number one battle systems the Baten Kaitos duo are up there.

[@monsieurdorgat6864]

@@Chelaxim It's such a good system, especially if you're down with the statistical optimization that comes with card games! I really like that it's not completely certain, and you can be surprised and you need to adjust your strategy mid-turn, but you can modify your odds pretty drastically with deck composition!

[@xelthos2051]

Amazing games, bring on that HD remaster.

[@1CrazyWeedSmoker]

Oddly enough my mom who played the gamecube back in the day got me on BK. We been waiting for years for a new BK release

[@GamingBroductions]

Dude your mom sounds awesome. The only memories I have of my mom and JRPGs are her hiding some of them from me when I played them too much lol

[@hickorydickoryhk]

@BiggzGotVybeZ You and your mother might at least get a remaster of one or both games, and potentially a remake (again of 1 or both) for Switch, as rumors have surfaced in recent days of that happening. Let’s hope they are true 🤞🏻✨❤️ ! It would be great to see it become more of a series alongside Xenoblade for Monolithsoft.

[@Earthbound524]

Baten Kaitos Origins is one of my all time favorite JRPGs of all time due to the fast gameplay and the story is great. Only problem is that once you become a bit overleveled then the game is extremely simple even against the "hidden bosses" in the game

[@danbrioux5132]

Great vid! Would love a follow up on origins too, keep it up!

[@GamingBroductions]

Thank you! We'll definitely do this in due time. Likely later this year, there are a few other games we plan on covering first that are a little more time dependent on an upcoming release

[@LeonardoBramante]

Since I don't see it in the videos, please do a retrospective on Baten Kaitos Origins. You may find yourself enjoying it more than this one, and smile at references to this one.

[@ronaldsteele4773]

Good video. Cool watch!

[@carmeun]

Ever since I replayed both games recently I've been hoping for a third installment of the series on Switch and PC

[@TheExile285]

Thanks for this video. I watched up until the endgame spoiler warning and you sold me on the HD remaster that got announced at the recent Nintendo Direct. That and finding out that Monolith Soft made these games.

[@espo_lou]

I really loved this game. I miss my GameCube. I don't even know what happened to it. So many great games on it too.

[@reddrahvett623]

I only ever played origins, I'm tempted to play this one too

[@GamingBroductions]

You really should, it's a great game. It holds up pretty well in most aspects

[@Terranigma23]

You put Baten Kaitos 1 story + Baten Kaitos Origins story, and then you have a fantastic story/worldbuilding. Some plot twist in Baten Kaitos Origins made me feel really bad about what I have done in Baten Kaitos 1. 😅

[@creekandseminole]

Switch remake slated for summer 2023 is supposedly in the works. Might include the prequel as well.

[@hickorydickoryhk]

Was coming here to say I’m so happy about this rumor. I hope it’s true. I have the GC versions of both games, and have always loved the art, the music, the gameplay, the world and everything about them❤, and to see them updated for or even just brought forward to a new generation and get more recognition would be a truly wonderful blessing. Fingers crossed hey 🤞🏻✨ !

[@omensoffate]

@@hickorydickoryhk it is true

[@hickorydickoryhk]

@@omensoffate Yeah! I saw in the direct and flipped the f¥€£k out, lol 😆 ❤️ !!! Fantastic news 📰!!!

[@TianZhaoHeavenlyFortune]

I loved/love this game and its sequel! It's the first ever turn-based JRPG that I can gush about! Loved how they updated the second one to feel more real-time.

[@GamingBroductions]

It's a super fun turn based battle system for sure, I usually don't even like card-based systems either which just goes to show how great of a job they did with it. We plan to cover the sequel in due time as well!

[@Chadmh358]

Great content! Easy decision to subscribe!

[@GamingBroductions]

Much appreciated, glad to have you here and thank you for subscribing!

[@ElvisBreh]

Legit got stuck on the final boss but still loved the game back in the day

[@chazzwozzio]

Damn now I gotta play this game again this game made my teen years so much

[@REDLINE.FGC1]

do you remember if it had the weird effect on the voices like it does in the video? or is that due to emulation?

[@kaitoudark1]

I'd be down for a retrospective for Baten Kaitos origins!

[@amirabubakar8206]

a retrospective for Baiten Kaitos Origini would be great!!!

[@peachesandcream8753]

This games environments are breathtaking and were EXPENSIVE to make at the time. The amount of particle effects they used, they went all out pretty much, would have pushed the budget into the millions and pushed the Gamecube to it's limits. I haven't finished this game yet, I'm currently on the second disc (emulator), and I find it can be a bit of a drag, but the premise and the execution for most part is impressive. It's such a shame they didn't port this to PS2 because they could have a bigger fanbase if they did.

