The biggest mystery surrounding Xenogears, considered by many gamers as one of the greatest RPGs ever made, has finally been explained by game director Tetsuya Takahashi.
The issue is none other than the PlayStation 1 title's "unfinished" disc 2, which takes a vastly different approach compared to what players experience in the game's disc 1.
'Xenogears' Disc 2 Unfinished?
The first disc of Xenogears featured an amazing RPG, with exciting turn-based battles, beautiful cut scenes, and a gripping storyline. The game followed the adventures of Fei and his allies as he looked to recover his memories while fighting to restore peace in a war-torn planet using the powers of giant robots known as Gears.
However, the second disc of the game is a complete opposite of the first one. Instead of the experience that kept players glued to the game in disc 1, disc 2 simply narrates what happens after the events that unfolded in the first disc.
In the absence of an official explanation, players mostly believe the theory that Takahashi had bigger plans for Xenogears disc 2 but was forced to ditch them all and release what is essentially a slideshow of events before players regain control for the game's finale.
'Xenogears' Disc 2 Finally Explained
In an interview at E3 2017, Kotaku's Jason Schreier finally received an explanation from Takahashi regarding what happened with disc 2 of Xenogears.
Through a translator, Takahashi explained that the Xenogears project was mostly made up of new and young staff members, which meant that the more tenured members of the team had to spend time in training them up. During the time, all projects had a two-year deadline, and with 3D graphics still new, Takahashi and the Xenogears team realized that they did not have enough time to finish the game as they had planned.
Square executives then suggested that Xenogears should end after the first disc, but Takahashi believed that such an ending would not satisfy gamers. Instead, to finish Xenogears on schedule with the staff and budget allocated to it, Takahashi proposed his plan for the second disc, which is how it turned out.
"I do think my decision was the right one to make," Takahashi said, believing that abruptly ending the game after disc 1 "would have been bad."
Is It Time For A 'Xenogears' Remake
Now that gamers have an official explanation on why the second disc of Xenogears was created in such a way, there will likely be even more clamor for a remake of the classic RPG.
With Takahashi revealing that the development team simply run out of time to complete what was originally intended for the game's disc 2, it would be great if he can lead a Xenogears remake that will finally give the second disc the proper treatment that it deserves.
A Xenogears remake that fixes the second disc would probably catapult its status into legendary levels. If Square Enix can do it for Final Fantasy VII and possibly also Final Fantasy VIII, why could it not do the same thing for Xenogears?
