Baten Kaitos I & II HD Remaster Nintendo Switch Review - Is It Worth It?

[@yamammiwammi]

A lot of people seem to not know that you can turn off the battle results after every turn so the battles are a little less dragged out... It's located as an option in the start menu. The original games had this, too.

[@gvaz9636]

It’s so annoying that nobody has mentioned this yet lol.

[@No-One-Important-Here]

@@gvaz9636Or people are so annoyed they didn’t bother looking. 😅

[@antonyp6617]

I was about to write it down as soon as he mentioned it, so thanks. I think as soon as you understand the logic behind the elements and weaknesses, you can turn it off, it makes everything much snappier.

[@mhjmstultiens]

This.

[@iris089]

How come this is not mentioned in the review???

[@PaulodeBarros]

Please, support Baten Kaitos and maybe, we'll have Xenosaga trilogy HD Remaster!

[@jenerossitea9247]

That is unfortunately up to Namco, since Monolith has said they know fans want it

[@makasete30]

Would love an Xenogears remake first, but looks like it will never happen at this point.

[@PaulodeBarros]

@@makasete30 Xenogears unfortunately R.I.P.

[@tamalemuncher789]

@@makasete30 Good luck trying to get Square to do that lmao

[@faidou9954]

Sounds pretty blackmail-ish to me. Knowing Bandai Namco, they probably just decided to remaster this game to shut people up about it with no plans to remaster Xenosaga at all. I could be wrong, though.

[@Kogelvis]

I remember hearing there was a prequel coming out for Baten Kaitos and thinking “Wow, I can’t wait till it comes out in Europe.” Turns out, I could. It’s been 20 years.

[@RSanchez111]

I remember back in the day my family didn't have much money for games and I had to pick between Baten Kaitos and Twilight Princess. I've always wanted to play Baten Kaitos since then but could never find it. Excited to finally be able to play it!

[@adam145]

I remember having to choose between BK and a few other games but Nintendo Power's magazine had amazing art that made me go with this. To this day this is my favorite RPG series. It still holds up and I really hope that people give it a chance because it feels like a proper Final Fantasy rival.

[@austinjames9328]

I only got baten kaitos as a kid because it was 3$ at in clearance games with a stack of discount stickers on it I had no idea what was at the time but it was that or a golf game

[@fortnitesexman]

"could never find it" so you just didn't think to check ebay? or amazon? or-

[@guillermoantonanzas9400]

I just finished baten kaitos 1 for the first time and I have really loved the game. The combat and the music are amazin, the story and the environments are very enjoyable. Also the possibility to play the games at *2 speed and renove enemy encounters made my experience a looot better

[@slumdutchmillionare]

Way to ignore everyone on your website and close discussions because it doesn’t meet your agenda. Just post a link rather then address the problem.

[@gvaz9636]

No review yet has mentioned that you can just turn off the battle results screen. You don’t have to sit through the damage menu every time somebody attacks. You can turn that off in the options menu and just have the damage numbers pop up above the characters heads after a combo is finished.

[@QuackCow144]

I wish more reviewers would actually bask into games instead of speedrunning and making a review over their speedrun. Like how are you going to make a point over how the battle results screen gets annoying, but not even look at the game settings once during your playthrough.

[@robinh.3768]

I absolutely loved the first game and was really disappointed that Origns never came out in the UK. Kalas being a "jerk" is a big part of the plot and has one of the best surprises in any game out there. It's definitely worth playing. The non English voices are really disappointing, and I just hope they do a free DLC patch with the English voices.

[@jonathanlgill]

I never realized Origins didn't make it to the UK. For what it's worth, I like Eternal Wings more, but both are so good, that if you liked one you'd like the other.

[@marcelafontes6413]

Tbh I did not find Kalas to be a complete jerk, you can see there are times he actually helps people although he acts like a jerk. Even as a kid I saw this with suspicion and was very curious to see if there was a reason for it….. and well, what a surprise did I have :D The dubs missing are disappointing, specially because the second game was actually really good. And yeah, I got used to the first one so I miss it now haha

[@Hylianlink51047]

Kalas being a jerk is central to the plot, and the twist. It was so perfectly made to catch you off guard

[@willowren3601]

Not having English voices was the reason I didn't buy it. The original voice acting was recorded poorly, sure, and I can understand why they wouldn't want to use it, but taking a feature away is a big turn off and I prefer to understand what is being said without reading of there's going to be voice acting. I still own both of them for Gamecube if I want to play them again I can.

[@99percentOrangeJuice33]

dose kalas ever get better

[@CCKaraoke]

For me, the art in these games is timeless. Kinda like how you can go back and play Super Mario World and it still holds up. With the ability to take the combat almost completely out of the experience, these games are worth playing just to experience the art and music. As the reviewer noted, this company also always writes depth into their stories, so that won't disappoint. The only real point of 'mileage may vary' in these games is the combat. If you enjoy it, play it, and if not, then turn it off. It's an easy recommend at that point.