[@evansieber6172]

This is honestly l one of my favorite games series of all time.

[@DFtoke]

I remember getting c stuck at the library for a year. And than the confectionery village for a longgggg time lol good times.

[@RRoka89]

As soon as I saw Hank Hill pop up, I was like "ok, definitely subbing."

[@GamingBroductions]

I’ll tell ya hwhat

[@RRoka89]

I gotta say though, Baten Kaitos was one of those games I always really wanted to like, but after about the halfway point, I'd always abandon it. The game has really pretty graphics and the OST is incredible, one of the best of any game imo. BUT, as you stated, the voice acting is atrocious and the characters over all are just...meh. I'm glad so many people are able to enjoy it though! Maybe one day I'll revisit it and my opinion of it will change.

[@MrSPW93]

**Spoilers** Melodia wasn't acting on her own free will she was being controlled by malpercio. That's why no one blamed her for the events that unfolded

[@setokaiba5048]

I'm just like you, I loved playing this game when I was younger but never actually beat it. I got close though. I remember sometimes grabbing a paddle and pretending to be Gibari lol

[@Memehuskie]

I love the story and the world of this game, are you willing to do origins as well?

[@hauntedheathen2732]

What are your thoughts on the Switch remasters? Should I get those versions or the originals? Thank ya

[@ToonLink1672]

Definitely would like to hear your thoughts on Origins

[@GamingBroductions]

We will make a part 2 to this in due time. We will probably cover some other games in the meantime to spread the love to some other series a bit. Rogue Galaxy and Legend of Dragoon will be some of our next retrospectives to come out

[@CAVEDATA]

Damn 3-ninjas clip. Sick

[@austinr4405]

such a great game! The sequel/prequel even more so!

[@DaveBrunoAnimation]

dont worry, I pronounced it apparently the most wrong way, which was BAY-TEN KAY-TOES....

[@colecook834]

I hope they will port it or remake it soon

[@newbiesama]

I still love the voice of mizuki

[@DSan-kl2yc]

I think the characters are pretty good Xelha is unique as an ingenue tomboy. She shows how to do that type of princess character well. Kalas is obviously awesome. I liked Gibari. He has a backstory but I like his attitude and the voice actor feeds it. He's just a old tough man. Not sauve or sophisticated. But he's definitely more mature than Wakka. Similarly Mizuti just has a cool personality and mannerisms. Savyna also has a backstory but she's immediately cool due to her look, and everything else. Fast attacks. The design itself is just cool. She's the cool character without even trying. But she's not necessarily a stereotype of it. I think there's a certain maturity to a lot of the characters in beaten kaitos that makes them unique. Gibari, savyna, but even Xelha. Xelha is mature but not so much beyond her age. She's mature for her age, and due to circumstance. But still immature enough that she is still written correctly, as opposed to an adult in a kids body. Same for Mizuti. Lyude is maybe the only character where yes he is just the empire nice guy. Still not a bad design, and animation. And he does have a backstory that's a bit interesting with who his mom is.

[@SimonDouville1]

The prequel is SO good. it's like the game he original should have been.

[@PikaLink91]

I wish I'd played more RPGs as a kid :-(

[@Mayeur000Donz]

This was easily the JRPG which I most enjoyed the combat of, at the time. I'd never before frequently overlevelled by accident just because I was happy with every battle I got into. Except the fights with Giacamo. Screw Giacamo.

[@lightelos]

i hope the remake fix the terrible english language for the switch version. personally i found the BK Origins more dynamic and entertaining. thanks for the video!

[@zuben4077]

I know I'm late but Baten Kaitos aren't made up words but is in fact an arabic phrase meaning belly of the sea monster,

[@gamingspeciell8547]

the Cat :D

[@Arth7272]

Is you have a modded console you can play the undub mod, the japanese voice sound better, or maybe is because I don't understand japanese xD

[@dariankessler3323]

The remake rumor I pray is real deal 😭

[@jinyboi]

Please make a review of the prequel

[@newbiesama]

What I loves MOST of the originality was the money system. You don't get money by beating enemy. No..you need to get a photo and then sell it. It is weird when a fantasy games makes sence. WHy would a bat thign have money?

[@hhhnfryhgf9560]

BK needs to be remastered

[@hhhnfryhgf9560]

Also the creator says he has a story for part 3 but chose to work on xeno

[@monsieurdorgat6864]

@@hhhnfryhgf9560 Aw, it's sad that he had to choose. Xeno's the bigger game, but still dang.

