We’ve officially been updating this Let’s Play on Gogglebob.com for a year now, as it is April 24, Back-of-the Knee Day. The back of the knee is the spot where your knee drops when you push on it. You’ve played this trick on your friends too, right?
Previously on Wild Arms 3: Filgaia has a flying city! Or… it used to. Turns out that big ol’ city had a big ol’ crash, and now we are exploring the wreckage to see if they left anything useful.
We’re not super optimistic, though.
They did leave behind a number of puzzles at least.
This one is a double Clive-event. Use his Mighty Gloves to make a platform out of blocks, then use the grapple to get up on those blocks.
At least this dungeon is slightly more interesting than our typical cave environs.
But an unavoidable battle means it is time to pay attention.
We’re not completely done with this dungeon, but we do have a boss to tackle.
As mentioned previously, likely to account for the possibility of doing quests “out of order”, a number of mandatory bosses in this section are “puzzle fights”. Can you guess the gimmick of Chameleon Man…
In complete contrast to our subject matter, today is is March 27, Candy Day! How many days can someone live on candy? Once, a woman tried to answer this question. Today marks the anniversary of this brave woman’s death. By the way, I tried this myself and lasted for twelve days. No holiday for me, though… I guess you have to die before you get a day named after you.
Previously on Wild Arms 3: We conquered Gunner’s Heaven, and earned (in a roundabout way) the third Guardian Lord. Just one more to go!
The last Guardian Lord is Zephyr who presides over Hope. We don’t have much of a lead on his whereabouts, but if we chat with our old buddy Pike…
“’A ray of hope will lead you through the darkness.’ Have you heard that before? People in my hometown used to say that all the time. It’s like when you’re feeling down, you think it’ll stay that way forever, but tomorrow is always a new day.”
It could just be a coincidence, but we haven’t stopped by Little Rock in a while, so let’s see if they have any further information about keyword “Hope”.
The talk of the town is a nearby(ish) dungeon by the name of the Abyss, and how it hides “hope”. That certainly sounds relevant!
If you were enjoying that faux-gospel take on Xenogears, sorry to break kayfabe, but that’s over now. We’re going to take an article to look at Xenogears in a more objective manner: did anything in Xenogears matter?
This Xenogears Let’s Play was recorded predominantly from January to May of 2021. Due to significant executive dysfunctions, it was not posted on this site/”written about” until the fall/winter of 2022 (with a bit bleeding into 2023, as you can see). By complete coincidence, this period also wound up being when I played through Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and Xenoblade Chronicles 3, and revisited my own Xenosaga Let’s Play for general Let’s Play inspiration. So, in a short period of a few months, I crammed a lot of Xeno-nonsense into my noggin.
And you know what I realized? It’s all the same!
Yes, that is a terribly reductive way to look at a few decades’ worth of incredibly distinctive videogame stories… but still! Every single Xeno title dips into the well of well-worn tropes and some not-at-all-disguised references to gnostic beliefs (and you may think outright naming your “monsters” [heavy emphasis on quotes there] “the gnosis” would be the pinnacle, but you’d be wrong!). This creates the unfortunate situation where heroes like Fei, Shulk, Rex, and Noah are all technically distinctive characters with their own motivations, beliefs, and hairstyles… but they’re all the same guy. They’re all going to slay a god because they love an important woman in their lives, and they all discover a heavy predestination/reincarnation history that seems to indicate they maybe never had a choice in the first place. And while Shion of Xenosaga is the odd woman out here, she still winds up being the reincarnated religious figure that loves another reincarnated religious figure that then work together to punch (a) god in the kisser. And, hey, at least there was a little sexual variance there! The Xenoblade Chronicles series has been so militantly heterosexual, Square Enix had to produce Final Fantasy 14 to balance out the universe.
But even though Fei and Elly may as well be Noah and Mio, they do have distinct supporting players. Or, put another way, Bart may be the Proto-Zeke, but it is hard to say if Billy’s whole deal is ever truly seen again within the franchise(s). And, with that in mind (and the admission that Xenogears: Disc 2 was the Fei an’ Elly Show [with special guest that other guy with the hair]), let’s see how the finale of Xenogears worked out for everybody else that grabbed an Omnigear.
