Xenosaga Episode III: Also Sprach Zarathustra

"One of the best RPG's I have ever played in my life! Very impressive, satisfaction guaranteed."

Let me start off by saying that it did not bother me one bit that the text boxes were initiated this time around in the game. Many reviews and gamers said this took away from the cinema presentation, but it didn't hurt it to me in the least bit. The Voice acting is the best I have ever heard in a video game, especially Shion's. And there is more than enough voice acting throughout the entire game, and animated scenes when the game calls for it. That being said, this is definitely one of the greatest games I have ever played in my life. I compare it to FFX in terms of drama, in depth story telling, gameplay, all that good stuff. I played the first game and although I was impressed, it didn't captivate me the way this game did. Let's start off with the story.

Story: 10/10

I play RPG's for the story. And what a story this is. Fear not, if you did not play the second game, you'll be ok. I didn't either. Before I started playing the actual game, I went into the already installed database and read up on a few summaries of episode II. They also have it for Episode I. If you didn't play either game, you can still manage to play this one without being totally lost as long as you read the database, but it will have more of an impact if you at least played the first one, especially for this game's great ending. From the moment you start the game, IMO, you are never bored. There is always something in the story that keeps you going. I won't get much into it, but this is a fantastic game to end the trilogy, and don't miss out on it. Not only that, but the experience is superb, and a good mixture of religion and philosophy. Sure there are a few times where you will feel like it's a cross of catholosism and God knows what else, but it does it in a perfect science fiction sort of way. The story telling in the game is great, and don't be disappointed as I was when I first heard that the text boxes were replaced. I think it doesn't effect it much, as I was still captivated by this game as I was by FFX, which is one of my favorite RPG's of all time. As a matter of fact, one could say it's a nice switch for the simple fact that you don't have to tolerate the Japanese lip Synch as they speak English; it eliminates that part all together. Now then, on to Gameplay.

Gameplay: 9/10

Let me start off by saying this is one of the best RPG experiences I have ever had, especially with gameplay. Fighting is fun. The boost system is there, and although there is a break system, it is easy to understand and nothing too difficult about it. The game is easier than the last two entries, but still fun and enjoyable to play. The only thing is that the boss fights are too long. I am 100% on GAMEINFORMER'S review on this. There are a few battles where it doesn't have anything to do with a great challenge or strategy; it's basically killing this guy that has 100,000 hp. That's it. And although a bit frustrating, it doesn't happen until towards the end, so your patience will not be tried all at once. It is a really minuet part of the game that will frustrate you. Not enough to kill the gameplay though. Other than that, everything else in the game as far as gameplay is nearly perfect. How you gain experience is relative to your enemy's strength, and is actually fun, not hard and not frustrating. Any puzzles you encounter in the game are not terribly hard to the point where you have to get a strategy guide and ask for help. You can't complain. It's fun, exciting and again, one of the best gameplay experiences I've had in RPG.

Graphics: 10/10

This game has some of the greatest engine graphics I have ever seen. Especially in the faces of the characters. They have the perfect facial expressions, and express emotions at the right time, without any blocky or “polygonic exaggerations”. To me it was perfect, especially in the ending, you will love it! I hope. Let me say that this game has the perfect blend of environments. Dark, sci-fi worlds, and at the same time very earthly, beautiful beaches and forests. Wow, what a colorful mix of beautiful environments, and the perfect music in the background to fit with it. This game really outdid its self in this department. Honestly some of the greatest graphics I have ever seen. Don't forget to explore all the areas so that the beauty and textures and the little details can captivate you as it did with me. Some of the places, “especially the beach” have literally what I would consider the perfect fantasy world, where I would literally just put the controller down and stare at the TV and relax just contemplating the environment and felt this “inner peace”…lol. I know, maybe I'm going overboard here, but everything you could ever want in terms of graphics for a PS2 current-gen game (except CG) is here, so enjoy!

Sound 10/10

Well, let's just say I take music very seriously; I come from a family that plays many musical instruments, my uncle being a concert Pianist. Let me say that this soundtrack IMO has nothing to envy Noubu Uematsu. He is personally my favorite composer, for I still bump my FFX soundtrack in the car a least 3-6 times a month for the last 5 years. Now this soundtrack may very well replace that. I think the music was beautiful, and it fits the scenes perfect, along with the environments on particular stages. A worthy OST in my opinion to purchase or download, but play the game first to fully enjoy and appreciate the music and meaning behind each tune. I bought the Episode III “Best Tracks” CD, but now I think I may want to purchase the original 6 Disc OST that includes all three in game Music. It's that good. The voice acting as I have mentioned earlier is probably the best I have ever heard. NONE of the character's voices are annoying. And IMO, Shion's voice acting is or as close to perfection as it can get. The small little negative detail that I will have to say along with many others is SHION'S SHOES. Remember that, and you'll know what I mean. I'm still giving it a 10, because some may actually like how her heals make a clopping sound everywhere she goes. I don't think it gets better than this folks. The music, sounds, explosions, voice acting and all the elements come together to deliver one of the most entertaining experiences I have ever had.

Overall: 9.75 / 10

I want to give it a perfect 10, because it was one of the best experiences that I have ever had. The 9.75 is well because the game is not entirely perfect, because again, a few boss fights 2 or 3 (and believe me, there are MANY) are frustrating because they are long. But that alone is not enough to drag you away from this experience. FFX had this score because it was too linear. There is always a small detail in every game that drags it a little, but this is too small a detail for this game. Not only that, you get to go to a section in the menu called data and replay every single scene in the game whenever you want, without having to “beat a boss” or particular enemy, thus allowing you to enjoy all your favorite scenes as much as you want! With a HUGE database of info, fans of Xenosaga can sit down, relax, and catch up on as much info as they desire with tons of explanations, definitions and info about this game, as well as the last two. I recommend you buy this game, you can't go wrong. If you were like me, looking for a good RPG that will leave you in bliss, believe me, this one delivers more than expected. If you didn't play the first two, I would say play the first one at least, but either way you can still buy this one can catch up with the database, for it will give you in-depth details about the first two games. Again, this is one of the greatest experiences I have had in an RPG, and I feel this game did everything it was supposed to and is a worthy ending to the Xenosaga Trilogy. Good times, you'll remember this one definitely!

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 10/17/06