Story Info

It's been argued by many that Xenogears was a noble failure -- even producer Tetsuya Takahashi has admitted that the game wasn't quite what it could have been -- but it has probably drawn a more rabid fanbase than any other PlayStation RPG. Final Fantasy blew up into a mass-market phenomenon, but Xeno's blend of Byzantine religious conspiracy, complex science-fiction concepts, and wall-to-wall homage to thirty years worth of Japanese animation definitely lit up the obsession circuit in the minds of a cultish few. The angry e-mails that followed the IGNPSX Top 25 were only outnumbered by the related demands for a sequel.

And now there is one, or something along those lines. As was announced some time ago, Takahashi and a great many of Xenogears' staff either left Square or went freelance after the game's development concluded, although Chrono Cross still shared many staff with Xeno. Takahashi and company formed Monolith Soft, a new company under the wing of massive publisher Namco, and quietly set to work on what rumor had it was a sequel to their previous work.

Known as Project X, it remained under wraps until the spring 2001 Tokyo Game Show, where it received a name: Xenosaga, setting off all sorts of speculation from fans and writers alike. A sequel? A prequel? An amazing coincidence? A wink and a nod, perhaps?

The official line, according to Monolith Soft, is that it's not intended to be a sequel or otherwise tied into the previous project. Even cursory examination reveals a great many less than coincidental links, though -- the name, the character design, the mech design, the story background, all of these bear resemblance in various ways to the corresponding elements of Xenogears. If Monolith is trying to make a completely new game, it's not doing a very good job of it, but what its staff says and what they intend could of course be two very different things.

Xenosaga's official title (according to the logo) is "Xenosaga Episode 1: Der Wille zur Macht." The subtitle is remarkably unmangled German, meaning "The Will to Power" (which is also what the Japanese in the logo means). "Episode 1" (which set off speculation when it appeared in the TGS 2001 teaser trailer) is the first tip-off -- Xenogears was described in its conclusion as "Episode V," part of an imagined six-part epic story. Even if Xenosaga is to kick off an entirely different cycle, it's beginning along similar lines.

Like the Episode 1 period of the Xenogears continuity, Xenosaga is set in a technologically advanced world, where mankind is reaching out to the stars. Earth is forgotten, or at any rate mankind is trying to escape its home -- all that is said about the exodus is that we left for "a certain reason," and the homeworld is referred to in folklore as "Lost Jerusalem." The "Star Cluster Federation" counts half a million worlds among its membership, connected by a system of space warps known as the "Unus Mundus Network." The U.M.N is administered by a corporation, "Vector," which sends colony fleets throughout the universe under the command of its leader, Wilhelm. Equipped with substantial resources of weapons and technology, the fleets work to expand humankind's reach in all directions, by force if necessary.

Which they need to use against a new force that has arisen in space. The Gnosis are an alien race that suddenly appeared many years prior to the game's start. [Editor's note: in the doctrine of the ancient Gnostic religion, the term refers to a higher form of understanding, an intuitive apprehension of spiritual truths] They're as mysterious as the Chaos character, although one thing seems to be clear: they're made out of people! PEOPLE! Actually, the Gnosis appear to be hostile towards man and have destroyed numerous cultures. They're several meters tall, attack in large group, and don't appear to be made out of the same stuff as you and I.

To combat the Gnosis, mankind has developed the Anti Gnosis Weapon System (AGWS). These robots range in size from eight to sixteen meters, and believe it or not, they've actually been made as small as possible in order to improve maneuverability. The AGWS are equipped with so-called D.S.S.S. (D-Triple S) units, which are attached to their abdomens and can sense a Gnosis even if it is invisible (Yikes! We haven't seen an invisible enemy race since Enemy Zero!).