Bartholomew Fatima
Who was he? Fei and Elly are the undisputed stars of Xenogears, but Bart is our #3 protagonist. He even appeared in the demo (see, we can tie this article to the actual stream)! He is brash, headstrong, and generally myopic. And he’s got whips! That probably says something…
But did it matter? Nope! Bart’s entire nation and most of its subjects are super duper dead or zombified about 60% of the way through Xenogears. Bart is certainly welcome to become a leader of the last remnants of humanity, but that whole “world wide war” thing that kicks off the plot is a nonfactor at this point.
Was Bart ever revisited in the Xeno franchise? Like Fei & Elly, it is easy to identify Bart as another recurring archetype. Xenoblade Chronicles 2’s errant Prince Zeke is the obvious (and already mentioned) descendant here, but we also have Junior almost immediately in Xenosaga. The concept of “immature royalty that wants to be seen as a hero” is pervasive, and it doesn’t matter if that “royalty” is a literal prince or a CEO: it’s all about learning to be a better man. You know, because this archetype is universally male…
Billy Lee Black
Who was he? A dedicated man of the cloth who not only eliminated zombies creeping around the continent, but also managed a delightful little orphanage. Billy had a rough time with his immediate family, but he was such a pious man that he was likely to be the next Holy Father… should such a position exist for someone with marksman proficiencies.
What did he do? The good news is that Billy reconciled with his father, and it looks like his little sister is going to be in a better mental place as a result. The bad news is that Billy discovered his entire religion was a lie, and he may have been killing innocent people for the Red Skull.
But did it matter? One could argue that Billy is in the best place to be important in the Post-Gear world of the finale of Xenogears. He is still good and saintly as of the finale, and he is 100% aware of the “true” history of his world and its religion (what with the fact that he was present for and actively shot and murdered god. Twice). Also, as near as anyone can tell, his entire family survived, so their reunion does actually mean something. So, basically, if Elly wanted to retire as Holy Mother after having a rough couple of weeks, Billy is right there and ready to lead Neo Ethos.
Was Billy ever revisited in the Xeno franchise? Either every single time or not at all. Billy is unique as an acknowledged man of the cloth who has some family issues that pair nicely with a loss of faith… Or I just described damn near every character in the Xeno franchise that ever had a modicum of faith. Organized religion always turns out to be evil! Every time! And whether this is revisited with the bad guys (Xenosaga’s Margulis) or the good guys (practically the entire cast of Xenoblade Chronicles 3), Billy’s general beats as a person are revisited often in the god-killing franchise. He may have had the most unique gun-fu, though…
Chu-Chu
Who was she? Once mistaken for a stuffed animal, Chu-Chu is a bounding ball of pink fluff that earnestly believes she is helping. She can heal Gears, at least, so she certainly has her uses.
What did she do? She mostly tagged along with Margie, but she had her moment to shine when all the Gears were disabled, and she was able to grow to gargantuan size and defend a city of her fellow chu-chupolin. Unfortunately, that was about it for her moment, and she didn’t even get the catharsis of delivering the final blow to that man-monster. But at least she eventually got crucified!
But did it matter? Nothing about Chu-Chu mattered. She may be in a position to lead her remaining chupanions into the new age, but the majority of them may have taken a dirt nap right around the time that Shevat hit the ground. She at least survives all that wizbiz.
Was Chu-Chu ever revisited in the Xeno franchise? Infinitely. Chu-Chu is the proto-Nopon, and some of her more idiosyncratic behaviors are echoed in her descendants. Remember how XB2’s Tora was a brilliant scientist but horny all the dang time? Well, please recall that Chu-Chu was introduced with a bizarre crush on Fei, and advocated for him to go get his mack on when Elly was upset (which aggravated BEAT to no end). Every annoying creature with a squeaky voice in this franchise had its origin here.
