[PS2] Xenosaga III: Also Sprach Zarathustra

Originally Posted by Freddy Krueger

haha I am your savior http://www.datorrents.com/download.a...scenes.torrent I just started getting it yesterday myself cause I wanna play 3 but didnt play 2.

I've been watching Xenosaga: The Animation while I wait for Episode 3 to come in. I like the anime, its very nostalgic and makes me want to play Episode 1 again. But to be honest, I don't want to spend another 20-40 hours replaying either 1 or 2 right now. Didn't someone rip all the cutscenes from Episode 1 a while back? I can't seem to find a torrent for them.

EDIT: Just got Episode 3. It looks and sounds alot better than Episode 2 thats for sure. The database is pretty detailed and it even has a summery of 'A Missing Year.' If you still have your Clear Data from Episode 2, it'll unlock Shion's Vector Uniform from Episode 1. It's nice to have the old Shion back . Her new outfits look pretty slutty for a 'scientist' to be wearing.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by speculative

One of the girls at Gamestop was dressed up as the main female character from this series and she was not bad lookin' I tell ya. :superhappy:

LOL. I'd have asked to have my picture taken with her. To commemorate the day my favorite game series came to an end.

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She was such a bitch in EPII.

And she's still a bitch, even more so. It's like Miyuki is the new Allen. -.-

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by SOLDIER

Like I need anymore bad news with this game.

That is goddamn bullshit. I was neutral with the whole Albedo thing in EPI, and the other Albedo thing in EPII, but now bloodless deaths? AND the "biggest twist" is going to suffer because of this?

I'm glad this is the final episode.

That's a shame, really. I honestly didn't know about the game's censorship until now. It'd have been better to find after I finished to game, but whatever. For once I'm not going to bash the game or the company for something like 'censorship.' At least they got everything else right with the gameplay, graphics, music and voice acting. I was upset enough when I found out this was the last game in the series. Frankly, that was the worse news I'd ever heard about Xenosaga and the censorship isn't much by comparison. Once I beat the game I'll just go to YouTube, I'm sure they already have all the take-out scenes up by now. The way I see it, Xenosaga Episodes III - VI have all been 'censored' into one game anyway. It shows in Episode 3 how alot of things were cramed togather by revealing so many plot elements at once.

The series came to a very premature end, which is as bad as it gets. But if you're a real fan you won't let something like a little censorship keep you from playing this last game. It's still damn good.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

I just beat the game today at around 48 hours playtime. The database is still at 98% but I skipped a lot of sidequests. I prefer to beat the game first then go back for the optional bosses later. The database is a huge help to understanding this game's story, which in my opinion surpasses Xenogears by a long shot. However, I feel there was only one thing left unexplained after beating the game.

Spoiler:

What/Who exactly is Wilhelm? Beyond being the mastermind behind civilization itself, where did he come from? The history behind chaos, Abel, Nephilim, and everyone else over a thousand years old was explained, but not his. Honestly, I was hoping he would be the final boss, because he basically triggered all the events Xenosaga's story. My theory, and I know this may be far fetched, is that Wilhelm is in fact the Anti-Christ, both in appearance and personality. There was a lot of talk about God in the game, I was shocked when I saw the name Jesus [that was a bold move], but they never mentioned anything about The Devil. If you think about it, Wilhelm is the most characteristic figure of Satan. He seduces people with power (The Testaments), he defied and betrayed God (Using Zarathustra), he's the genius behind civilization (Vector Inc = Humanity's Tree of Knowledge). Wilhelm is like the snake that offered the apple. In The Bible it describes the Anti-Christ as a handsome, persuasive individual with immense political power. Wilhelm has all these factors.

I was quite disappointed how he practically did nothing to stop Kevin from opposing him. Wilhelm created the Testaments, so he must have an insane amount of power, at least enough to neutralize or kill one at the snap of a finger. It would have made more sense had he been the final boss, and not an E.S. Junkyard. Anyway, as The Devil [metaphorically] I guess he couldn't stop Kevin because he can't force anyone to do as he pleases, they need to have the 'will' to do it, thus he only has the power of influence. He couldn't force Shion to give him her pendant either; he had to seduce her with a vision of Kevin. Well that’s my theory. But sense there is no absolute good or evil in Xenosaga, Wilhelm isn’t exactly the Anti-Christ but a reference to the biblical figure.

Also, I think he get's reincarnated as Krelian. Both characters have very similar goals.

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Very Minor Spoiler: It's just the ending credits.

