An examination of what other video games have, or may have, influenced 1998's Xenogears
[Last updated 2026.02.09]
Many works from games, Japanese animation, cinema, and literature have influenced Xenogears. This page focuses on games that have had (or may have had) an influence on Xenogears. For links to the other sections, visit the main page for Works that influenced Xenogears.
During the examination I will be using a lot of images in the style of charts that compares other video games with Xenogears to make the case for similarities and thus potential influences. Since these works must have been released prior to 1998 (or even prior to 1997) to have been an influence, those images will be displayed to the left while images from Xenogears will be displayed to the right of them.
* This article will obviously contain spoilers for both Xenogears and the works that influenced it.
Final Fantasy VI (1994)
Chrono Trigger (1995)
Secret of Mana (1993)
Phantasy Star II (1989)
Street Fighter II (1991)
Final Fantasy VI (1994)
I will start by examining the influence Final Fantasy VI had on Xenogears based on their similarities. Since Tetsuya Takahashi was tasked with building the world of the next Final Fantasy game when he came up with the first ideas for Xenogears, extending on the Magitek Armor idea from Final Fantasy VI to include robots, it makes sense to regard Xenogears as something like a successor to Final Fantasy VI. As we will discover, many basic ideas and narrative elements are very similar between the two works. I suspect the reason for this, despite them being two different titles, is because Takahashi seems to have been in competition with Final Fantasy and wanted to make Xenogears with some similar tropes but better, making his own game more detailed, more adult, and more sci-fi.
| Final Fantasy VI - Prologue | Xenogears - Prologue |
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Both Final Fantasy VI and Xenogears have post-apocalyptic settings after a great war hundreds of years prior to the present. In Final Fantasy VI this was the great "War of the Magi" 1000 years before the present, while in Xenogears this was the great Solaris War and Days of Destruction 500 years before the present. And in the prologue to both games there is text explaining the current situation. The main difference is that in FFVI most of it is spelled out while Xenogears mainly provides hints to a great conflict in the past. But ignoring the presentation, both stories are structured on the concept that powers from ages past are being revived in the present day. In FFVI these are the Espers while in Xenogears these are the Gears and Anima Relics.
In The Complete Xenogears Reference Guide video series on YouTube, TJTheEmperor suggests that the text in Xenogears' prologue is influenced by early Mobile Suit Gundam opening narrations and the opening text crawl in Star Wars. I disagree with this. I need to see at least two similarities in a potential influence to seriously consider it, and had the font or color been similar to the text in Star Wars, or had it been an audio voice over like in Gundam, then I would have been in agreement. But as it stands there is only one similarity and that is information at the start of the work establishing a war situation. I think the prologue text simply follows the tradition of previous RPGs such as FFVI, especially given how similar Xenogears is to FFVI in other respects, and it is also something you find in other video games at the time. The style of the content of the text is also more similar to FFVI.
| Infiltration mission | Infiltration mission |
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The plot in both FFVI and Xenogears starts moving when a main female character (later to become an important playable party member) "infiltrates" a remote place to find something special related to these powers from ages past. In FFVI this is Terra together with Biggs and Wedge who are sent by the evil empire to acquire an Esper, and in Xenogears this is Elly together with a Gebler unit who are sent by the evil empire to acquire a Kislev experimental Gear. Remote places along mountain ranges (Narshe and Lahan) are then caught up in the skirmish.
The main difference here is that FFVI starts from this female character's point of view, while in Xenogears this plot happens in the background and is filled in later through dialogue and a flashback. Another difference is that Xenogears has an additional intro inspired by 2001: A Space Odyssey showing the "dawn of Man" on its world, followed by showing the main character in their pre-incident life. FFVI does not have a main character but an ensemble cast with no real set-up before we are thrown into the action.
