Ok, so I got Xenosaga 2 and 3 today, so I can finally finish the series. Xenosaga 1 was a great game. It had its ups and downs, but in the end, I really enjoyed it and I was very excited about playing the rest of the series.

I beat the prologue at Old Miltia and now I'm controlling Ziggurat 8 (I don't like the name "Ziggy"--it makes him sound too wimpy. =p) at Second Miltia. Old Miltia was a pretty cool scenerio, but I didn't totally understand what was going on there. The URTVs were going out of control and chaos and Canaan were sent to retrieve them. Jin retrieved a disc containing the Y-Data and implanted it into Canaan's memory. But if Canaan already had the Y-Data, why is MOMO so important? I thought she was the only one with the Y-Data in her. Jin and Margulis's battle was awesome. I didn't know that Jin had similar powers (some kind of ice ray or something) to Margulis. I wonder what went on between them to make them such bitter rivals.

The graphics are pretty similar to Xenosaga 1, which is pretty nice. I like that the characters faces are a bit more realistic now. It was a good improvement, but Shion and KOS-MOS's hair are both darker than before, which I don't like. The voices are generally the same or as good as they were in Xenosaga 1, with some small exceptions. Shion's voice is slightly different, but similar enough so that I don't mind too much. KOS-MOS's is different, but it's not too bad. MOMO's voice SUCKS. =/ It's awful. They couldn't have done a worse job with her voice. =/ Other than that, no complaints aesthetics-wise. I like that there's music playing in towns and exploration now. God knows it should've been done in Xenosaga 1. I hope the major story music will remain on par with Xenosaga 1, though.

The battles are pretty nice, but I can't get a good handle on where the enemies' zones are. I was having a hard time doing that during the Margulis fight. I also don't understand the whole Class Points system yet. I want to try to teach my characters healing abilities as soon as possible. It really messed me up in the Margulis fight that chaos had no healing Ethers.

All in all, the game's looking really good, and I'm really looking forward to making more progress in it. I might need a bit of a recap on what's happened in Xenosaga 1, though. It's been a while since I touched the game, so I forgot some details.

The battle system is an odd one and took me a while to figure out, but after a while it just all clicked and you realise that every battle is easy and basically goes the same way (stock stock stock, boost boost boost) but I liked Episode II. I think there are some improvements over the first game. I think the characters look too realistic, but the backgrounds and settings are far better. The characters move about at a decent speed and at least there are different character animations for destroying out of battle objects. Talking about character animations, I'm so glad that they got rid of the ridiculously long attack animations and just reserved them for the Duel attacks (although they became quite useless very quickly in episode II).

Sadly, the story was too slow and the battle system (while I think it was a good idea) just made the game too boring. There are a LOT of flaws about this game which everyone is quick to remind us about, but also some subtle improvements over the first game.

Episode III is most certainly the biggest treat of them all, and although it went a more conventional RPG way, I think it turned out really well. Again, it's flawed and feels very rushed, but it's an improvement over both the previous episodes.

As for the Canaan thing, I honestly can't remember... I know Canaan continues to play a role in Episode III, but to be honest I need to play the trilogy again, it's a shame I'm stuck on playing Episode I at the moment. I'm not enjoying Episode I much, most likely because I already know the story quite well, and aside from the story it doesn't have a lot going for it. It's really quite a mediocre game without the storyline.

Really? I thought her voice was truly horrible in Episode I, but in Episode II she at least sounds like a real kid, not an adult playing a kid. I liked her voice in Episode II so much more. And sorry to say, but she keeps that voice in Episode III. =p


I prefer the silence from Episode I over the horrible music that plays during town and dungeon exploration in Episode II. It's like a kid playing with a synthesizer. x_x

I like the music playing in this game. The music during that dungeon in Second Miltia rocked! xD I also like the music playing in the Kukai Foundation and the Durandal. They arent outstanding, but they're definately good, and a huge improvement over not having any music at all.