[@gameandwinetime]

I'm sure it's already been pointed out in the comments, but Kalas is *supposed* to be a jerk through most of the game, and as his guiding spirit, making decisions that go against his own goals will hurt your relationship with Kalas (which influences how often these super powerful elemental attacks randomly show up in Kalas' deck). Obviously there's story spoiler stuff later in the game which I won't spoil here but is a great twist on the classic JRPG formula!

[@marcelafontes6413]

Yeah, and it’s kinda obvious there’s something going on with him. Even my “kid-self” spotted something fishy was going on 😂

[@Kryptnyt]

He was clearly inspired by Cloud

[@xdragoonzero0]

Reminds me of how Luke from Tales of the Abyss is a jerk at the start of the game, but has actual character development once you get past the first part of the game.

[@fortnitesexman]

i wasn't aware of the bond thing until just about getting to the second disc 💀 i wish the game had explained the randomly appearing cards to begin with, i didn't realize kalas wasn't just yapping when he started talking about trust n shit cause i didn't realize it was tied to those randomly appearing cards

[@dombuchanan1986]

Got so many memories of these games back on the GameCube please pick these great games up

[@cronodoug]

I've never seen Baten Kaitos and now I discover that it is very similar to Chrono Cross, which is wonderful since Chrono Cross is one of the games of my life. I want to have the opportunity to play Baten Kaitos a dis with this HD remaster. 🤩

[@_b_a_g_u_e_t_t_e_3191]

They're literally nothing alike. Baten kaitos is a card combat game and chrono cross is regular turn based

[@Frog_24_]

Chrono Cross and Baten Kaitos have a different combat system, but both games have the same art director and the same writer.

[@KVR020]

@@_b_a_g_u_e_t_t_e_3191 Yea because a jrpg is only the battle system 😂

[@_b_a_g_u_e_t_t_e_3191]

@@KVR020 what?

[@ajzn97]

A lot of key staff from Chrono Cross worked in these games. That's what appealed to me in the first place.

[@chrisj617]

I played and beat both games when they were originally released. I was VERY hesitant about the randomness of the card-battle system at first, but I ended up loving it. Even regular encounters became an absolute blast! Definitely play both games all the way through, and good luck to everyone who will be fighting two tough bosses in a row with a long cutscene in-between.

[@ersia87]

I wasn't, and still am not, a seasoned JRPG player, so when I played Baten Kaitos back in the day I was blown away by the beautiful settings and music. It's a shame they don't seem to have taken their time with updating the visual presentation to even upscale all of the textures. :(

[@SeniorDankyKang]

Not having the English VA is so disappointing. Yes it's kind of terrible but I love it. I play Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean every so often. Hands down one of my favourite JRPGs. Also the combat is not as bad as he makes it, I beat it as a kid.

[@kobexxballer]

I’m not getting this until there a eng dub update.

[@kathycoleman4648]

@@kobexxballer They were moved for political / 'spirit of the modern audience' reasons, so don't hold your breath.

[@marcelafontes6413]

Yeah, I never got stuck in the first game, it’s really easy. The second is another matter, that holoholo bird was indeed a nightmare, but only because you’re stuck in a point of no return and if you don’t have some aoe attacks then yeah, you’re screwed. But that’s it. Everything else is kinda easy once you get the hang of it

[@SeniorDankyKang]

@@marcelafontes6413 fuck the holoholo bird. Only boss I found truly hard in the first game was the triple fights against Giacomo, Ayme and Folon, especially the first since you are stuck on the ship. But can't complain because more deaths means more time with their sick boss music.

[@Nateiliand]

If you noticed, the english voices in the cinematic trailer are different, so, we won't get english dub unless they make a new one with those, I guess

[@yamammiwammi]

its a shame that this series hasn't had a lot of support, it's really really good.

[@GamingtheOtter]

I listened to the review and noticed that you explained barely any of the plot. I think the plot is actually a driving force of playing the game.

[@Robato-yuh]

The plot twist in the first game and the two plot twists in the second game… also six characters in eternal wings vs 3 in origins it’s kind of a big deal. I would have liked to have know what zion would have given the game from a score standpoint it doesn’t seem like he agrees with 7 being a valid assessment for the game 🙀

[@Frog_24_]

I'm a big Xenoblade fan and I haven't played either Baten Kaitos game yet, but a friend of mine (who has BK as his favorite game of all time) told me that XC2 reminds him a lot of Baten Kaitos in terms of setting and thematically elements, even XC2's ending reminds him a lot of Baten Kaitos' ending as well in a very good way. It's also interesting to know the creator of Baten Kaitos Yasuyuki Honne was the one who build the concept models of Bionios and Mechonis and showed them to Nintendo. The titan setting of the XC games exists thanks to him. Based on this information, I like to think the Xenoblade series is basically a love child between Xenosaga and Baten Kaitos.

[@DeTintasyPixeles]

yeah, in BK there some similar stuff to XC in general, like the islands over the clouds (XC2), characters wings( XC1 y 3 Entias), enemies , etc. Monolith is the best

[@petrusm.3743]

The first Baten Kaitos was and still is one of my favorite Jrpgs. I don't remember if the gamecube version had an option to listen to the music of the game but I'm glad this version has. The soundtrack is great. And I like the kind of a story book look of the game and I don't mind missing English dub. Also the battle system is good. I appreciate the damage screen, I can have a time to think my next moves, do I need to more attack or heal someone. And finally I can play the second game which skipped Europe back then.