And speaking of Biggs and Wedge, both FFVI and Xenogears contain numerous Star Wars influences and references, with Takahashi going even more in that direction for Xenogears. The only Star Wars influence both games share, however, is the general concept of an alliance of factions resisting an evil empire.
| "Amnesiac" character used by the empire | "Amnesiac" character used by the empire |
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A main character in both works are suffering from "amnesia" and do not remember their past at the start of the story. In FFVI this is Terra and in Xenogears this is Fei. In both of their backstories they had been temporarily controlled by an evil empire as well as by one of the main antagonists (Kefka and Grahf respectively) due to their special powers. In flashbacks with burning backgrounds both Terra and Fei are seen destroying the empire's enemies. The main difference is that Terra's amnesia story here is quite simplistic and even a bit trite while Fei's story involves psychological theories of dissasociative identity disorders with a more compelling empire and a more layered antagonist. This is just one example of Takahashi eliminating a false or mediocre idea and replacing it with the right idea.
| "Amnesiac" character gets a protector | "Amnesiac" character gets a protector |
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The second main playable character to be introduced in both works starts out serving as a protector to the "amnesiac" main character, and together they make their way to a desert. The amnesiac character experiences confusion at times and gets encouraging or reassuring words from protector character. In FFVI this is the treasure hunter Locke protecting Terra, and in Xenogears this is doctor Citan Uzuki protecting Fei.
Also, some of the desert enemies in both games have a marine animal theme. I can totally see Takahashi thinking to himself, "So Final Fantasy had Sand Rays... Well I will do one better, my game will have Sand SHARKS!"
| Resourceful royalty in desert | Resourceful royalty in desert |
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The deserts in both FFVI and in Xenogears has a desert kingdom. The royalty living in the desert has access to advanced technology and is able to travel underneath the desert. This royalty consists of two heirs to the throne in both works: Edgar and Sabin in FFVI, and Bart and Sigurd in Xenogears. Both were written by the same writer - Kaori Tanaka (a.k.a. Soraya Saga) - and she even put in a reference to Edgar and Sabin by reusing their middle names (Roni and Rene) for two similar Episode IV characters.
Furthermore, the main royalty character (Edgar/Bart) reacts in awe at seeing the power of the amnesiac character (Terra/Fei) and contemplates it as a possible key to winning the war. The main difference, apart from the story, worldbuilding and characterization being more simplistic in FFVI, is that Bart does not know Sigurd is his brother (and another heir to the throne), and they are both currently pirate outlaws that have lost their kingdom to an antagonist. Some of these aspects may also have been influenced from the even earlier Final Fantasy V character Faris, a game Kaori Tanaka also worked on.
Also, later on in FFVI there is mention of "giant sandworms" that captures the castle underneath the sand (though they look more like tentacles). In Xenogears you fight a giant sandworm enemy in the desert.
The next similarity is the player alternating between different characters doing different things at the same time. In FFVI you can follow and play as Locke, Terra/Edgar, and Sabin in their respective scenarios until they meet up again. In Xenogears you play as Fei and Bart as they do different things during the Aveh Tournament until they meet up again. While it is not a very strong similarity, it is still a gameplay idea that continued in this small segment for Xenogears but did not continue at all in Final Fantasy VII.
| A very bizarre character enters the stage | A very bizarre character enters the stage |
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Around the time your party is split up doing different things at the same time, a very bizarre and funny character starts to recur nonsensically in different places, and you fight a battle with them. In FFVI this is Ultros, and in Xenogears this is Big Joe. And towards the end of the game, both Ultros and Big Joe can be found at the game's battle arena (Dragon's Neck Coliseum and Kislev Battling Arena). The main difference is that Ultros comes off more antagonistic and you fight him more than once. And while we know the idea for Big Joe came from Kunihiko Tanaka who asked for the addition of "an awesome NPC character" during the game's development, I think the way Takahashi implemented him into the game as an absurd comedic character was partly inspired by Ultros from FFVI.
There is also a very minor similarity between Big Joe when in Kislev and a character below the Fanatics' Tower towards the end of FFVI. Big Joe asks for 5000 G to let you see something interesting in an alley. The character below the Fanatics' Tower in FFVI asks for 100,000 gil to tell you about a secret treasure.
| Female army character deserts from empire | Female army character deserts from empire |
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In our next similarity we find a high-ranking female soldier who betrays and deserts their empire and are captured. While in captivity they get abused and are called traitors. In FFVI this is general Celes who gets beaten up by two imperial soldiers, and in Xenogears this is Lieutenant Elhaym who gets smacked and threatened to be beaten up by Dominia. Both female characters are playable characters belonging to the cast of main characters in the story.