Maria Balthasar
Who was she? The granddaughter of one of the great sages, Maria narrowly escaped Solaris and became Shevat’s number one defender with her distinctive Gear, Seibzehn. She fought the party initially, but joined the common cause when she was promised an opportunity to become the wings of death. She… may have issues.
What did she do? But she is allowed to have issues, because she was forced into an epic battle where her choices were let her friends and makeshift family die, or kill her father. She ultimately chose fratricide, and… that was that. Aside from her Solaris breaking and entering, Maria is all but ignored for the remainder of Xenogears.
But did it matter? She was the greatest defender of Shevat… before Shevat mostly became a crater. And she really loved her giant robot… before all robots on the planet lost the ability to function. With her father/grandfather’s research, if there is anyone on this dirtball that could get a Gear going again, it’s Maria… but in the meanwhile, she has zero accomplishments or hopes for the future.
Was Maria ever revisited in the Xeno franchise? Aside from the time that she pretty much outright transported herself into Xenosaga? Maria is a “girl and her horse” archetype with a dash of daddy issues, so she may or may not also be every Xeno character ever. You want to hear some hard truths? It is a short trip from Maria and Seibzehn to Shion and KOS-MOS, and “Mai Magus” appearing in Episode 3 there may be an acknowledgment that Shion is more of a repeat character than anyone wants to admit. MOMO is Maria with all the parental trauma and responsibilities, but none of the rage. And then we move forward to Melia…
Emeralda Kasim
Who was she? The daughter of Fei and Elly from another age, Emeralda is a nanotech colony that has taken the form of a green-haired girl. Her potential as a lifeform is unlimited, and she can turn into an angel or a buzzsaw. There are probably appropriate uses for both forms.
What did she do? At her introduction, she was little more than a macguffin to be pursued by both teams. Once Solaris/Krelian learned all they needed about her biology/technology, she was released to the good guys on a probatory basis. Shortly before the finale, she was allowed to explore the ruins of her old city, and she spontaneously matured into a teenager to better rescue the woman that was mostly her mom.
But did it matter? Emeralda’s tech was integral in the “evolution”/destruction of the human race, so she gets bonus points for inadvertently aiding the apocalypse. Beyond that, she did wind up being on the rescue team for Elly, so she did set a goal and accomplish it without any pyrrhic modifiers. And, assuming there is anyone left that knows what they are doing, Emmy’s nanotech might be the key to reviving this dead ass planet. Gray goo for a better you!
Was Emeralda ever revisited in the Xeno franchise? The precocious child that is a living weapon seems to be a common Xeno theme (say hi again, MOMO), but once you get into “nanotech” and “artificial lifeform that learns how to be human”, you could be describing some of the most important characters across the franchise. Ignoring your usual compliment of KOS-MOS or the entire concept of the Blades of Xenoblade Chronicles 2, let us simply focus on Pyra and Mythra. What was their final form’s hair color?
Ricardo Banderas
Who was he? He… um… oh… This is embarrassing. Was he the weasel guy?
What did he do? Oh yeah! He was the wrestler dude that helped you fight your way out of prison. And he had a whole arc there about being abandoned by his prestigious father, and fighting his way up through the slums, and learning to trust his new/true friends, and… Then he didn’t really do much. Granted, Billy was in much the same situation (have one dedicated arc, never be relevant again), but at least that guy’s whole family stuck around for support. By the time Hammer is betraying everybody, “the champ” is barely even mentioned.
But did it matter? No. Very firm no here. Rico turned to the light to save a town that eventually got obliterated anyway. Hammer exploded. Fei probably could have escaped prison on his own entirely thanks to the help of Citan. And it’s not like Rico’s brilliant mind was ever utilized across the breadth of this team’s journey. If there is some kind of line of succession over in Kislev, Rico might be in line to be the emperor of exactly one (1) battle arena.