[@ChangedFigure]

Yes the original did have sound test where the songs were available after you've heard them for the first time in the playthrough.

[@petrusm.3743]

@@ChangedFigure Thank you. It is good that some games have that sound test option. I think there should be more games having that option.

[@pilarcases4190]

I miss Gibari voice in english but in japanese is good too

[@shiningphantasy1393]

I think that the Baten Kaitos OST's are some of Motoi Sakuraba's best work; really good music especially the first game. I had both for Gamecube and finished the first one but only made it through about half of the second one. Liked the story and dialogue better in the second game however they revamped the battle system and it wasn't for the better in my opinion. The changes made it become more frantic and less rhythmic. Used to love doing massive elemental combos towards the end of the first game with Xelha for colossal damage north of 12000 hitpoints. As for these remasters I actually prefer the visual aesthetic on the Gamecube releases to these new versions.

[@bender9740]

Waiting for my physical copy to arrive, should hopefully be today!

[@champdancer19]

Mine came Monday. I got it from playasia. Hopefully yours comes soon

[@flygonic]

This is the RPG I hold closest to my heart because it's the one that introduced me to the genre back in 2003 when I was 15 yo. Still can't believe I'm playing this on the Switch 20 years later. I will never forget how I literally jumped off my couch the day they announced it on that Nintendo Direct.

[@lc3212]

I did the same. I had it back on GameCube but got stuck at a certain boss (could have been me underleveled or not mixing the wrong cards idk I beat that boss on second try in this though and it was 15 years ago I played it lol) the system crapped out on me before I went back to it though and I was young and stupid and traded it all in. The game always stuck with me though but couldn’t remember the name till this remaster was announced. While the performance could be smoother im loving having another chance to beat it almost to the end then I will play bko which I never played that one back then.

[@flygonic]

@@lc3212 I guess you were stuck on Giacomo. A really hard boss indeed. I didn't play Origins as well so this is our chance!

[@tsf9600]

Gonna be honest, as a pure game, I liked Origins more. Baten Kaitos 1, other than specific encounters which are massive difficulty spikes, had some really broken mechanics that killed difficulty as long as you knew what you were doing: build your deck around the enemies of the area and keep spirit numbers in mind and you'll mostly cruise through the game. If you chose to wait around to get a bunch of Wonder Momo in Anuenue you pretty much immediately killed the game's difficulty there and then, less than halfway through the game. Origins also had broken stuff but most of it is only accessible in the late stage of the game, and sometimes that broken stuff is very much necessary because the game starts tough and only gets tougher, but avoided some typical trappings of RPG fake difficulty by doing stuff like healing you after every battle (so no running around with a dying party and no healing items like in a very specific segment of BK1), nor ever forcing you into tough fights without your full party once you get it (one because, again, the game is tough, and second because you only have 3 party members in this game). The simplified weak>medium>heavy system with a ton of sub-combo options is also a lot more interesting and engaging than in the original because the whole game is a lot more fast-paced.

[@Sygmus6]

Dropping the English dub makes the originals the superior versions for me. Baten Kaitos had anime funny-bad dubbing, and Origins had it genuinely good. Otherwise, it certainly still feels like the same games, and I love both of them a lot. I think there's a lot to like about both battle systems. Origins simplifies the process but the speed of it makes it feel very satisfying. But there's something really fun about the first game's battles, searching for matching or straight numbers while dodging contradicting elements. And as you get far into the game, each card will have three or even four numbers and you have even less time to make a battle plan at the start of your turn, making it more hectic.

[@markdibuo3756]

Hope it gets added back eventually.

[@ssMIK3]

Me, a 1987 kid, loved Baten Kaitos and when a saw that origins was going to be released I wanted to play it so bad and eventually a friend borrow it to me for another game (remember when we use to do that?). I never had the chance or time to play it though. Now, almost 20 years later I finished BK origins and I loved it (thank you Nintendo for releasing the remastered version). This review is mostly right but it is the same with most games that are a product of their time, don´t expect it to fit right away. BK is like watching a pretty good show with A LOT of content between stories.

[@jenscee7679]

Having played BK 1 physically on Switch, it definitely is worth it.

[@JJKMagic]

I absolutely adore Baten Kaitos and I already adored it 20 years ago, ESPECIALLY because of its combat. It's that challenge between planning ahead and yet also reacting quickly to the ever-changing situation in combat that has me going back to this game again and again just to enjoy the combat again. Now with the remaster and its quality of life features you can freely adjust and speed up the combat to whatever challenge you like or even just remove it completely if it's too complex for you, which is a crime in my eyes, but hey the option is there xD As for "Kalas being unbearable"... I wonder if Zion ever played past what was originally the first disc of the game xD Because Kalas being the way he is is very much intentional and honestly what makes Baten Kaitos's story a lot more unique than the traditional goody two shoes protagonist. I think most people who played Baten Kaitos will agree that it's Kalas' character that leads to some of the most unforgettable moments, not just for Baten Kaitos, but for JRPGs in general.

