I submitted this FAQ to GameFAQs, but they rejected it because I mentioned the subtitles of the game's names (They were in German) apparently GameFAQs is a squad of automated pulse-less idiots. Anyway, here's the review:

Xenosaga II- Jenseits Von Gut Und Bose
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When I played Xenosaga- Dur Wille Zar Macht (The Will To Power), I was blown away. the characters leaped off of the screen, with vibrant emotions (with the exception of KOSMOS) and detailed back stories. It was over eighty hours in length, with four awesome mini games and tons of bonus content.

After completing it, I felt accomplished. Right away I pre-ordered Xenosaga II- Jenseits Von Gut Und Bose (The Battle of Good and Evil). When i got it, it was in a sleek package with 2 disks. That's right, two disks. I figured this would be an even bigger and better game compared to the first one... I was horribly wrong.

The game had a very suspenseful and dramatic start. I noticed once again the story was amazing. After I saw what they did to the battles--- Separating AGWS and people, I figured it must be for the better. Another mistake I made... I figured it would make battles a little less chaotic, but all that happened was the battles became less thrilling and rewarding.

I was also very disappointed to see that HALF of the cast had their voice acting changed. Yep, that's right: Half of the cast had new voices. Shion, Chaos, even MOMO. KOSMOS had an odd voice as well. Not only was that a problem, but also the character models were very unfamiliar. I at first didn't even recognize Shion until I saw Allen next to her.

The "Mature" look meant that I was in for a big disappointment. MOMO and Jr. almost DOUBLED in height. The characters' fingers were all blocky and it took either forever to level the cast up or they leveled up 5 at a time. The final boss fight was also no challenge.

The story was still absolutely fantastic, but in order for this entry to have an intriguing plot, every other element had to suffer. This wasn't the worst RPG to date, but the gameplay was pretty close. Battles sometimes took 2 hours to complete, and the fights were harshly linear, FORCING you to use characters in a certain order, with certain moves, to even stand a chance in a fight.

No shops? That's another problem with Xenosaga II. Yes, there was no money, equipment, or shops. There was nothing else to do in this RPG besides walk up to the boss, watch the story unfold, and kill more baddies while solving mundane puzzles.


Overall, buy this if you're a fan of the series and the story. If you're looking for an RPG to consume your weekend, then don't look for this--- It'll take up your weekend in the worst way.

Ow... That's a spirit breaker...
I just bought the first one, and when I beat it, I might just 'read' the plot events and skip to the third disk : /

Originally posted by BennyMD4123

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Ow... That's a spirit breaker...
I just bought the first one, and when I beat it, I might just 'read' the plot events and skip to the third disk : /

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Just buy Xenosaga III and check the summaries for the stories. XS1 and XS2 have their stories summarized so you save $20

How much free time can someone possibly have to spend TWO HOURS on one battle?

Trust me, it's bad. The only reason this game isn't only 3 hours long is because of the dragged-out-to-hell battles that are just about everywhere.

I am still playing through the first Xenosaga

The first one and the third one are both worth every penny you spend on them. I love them both, but XSII is the red-headed stepchild of the series that nobody likes.

I will probably still play II anyway. I hate skipping around in a series.

Kinda off topic, but have you seen the Xenosaga anime?

It's not off topic if it's about the series, but yes. The anime is very good, I must say.

I'm at the part in the first game rightn after you rescue MOMO.

Ooh, watch out for that part. Don't waste your items, Margulis automatically wins even though you fight him normally.

Wow.... the games not THAT bad! I'm still playing it and so far it has SO much more stuff to do than episode 1 because of the G.S.campaign,the segment files,and the secret bosses.But i REALLY wish i could buy stuff again but that's what the third episode is for i also got the second episode because if you clear the game and play a new game with that clear data you get Shion's episode 1 costume and i LOVE that costume she looks professional i think you get one more thing with that data but i have to keep looking.

Originally posted by mas27

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Wow.... the games not THAT bad! I'm still playing it and so far it has SO much more stuff to do than episode 1 because of the G.S.campaign,the segment files,and the secret bosses.But i REALLY wish i could buy stuff again but that's what the third episode is for i also got the second episode because if you clear the game and play a new game with that clear data you get Shion's episode 1 costume and i LOVE that costume she looks professional i think you get one more thing with that data but i have to keep looking.

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The story is amazing, the graphics are pretty good, but it's just a far cry from the original which is somewhat disappointing, because the first game was such an amazing cinematic experience.

yeah true but i hardly play the first since i unlocked EVERYTHING in it but its still a good game but i like playing the third the most because Jin's in there and i need as many characters as possible.

Having Jin in 3 was awesome. Amazing sword combos? Hell yes! XD

But I think that Monolith could have added one last permanent playable party member like Mai,a new girl or one of MOMO's sisters.

Yeah, the cast was kind of unbalanced as far as team members :/

It would have made sense to add one more heck that could've got ME to do the voice and i had a idea for a character the series just ended to soon.

It was mostly a matter of money but when Soyara Saga quit the XS series, they had to make their own finale and couldn't continue on without her, so they had to end it with 3 games instead of the intended 6.

But I guess we can't do anything about it to bad.