In this segment from FFVI we also get a blatant Star Wars reference that would not have been out of place in Xenogears. If you enter her cell disguised as an imperial soldier, Celes will say "Aren't you a little short for an Imperial trooper?" and Locke will respond with "Huh? ...Oh, the uniform." This reference is a bit more obscured by the poor English translation in the original SNES release. But there are several different translations of FFVI, including various fan hacks of the SNES game, that improves the translation and makes the similarities with Xenogears easier to spot.
I find it a bit odd that it is mainly Xenogears that has been charged with having a too high enemy encounter rate, when they are just as frequent in FFVI. I could sometimes hardly walk two steps until I got a new enemy encounter in FFVI, which is explained by both games having certain enemy encounters pre-established at specific trigger points that you sometimes run into right after fighting a normal random enemy encounter, or vice versa.
| Travel through an underwater trench | Travel through an underwater trench |
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At one point in both games you travel through an underwater trench along the ocean floor. In FFVI this underwater trench is called the "Serpent Trench" and in Xenogears the underwater trench is called the "Sargasso point." It is not a very strong similarity, and the Serpent Trench happens much earlier in FFVI, but the way the camera flies along this trench is more similar to Sargasso Point than anything underwater from, say, Final Fantasy VII. In both FFVI and Xenogears you also get some dive equipment before you enter this trench.
| Distrust and hostility aimed at Celes | Distrust and hostility aimed at Elhaym |
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The high-ranking female army character who defects from the empire is at first met with hostility and distrust from some of the other main characters in both works. In FFVI this is mainly Cyan who is hostile towards Celes, and in Xenogears this is Jessie who is hostile towards Elly and Bart who distrusts her. Both Cyan and Jessie refer to the female army character as a "dog" of their empire.
| Transformation into a "monster" | Transformation into a "monster" |
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In both works the "amnesiac" main character is mysteriously resonating with the power people are seeking, with it "responding" to them. In FFVI this is the Esper in Narshe responding to Terra, and in Xenogears this is the Gear Weltall responding to Fei. This character later has a transformation into a red-ish "monster" with an accompanying scream that is similar. Even the framing when this happens is very similar, with the other party members knocked down while the thing responding to the transforming character is seen in the background. The main difference is that Fei has several off-camera transformations before the transformation that reveals his identity, while Terra's first transformation happens on screen. The player can also chose to transform Terra into her Esper/monster form in battle. Perhaps the idea of System Id came from that gameplay concept.
Later on, towards the end of the story, some children are scared of the monster form of the "amnesiac" main character but starts to accept them. In FFVI it is several children, while in Xenogears it is mainly Dan and Midori.
| Unconscious and out of commission | Unconscious and out of commission |
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And as if the previous similarities between the special "amnesiac" characters were not enough, both of them also become unconscious and are taken out of commission for a partion of the story. During this part you can not play as these characters, and the other main characters try to find some way to help them recover. Terra is taken out of commission for a lot longer than Fei though and her state is related to her transformation, while in the case of Fei it is not.
Another similarity between Celes and Elly here is that they both suggest being on the party going to the capital of the evil empire since they know it well. In FFVI Locke accompanies Celes with two optional characters. Citan, who partly "mirrors" Locke in Xenogears, accompanies Elly along with Fei.
| Beams of light in the sky over the Empire | Beams of light in the sky over Kislev Empire |
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The Empire in FFVI seems to have influenced both the Kislev Empire and the Holy Empire of Solaris in Xenogears. There is a visual motif during night time where long beams of light are aimed at the sky when both the FFVI Empire and the Kislev Empire are seen from a distance. Later on, when the protagonists are escaping these empires, there is also a train on a railway sequence in both works. Like with the underwater trenches it is not a very strong similarity, but given how FFVI clearly influenced Xenogears as a whole, I think these similarities are not a coincidence, and in some ways it is valid to regard Xenogears as the true successor to FFVI rather than Final Fantasy VII.
Another minor similarity between the FFVI Empire and the two empires in Xenogears is that each has a special weapon. In FFVI this is the most powerful Magitek warmachine, The Guardian. Similarly, Kislev has the Goliath and Solaris has Ft. Hurricane. Though the similarity is rather weak since The Guardian is immobile and looks more like the Xenogears boss Fis-6 that guards the Goliath. The similarity only matters in the context of the other similarities between the empires. Had this been the only similarity then it would not have been worth mentioning.