The scene with Shion and Jin was pretty hilarious. And I hope Jin becomes a major character in the story now. I can't wait to see a rematch between him and Margulis. I also wonder what's going to happen once the Foundation examines the Y Data within MOMO. Albedo supposedly set a trap for them, so I wonder what'll happen. I also hope Nephilim will make another appearance. Her role in the story seems really vague at best, so I hope the story'll shed some light on her motives.

I finished the first GS Campaign and got the Psycho Pocket skill, which lets me steal rare items from enemies. The GS Campaign wasn't hard. Heck, I would've finished it quicker if I wasn't spending so much time exploring those areas around the Foundation. I'll try to do the other GS Campaigns now. If the first campaign gave me that stealing skill, I can only imagine what the other campaigns will give me.

So far, the game's getting better. But it'll probably be some time before I progress the story much. There's about another seven GS Campaigns I can do right now.

Good luck with that; those GS Campaign missions get worse and more tedious as you progress. You probably already started the GS Campaign mission to pay back Matthews debts? Don't bother selling anything to get the required money, you'll need all the items you can get (since there are no shops). There's a method to steal 20 valuable items from a certain boss, that's the easiest (and only easy) way of doing it. Other than that, you just need a lot of patience for most of the GS Crap~aign missions. =p

I have to agree with Xerno here about the music. I really did prefer the silence over most of the music for Xenosaga II. Though, as I have said many times about Episode II, I found it to not only be the worse one in the series but just a terrible game in general. The thing about the silence of Xenosaga I though was that I thought it was a bright idea actually. For me, it did a lot on the sense of presentation. Being on those space ships and not hear any background music gave a feeling of the massive size the universe is, not to mention some sort of emptyness in it.

Also, I am a bit surprise that you have no problems with KOS-MOS's voice. I thought that Shion's was passing, but the way you feel about MOMO's is the exact way I felt about KOS-MOS's voice for that game. (Along with choas's while I am at it). I was so glad that they got KOS-MOS's (and Shion's) original voice actress from Episode I to do Episode III. That was a huge improvement.

About Jin, his character does become more important as the story goes on with the series. Though, I do not think that he really starts to develop in character till Episode III. (Though, if you a fan of the swordfigths he and Margulis had earlier in Episode II then you have something to look forward later on in the same game).

I third that opinion. I also prefer the silence over the field music played in Episode 2. In fact, I find your description of it very similar to my own thoughts about it. I thought the silence really did a lot for the atmosphere of the game, for the same reasons you described. Especially when you were inside the Encephilon I thought it felt even more virtual/simulation like without the background music. I got that impression ever since the first cutscene showing Shion and Kos-mos training in the encephilon. When Shion was getting ready to enter the program there was music playing during the schene. But once she got inside the encephilon with Kos-Mos, the music stopped. Instead of backround music you noticed other things alot more instead. Like the burning wreckage in the background, a humming generator as you get closer to the building, the distinct sound of Shion's walk or when she blasts different objects, etc.

The first 10 seconds of this clip for example: Click <----

I like the fact that while you're inside that world you get to listen to what it sounds like, instead of listening to some random background music that has nothing to do with it.
I don't know how else to describe it but I really thought the lack of background music did a lot for the atmosphere in the game, especially when running arround in huge ships like the Durandal or the Woglinde.

I actually didn't notice the lack of background music until much later into the game. I guess it's because I didn't miss it.
But even if I did, I have to say that the background music in Xenosaga 2 is usually something I'd rather mute if I could.

I definitely understand where you guys are coming from, but background music in fields and during exploration is, and has always been, a staple in RPGs and videogames in general. Sure, there are some parts where silence can enhance the mood of that particular moment, but I felt that there should've been music playing in at least most of those parts in Episode 1. On the Elsa, the Woglinde, the battleship Pleroma, the port where Cherenkov went crazy, the Durandal, etc. Even if the music they used was only half-decent, it still would've made a huge difference in the quality of the presentation of the soundtrack.