Was Rico ever revisited in the Xeno franchise? It is hard to say if any particular character is a reference to Rico in later games, as there really isn’t much to Rico to emulate. We’ve certainly seen the “strong guy” archetype more than a few times, and we had “king of the prison, let’s all escape” appear again as recently as Xenoblade Chronicles 3 with Ghondor. Hell, Ghondor even gets her own “Hammer”, too, so maybe she is a little Rico.
Citan Uzuki
Who was he? The only member of the party that doesn’t have daddy issues because he is a daddy, Citan seemed to exist as the wise mentor figure for the party (and particularly Fei). He knows every “old man” on the entire planet, is directly responsible for more than a few Gears running around, and has a wife and daughter to come home to (assuming Fei didn’t obliterate his home in the opening act). He also has a rad sword and an even more rad helicopter robot.
What did he do? What didn’t he do? Hyuga Ricdeau was born a slave in Solaris, was blamed for a local plague (accused, never convicted), worked his way up to the elite Elements squad, became a direct subordinate of Solaris’s Emperor Cain, met his wife attempting to sabotage a rival country, got a new(ish) job spying on Fei, kept Fei out of trouble for a solid couple of years/adventures, helps his friends infiltrate his former (current?) home, facilitates some cannibalism, plays psychologist for 66% of Fei’s personalities, performs minor surgery on the entire party, and… Well, he didn’t do much in Disc 2. But he was the only member of the party that wasn’t an immortal reincarnation that narrated things, so that counts for something.
But did it matter? Or maybe it didn’t count for anything. Despite being integral to Fei’s awakening as the XenoChrist, Citan doesn’t get much in the way of development in his own story. Or, put another way, everything interesting happened in Citan’s life before the game started, and now he is just coasting on mentorship clout. It is telling that one of the greatest debates in the Xenogears fandom at release was whether or not Citan’s wife was even alive anymore, and that somehow did not impact the plot/character one iota.
Was Citan ever revisited in the Xeno franchise? Aside from the obvious answer of Jin Uzuki (and, arguably, Shion, too), Citan’s position as adult aid for the party has been revisited a number of times, just most recently without the character being a permanent member of the party. And that’s fine! That’s a very well-worn archetype, and whether we are referencing Obi Wan or Dunban, there is always room for the smart old (29-year-old) man in a videogame. And if you want someone of the opposite sex, Special Inquisitor Mòrag Ladair of XB2 sure does feel like the chaperone for the kids of that party.
Vanderkaum
Who was he? He was a military commander at the Aveh-Kislev border. He had a purple cross tattooed onto his face, and loved giant cannons.
What did he do? Vanderkaum was replaced by Ramsus as the Aveh commander, but he still fought Fei and friends when Bart attempted to liberate his home country. After losing his beloved cannons, he pilots a gear, loses, and is then granted -the power- by Grahf. Powered Vanderkaum kills a bunch of people, which pisses off Fei, so Fei-Id sends Vanderkaum to an early grave.
But did it matter? Vanderkaum was an object lesson in why you do not want to see Fei angry, but he otherwise barely impacted the world at large.
Was Vanderkaum ever revisited in the Xeno franchise? Yes. He reappeared in one form or another in every other Xeno-world. If anything, the Xeno franchise is a constant retelling of the story of Fei, Elly, and this bald dork. There has never been a reasonable explanation for this, and I am not thinking about Xeno games any more out of protest.
Even Worse Streams presents Xenogears
Night 18 Part 2
Original Stream Night: May 4, 2021
Night of Xenogears
Random Stream Notes
We’re doing the demo! The Square 1998 Collector’s CD Volume 1, a pack-in for Parasite Eve, contains a demo for Xenogears, a game that would be released like a month after PE. So fanboymaster, BEAT, Jeanie, and Kishi are ready for the beginning at the end.
Enjoy flashy words! Elaborately Planned World!
This was recorded on the same night as the ending of Xenogears, so we are discussing that a little bit during the retread of the intro.
Ample Vigour stops by for the start of the playable demo.
“Ye shall be as butts.”
Oh, this is where fanboymaster talks about the terrible intro to Final Fantasy Zero for the first time. That will come up again for other games.