Also, some characters in both works are experimented on and "artificially infused" with stuff in the evil empires, such as magicite in FFVI's Empire and molecular engineering in the Holy Empire of Solaris, in order to create new abilities and people with enhancements for the purpose of war.
| Research facility containers with specimens | Research facility containers with specimens |
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The evil empire in both works has a research facility in its capital with test subjects related to the modification of humans as a source for weapons. In FFVI these test subjects are the captured Espers, and in Xenogears these test subjects are the Wels. The main difference is that the Wels are another form of humans while the Espers are a different species entirely. However, Wels are related to Gears through fusion with such machines, and Gears are what Takahashi has replaced Espers with in his story.
| One party member is secretly a spy | One party member is secretly a spy |
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A main character formerly with the evil empire turns out to be a "spy" and potential betrayer of the party, but it turns out the spy is still on the side of the protagonists and ends up protecting them. In FFVI this spy is Celes, and in Xenogears this spy is Citan. In both works this reveal happens in the research facility.
Also, the way Celes protects the party by using her power to hold back an antagonist (Kefka) is somewhat similar to the way Elly protects the party by using her power to hold back Id in Xenogears, especially given how both Celes and Elly are the high-ranking imperial female soldier character in the story. However, the scene where Elly stops Id and brings back Fei seems to also be influenced by a scene from Macross 7 which I will talk about in that section.
| Regretful father figure assists in escape | Regretful father assists in escape |
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Another similarity in the evil-empire-and-its-research-facility sequence in both works is the presence of a father or father figure to the high-ranking female soldier, who helps the party escape. In FFVI this is chief scientist Cid, and in Xenogears this is Erich van Houten. While Cid is not biologically Celes' father, he does play the role of her father. Both Cid and Erich have regrets regarding how they have treated their daughters, while also having doted on them (Cid says he doted on Celes like she was his own daughter, and Miang says to Erich that he dotes on his child). Both Cid and Erich also die in the story, but Cid's death happens later and his death can be prevented.
I have also considered a potential link between Cid and Krelian given that they are both the chief scientist who helped the evil empire develop technology that can fuse the power from ages past with humans. Krelian also has regrets in the end, he helps Fei and Elly escape the collapsing Path of Sephirot, and he was perhaps something like a father figure or big brother to Sophia when they first met given their age difference at the time. However, you could just as easily draw a parallel between Cid and Nikolai, so I think this parallel is a bit farfetched. Especially since Cid and Krelian ultimately has more differences than similarities.
| Tragic flashback love story produces a child | Tragic flashback love story produces a child |
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This next similarity is fairly subtle, to the point I almost missed it, and had it been in any other work I would not have regarded it as an influence. But in the context of all the other similarities between FFVI and Xenogears, and that it seems fairly obvious that Takahashi worked with a similar story structure from the time he was tasked with creating an actual sequel to FFVI, I do not think this similarity is a coincidence. It might be a subconscious influence, but I think it was as conscious as anything else taken from FFVI. In both works you have flashbacks involving love stories in a strained period, and the couple in both love stories end up producing a special, green-haired child that eventually gets taken by the evil empire. In FFVI this is the Esper Maduin and the human Madeline producing Terra, and in Xenogears this is the Contact Kim and the Antitype Elhaym creating Emeralda.
One of the recurring themes in Takahashi's games is that of "the relationship between foreign things" or "foreign things becoming one" which he has said goes all the way back to Xenogears. While this is not an obvious theme at first glance that people tend to take away from the story, it is true that the Contact and the Antitype are two "foreign" things coming together, since the Contact is a human and the Antitype is a "biological computer" made from a mysterious "Persona" substance of unknown origin (according to Xenogears: Perfect Works) given human will by an extra-dimensional entity. So you have a human and what was originally a non-human coming together and producing a child. Similarly, the love story in FFVI is between a magical creature (an Esper) and a human producing a child. Both Maduin and Elhaym are part of mysterious powers from ages past, and both Madeline and Kim are disillusioned with humanity.