As great as the major themes were in Xenosaga 1, it could never make up for the lack of field and exploration music, as it's just way too important not to have in the game. Personally, I loved the dungeon/town themes in Xenosaga 2, and it actually made exploring those areas a bit more fun. I think that if XS1 had some of these themes during those gameplay segments, the soundtrack would've been darn near perfect.

Well, so what if it's always been like that? How many rpg's aren't breaking standards and changing things every year? After over 20 years of console rpg's, most people want something different. And different is what we often get, one way or another.
Music is still important, but not as important as it once was. Nobou Uematsu said that music was generally a way to cover up what was not there. But when technology has been enhanced to the point where characters can express their emotions without playing a "sad" or "happy" theme, or when we can get the atmosphere from actually hearing our surroundings, then it's no longer a must.


That's pretty much exactly where I think there shouldn't have been any. Especially if it's going to be something like in Xenosaga 2, that usually doesn't represent the mood of the characters or the atmosphere at all. If it's done well then it's usually good, but at least one game stopped masking over the lack of atmosphere with music and actually tried something different. Because this was bviously intentional. There was background music in the game, but it mostly played in various menus.

And background music usually played when it really mattered.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJzIk8liwVA...feature=related

Not when Shion takes a random stroll on the ship. We got to experience the same sounds that she was hearing.
But when a big crisis happened, they usually enhanced the mood, whether it was background music or the sound of an alarm going off.
There is no specific mood when you walk arround on a ship. The characters may very well be in a bad mood. Does the happy jingle fit then? No it does the opposite. It changes the atmosphere into something else. Like XS 2's backgroud music does for most people who don't like hearing it. But during the scene in the above link, it was obviously a fitting theme to play because it enhanced the mood, which was fear and panic. What I don't like is going through the cheegle woods having to listen to the same happy tune when this time the mood is supposed to be serious. "We're about to have a fight to the death, but I love this cute theme. It really sets the mood for our upcoming match."

Whatever floats your boat I guess, but background music has it's flaws too. Especially when it's annoying, like in XS2. I'd rather shut it off, but I can't. At least you can put on some mp3 music while running arround in XS1 if you really wanted to.

I will never forgive myself to playing this thing for 40 hours.

Was almost done too, but couldnt survive the >_> Omega System.

I'm buying a new copy of it tomorrow...

For a number of reasons, none of which directly involve the game being good or bad:

A) Xenosaga III was the first game in years I've played and beaten without cheat codes. To shut up a friend of mine who laughed his ass off at me for giving up on a final battle with Albedo because I never figured it out (thanks to Code Breaker, understanding battle systems is not needed), I plan to buy the game and beat it while mastering the system. Then I'll own Albedo at the end and go "ha!" to said friend.

The DVD of the cutscenes of XSII I bought off eBay is screwing up so I plan to get the game to have access to the scenes. Plus playing through the game is a lot easier to understand the plot and what's being said.

C) I am wondering if it will feel as horrible as it did the first time. I mean, I was expecting EVERYTHING to be the same in EPII. Ever since I beat EP1 I wondered how the plot would advance but I assumed the voices, graphics, music and battle system would remain the same. Perhaps it was just the shock of this extreme change that put me off the first time.

I made it to MOMO's subconscious, and I think I'm already starting to see the flaws of the battle system. x_x Having to constantly stock and boost while the enemy continues to pound the crap out of me is not fun at all. Especially when I have to take time away from Stocking in order to heal my characters with measly Ether spells that only heal around the equivalent of the damage they suffered from a single enemy. I don't know how I'm going to make it through this dungeon. x_x

Also, the more I play the game, the less I'm liking the change of the looks of the characters. Especially when I've been watching YouTube clips of XS1 and saw the differences. Shion looks like crap, even in her new outfit. And the rest of the characters' in-game faces dont fit them at all. I miss the full-anime look now. The backgrounds and environments still look great, though.