Let’s discuss the incredible racism of the PSP advertising campaigns as we get to actual gameplay.
“I’m not okay with leaving Baby Herman around my wife.”
Elly and Bart join the party a tweak early. Oh well, it worked for Chrono Cross’s demo.
Ample Vigour asks how long we have been playing Xenogears. The answer is, apparently, from January 5 – May 4. There were a few breaks here and there, though, so this wasn’t… how ever many weeks that would be.
Keanu Reeves is allowed to be a middle-aged man.
What happened to Citan’s wife, Yui, over the course of Xenogears? Who cares.
Kishi once believed that Dan’s face would make sense when they were older. Such a sweet summer child…
And the demo officially ends at the destruction of Lahan with a lovely “next time on Xenogears”.
After the Xenogears sizzle real, we check the Final Fantasy 8 preview video for the hell of it.
Thanks for waching Xenogears! If you need Even Worse Streams continuity, we started the Mega Man Legendstrilogyafter this. Those segments were posted on the site quite a while back.
And we close with Kishi’s appeal to the watcher to play Xenogears divorced from all of our nonsense. I am only moderately offended.
Next time on Xenogears: You dig giant robots? I dig giant robots.
And so we reach the end of Fei’s story, and learn the true meaning of -the power-.
Despite Fei Fong Wong successfully murdering God a little while back (days? Weeks? Months? Hard to tell), by the time the party was ready to see Krelian again, he had resurrected a/the divine being. So, once again, Fei marshalled his forces to commit deicide, and squashed the revitalized Deus in the hole at the center of the planet. And this could have been the finale that everyone was pursuing, but destroying the link to another divine being, the Wave Existence, caused a bit of an issue. The Wave Existence’s escape from Fei’s dimension was going to tear his planet a new one, and, with the Zohar Modifier destroyed, the party’s giant robots were all inert. But Fei’s Xenogears was still functioning! And Elehayym was at the core of… whatever we are calling the orb containing the Wave Existence… So, for one last time, it was up to Fei and Elly to save the world.
Somehow, the fate of the world came down to an ideological debate between three people. Elly believed that she should be the one to carry all of the world’s burdens, so she attempted to sacrifice herself to steer the Wave Existence out of planetary orbit. Nobody wanted to see another Elly explode, so both of her boys disapproved of this decision. Krelian, meanwhile, claimed that he loved Elehayym, but also acknowledged that he did some pretty heinous things to prove that love. He claimed this boondoggle was a situation that he could never fully control, but, given most people would choose not to mutate the entirety of the human race in pursuit of a ridiculous crush, it is easy to judge Krelian’s actions as wholly malevolent.
And then there was Fei. Fei wanted everyone to be happy, and it is hard to argue with that. So he had to fight a giant snake lady. I guess. And because he beat that snake lady, that proved he had the most striking philosophy, and he was allowed to walk out of the god sphere with Elly. Krelian stayed behind to atone for his sins, and what was left of the planet survived thanks to the Wave Existence getting slapped with a mystical restraining order.
So, in the end, Fei and Elly were able to return to their friends. Thanks to -the power-, Fei was able to beat a physical manifestation of cylindrical suffering, and save everyone and everything he held dear. In the end, the truest example of -the power- was -the power- to defend his love and the world.
…
Well, the 0.0002% of the world’s population that survived everything else that happened in Xenogears, at least.
May you too remember to use -the power- to save a miniscule fraction of what is important.
Even Worse Streams presents Xenogears
Night 18 Part 1
Original Stream Night: June 22, 2021
Night of Xenogears
Random Notes on the Stream
In case you are an absolute completionist on watching me play Xenogears, I have included the entire footage of the only time I played Xenogears without the Even Worse crew (not including the “cheat catchup” in Chapter 2). If you really want to watch me buy supplies from Big Joe and then tackle the final dungeon in its entirety (with me pausing to check a map frequently), feel free to take a look. Note that this includes exactly zero commentary, so it is a straight “longplay” style for this distinct section.