There seem to be two main types of AGWS, those with model numbers prefixed by "AG" and those with model numbers prefixed by "VX." The AG-models are used as standard by the Star Cluster Federation army and feature changeable limbs, so starting with a core unit one can equip weapons of appropriate nature for any given situation. The VX series AGWS are experimental models that are being designed by Vector for internal use; despite this, they exceed the AG models in some areas. The new VX-1000 is being transported to a newly built warship for initial testing.

[ SHION UZUKI ]

SEX: FEMALE HEIGHT: 163cm WEIGHT: 48kg AGE: 22years

Shion is the lead on the KOS-MOS development project being undertaken by the International Conglomerate Vector. Her current task involves investigating a disaster surrounding KOS-MOS and AGWS tests that may have destroyed an entire planet -- she's also nursemaiding the new VX-1000. She grew up in a war-torn area and lost her parents in her infancy. Two years back, her first love died in an accident of some form. Shion keeps this information to herself, though, and still seems to remain positive in all that she does. Of course, being a girl engineer, she gets all those Vector Corp. sleazeballs drooling after her.

[ KOS MOS ]

SEX: FEMALE HEIGHT: 167cm WEIGHT: 92kg AGE: 18years, appearance

KOS-MOS, a combat android developed by Vector, is a character who will play a central role throughout Xenosaga. KOS-MOS isn't really her name -- it's actually the general name for the androids that are meant to fight the Gnosis. If you were to call her something, call her Chitsujo, or "Order." She has been programmed with three specific areas: logic, establishment and duty, and also has a special operating system which allows her to communicate smoothly with others.

We have just one question& is her love real?

[ CHAOS ]

SEX: MALE HEIGHT: 169cm WEIGHT: 53kg AGE: 16years, appearance

Like KOS-MOS, Chaos will have a central role throughout the series. His character still remains a great mystery, though, and this seems to be intentional on his part as he refuses to speak of his past; in fact, even though he appears to be sixteen years old, his actual age is unknown Still, he IS smiling in the portrait. Maybe that means he's one of those bubbly mysterious characters.

Random elements figure in here and there. A particularly significant bit of information mentioned is that the "Event Transition Organization 'Zohar'" (which loomed large, albeit hazily so, in the later stages of Xenogears' plot) will eventually make an appearance on Xenosaga's stage. Found in the 20XX period of the Christian era on Earth (in other words, sometime in the 21st century), it is believed to have existed since the beginning of the world. Shion's discovery of and involvement with the Zohar is the central story of the first episode of Xenosaga.

Everything in Xenosaga's game world is displayed in realtime 3D. The game makes use of two different character models -- a high quality one for use during event scenes (as you can tell from the screenshots, there are many cinematic interludes) and a lower quality version for use in battle. Characters have facial animation as well as moving hair. Event scenes in the game are fully voiced, and were you to string them together, it would be like watching a television drama.

While the world and dungeon sequences use realtime graphics, the player has no control over the camera. Instead, the camera strategy seems similar to Silent Hill or Resident Evil: Code Veronica -- each area includes its own automatic camera directions that will present the area in the way that the level designers deem appropriate. This of course allows for a few tricks when it comes to obscuring or focusing on particular elements of the environment, which should work well in conjunction with the lack of random encounters. Yes, Xenosaga will not include that particular RPG hot-button. Enemies will be visible on the field map before you fight them.

Several of the staff are obviously veterans of other Square projects -- many worked on Chrono Trigger, and both Honne and Mitsuda worked on Chrono Cross -- but Monolith Soft also includes staff from Namco projects such as Dragon Valor and the Tales series. The London Philharmonic Orchestra will perform Mitsuda's compositions for the game.

Xenosaga will receive its official unveiling later in the summer, and its developers currently affirm that it will be shipped to the Japanese market in December 2001 in a massive 2-DVD package. An American release has yet to be announced, but Namco would obviously face some rather heated ire from the game's many fans if the game never made it to the states. We'll keep you posted with all the information that continues to flow forth from the Monolith.

Some of the information above may have come from Impress Game Watch; I'm not quite sure. Visit them anyway, since for a Japanese game site they're pretty damn skippy.