And LOL, Hiku, okay, I see your point about the music, but even if the background music for those areas had to change with what was going on, having it certainly couldn't hurt. =p

Well that's too bad. At this point I still loved the battle system, and thought it was quite fun. I even spend quite some time fighting enemies over and over to level up a bit.
I wonder what you'll think of it on Disc 2. There is no "Commanders Crest" in this game that gives you free stock every turn like in the last game. There is one that can give you one stock randomly at the beginning of the match though, but since it's random it doesn't help much.


Damn, you changed your mind? I was going to compare with pictures and ask how you could think that. =/
Well I'll do it anyway.

Really? I rate the design of their looks as follows: XSIII looks > XSII looks > XSI looks. I thought the full anime look in Episode I was h-o-r-r-i-b-l-e! xD Episode III has a mix of anime and realistic design, which I liked best. Episode II's realistic look was nice, but lacking detail (where's chaos little poof of hair atop his head gone too!?). But for me, Episode I's anime look was just a big no-no, I didn't like it at all. But that's just me. =P

Well, I made it to Disk 2 and I'm on the Elsa now. The MOMO's subconscious arc was really interesting. I'm glad they finally got around to explaining the creation of the U.R.T.V. series, as well as what U-DO really is. Those scenes with MOMO and Juli Mizrahi were pretty heartwrenching, too. Well now the path to Old Miltia is open and Shion was crazy enough to steal a Vector craft to sneak her way there. Kos-Mos's new armor looks pretty awesome, as well. And I love that Jin and Canaan are joining the fight, now.

I'm starting to like the battles again. I did a lot of training on the Dammerung, and I gained about six levels. Hopefully, those levels will carry over to everyone else on my team when they return. The Albedo fight was annoying as hell, though. I barely managed to win. Fortunately I stole his Awakening skill, and got the Double Attack for Jr. and Momo.

The music on the Dammerung and the Elsa is excellent. I just wish some of the story themes were on par with Xenosaga ep.1. I'm already a ways into the game, and I've yet to hear a single theme that really blew me away like in XS1.

I want to try to find more Segment Addresses soon. I've only actually opened one door so far. And I've only done about 1/4 of the G.S. Campaigns up until now. I'd really like to try to get back into the sidequest bits soon.

All in all, XS2 is getting a lot better. I actually think I'm starting to enjoy it even more than Xenosaga 1. Here's hoping it stays that way. =)

The whole dive into MOMO's subconscious was written by the original writer. You'll soon notice the difference in story quality as you advance on disc 2, which for the most part was cut short and altered. =o


Uh-oh, I'd do some leveling then. On the savefile I've kept of that battle, he is fairly easy. Edit: Okay, I've popped the game in my PS2 and checked that file, my characters have the following levels at this point:

KOS-MOS: Lvl. 26
Ziggy: Lvl. 25
Jr.: Lvl. 25
chaos: Lvl. 24
MOMO: Lvl. 23
Shion: Lvl. 24

And much stronger bosses are coming up... *points at sig* fear her! =p

Fighting him was mega cool. IMO that was the highlight of the entire game. This is where Albedo sold himself as a well done villain. Think I was around the 30s.

Yeah as Xerno mentioned, that part was stiill written by the original writer, who Namco fired.
I thought the quality of both the writing and directing went down a lot on the second disc to the point where I was hardly even interested anymore in the new revalations of my favorite rpg story on PS2.
But close to the end of the game, and the appearance of a certain someone, the story started to get a lot more interesting. Unffortunitely, the game also ended right when it was getting interesting.

As for the battles, I honestly felt like I was wasting time of my life, so I used a 1-hit-KO code to get through the game faster. Even the "full stock at the start of battle" code didn't help shake that feeling.

I beat the Ormus Stronghold, and now I'm back on the Durandal. That scenerio was pretty cool. I loved the E.S. battles, except I wish I was able to control who the main pilot was in the E.S. machines. I would've put Shion in charge of the one that can use Ethers, so I could've used Psycho Pocket in that one boss fight. Oh well, I didn't miss out on anything TOO important.