Spoiler:

Very Major Spoiler: This scene almost made me cry. ,_,

Spoiler:

I was speaking idiomatically.

Am I the only one feeling a little remorseful about this being the last game in the series? Xenogears was my favorite game of all time and I remember how upset I was when I found out about Disc 2. What happened to Xenosaga was even worse, prematurely ending the series by three episodes. But at least they did a good job on this last one. There doesn't seem to be much talk about the Episode 3 so I guess it didn't sell many copies. We can thank Episode 2 for that. We probably won't see anymore games except for the already existing prequals.

Anyway, today I finished up all the optional stuff, Omega, Erde Kaiser, 100% database, swimsuits etc. For some reason I want to keep playing but theres nothing left to do besides reading the database. I hate it when you only get to fight optional bosses once and they leave you with some uber item but nothing worth using it on. I really wish developers would stop with the one time only sidequests. It's a shame X3 doesn't have a New Game+ feature.

Also, Xenosaga makes Final Fantasy look like a fairy tale. Trying to compare the two is like comparing The Bible with a coloring book.

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I only have one question for this game :
Does it have any replay value? And is the replay value worthwhile or just a bunch of pointlessness?

Since you can already watch all the cutscenes, go back to any dungeon without replaying the game, and theres only a few missible items [not including the ones you have to steal from bosses], the replay value is pretty low. Unless you want to revisit certain cities that won't be accessable later in the game. I'm going to replay it because I missed a chain of sidequests which unlocks better items in the shops [skill upgrades etc], I'm also missing one key item. But the first play through is a good enough reason to buy the game.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Blitzball gets my vote for best minigame. Followed by the Fairy Colony system from the Breath of Fire series. HaKox reminds me of The Sims.

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I just remembered something regarding censorship.

Spoiler:

Was the first battle between KOS-MOS and T-Elos edited? At the end of the fight, T-Elos has a scar on her face but it never showed where it came from. It was probably KOS-MOS' gatlin gun attack but I wonder if there was actually blood in that scene. While I was playing the game I disregarded it and figured I'd find out later, to avoid spoilers.

YouTube doesn't have any out takes from the Japanese version, all I see is a bunch of game trailers.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Spoiler:

You thought the scene with Shion, Allen and Kevin was awesome? Awesome how, seriously? I thought it was unnecessarily moderated, like practically every love scene in video games these days. No one ever just says 'I love you,' and gets it over with. For me, the scene was a little funny but mostly frustrating because once again, love is overshadowed by friendship, a less mature theme. I hate it when games are toned down. Would it have killed them to make that scene just a little more intimate? Being a type of person who likes a romance, I was quite disappointed with how it turned out. Allen took the beating of his life for Shion and she didn't even embrace him with a hug.

And yeah, that boss fight was hilarious.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

I for one hope they continue the series more than anything. Before saga was announced, I was so desperate for a Xenogears sequel that I read almost every fanfic on the net. 'The Real Ricdeau' and 'Circles' were the best ones I came across, especially Circles. I haven't read a fanfic in years, but thanks to the way Episode 3 ended, my old hobby will be back in full effect. It'll be interesting to see how some people will tie in Episode 3's ending with Xenogears and make a hybrid, alternative timeline.

If the developers would harness some of those ideas theres no reason to not continue the series. They only said Episode III was the end of Shion's Ark, I want to see one entirely dedicated to KOS-MOS.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Vash

Spoiler:

To me, it seemed like the game ended on a strange note. I mean, how will we ever find out how Shion and friends get to Earth/Lost Jerusalem? Will KOS-MOS and chaos come back? Will Jin become the Green Testament (or some other kind/color of Testament or some other enigmatic being)? Would the fourth game star only Shion, Allen, and Jr.? Lots of things left open-ended. It seems Bandai-Namco did that on purpose in case they got enough positive feedback to continue the series, which I really hope they do, only this time for the PS3 and with less censorship -_-

Anyone have anything to add onto this?