[@corey2232]

I'm just tired of "remasters" MISSING things or having inferior elements to the original. I don't care if most everything else is improved, it doesn't feel like a truly definitive version. Baten Kaitos Remaster just leaving out the entire English dub irks me... even if it wasn't amazing to begin with! In the same way, I don't care if Paper Mario TTYD improves the visuals quite a bit, cutting the frame rate in half is not ok!

[@bubmario]

You nailed it. This is a big issue for me with remasters, remakes, and resissues.

[@bagboybrown]

I had these when then came out. It was amazing how realistic it is. If you leave food items in your inventory for example, eventually it'll turn to rot. There's a sequence near the end where you need cheese and the way to get it is to grab milk at the beginning and let it turn into yogurt, and then later it'll turn into cheese. The battle system was also unique, just think of it like poker. The numbers on the cards will give you bonuses based on the combination they're played.

[@ReyZar666]

i have both of them on the GC, yes the game is from the old era, which tbh for me this make it a hidden gem, not only on the gc but now on the ns, i am planning on buying it since i never could finish the games on gc, coz of the old school grain, now that the game is portable the grain will be much more relaxing and enjoyable

[@sunlitslumber]

There's a couple of things I'd want to mention: -You can turn off the damage results screen -There's a speed boost for battles -Kalas is a jerk for an important plot reason but it's a spoiler -For defending against enemy attacks, Kalas and Gibari are able to defend with their attack cards as long as you discard one card and you can keep using the weapons as armor. Mizuti has much higher defense than Xelha if you are struggling against later bosses.

[@GamingtheOtter]

What's sad is he doesn't even mention the other characters? So only kalas in one and Saga in the other? I don't think he paid attention.

[@tristanchancelier1021]

Tri-Crescendo involvement as co developper (with them taking even more of the job for Origins) being completely ignored/completely left out will always be sad It's not like they just "assisted" on making the game, it was more or less a 50/50 job with Monolith, it's also why it's completely different from what Monolith did and do afterwards

[@Voltasaur]

Loved these back on the GameCube 😊

[@disneyboi1]

I'm a bit biase when it comes to Baten Kaitos I & II because I grew up playing the games when they first launched. Definitely, a nostalgic remaster that was much needed, but I would have loved it more if it was remake. Sad about the no English VA because I honestly loved the English VAs, especially for Baten Kaitos Origin. Guillo's English VA was legendary!!! Overall, both are still some of my favorite JRPGs to date.

[@corey2232]

Fwiw, the first game is definitely my favorite. The combat feels more in depth, and has a more interesting story. It's one of my favorite games on the GC.

[@NoEscapeGaming]

My copy should be arriving in the mail today!

[@glorbojibbins2485]

Did you ever get around to beating it?

[@charlesvigilans1597]

The combat is not as bad as he says it is, give it a go I´m having a blast and it is certainly more accessible than a Persona game a series which I also love. In my opinion I still don't see a reason why it would not sell well, but I digress. try it, I'm having a blast! PS: There's an option to simplify battle results ;)

[@ithydoodles]

I most definitely hope it's worth it. I've been playing it for the last week or so. I'm only on the 2nd island. Named my guardian Zanzibar.

[@nuclearbeeberman]

i like the games and can't only partly understand the critic... i actually just come from sea of stars and i enjoy baten kaitos so much more just because the story plays out so much more interesting

[@PlayfulDead22]

I absolutely loved this on GCN and am so freaking ecstatic it's on Switch since I can't emulate it anymore. Definitely getting!

[@Jdogtoocool]

the damage screen is really useful towards the end of the game to plan the next move in the battle. kalas is meant to be hated just stick around to the end of the game to find out why :D

[@Tartaglia_Pokochu]

I hope they will add English dub it was so great

[@sheeplenk]

Where possible, you should try to mention the amendments to certain text in the game, as it can change your perception of the characters. Only for purists, but they will make up a decent portion of potential buyers for games like this.

[@UnexpectedDanger]

Eh not really

[@JessP1]

10:07 you can go in the options menu and turn off the results/ damage dealt screen.

[@laggalot1012]

Playing through the first game now for the first time, it's pretty interesting. Not big on the amount of obtuse permanent missables and it definitely feels like a slowburner at times, especially with the battle pace. Definitely some things that haven't aged well. But the world concept and battle system are fairly compelling. The deckbuilding is pretty fun, the unpredictabity in which your deck develops provides some (occasionally frustrating) surprises, and there is some neat risk/reward in the ability to stock up levels for bigger pay-off... though it seems bound to break the game's balance in time and render late party members obsolete. (I just got the third major macguffin.) I wouldn't say it's amazing, definitely not. There's some interesting ideas a future game could build on. But I am not necessarily sure this series warrants a revival. It's still decently enjoyable, though. Just be prepared to deal with some outdated design. On the note of the review, Kalas being unlikeable is definitely intentional. And personally, I don't hate it. I think it's kind of refreshing to having the main protagonist not simply be unequivocally good and empathetic in every scenario. And granted, Kalas is definitely a jerk, but our first couple party members more than balance him out.