This influence could have been part of the origin for the recurring theme of "foreign things becoming one" in Takahashi's games. It is clear that Takahashi likes to write love stories in his games, with Xenogears still being the stand out in that regard, and some have suggested that his marriage to Kaori Tanaka (Soraya Saga) in 1995 (after their work on FFVI) may have been the inspiration. But I think Takahashi likes love stories in general, and that another inspiration for this idea of "foreign things becoming one" was likely from Super Dimension Fortress Macross (and to a lesser extent Macross 7), which I will examine in that segment. The Maduin and Madeline love story is the most important love story in FFVI, and by following the template of FFVI for the base skeleton of the game, it only makes sense that Takahashi improved on a similar theme for his own main love story in Xenogears.
Furthermore, the flashback with Maduin and Madeline in FFVI is playable, as you unexpectedly take control of Maudin in the Esper realm. It has been strongly hinted at in Xenogears' system files that the game originally may have been intended to include a playable flashback of the Lacan and Sophia story. And if FFVI was a big part of the template for Xenogears, then it makes sense that the idea of a playable scenario in the past, related to the main love story, would have been floating around. The love story between Lacan and Sophia is an extension of the same love story as Kim and Elly in the Zeboim era.
| Child of tragic couple gets stolen | Child of tragic couple gets stolen |
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As I mentioned, there is also the similarity of the special child ending up having green hair, and that this child eventually ends up in the hands of the evil empire. In Xenogears this happens later, but that's just because the stories are not exact copies of each other since Takahashi was remixing and reworking these ideas into his own better story. In FFVI Terra gets taken away by Emperor Gestahl, and in Xenogears Emeralda gets taken away by Stein and Krelian after Miang had failed to get her. In both works it also ends in tragedy for the love story couple.
The story of Maudin and Madeline seems to also have influenced the story of Professor Gast and the surviving "Ancient" Ifalna in FFVII, whose daughter Aerith is taken by Shinra Inc. (Shinra being that world's version of an evil empire). It is interesting that Professor Gast is a brilliant scientist just like Kim in Xenogears. Perhaps Gast is another remnant of Takahashi's early ideas for FFVII just like Cloud and Shinra Inc. are, though he was probably just influenced by FFVI's Cid.
| Not a stuffed animal | Not a stuffed animal |
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In our next similarity, both works include a cute, comedic animal-like character as a party member with a white and pink color scheme, and a main character is surprised that it can talk. In FFVI this is Mog whose catch word is "kupo," and in Xenogears this is Chu-Chu whose catch word is "chu." At first I thought this was a weak link between the works since a color scheme is never a strong link and has a big chance of being coincidental or trivial. But I thought that Mog being referred to as "human loving" was similar to Chu-Chu being in love with Fei, so I noted it. I felt vindicated at the end of FFVI when Mog says it is not a "stuffed animal" (a line cut from the original SNES translation) which is exactly what the joke regarding Chu-Chu is in the early part of Xenogears - that she is not a "stuffed animal." So Chu-Chu was definitely inspired or influenced by Mog.
| A sealed gate - a sealed ancient power | A sealed gate - a sealed ancient power |
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Both works have a sealed "gate" to a place where supposedly threatening non-human beings exists. FFVI has a sealed gate to the Esper realm, and Xenogears has a sealed gate to Babel Tower from which supposedly the Wels come from. And actually, Xenogears has several types of gates and uses that word a lot. There are two "gates" in particular that reminds me of the sealed gate in FFVI. The sealed gate into Babel Tower is actually the weaker similarity of the two, but it is the easiest and simplest one to use with a comparison picture. What makes it weak is that the sealed gate into Babel Tower is less important to the plot and also based on a lie the Ethos church set up. Threatening non-human beings do not actually come from the Babel Tower gate.
A stronger similarity can be made between the sealed realm of the magical Espers and the sealed portion of the Eldridge called "Mahanon," which is the realm of a mythological paradise and "divine knowledge." The gate which seals Mahanon is the same gate that protects Solaris. Visually it may not be similar, but thematically you have the source of the power from ages past sealed in slumber within this place. In FFVI the Warring Triad gods rest in "eternal slumber" in the Esper world behind the gate, and in Xenogears Mahanon is the place where their "god" Deus rests in a long slumber.
In fact, both the Warring Triad and Deus are similar in that they are foreign entities or "gods" that came to the world of the game a long time ago and brought a special type of power with them that resulted in new creations and war. Since the Warring Triad idea predates many similar concepts in other Squaresoft games, it may have been the prototype idea behind not only Deus but also Lavos in Chrono Trigger and Jenova in FFVII.