Spoiler:

I doubt Jin, or anyone else will become a Testament after what happened to Wilhelm and Zarathustra. I believe if Xenosaga is continued, it will be like an alternate universe of Xenogears. Jin gets reincarnated as Citan, thats a given. KOS-MOS will be the first one the land on Lost Jerusalem, what else could that planet she was drifting towards have been? I'm going to go with an old theory in that KOS-MOS becomes Deus/Maing, somehow. Most likely the residents of Lost Jerusalem will discover her dilapidated body and collect data about humanity's past/future. Abel will become Kim/Lacan/Grahf/Fei/Id and either Nephilim or Mary become Elly. Chaos will probably be the Wave Existance. I don't know what will happen to the people on the Elsa, my guess is they'll never find Lost Jerusalem.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Spoiler:

That's also true about the Omegas System being Deus. It makes more sense than KOS-MOS being Deus to be honest. But IIRC wasn't Maing part of Deus? She was the system's fail-safe, as The Mother. Maing is the woman we see after the Eldridge crashed on the Xenogears planet [Lost Jerusalem], she was 'activated' by Deus at the time of its destruction. Her mission as The Mother was to give birth to more humans that would later be used to rebuild Merkaba/Deus. I can definitely see T-Elos being Maing because they have the same type of personality and unlike KOS-MOS, T-Elos is made of flesh and blood, Mary's flesh and blood. When KOS-MOS absorbed T-Elos and awakened, she may have acquired her genetic make up. But If KOS-MOS became real flesh and blood I don't understand how her body could survive in space, so thats a different story. I'm willing to bet that somehow KOS-MOS will be The Mother in the next game. And for the love of God please let there be a next game!

Also heres another idea.

Spoiler:

Actually, The Real Mother wasn't Maing, it was Maing and Elly combined. This happened close to the ending of Xenogears when Ramsus killed Maing, she transmigrated into Elly and The Real Mother awakened. I just had another idea, what if KOS-MOS's 'awakened' personality [KOS-MOS Quote: I am Mary, but at the same time, I am not Mary] becomes Elly and the part of T-Elos she absorbed becomes Maing? So if T-Elos becomes Maing, Mary becomes Elly, that leaves Nephilim to become either The Wave Existance or something else. If she's The Wave Existance, chaos would be another mystery character. The Testaments would also be perfect for the Gazel Ministry, but since theres only one of them left.. Theres so many directions Monolith can go with this.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

If you can't play it, read it! ... And let me know how it turns out, because I haven't yet.. I'm not a big fan of Ziggy.

I was speaking idiomatically.

I have almost everything related to Xenogears and Xenosaga. Only thing I'm missing are the cutscenes from Episode 1. I wish there was a torrent with them or something, Blue Laguna's download method sucks..

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

He really should have been the final boss.

Spoiler:

I wish I knew what makes developers think out of the blue, super hideously deformed, monstrosity final bosses that have nothing to do with the plot are always a good idea. It's getting very cliche these days, and the whole 'Zarathustra' thing was a big disappointment. It was like they deliberately waited to throw that in at the last minute. But at least the music was awesome, Yuki FTW! I personally would have rathered seen Wilhelm do something, anything, even if it was ridiculous like morphing into the rainbow testament.

...

What?

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Whoa.. I just saw The Da Vinci Code and it hit me like a ton of bricks.

Spoiler:

I bet the developer's really liked Dan Brown's novel. I'm surprised no one mentioned the similarities between Episode III and that movie. Of course, it doesn't come until the end of the game, when we find out about KOS-MOS's origin. I remember T-Elos saying Mary Magdalene was the partner of The Messiah, but I don't think she meant Jesus. It was obviously chaos since they had that kind of relationship. I'm more curious about Shion's role as Mary's 'maiden', a rather insignificant relationship which I believe deserved alot more detail. It'd have been much more interesting if they connected her to an actual person, with a real name.

Urge to replay Xenosaga III has increased by 72%.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Also Sprach Zarathustra = Thus Spoke Zarathustra.

Xenosaga III is my personal game of the year. Out of everything else I played this year, it was the least frustrating and most entertaining.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

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Cool, a thread on XS3.

I'm new in this whole Xenosaga-business, and I'm about three hours into XS3 (thought I might try out the series). I don't know, so far, the game only like a long dialogue, and I don't understand half of what's going on (empires here, armadas there). Jeez.

Xenosaga is by far the best game series in the history of mankind. (fact) If you value your sanity, start with Episode 1 and 2, otherwise 3 will steamroll your brain with confusion. You won't understand anything until you're done playing and unlock the whole in-game encyclopedia. But why spend time reading about what happened in the last two games, plus the third when you can just play them and have fun? The saga itself was supposed to be 6 games, but due to problems with staff and development it got cut in half. As a result, Episode 3 does in one game what should have spanned 3, thats alot of information to process, and the best way to prepare yourself is by playing its predecessors.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Wow, thats an awesome looking toy. But as much as I love KOS-MOS I never buy anything more than the game itself. I don't even buy strategy guides anymore, thanks to GameFAQs. Maybe if they made a fully functional, life-size model of KOS-MOS.. I could think of some ways to play with her and buy one. >_>

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