[@zeldadonkey1]

I think it's a fresh take making the main character kind of a jerk. I personally love flawed characters

[@baltazarsucrecabello7694]

Calling the graphics PS1 equivalent it’s definitely a stretch, but Ok.

[@KVR020]

He doesn’t know what he is talking about

[@FelixS.]

Dude doesn’t have the faintest idea, narrow minded millenial at its finest.

[@laggalot1012]

The visual style is definitely reminiscent, though. At least, I certainly thought that initially. I could have believed this game was originally (developed) for PS1 if I didn't already know it was originally a GC game.

[@baltazarsucrecabello7694]

@@laggalot1012 maybe a dreamcast game, but just not ps1 imo

[@FelixS.]

@@laggalot1012 It is and was dimensions above the best visual psx games.

[@Blast112]

Honestly, the English dub missing means I won't pick it up. Strips the nostalgia from when I was young (and it's bizarre to exclude them)

[@Controvi]

To be honest, I thought Kellas being a Jerk was part of the charm of the game. Finally I wasn't the goody goody, power of friendship protag. And the way his character progresses through the story makes it finish off really nice. I really loved the game. Weirdly enough I tried using origins on an emulator and found the combat to be dull. The deferent elements, cards, and all the complexities of the first game was something that was soooooooooo satisfying when pulling off a 0 to 9 combo in 1 element with a finisher at the end :D MAN that was pure gold

[@RMarr-uy9hf]

Never played BT Origin but loved the first one, can't wait to get a physical copy !

[@nathaliekirshman3335]

Bought this game because I love the Xenoblade series and it did not disappoint. Definitely shows it’s age a little compared to new monolith games but there is a few quality of life changes that make it better (eg, speeding through battles, turning off encounters, etc). Overall a great game :)

[@patriot639]

I had forgotten about Baten Kaitos until I was going back through old games, and remembered I liked this game. Though can't remember it. Watching you in the battle I recalled the bambo shoot, and that brought to mind a lot of the game. This was a great game. The items in particular how they are used and how they transform were interesting. I also recall the music was exceptional in the game.

[@marcelafontes6413]

I played both countless times in the GC. My first and favorite rpgs hands down. Still, i do not recommend them to my friends because I can see they are indeed a product of their age - plus I don’t want to hear them say that and break my heart 😂 I think it’s fair to point this out, but it’s very unfair to say games like Ocarina of Time are perfect when they have the worst camera+controls I ever found in a game. Yeah, I did not play it as a kid, and gave up on playing it now because it’s that bad. But no one says it’s a product of its age for Zelda…

[@dukemon6163]

Namco Bandai is usually the worst and laziest one when it comes to "Remasters". Klonoa and Tales of Symphonia were some of their latest victims. About this one.... unstable performance, lacking Voice Acting (Not missing Eternal Wings but Origins was great). Yeah, it checks out. The damage screen and black fade outs are still there, but can you at least speed them up like in the Final Fantasy modern versions?

[@benjaminmartin2922]

Ive not tried but im pretty sure you can remove the damage screen after your hit. But slowdowns and tiny freezes are every 5s and i clearly advise you not to buy it in this state.

[@StevenUlyssesPerhero]

The damage screen is something you're able to turn off, and have been since the GameCube original.

[@dukemon6163]

@@StevenUlyssesPerhero I wish I paid as much attention to the Options menu back then (when I was a stupid kid) as I do now.

[@ThadFC]

yes of course you can speed up the game

[@dffagundo]

I'd love to see old Ridge Racer titles brought back with a fresh coat of paint (pun intended), but given their record of ruining the originals with such lack of effort, I guess the series should be left alone for the time being 😐

[@yamammiwammi]

And, omg, Kalas' jerk attitude is literally a plot point that gives BK one of the most unique and celebrated plots in video game history lol??

[@fortnitesexman]

dude hates having an interesting main character lol he became my favorite character the instant he said "who cares" in the menu cinematic

[@retrohero2762]

I didn't even realise it came out, Nintendo could've thrown this game a bone in the last direct telling people it was coming soon

[@JMrealgamer]

They should have included the English voices. I’m glad you can just breeze through with max damage AND speed it up!

[@torashiki5646]

Something that you got slightly wrong is that Baten Kaitos was not released too long before Nintendo took Monolith into its fold. In fact, Baten Kaitos Origins is cited as the game that convinced Nintendo to take in Monolith thanks to its sheer artistry and passion. Otherwise Monolith was most likely going to dissolve. Without Baten Kaitos, there would be no Xenoblade Chronicles.

[@YoshMaster]

How is the result screen (which can be turned off in the options btw) in BK1 “useless”??? It’s the way to see which elements the enemies are weak and resistant to! And to know how well you did! I’ll never be able to understand how someone can prefer the battle system of Origins over BK1…

[@oldschoolben1471]

I loved the first game, the second not so much. Great artwork and fantasy environment. Cool to see them re-release these. When I bought my version of Baiten Kaitos for the Gamecube, it came with the soundtrack CD. I wish I still had it.

