Xenogears
Xenogears
Xenogears, développé par Square Product Development Division 3 et édité notamment par Square, Square Enix ou Sony Computer Entertainment, est un jeu de rôle (RPG) sorti le 11 février 1998 sur PlayStation, PlayStation Portable et PlayStation 3. Le titre mêle une narration science-fiction complexe, centrée sur la création de l'entité Deus et les réincarnations de Fei et Elly, à un gameplay de RPG authentique intégrant des cartes 3D rotatives de 360 degrés, des phases d'exploration par saut et escalade, ainsi que des combats en temps réel impliquant des méga-robots appelés Gears. L'expérience propose des sorts magiques et des affrontements polygonal robot contre robot, soutenus par des angles de caméra dynamiques et des effets lumineux. La durée de la trame principale est estimée à 56 heures, et à 80 heures et demie pour une approche complétiste, avec une note agrégée de 88,82.
L'accueil critique a été favorable, la presse saluant un titre ambitieux : Games Domain y voyait le RPG PlayStation incontournable de la saison grâce à son action, son drame sombre et ses robots imposants, tandis que RPG Fan le désignait comme son RPG de l'année pour sa profondeur et sa créativité. Certains joueurs, toutefois, regrettent que l'âge du jeu se ressente aujourd'hui dans son gameplay et sa narration, tout en reconnaissant la portée ambitieuse de son histoire.
Médias
Avis des critiques et joueurs
Critiques de la Presse (Metacritic)
« Combining good action, dark drama, a splash of anime, and lots of Really Big Robots, this game is the must-buy Playstation RPG of the season... Square's greatest masterpiece since it started producing for Playstation, and I highly recommend this game to anyone who's even heard of "Final Fantasy." »
« Xenogears is a must for any RPG lover, regardless of your views toward Squaresoft. With its depth and creativity, Xenogears is my choice for RPG of the year. »
« With an intricate storyline, beautifully designed characters and mechs, and some of the most innovative features in an RPG, you simply can't afford to pass this game up. »
« Yet another masterpiece from the makers of all Final Fantasy games. »
« Has a very deep and engrossing (perhaps blasphemous, hence the furore) tale to tell. »
« Xenogears' reliance on story, subtlety, and mood make it Square's most anime-like RPG thus far, in many ways making the game one of its best. »
« The dungeons in the game are far too tedious and aggravating for me to ever want to go through them again. Even beyond all that, though, Xenogears remains one of my favorite games ever because of its unsurpassed story and characters, and I think that says something. »
« An extremely popular anime-style role-playing game of epic proportions. [Jan 2004, p.189] »
Avis des Joueurs (Metacritic)
« This game is the most ambitious story ever made in gaming togather with E33 but they have a different direction... This game goes on every conspiracy and its sad that the limitations of the time and the issues inside Square Enix didnt fully complete the game as intended... its by far the best game of the era and i cannot imagine how high this would go if thet had a complete disc2 or maybe a 4 discs like most important JRPGs had at that time... The only drawback is the combat which is more simple for a jrpg but still this is part of the limitations of the budget. 80 hours+ gameplay that didnt feel like a drawback but more like a compressed version yet again due to the limitations they had on the project... there are games who are way too long for 40-50 hours or even dragon quest 7 who felt too much... but this one felt short ever though it had one of the longest main stories... the psychological thriller, the twists of thecstory until the last moment realizing that all had their own version of the best world and the main antagonist was actually the one loving more the humans.... this game need a full remake if it need to be touched... not just a hd2d remaster... need acomplete story with full 3D similar to ff7 remake but not changing the story just completing the timespaces of Disc2... The only thing that need more of touch is the combat... need some more **** the gear fights need to be longer.... Thevstory is just perfect.... square can do it and will draw more audience than ff7 remakes... All havr played ff7 original but not many have ever touched or known xenogears... it was released only in japan and **** the game is around 160-200 $ to buy it now... g »
« This game is interesting for sure and has a lot of ambitious and cool stuff in it. But I think its age really shows nowadays with the gameplay and the story can be very obtuse. You better take notes or you'll be lost. The translation is not perfect that I can tell. One thing I really like that it did differently than other games at the time like FF7 was the 2D sprites in 3D environments which looks amazing even today. Like Square's other early works, it boasts a fantastic soundtrack. »
« A flawed masterpiece is still a masterpiece. It's maybe the most ambitious story ever written and probably the most complex too, I can get why the end of the game was so rushed but even with everything they couldn't put into the final product (read perfect works for more information) it is still such a touching story with a LOT of themes and messages that reach the deepest corners of our existence. It has at least 3 of the best scenes/cinematics in the whole industry and in fiction in general. You would think that with everything everyone says about disc 2 being so rushed and incomplete (although it in fact is) it would be downhill from there for the game, but it's the exact opposite of that, when you think the game and what it has in store couldn't be better it makes another statement, statement after statement, scene by scene disc 2 manages to take storytelling one step forward. That alone could be enough to make of this game one of the greatest of all time, but if you have played any of the other xenogames you know just how influential this game has been to the series to the point you can trace almost every element of the xeno storytelling and themes to this single game. With that said, I think this is one of those games that is just so grand that you just can't but be changed by at least one of all the things it says (and it says a lot). It is the most influential game of your life if you just give it a try and give it some time (it surely has been for me), it's like a really good novel, it's like 10 really good novels combined in one single game, it's just that good, it's such a powerful game. One of my goats fr »
« Not giving a 10 just because the game it is an old game suffering from PS1 issues like loading times and low resolution graphics, and also a rushed disc 2. But, even with all that, it is indeed a great great game. Almost a masterpiece. This game really needs a remaster or a remake that completes the disc 2. »
« The best game ever made. One of those that stick with you for decades. Best villains in a game, best story i have ever seen in any media, one of the best soundtracks of all time, for sure the most touching. The platforming (yes, it’s really annoying) and random encounters won’t ever bring this game down. Xenogears is untouchable. I know that in 20 or 30 years it will still be my favorite game. »
« [SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.] »
« Incredible story, incredibles musics, incredibles fights, incredible game. One of my GOAT »
« An absolute masterpiece ****... it offers everything anyone could ever want from a story, music, characters. GG »