Then there is the similarity between the Espers coming out of the sealed gate and going on a rampage in the world, and the "Episode IV" backstory in Xenogears, in which Lacan awakens the Diabolos Army stored in the Eldridge (most likely in the Mahanon portion of the ship) and they go on a rampage in the world. And in both works they attack also the capital of the evil empire, which changes the course of the war with the focus then being on the foreign attack.
A similarity between the Espers attacking human civilization and the Angels attacking human civilization can also be drawn, but I think the thematic similarity between the Espers and the Diabolos is a bit more apt considering the Espers are the summons in FFVI and the Diabolos are implied to be machines - Gears - which is what Takahashi wanted to replace summons with. And the character who has an affinity with these, the "amnesiac" character Terra and Fei/Lacan, are both resonating with these forces before they go on a rampage. The main difference is that we do not see this play out in Xenogears since Takahashi could not start with Episode IV like he originally intended.
| Non-human beings attacking from the sky | Non-human beings attacking from the sky |
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I did notice that the Espers attacking places and the airship is similar to the Wels attacking the Thames fleet in Xenogears, so that was the first thing I thought of when I saw the rampaging magical creatures in FFVI. And it is an easier visual similarity and parallel to point out given that spotting the hidden but stronger similarity with the Diabolos requires deeper knowledge of the lore written outside of the game itself, and other structural similarities between FFVI and Xenogears.
| A place concealed since ancient war | A place concealed since ancient war |
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Before returning to the stronger similarities between the two works, I also think it worth meantioning that Shevat in Xenogears may have been influenced a little bit by the "village of mages" from FFVI. Both are places that have a connection to the ancient war, and have since that time concealed themselves. The main difference is that the mages were actually persecuted while the Shevatites hid away in shame of a crime they committed. But there is also a similarity between the story of Relm from FFVI and Maria from Xenogears. Both are young girl playable characters you encounter in these places who both have been taken care of by their grandfather and are left without fathers. Even their fathers share a small similarity in that they both sacrifice themselves. It may be a minor or unconscious influence since Strago and Ol' man Bal are not similar outside of their relation to a young girl (Ol' man Bal is not a party member) and Shadow is very different from Nikolai.
Something about Relm also resembles Margie, such as the tendency to rush into things, and both Relm and Margie have awkward romantic relationships implied with the main desert royalty character written by Soraya Saga (Relm because she is much younger than Edgar, and Margie because she is the cousin of Bart).
| The source of all magic | The source of all Ether powers |
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Returning to the strong similarity between the Warring Triad and the Deus System, they both constitute the source of all "magical" power in the world of their respective story. In FFVI all magic ultimately flows from the three gods (the Warring Triad), and in Xenogears all Ether power flows from the Zohar (a part of the Deus System).
Furthermore, the Warring gods form a triad: Archdemon, Fiend, and Goddess. The core components of Deus' biological "brain" also form a triad: Animus, Anima, and Persona. The larger Deus System as a whole also has three main parts that form a triad: Alpha-1 or Kadmony (the brain), Omega-1 (the main body), and Zohar (the power source).
| A high rank screwed over by his own leaders | A high rank screwed over by his own leaders |
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In both works a high-ranking enemy commander gets screwed over by the leaders of the evil empire and is discarded. In FFVI this is General Leo, and in Xenogears this is Commander Ramsus. In a similar scene between the two, a confused Leo asks his emperor (a disguised Kefka) "What have I been fighting for...?" while a confused and broken Ramsus asks Krelian and Miang "W, what was it all for... Everything that I have done up until now..."
Erich Van Houten can also be compared to General Leo since they are both high ranking enemy soldiers who are killed by a major antagonist that likes to disguise themselves and taunt people (Kefka and Miang).
| Blond long-haired antagonist use manipulation | Blond long-haired antagonist use manipulation |
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Both works also have a blond, long-haired major antagonist who works with the emperor of the evil empire, manipulates others using the image of the emperor, and later betrays this emperor. In FFVI this is Kefka, and in Xenogears this is Krelian. Both names also start with a "K" though I consider names that start with the same letter to be as weak and likely coincidental of a similarity as color schemes often are, especially in this case where we know that Krelian's name was influenced by the character Karellen from the book Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke.