[@Chan_Prado]

The yogurt bit got me good, Zion 🤣 Great original review and very nice post-review thoughts!

[@brokenclavicle]

I recognize that the games aren't perfect, but to say they look and play like PS1 era RPGs is simply insane. Whomever wrote the review has either no sense of perspective or likes to exaggerate considerably hahaha

[@marcelafontes6413]

Yeah, that hurt a bit… And differently than ffx these games actually have a great soundtrack. (Yes, I’m not a fan of ffx at all)

[@UnexpectedDanger]

Yeah absolutely a clueless insult from someone who clearly didn't exist during that era. It's really weird to say something like that.

[@strsocerplaya9]

I was waiting for this, but somehow missed seeing literally anything about this being released until i saw the digital version on sale today. I want this physically!!

[@MeItsLiterallyMe]

I'm still working on the first one and man it's sluggish. I'm playing using the pro controller too, and it seems to have difficulty registering bottom left inputs when playing cards. It was easier on the game cube due to the c-stick having an octagon input. This makes me miss so many plays during my turn because I'm not 100% precise with the bottom left input. The game is great and fun though. I still have my original copies too. So glad this series was resurrected. I'm doubtful this combo will sell enough for a new title. Well worth playing, but just be ready for some slow going.

[@ShadowChaosKrystal]

I remember seeing a friend play this game growing up, and I could never for the life of me place what the game was called. Then, this game was announced for an HD remaster. I've always wanted to try it, and it somehow completely skipped my mind that it was a Monolithsoft game. I love the Xenoblade games and would love to see remasters and remakes of some of their earlier titles.

[@IanHsieh]

I played a little of the first one. But I really don't like how this remake was designed. It gave you those "features" to skip over battles and win instantly, but then not enough EXP was given to the characters to level them up at all. And then when some forced battles occur, my party just keep dying and there is o way to go back to previous places to grind even if I want to now. So I got stuck.

[@Cpt_crabhammer]

Bamco releasing a remaster with missing features and bugs? I'm shocked!

[@DanielPage]

Will consider getting it if they put the English dub in it [it was a lazy remaster in that regard to omit things that are a key part of the original release], will be sticking with the Gamecube originals (I own both) otherwise. They're some of my favourites, amazing games.

[@borrellipatrick]

Was going thru people posting localization changes this morning. So just wanted to write that these editions of the games have some 1990s nintendo style of censorship going on for some reason. It's nothing major but they could've left it alone so people could've played with the game's original English Dubs

[@Yoshizuyuner]

Yeah let them experience the worst dub imaginable only for people to get mad at sub par dubbing

[@borrellipatrick]

​@Yoshizuyuner It not being there is the most common complaint I've come accross from people that have been playing it 🤷‍♂️ They would rather have a bad dub then no dub at all

[@Sygmus6]

I just picked up Lyude and he's carrying Deluxe Sweet Drink instead of wine. I really don't see why they did that except to sanitize it for kids, but the themes in the game are already relatively mature.

[@MorningAndEveningStar]

Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean is one of my favorite games, period, and I adore Kalas. I was ecstatic when the remasters were first announced, but the removal of the English voice acting kept me from jumping on this. (I actually really, really love the English dub of the first game.) I should pick it up to show my support, but I kinda lost interest once I heard the English dialogue was gone.

[@DragoonMyuutsu]

I still have my GameCube copies of Baten Kaitos and Origins. Those were interesting games at least, but I didn't know it at the time until much later that there was an option to disable the end turn result screen which would've made the game play out in a much better pace than it did; that option should be in the HD Remaster as well. Kalas definitely not the most likable lead, as his spirit guide, I would take a lot of opportunities to annoy this Marth lookalike. Origins has a much better battle system and mercifully less time degrading magnus cards or if I remember correctly, no degrading cards at all. I might get the physical copy, shame that it is import only.

[@PikaLink91]

12:00 Well his name DOES sound like "callous" aka cold hearted. Coincidence? I think not. That said, I too have seen the cover art around a lot and because of that and the very unique name have wanted to eventually dive into the game myself, but that was until I finally sat down and watched a review of the original game earlier this year and learned of what an unbearable dickward Kalos is. And okay, having an asshole protag CAN work if you can relate to what makes them that way AND if they eventually come around to NOT be a dickbag.... BUUUUT like Zion I too prefer to play characters I actually like from the get go. If I don't like my protag, I ain't motivated to play. And that's not to say they all need to be goodie-two-shoe Shounen characters who kiss babies and help ducks cross the road. They are allowed to be flawed, but SHOW me that they HAVE redeeming qualities and that they try their best to be a better version of themselves.

[@david-jonballinger6638]

His bad attitude is literally tied to the story beats and leads to a great plot twist. So it works for this game

[@SnowWolfAlpha]

I remember playing the first game but I'm hesitating because of the lack of the English voices and no physical release outside Asia. The dubbing wasn't great for the first game but still part of my nostalgia and the release feels incomplete without it.