For now, I'm going to complete the new G.S. campaigns that have opened up. It seemed like at least 8 or 9 became available, so I'll be workin' on them for a while.

Xenosaga 2 is definitely getting better. I cant wait until the Old Miltia scenerio. =)

You thought that scenario was pretty cool? Most people complain that it was the most brainless and dull part added to the story. The Ormus Stronghold wasn't originally gonna be there. But I'm not complaining, because it features Orgulla. <3 =P

But glad you're enjoying the game. I personally still like XSII as well, it's just that most don't. =p

Well, yeah, I could tell that it was just mindless filler, especially the part where you meet Orgulla. She talks about everybody needing to repent, then Jr calls her a "stupid bitch". Suddenly, BATTLE!!! Yeah, that part sucked. =p But I'm saying I liked the dungeon and the battles there. It had some pretty challenging puzzles there too.

Anyway, it'll probably be a little while before I advance the story. I've got a lot of extra G.S. Campaigns to do. I don't care what anyone says. The G.S. Campaigns are probably the coolest sidequests they could've added to the game. It's just awesome that you're able to interact with all these citizens of the Kukai Foundation and Second Miltia and help them with day-to-day life. It actually adds a very important layer of depth to the game that you wouldn't get otherwise.

Sadly all the citizens act like this: "Hello ~♪ ! I have a problem ~♪ . Could you help me with it ~♪ ?" Seriously, they whistle so often that they seem to come straight out of an overly happy cartoon. That's one thing XSI & III do better: the citizens are normal people, in XSII they're so happy that they must be high on something. It's just not serious and believable anymore.

But that's just me. =P

Edit:

I liked her response, though: "You leave me no choice, but to rip you apart". She says it so calmly; one of the things that make me like her so much. xP

There's one GS campaign named "Find the robot" or something. But it should really be called "Run back and forth between the Durandal and the Kukai Foundation 12 times". That one just made me give up on the GS campaigns. I looked in a FAQ to see what the rewards were for each, and I only did the remaining ones that would give me something good, like unlocking a new skill.

LOL, Hiku! That's the one I'm currently doing. xD I only need two more of the clues to finish the campaign. I was using GameFAQs to find him a little easier, but on some of them I was able to find the clues by myself without referring to FAQs. This quest wasn't so bad. Yeah, I can see how it would annoy some people, but if this really is the worst of it, then the G.S. Campaigns are definitely worth doing in my book.

The people at the Kukai Foundation Bakery crack me up. =) The owner comes up with so many weird business strategies and everyone else is so annoyed by it. That's one of the things I love about the G.S. campaigns. Some of the people you interact with are so hilarious. xDDD

It's not the worst. There's one where you have to restore a robot's memory by using a battery that randomly selects a color. And you have to get all the possible colors at least once. If your battery runs out, you need to go all the way back to a certain location in the city to have it recharged. And then you need to go all the way back again to the Elsa, to use the battery again and hope that it randomly chooses the colors you still need!

But the absolute worst is paying off Matthews 10 million debt, have fun with thát! =p

Gah, I hated the battery one. I ended up going back three times when I just had one little space left. It was idiotic. As for paying off Matthews debt, I tried for a little while but then I just gave up. I had Xeno III waiting in its wrapping, I got too excited and never fought any of the special secret bosses. I've replayed the game recently however, except now I'm stuck in the Omega System. Those soldiers with the swords overpower me, two or three is fine. But five or six, just can't take it. I'm a bit worried from what was said earlier about someone having their levels in the 30's back in MOMO's Subconscious since my levels are in the mid 40's now.

Don't worry, the mid 40's is good enough. I just checked my save of the final battle in the Omega System, and my characters have the following levels:

Jin: Lvl. 45
KOS-MOS: Lvl. 46
Ziggy: Lvl. 45
MOMO: Lvl. 42
Shion: Lvl. 44
Jr.: Lvl. 42
chaos: Lvl. 44

And with that, the final battle was moderately difficult. It shouldn't give you too much problems.

