The Game That Made Tears Come Out of My Eyes

Finally. After a few days, how many of which I can no longer recall, I was able to finish Xenogears. For the uninitiated, Xenogears is an RPG (Role Playing Game) released on the Playstation sometime in 1999. I have the non-pirated Japanese import of the game since, if my memory serves me right, 2001 or 2002. but I never cared to play it because of the uber simple fact that… I do not understand Japanese.

Three years ago, again a rough estimate, I met someone in my Sociology class who also has a fondness in playing the Playstation. Unsurprisingly, one fateful day, he offered to trade Playstation CD’s. Exchange borrowing is the cheapest way to acquire and play a variety of games so naturally declining such an offer is a foreign concept in my gamer’s instinct.

I no longer remember his name though I can still remember his face quite vividly. He transferred to another college the following semester thereby leaving his CD game in my possession and my CD games (I am not quite sure but I think I traded more than one game for the CD that he lent me), one of which, if I am right (poor memory strikes back), is Threads of Fate, an RPG with good graphics (for its generation) and a mediocre/generic storyline.

Needless to say, but I am saying it anyway, the legacy that my unnamed former classmate had left me is none other than, Xenogears. Believe me, I tried inquiring his name among those I deem to be his former classmates. But describing how l remember him look like in hopes of causing him to ring a bell was so far unsuccessful. Anyway, it was the North American release, the English translated version of Xenogears and a pirated one at that. He actually gave me two copies of the same game - a total of 4 CD’s. The reason, he said, was one of the CD’s was defective he just don’t remember which. Now, I am suspicious on how I acquired this momentary amnesiac tendencies. Did he bundle those CD’s with a sophisticated biological nanomachine virus that induces temporary loss of memory? Did he want me to forget the set of events that would have occured in our exchange so as to escape with my CD’s with murder to never return? Or does he have a higher unknown purpose for wiping that part of my memory slate all along which shall gradually unfold in time and would eventually clear every ambiguity of the events that has transpired thus far? Not only did I have a blurry recolection of him, but even those informants of mine do not even remember him. Mmmm… conspiracy theory anyone? Now that would make a good RPG. But I digress.

Despite the mysteries shrouding the exchange, I still found myself satisfied with the trade. Finally. I can play the game… in the year 2006.

Too many things had happened which prevented me from immediately seriously playing the game. I did perform a couple of test drives in those past few years but due to boredom, technical problems with the game (The CD’s were full of scratches which I never bothered to check during our exchange. And add to that the fact that, I am using ePSXe emulator instead of the Playstation console to play the game which is having a hard time reading the lacerated CD’s), time constraints and other circumstances beyond my control, I wasn’t even able to get past Lahan Village, the game’s starting point.

Fast forward to 2006. After much prodding from people who kept on chanting like a mantra how great this game supposed to be is, in print and in person, I finally caved in and gave the game a chance last week. I finished the game this afternoon. I was teary eyed.

Planning to use the same emulator, I tinkered with its various plugin settings for hours. Then I let Alcohol 120% do its magic by making a 1:1 CD Image so as to minimize any annoyances that may arise from those pesky CD scratches. Well, after an undeserved headache, I was able to finally make it work.

It is not my intention to make a review of the game. That would be for another writing depending on my laziness level. But I would like to point out something about this game that separates it from the rest of the RPG pack. I have heard countless times that Xenogears was a story driven RPG. Which good RPG isn’t?

But when they said “story driven” they really mean “story driven”. I expected to “play a game” not to “read and watch a game”. Majority of the time I spent with the game was done by reading those tiny text encased by a rectangular err… balloon box. Two CD’s of reading fest. I hardly touched my keyboard controls for gameplay, save for those mashing the X button for text scrolling. I found my eyes burning from my monitor’s UV rays for those extended reading time and pleasures. It burns so much that I can’t help but be teary eyed quite a lot of times in the span of playing the game.

Is it all worth it? I am not quite sure. I am still not a huge fan of Squaresoft/SquareEnix’s RPG story style and formula, save for Final Fantasy VI, even after delving deeply in this so-called “RPG story masterpiece”. Don’t get me wrong, the game’s plot isn’t bad, but I am not very much impressed either. And yes for you horn dogs out there, it is thus confirmed:  The game spouts three sex scenes. That is still not mentioning a couple of nudity here and there.

My tears are forming again. Time to rest my eyes lest I be mistook as teary-eyed for joy for the rest of my birthday tomorrow.