Despite the fact that we have several similarities here, enough to assume a partial link or influence between Kefka and Krelian, the two characters also come across as quite different. The first character in "Xeno-" that reminded me of Kefka was actually Albedo from the Xenosaga series, due to having a similar maniacal and crazy, over-the-top demeanor. But both Krelian and Albedo have more substance to them while Kefka has even less depth than Id in Xenogears. Id would be the closest similarity to Kefka's character in Xenogears due to being the result of experiments and having a single-minded devotion to destruction. But we don't even get any backstory on Kefka in the game.
Some other differences is that Kefka keeps his hair in a ponytail and he actually kills the emperor himself while Krelian has Ramsus kill the emperor. Though Krelian do personally delete the Gazel Ministry, whom are more similar to FFVI's Emperor Gestahl in character than Emperor Cain. The cooperation between Krelian and Miang resembles the cooperation between Kefka and Emperor Gestahl also, so may have been influenced by that since we never see much of the cooperation between Krelian and Emperor Cain in the actual game. As for the manipulation using the image of the emperor... With Krelian this is more indirect since he uses a dummy next to him with a fake voice while Kefka literally transforms himself into the image of Gestahl.
But in terms of general manipulation there are some more similarities, such as Kefka and Krelian both holding back on revealing their powers and true schemes, and later revealing themselves to be almost unbeatable (due to nanomachines in the case of Krelian). There is also a similarity in the way Kefka mocks the Espers for bringing him "presents" (Magicite), and the way Krelian mocks the protagonists for bringing him "all the parts of god." I think it is even possible that Kefka, as a lower rank screwing over the evil leader and unexpectedly becoming the main bad, may have had an influence on Krelian starting from even more humble beginnings before making his way to the top of the antagonist hierarchy. But if it was it was only as a starting point since the rest is so different.
Aside from the similarity between Kefka and Krelian, and since Xenogears have several more major antagonists, it seems some aspects also had an influence on Miang and Grahf. Miang disguises herself as Executioner similar to how Kefka disguises himself as Emperor Gestahl, and they are both quite sadistic and likes to taunt their victims. Grahf has a similar nihilism as Kefka, questioning the meaning of life and aiming for non-existence through complete destruction. But all of this is done better in Xenogears.
A similarity between Emperor Gestahl and Emperor Cain can also be made. Not just because they are both emperors of evil empires who are screwed over by a subordinate who has his own plans, but also because both lose their will to fight at one point in the story. But it is a weak similarity since Gestahl is faking that he lost his will to fight while Emperor Cain actually changed his way and can be regarded as one of the good guys.
| A floating continent emerges | A floating continent emerges |
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Both works feature a "floating continent" seen rising into the sky once a seal is broken; a floating continent containing the "ultimate power" the antagonists seek. In FFVI this is the floating continent that contains the Warring Triad, and in Xenogears this is the floating continent Mahanon that contains Deus.
What is interesting about this is that the floating continent in FFVI is a complete playable dungeon that even includes fighting the empire's aerial forces in order to reach the continent, while in Xenogears as we famously know the floating continent Mahanon segment is mostly narrated. Since the narration mentions the party "driving back the Solarian interceptor forces" before they took to the floating continent, it makes it highly likely we were meant to play some aerial battles similar to those in FFVI before the party made it onto Mahanon in Xenogears. And when disc 2 of Xenogears had to be rushed due to the deadline, this was almost certainly one of the things scrapped.
| Encountering "power absolute" | Encountering "the ultimate power" |
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On the floating continent in both works, before coming face to face with the antagonists again, the party encounters a created ancient creature of absolute/ultimate power, leading to a boss battle. In FFVI this is the encounter with Ultima Weapon who says it is "power absolute" and "created in ancient times." In Xenogears this is the encounter with Deus' main body Omega-1 (the rotting creature) whom the narration refers to as "the 'Absolute'" that invokes primal fear and is supposedly the ultimate power.