If you are curious, this was recorded on June 9th, 2021.
And, with all that shopping, the actual hike into Deus does not start until the 22 minute mark.
Given the video is a little over an hour long, guess that means the dungeon only took about forty minutes. Really thought it would be longer!
We begin this video with a condensed version of the final dungeon with Kishi, fanboymaster, Jeanie, and BEAT. I would like to note that I consider this five-minute opening as the shining achievements of this Let’s Play. Once again, this shorty at the start completely covers anything relevant from that other video above.
Shopkeep Johnny is hanging out in the room next to God. As you do.
Remember when JRPGs were all about including the entire party in the final battle? Final Fantasy was really into that for a while.
Please enjoy some ridiculous orb bosses.
The next-to-final boss is defeated! We all talk about the final boss deaths we’d like to have. There is merit to fanboymaster’s massive explosion.
“Neither of these characters feel like a person anymore.”
Fei has some kind of “composite frankendong.”
It would be hard to lose the final-final fight of Xenogears. This contrasts with Final Fantasy 10, where you can find some exciting ways to commit suicide.
We all have a moment of silence for the voice-acted, anime-as-heck ending (that doesn’t have subtitles).
Kishi notes that this ending with its random communications guy may have confused a lot of people back in the day. Like… people that didn’t already dip out because the plot was plenty confusing already.
Anywho, let’s all enjoy the credits that feature not-famous people like Jonathan Williams.
And next week we have the continuation of this night. Get ready for Part 2!
Next time on Xenogears: The alpha (build) at the omega (stream).
If you were enjoying that faux-gospel take on Xenogears, sorry to break kayfabe, but that’s over now. We’re going to take an article to look at Xenogears in a more objective manner: did anything in Xenogears matter?
Who was he? Fei and Elly are the undisputed stars of Xenogears, but Bart is our #3 protagonist. He even appeared in the demo (see, we can tie this article to the actual stream)! He is brash, headstrong, and generally myopic. And he’s got whips! That probably says something…
Who was he? A dedicated man of the cloth who not only eliminated zombies creeping around the continent, but also managed a delightful little orphanage. 
Who was she? Once mistaken for a stuffed animal, Chu-Chu is a bounding ball of pink fluff that earnestly believes she is helping. She can heal Gears, at least, so she certainly has her uses.
Who was she? The granddaughter of one of the great sages, Maria narrowly escaped Solaris and became Shevat’s number one defender with her distinctive Gear, Seibzehn. She fought the party initially, but joined the common cause when she was promised an opportunity to become the wings of death. She… may have issues.
Who was she? The daughter of Fei and Elly from another age, Emeralda is a nanotech colony that has taken the form of a green-haired girl. Her potential as a lifeform is unlimited, and she can turn into an angel or a buzzsaw. There are probably appropriate uses for both forms.
Who was he? He… um… oh… This is embarrassing. Was he the weasel guy?
Who was he? The only member of the party that doesn’t have daddy issues because he is a daddy, Citan seemed to exist as the wise mentor figure for the party (and particularly Fei). He knows every “old man” on the entire planet, is directly responsible for more than a few Gears running around, and has a wife and daughter to come home to (assuming Fei didn’t obliterate his home in the opening act). He also has a rad sword and an even more rad helicopter robot.
Who was he? He was a military commander at the Aveh-Kislev border. He had a purple cross tattooed onto his face, and loved giant cannons.
Oh, this is where fanboymaster talks about the terrible intro to Final Fantasy Zero for the first time. That will come up again for other games.
And so we reach the end of Fei’s story, and learn the true meaning of -the power-.
And then there was Fei. Fei wanted everyone to be happy, and it is hard to argue with that. So he had to fight a giant snake lady. I guess. And because he beat that snake lady, that proved he had the most striking philosophy, and he was allowed to walk out of the god sphere with Elly. Krelian stayed behind to atone for his sins, and what was left of the planet survived thanks to the Wave Existence getting slapped with a mystical restraining order.
Fei has some kind of “composite frankendong.”