[@GamingBroductions]

I would absolutely love a remaster. If they could add some minor QoL changes that would be awesome too but even without them I would be more than happy to be able to play this on a modern console with remastered graphics

[@monsieurdorgat6864]

@@GamingBroductions Oh man what if they just made high-quality animated sprites to fit in with the drawn backgrounds? That would look so much better than "beautiful art background with shitty 3D model pasted on top"

[@omensoffate]

@@monsieurdorgat6864 he chose Baten kaitos

[@gmtfender]

I want a new one

[@superprime851]

Kalas is one of the biggest arsehole characters I've ever played in a JRPG 😅

[@tyleryu3165]

Baten kaitos origins is so much better imo

[@n0xc0mment]

This game deserves a FF7 Remake treatment with a little bit story rework. Would be amazing

[@alphtheor.879]

there will soon be a better time than the present...the present in summer of 2023

[@stephenvanbellinghen933]

I think the musical riff at 3:52 was stolen from Legend of Dragoon. From 1:10 in this video kzbin.info/www/bejne/sKa1fK2tbbtghpI

[@TianZhaoHeavenlyFortune]

This game was/is SOOO underrated!!!

[@fangiscool1]

Considering Baten Kaitos is the actual Japanese name to the game, there is only 1 way to pronounce it. Japanese doesn't have weird pronunciation rules like english. You pretty much just pronounce every single letter in Japanese. It's Bah-teh-n Ka-I-to-s. If it wasn't intended to be pronounced exactly as written, the Japanese would have changed the spelling

[@DarkuSh]

One of my top five videogames. And I don't like JRPGs!!! Battle system and music are 20 out of 10.

[@GamingBroductions]

The OST is something else isn't it?

[@johnjohn-up2pu]

>know the game name pronunciation is confusing >finds primary source in Japanese AND an obscure English source >Still pronounces the name wrong I’m upset

[@Cyborg609]

Used to like this game in my early teens. Played it last time as +20y old and then sold it. The game just likes to f you in ass and punish by making you waste more time. I gave up in my last play after the first Folon fight in library. Before that I was lost in forest maze (which is unsolveable until you return to last city to get that stone), runned around there for 1 hour fighting trash enemies and there is only that one npc in jungle who even mentions it. Then I went to library and have to run around it collecting books and putting them in right shelves while being harrassed by skeletons/ghosts that fucking respawn after a while. I had nerves and time for shit like that in my youth, but as an adult it just pisses me off. Without any guide/walktrough it is just unbearable. Oh.. and that chaotic dance music trio fight on airship. Went in with underleveled chars and loot and saved? Tough luck pal.. you are now softlocked and did not enjoy that kalas betrayal when you have to play as xelha solo and cant pretty much go anywhere looking for others since you get 3v1 and knocked out by some high level generic enemy.

[@FangGuard]

I really wanted to play this game but the card battle gameplay threw me off...

[@SotNAoI]

i say bation kaitos

[@kurono1999]

all I wanted was information about the game. 4 minutes in and the "quick retrospective" hasn't even begun and there's only reddit humor and waste of time/wanna be funny editing. Good bye forever sir.

[@GamingBroductions]

Sorry to hear you didn’t like it. I know the “quick” part seems a little ironic but when I had the title in mind I was thinking more of other restrospectives on KZbin where there will be like hour long vids of Zelda/Pokemon games, so in comparison to those it is sort of quick especially given how much longer this game is. With that said some of these have gotten longer than I initially planned on so may have to rethink that title going forward. I’m sure our style/format won’t please everyone regardless though so no worries, thanks for trying to give it a watch anyway!

[@Chelaxim]

@@GamingBroductions KNIJOHN made a 2 part video totalling 2 hours of a retrospective on Megaman Battle Network 4 and Quinton Reviews did a 7 hour two parter on iCarly but this jackenapes thinks 21 minutes is too long.

[@Chelaxim]

Also imagine wanting to play a turn based RPG that is infamous for having a week long 100 percent speed run and having a short attention span.

[@Aman-cp6ue]

Dude, Origins was better than the original. You gotta get on that.

[@spliterin2743]

Man... This game was pure f****** evil and i will NEVER play it again... Not ever!!

[@omensoffate]

You have a small brain

[@Stremon82]

WTF. I was listening to the vid in the background so couldn't stop the video quick enough when you warned about spoilers. Thanks, you just ruined the game plot for me. Can you leave a bit of pause and not gives the spoiler right away next time, and use the youtube function for skeeping/warning about that? 😢

[@fortnitesexman]

if you're gonna try to argue in favor of your pronunciation maybe don't use clips that directly contradict it 💀

[@GamingBroductions]

I am trying to say it how the voice clips say it, but my midwestern accent compared to theirs probably makes it sound a bit different