Xenogears

 PlayStation
User Score
9.2

Universal acclaim- based on 397 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 364 out of 397
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 397
  3. Negative: 22 out of 397
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  1. wesker2012
    Jan 23, 2013
    6
    This game has a lot of charm and I wanted to like this game, but dear god this game was so ridiculously long and slow, I couldn't finish it. Put a ton of hours into it though. Wasnt that fun either. It could have been a masterpiece if they condensed the plot.
  2. mavjs
    Sep 10, 2013
    6
    What could have been a terrific game is all but ruined by the fact that it is unfinished in both presentation and execution. The story's premise has promise and is very intricate, but so poorly translated that it turns everything said into a joke, and as such, the poor translation is my biggest gripe. Virtually every other line is at best poorly written and awkward, with dialog that isWhat could have been a terrific game is all but ruined by the fact that it is unfinished in both presentation and execution. The story's premise has promise and is very intricate, but so poorly translated that it turns everything said into a joke, and as such, the poor translation is my biggest gripe. Virtually every other line is at best poorly written and awkward, with dialog that is strange and unnatural. This is very jarring especially in situations with certain characters that should sound intelligent or domineering, yet they just come across sounding like idiots or children. Now at worst, the grammar and punctuation is simply wrong, and this makes it apparent that the game is unfinished. Many times I actually had more fun laughing at the errors than reading the dialog. It's bad. On top of that, the plot is crammed full of elements that only serve to prolong the story unnecessarily, with many interactions being incredibly verbose, repeating things that have been said already and making characters seem stupid. That goes to the poor translation I suppose.

    Speaking of unfinished. The game is unfinished. The entire second disk is entirely changed in presentation and told like a story rather than played, which is all well and good because if it were like the rest of the game, it would be another 40 hours and to be honest it was dragging on given the games other deficiencies.

    What is good about it? I think that the game was ambitious, and had an interesting premise for a plot. The graphics are crisp and hold up even today. The music has several tracks that I really liked as well.

    I recently replayed Xenogears in it's entirety because I didn't finish at a kid, however it unfortunately proved painful to get through. There are plenty of other games from that era and even earlier that are still terrific and I can definitely enjoy playing again and again, but this isn't one of them.    … Expand
  3. DrSiko
    Jul 16, 2015
    5
    I tried so hard playing this game and get moved by the story, but shame, I couldn't. It's very slow-paced with poor dialogues and boring story drive that I give up playing too soon from finishing it.

    I am an RPG fan. I played many RPG games so I can judge an RPG game very well. When playing a role-playing game, I live it like I'm the protagonist. Doesn't matter if he/she is a silent or    I tried so hard playing this game and get moved by the story, but shame, I couldn't. It's very slow-paced with poor dialogues and boring story drive that I give up playing too soon from finishing it.

    I am an RPG fan. I played many RPG games so I can judge an RPG game very well. When playing a role-playing game, I live it like I'm the protagonist. Doesn't matter if he/she is a silent or interactive one. What I care is the story-drive and pace of the game. In Xenogears, I felt lost and I couldn't even get involved in the story playing.

    XenoGears fans find it a godly game. I find it a Transformers movie game without Micheal Bay's explosions.    … Expand
  4. eded9999
    Jun 29, 2023
    5
    Time has not been kind to this game, feels awfully dated.
    I'm not a graphic vvhore but there's a point where the overall bad look of the game gets between me and enjoying the game.
    Also it suffers from a lot of JRPG "old ways": Bad camera work, way to much and way too repetitive random encounters, lack of personalization on characters, slowness... I can force me to endure some of those    Time has not been kind to this game, feels awfully dated.
    I'm not a graphic vvhore but there's a point where the overall bad look of the game gets between me and enjoying the game.
    Also it suffers from a lot of JRPG "old ways": Bad camera work, way to much and way too repetitive random encounters, lack of personalization on characters, slowness... I can force me to endure some of those thing in old games, but the game has to hook me with something else, i don't feel that "something else" here so i won't keep playing it.
    I'm sure story will get good, but i will pass and wait, maybe the future will bring a remake or something for this title.    … Expand
  5. zaozabot30
    Jan 28, 2023
    7
    I played Xenogears right after beating Chrono Cross, Grandia, Breath of Fire 3 and 4, and my expectations were very high because of all the positive reviews about this game. Unfortunately I caught myself on thinking "when will this be over". I just couldn't force myself to finish last 30% of the game (major disappointment starting with disk 2).
    Gear combat is boring and fuel management    I played Xenogears right after beating Chrono Cross, Grandia, Breath of Fire 3 and 4, and my expectations were very high because of all the positive reviews about this game. Unfortunately I caught myself on thinking "when will this be over". I just couldn't force myself to finish last 30% of the game (major disappointment starting with disk 2).
    Gear combat is boring and fuel management system in my opinion is probably the worst mechanic in Xenogear. I almost never used ether in this game, because it almost never did any difference, and physical combos always hit harder.
    Non gear combat seemed fun at first, but got boring pretty soon, because after you learn a few deathblows it just comes to repeating them again and again, because there's no reason to use weak attacks.
    Playing as different characters seemed like a cool idea, but in the end it comes to leveling up only main characters, because they are the ones who take the beating most of the time so have to be strongest.
    Many people praise music. After 50 hours, I vaguely remember any tunes from the game, even though they repeat very often.
    Yes, plot is interesting, though too complex at times even for me as an adult. Cut scenes are directed well (except Disk 2 which feels like an addon). There's no option to speed up dialogues unfortunately for those who read faster than text appears.
    In the end, I wish I could get more from this game, because it has potential to be great. But it never hits each mark 100%.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

11
#11 Best PS1 Game of 1998
5
#5 Most Discussed PS1 Game of 1998
5
#5 Most Shared PS1 Game of 1998

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
84

Generally favorable reviews - based on 15 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 15
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 15
  3. Negative: 0 out of 15
  1. Gamestyle
    90
    Has a very deep and engrossing (perhaps blasphemous, hence the furore) tale to tell.
    Read full review
  2. RPG Fan
    98
    Xenogears is a must for any RPG lover, regardless of your views toward Squaresoft. With its depth and creativity, Xenogears is my choice for RPG of the year.
    Read full review
  3. IGN
    95
    With an intricate storyline, beautifully designed characters and mechs, and some of the most innovative features in an RPG, you simply can't afford to pass this game up.
    Read full review
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