[@maxschulz6185]

Did they not include the difficulty setting for origins? You could put it on "easy mode" which didnt change anything about the health or dmg values, but it paused the action meter of you and the enemy, when you can pick cards, it allowed you to savor the combos and animations, as you didnt have to constantly stare at your cards. Really miss this feature

[@Stickman0660]

They added battle speed up. No battle. No damage results. Movement speed up. And one hit kill as options at the press of a button so it's not surprising thay feature isn't there

[@lloyd011721]

if im not mistaken, your turns are on a timer? atleast in the first one... people who like cards and deckbuilders typicly dont like feeling pressured by timed turns. atleast not sub 30 second turns anyway.

[@alphtheor.879]

origins was the first jrpg I played on GameCube, with tales of symphonia being the second, but tales was the first one I beat because I was drastically under leveled in most of the latter half of origins, boss fights would take hours for me back then

[@paulsmith9786]

Milliarde's English VA was excellent. It's a shame that the dub is missing.

[@marcelafontes6413]

Agree 😢

[@swordfish1390]

Yeah, her performance was award-winning, and the overall quality of the Origins was very good. It honestly killed my enthusiasm for this remaster when it was announced that there would be no dub.

[@GamingtheOtter]

Fact

[@Asherverse]

I had the first one for GameCube and would love to own it again. The only thing keeping me from getting it is there’s no plan for a physical release in North America.

[@AT7outof10]

You can import most english formatted games from sites like Playasia, that's how I got Klonoa Phantasy Reverie, since Bamco are skimping on printing costs for all their remakes recently.

[@joerexhausen8897]

I still have the first one for GCN but i think what held me back from being able to enjoy was the card system. Might give it another chance in the future though w/ all the extra stuff in the remaster.

[@lc3212]

Idk I feel both games combat systems are distinct enough where it’s more of a “which do you prefer” over “which is better” I will admit after 20-30 into bk1 I was getting annoyed with the slower speed but that’s where the qol features added helped. On the other hand I enjoyed trying to build the right decks for each character based on the situation. Yea there’s a lot to keep track of. The game isn’t for everyone I’m sure even some hardcore players of this genre may not get into baten kaitos but it’s different and they tried something new with both games. As for kalas. That’s tough cause yea he is insufferable but there’s a reason for it that does make sense in the plot it just takes a bit to get to that point. (I’m being vague for those that are still curious and may not have played or hear much of the plot yet) are these two games perfect? No can’t say but to me games being a product of their time should be something mentioned not something as a negative when it comes to releases. These are two games that well you are gonna be one that really likes the card based combat or you won’t. What gets me most is “ps1 era graphics” not even close and even if that was the case I think those that say that forget this was a GameCube exclusive and no Nintendo system has been know to highlight “ look at our graphics of the new Nintendo system they are amazing” Nintendo has always been more about the gameplay. Idk if this remaster sold well or not but I wouldn’t mind a new entry in the series with a modern touch on the gameplay. Maybe that cancelled 3ds entry could be repurposed of monolith has the time and resources between Xenoblade and any other projects.

[@rmgb-tv]

I'm thinking of selling my Gamecube copy of Baten Kaitos Origins now. Picked up two months before lockdown for about £30. I also have the first game and the official Future Publishing strategy guide. Maybe someone on eBay would like a complete set?

[@alexalexander1772]

They are fun old school jrpg once you get past the card thing. It’s not as off putting as I thought it would be.

[@holymystic4490]

I'll get the remaster...WHEN it comes to the U.S. in physical form. The options can help reduce some annoyance, but the remaster comes with faster battle speeds, and a whole lot more, and my fav option...NEW GAME PLUS to carry over magnus, levels and such, and a minus mode for a more challenging experience. I hope for a patch, or even a cheap DLC for English voices for both games, and with modern audio editing, the first games dialog can be cleaned up a bit. They can take the backround noises for the japanese opening but combine that with the western opening, which would explain why one of the characters in the opening cinematic you see the fist a cuffs woman turn her head, cause there was a door opening. Thats my opinion, and i hope they realise this, the whole taking it out to avoid modern era offences is silly, because the japanese say the same thing with only a few words being a little different. I just hope this happens so we can see the concepts for baten kaitos DS and B.K. 3 (which was supposed to have a female lead and explore sea, land and sky) I'd be more than happy to pay a few bucks or so for a proper fix. Heres to the future of the series! God bless everyone!

[@ryu210gonzales9]

Ok this does NOT look like a Psone RPG. I now question if you played rpgs on the ps. This does not need to be compared to FFx in my opinion. The 2d back grounds are well drawn and the whole game is a fever dream from fei, in xenogears. Just saying. Peace.

[@florsch6781]

I wouldn't call the battle results screen in BK 1 unneccessary. It's important to see enemies weaknesses. BUT, like some poeple mentioned before, you can turn it off. But yes, the game IS very slow in general. In my opinion, BK1 had the more epic story and of course a bigger cast of characters, but BK 2 has a better flow, better combat system and voice acting. Though you only have a party of 3, I absolutely love the banter between them (especially Milly an Guillo). And yes, I miss the english dub here :( When it comes to performance..... I didn't mind most of the time, but man, there was one particular bossfight in BK1 where the game basically ran in slow motion... which also affected the battle mechanics (which is another point, because often times my inputs simply didn't register correclty). I don't think BK1 aged that well in general (thank god for the option to speed things up), but BK2 I still enjoy quite a bit.