Just beat Orgulla. She wasn't as hard as people made her out to be. Same goes for Albedo. I had more trouble with the Level 4 boss you fought at the end of the Summer part of the Encephalon bit.

I beat her on my second try and without ever getting the Down effect which I was aiming for but couldn't get...I never get Air or Down when I'm trying. I just stumble into it.

Once Manes or whatever takes over, it's almost easier. SHe focuses on one character and while this was a pain at first as the killed the dude fast, I just made sure to have chaos keep healing whoever it was and have that character and my other character keep Stock'ing. I used KOS-MOS, Ziggy and chaos for the party that won.

Trick for me for winning this time was ignoring one part of the FAQ I followed: I attacked Orgulla quick and hard with all my Stocks instead of saving them for Manes (SP) like the guide told me. Whatever. It worked for me and I had an easier time with her than I did with most bosses so far.

Yah, if you're decently leveled, Orgulla really isn't that hard. I've got a separate savefile of that battle, and I often fight her again for fun. Of all the times that I've fought her, I've only lost on rare occasion. I don't save my stocks for Manes either. I just deal as much damage as I can to each of her 2 forms. It just kinda sucks when she uses Medica 2 on herself in her original form (it restores quite a bit of her health). But all in all, taking down Orgulla is not as hard as it might seem.

Oh crap, I totally forgot to mention that I beat Xenosaga 2 last weekend. x_x

I liked the game, but Disk 2 didn't have anywhere near as much story as Episode 1 had. I kinda wish they went back to Xenosaga 1's movie-style approach. I think there could've been more character interaction and voice-acting during those dungeons, and the Ormus Stronghold seemed totally unnecessary in the game.

The gameplay was fun, but the Stock/Boost Air/Down combo battle system did make fights take a bit too long. I still liked the fights, but I wont really miss it either. I also never used Double Attacks or even Special Attacks during battles either (unless I was in the E.S. battles). The GS Campaigns were awesome though. I spent hours trying to complete as many as I could. They were awesome. =p

The endinig was great though. It'll be interesting to see Albedo in Xenosaga 3 (*hint* *hint*). I still need to watch those Missing Year vids so I can get the in-between details for Ep 2 and 3.

Oh right, you told us in Live Chat that you finished it. If you payed good attention to the story, you might have an idea of who the mysterious Heinlein might be?

And perhaps a more obvious question: do you know who the Red Testament is? Most people already knew who it was long before he revealed himself in Episode III. But just in case you don't know, I'll shut up about that now. xP

What's this 1-hit-KO code Athrun mentioned in an earlier thread? I'm on the second disc right now and I'm struggling with the battle system a bit especially against that cow in Xernos sig the bitch has beaten me three times in row after wasting almost an hour on it and feeling very little motivation to carry on I am extremely tempted to just watch all the vids on youtube and start XIII. All my characters are around the level 32 mark is that high enough?

Lol, you can do just about any code, but you need something called Codebreaker. With it I could 1-hit-KO anything as long as I was holding down the Circle button when making an attack. If I didn't then it only does normal damage.
But I didn't actually feel like I needed it until shortly after where you are now. I just couldn't stand the battles after that so I also had a X3 running speed code, start match with 3 stocks for everyone code, and even that didn't feel like it helped so I made use of the 1-hit-KO pretty often.

But going through this game to play Xenosaga 3 is well worth it. And the story does actually get more interesting towards the end of XS2.