[@mrmeteor64]

Don’t need to rush and play limit physical release and they could have redub the game but didn’t.

[@PawlSLax]

"Why is there yoghurt in this cap?" "Well, it used to be milk and well... time makes fools of us all!"

[@FlamingPanda01]

I really hope they add the English dub back in, bad or not it was my childhood.

[@real_Furryratchet]

Well! Baten Kaitos Origins was NEVER released in EU. So this is a blessing for ALL european gamers.

[@MatthewRichardson1]

We didn't get the second one in Europe so I really want to pick this up.

[@tlotpwist3417]

2024 started well when i heard about this like a couple of weeks ago only. All i ever wanted was being able to play BK again AND discover its prequel, that only relameased in japan back then

[@benjaminmartin2922]

Don't buy it for now ! It needs a big patch for constant slowdowns and micro freezes. I stopped playing after 6-7 hours. Couldnt stand it anymore ! After Klonoa and tales of, it is the third time Bandai Namco releases a shit port of a game which should run perfectly on switch. Thats really the last time I buy one of their game for switch. They obviously prefer to release games in a shity state instead of postponing the release and work on their port. Total lack of respect for consumers. Yes, both games are playable but performance are unacceptable.

[@sparkypack]

uff, that's annoying. :(

[@Dante93k]

Yes, those are the biggest reasons why this wasn't a day-one purchase for me. I can deal with "not-so-remastered" graphics, but the FPS are inconsistent to the point that it's actually annoying. Let's hope we get more performance updates to fix this.

[@LadyWarbucks]

Hardly PS1 graphics lmao. And you can make the battle in BK Eternal Wings go faster, you know. They give you the option to skip that screen that pops up after attacking and defending. These are excellent games IMO

[@Hylianlink51047]

I don't get why he said that it looked and played like a PS1 game, and then compare it to FFX, when FFX looked much worse in comparison. And I only ever played Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean, but the battle system is slowly introduced to get you used to the more hectic battles later. It gives you like 45 seconds at the beginning to strategize. I don't think you start feeling overwhelmed until after getting Savyna.

[@lc3212]

I’m not sure the issue on the graphics either it looks great to me especially when you look up how it looks from the GameCube. I do have an issue with the framerate but not game breaker for me and maybe I’m just lucky but it still runs better for me than some others from what I’ve read online. As for the combat it was simple to pick up for me even with less time to play a card though that doesn’t bother personally but I can see some not liking. For me the core of the combat system is simple to grasp. It’s learning all the different magnus effects and combos that takes time to learn. I don’t see that as a bad thing though just something that comes down to whether the player wants to take the time to learn it all with so many other games today but I do hope this remaster gets support. It’s underrated in my opinion

[@RekkaAlexiel]

Baten Kaitos 1 has been one of my all-time favorite RPGs for many years since I played it on the GC when it was originally released. I loved it so much that I even got a fan cel made of Kalas. xD I'm happy to be able to play again on modern consoles, but... some of the "upgrades" they went with here sort of detracts from what the game was trying to do back in the day. Like why remove the 4 numbers on the cards and reduce them to just one each...? Granted, I haven't gotten far into the remaster yet, so maybe that shows up later, but I felt it helped make even normal battles a bit scary at times. I mentioned this next thing in one of my streams of the game, but... I really dislike it when remasters just stretch the screen and blur to go from 4:3 to 16:9. Also... was it really necessary to add that ugly border around the screen...? It might be a minor nitpick, but... it annoyed me. lol

[@theonewhowrotethis5681]

The weird thing about the lack of an English dub in this release is the fact that the intro movie for Baten Kaitos 1 is still in English. This is due to the fact that the Japanese release back in the day also had English in the intro movie, but the old voices still do exist in the game. It's pretty jarring and makes their excuse for the lack of the dub even more lame as you still hear the entertaining English dub in the intro movie. I think Bamco just wanted to save on some money here.

[@Zeromus5555]

Monolith Soft in their infancy. 1 is one of my all time faves.

[@markdibuo3756]

I’m waiting for the English voice acting to be added back before I buy the game.

[@kainhighwind2]

I wish Monolith would release Xenoblade Chronicles X on Switch...

[@teapottanuki5841]

The games are fun but I felt the performance issues. In Baten Kaitos 1, it seems to be worse in scenes with lots of moving NPCs. The main city on the third island and the Guardian of the same island has terrible slowdown. I got this because I never got to play Origins since it never released in the UK, started with Eternal Wings and… ugh… I had to stop.

[@marcelafontes6413]

Yeah, Anuenue has terrible performance, and the final boss fight was a PAIN because of the fps drop. I hope I don’t see more drops like this and truly hope they fix it with a patch… it was sad to see this happening =\

[@ZeusTheIrritable]

I wish this series luck, but I just can't do the card battling thing.

[@yimleej4385]

Loved Eternal Wings. Never played the other one. Don’t want to lol