That's buggered that then Ah well I'll keep trying just out of the enjoyment I got from the first game. I really am having a hell of a lot of trouble with the battle system, I keep screwing up the combos and I can never keep them flowing basically I'm crap. I plan on getting this finished up over the next week or two (if I get the time) before Lost Odyssey gets released

Well as long as you Boost before attacking, you should be guaranteed to continue the combo. (Unless the enemy boosts before you) The only problem you might encounter is that some characters like Chaos and Ziggy (Actually I think only those two) are unable to combo enemies who are airborn, unless you use Ether spells.
Kos-Mos can create both Air and Down. And to start a combo you first need to break an enemys zone, and after that you do the characters Circle attack (while boosting if needed, of course) and the enemy will be either Air or Down. And after that all attacks will do a lot more damage.
As soon as you stop boosting and let the enemy go you'll have to break the zone again and launch or down the enemy to begin a new attack.

I'll give it go man thanks for the taking the time to respond.

EDIT Well I did what you said and hammered her lol! I t was a bit of a fluke though because I don't know what happened, but at one point KOS-MOS did around 1500HP damage per hit during a combo and because of thet I only needed to boost twice more and that was it she was done.

I decided to finally start playing Xenosaga 2 again. I just finished the rest of the GS Campaigns that I can do at the moment, so now I'm going to attempt the secret dungeons and face Dark Erde Kaiser. Once I beat these extras, I'll finally be ready to play Xenosaga 3. =)

Okay, I had some trouble with the boss in the Desert. Is there anyway to get some extra Class Points for MOMO so I can teach her a few new skills?

Woo-hoo! I finally cleared the first secret dungeon! =)

It turned out that my only real problem was that my E.S.'s were severely underleveled at that point. After gaining 12 levels, I re-challenged the boss there, and I pwned him to the ground. Now, onto the second secret dungeon. =)

What boss is that again? Was it Mikumari? I'm not too sure if there were 2 ES boss fights in the desert. But if you haven't challenged Mikumari yet, know that your ES levels should be at least 80! If you already beat it, never mind. xP But if you did beat it, then I'm really anxious to know what level you beat it at. =p

As for Class Points for MOMO, I don't think there's any nifty way of getting those quickly. But I'm not sure about that either... my memory sucks. I do remember that I had to steal Class Point upgrades from enemies at some point, though.

I managed to beat the factory! =) Now I only have two more optional dungeons to go! But I gotta say, at this point, I'm really getting sick of these regular battles. It's gotten to the point where I try to escape at every possible opportunity. Even still, I cant wait to face off against Dark Erde Kaiser.

The boss in the desert? If I'm thinking the same boss as you (This is before the secret dungeon in the sky) then I most certainly wasn't level 80. I think the reason I keep winning is that the two ES's I use have the skill where if you boost then your evasion goes through the roof. Most attacks miss and you boost ready for a combo. Best skill in the game.

Ah, I just looked it up, and no: Mikumari only appears after you have defeated Dark Erde Kaiser (which is also after the secret dungeon in the sky). It's really near impossible to defeat it if you're not at least at lvl. 80 with your ES. Its attacks will obliterate you completely on lower levels. Imo it's the strongest enemy in the entire game.

I wish Episode III had the same amount of extras that episode II did because with the battle system I just couldn't be bothered to do all the extras even though I certainly do appreciate them. Take away the grinding you have to do with them and I'd say the extras might be better then the majority of the ingame.

I managed to beat the Heaven's Ruins, and I tried my hand at fighting Dark Erde Kaiser, but to no avail. Unfortunately, in this fight I'm pretty much required to use MOMO, Jr, and Ziggy, and only Ziggy has decent HP! MOMO dies in one hit from Dark Erde Kaiser's knuckle attacks. I think I'm gonna have to train about 10 levels or so before I'm ready to fight again.

I finally defeated Dark Erde Kaiser! I gotta admit, it was a pretty challenging fight even with the extra leveling up I did before hand. But I never would've guessed that his defense would've dropped that low after breaking the Kaiser Shield. I was doing damage in the thousands per hit after that. xD

Anyway, even though there are 3 other optional bosses I can fight, I am officially finished with my journey through Xenosaga 2. It was a fun ride--not as good as Xenosaga 1, but fun nonetheless. I still have some other games I'm playing at the moment, but I'll begin Xenosaga 3 sometime next week. I'll make a topic then. =)