Note that the original translation of the SNES version renamed Ultima Weapon to "AtmaWeapon" due to letter space limitations and then mistranslated "power absolute" as "pure energy" and "created in ancient times" as "as ancient as the cosmos." But it is clearly a creation as it can be seen having a type of cogwheels that actually move in its second incarnation in the final dungeon. The original Japanese makes the similarity and link between this boss in FFVI and the rotting creature in Xenogears more clear.
| Antagonist gets cut by a sword, but it is futile | Antagonist gets cut by a sword, but it is futile |
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In both works, an army character attempts to strike down an antagonist with a sword, seemingly putting a stop to the antagonist's big plans that are about to go down. But the antagonist soon recovers. In FFVI this is general Celes striking her sword and slashing Kefka in front of the Warring Triad before Kefka merges with them, and in Xenogears this is commander Ramsus striking his sword cutting down Miang and slashing Krelian in front of Deus before Krelian and Miang merges with it. This is another similarity between Kefka and Krelian, and Kefka and Miang. The main difference is that Ramsus is not a party member, and he strikes two antagonists who takes it calmly while Kefka freaks out like a child seeing his own blood.
Although it is never explicitly stated that Kefka merges with the Warring Triad gods, he does say to them to "let me in" and he comes to dwell at the center of them when ascending to godhood. It is also interesting that he says to the Warring Triad gods that they only exist to make war, which seems accurate in the lore of FFVI and further solidifies the similarity with Deus which is a weapon made for war and which continuously perpetuates war on the planet.
When the revival of the Warring Triad occurs due to Kefka, the world gets destroyed and the majority of the population die. The same thing happens in Xenogears after Krelian manages to resurrect Deus. But FFVI have more cutscenes of its world's destruction, and we likely would have gotten more cutscenes of the equivalent in Xenogears had the development not run out of time.
| Beam of massive destruction | Beam of massive destruction |
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When I first heard NPCs talk about Kefka's Tower in the World of Ruin having a "Light of Judgment" that destroys cities, it made me think of the Merkabah and the Terraforming Deus in Xenogears and suspected it might have been an influence. I felt vindicated when, during the final encounter with Kefka, we literally see the Light of Judgement as a beam destroying the surface of the planet identical to Merkabah's cannon in Xenogears. At least in Xenogears it makes sense that a mobile spaceship can destroy the entire surface, but Kefka's Tower is stationary and should not be able to hit the other side of the planet.
Another minor similarity is that Kefka now has followers in the Fanatics' Tower (Cult of Kefka), while Krelian had the early followers Rattan and Mugworth. Zeboim was also said to have had people gathering around religious cult leaders.
Both works also involve strong ancient forces being let loose on the world. In FFVI many ancient monsters that had been sealed away are released when the Warring Triad are revived. This obviously influenced the Weapons in FFVII, but Xenogears has something similar in the Diabolos which were strong ancient forces sealed away and later revived and released by Lacan in Episode IV. We also have the Angels in Xenogears which play a similar role.
| A battle arena where you can earn stuff | A battle arena where you can earn stuff |
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Both works have a battle arena which you can also visit as an optional place at the end of the game where one can earn stuff. FFVI has the Dragon's Neck Coliseum and Xenogears has the Kislev Battle Arena. While the Kislev Battle Arena is a more fully fleshed out, separate, and fighting-game-esque mini game, I think the idea of including an optional battle arena in the first place came from Takahashi working on a new Final Fantasy game when the original ideas for Xenogears emerged. But it being a Gear Tournament battle arena was likely influenced by Mobile Fighter G Gundam and maybe also Robot Jox.
| Something buried - a tomb with long stairs | Something buried - a tomb with long stairs |
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In both works you enter down into a tomb where someone important to a main character is buried, and one section involves long and similar looking stairs. In FFVI this is Daryl's Tomb, and in Xenogears this is the Holy Mother Mausoleum. A main character heavily involved in this section is the holder of the game's airship (Setzer and Bart). Both tombs store something important to this character (The Falcon and Fort Jasper).
| A second airship buried underground | A second airship buried underground |
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In both works the protagonists lose the ship that serves as their base of operation after being attacked by a powerful force, and later on a second identical ship that has been buried underground is acquired. In FFVI this is the Falcon (another Star Wars reference) acquired from Daryl's Tomb some time after the Blackjack has been destroyed by rampaging Espers, and in Xenogears this is the Yggdrasil II acquired from underneat Aveh's desert right after the first Yggdrasil has been destroyed by a rampaging Weltall-Id. With Xenogears replacing the concept of Espers (summons) with Gears, there is also a link between the two rampaging forces that destroys the ships.
The main difference is that the Yggdrasil ships are not capable of aerial flight when this happens, and we don't get to see the Yggdrasil II being found. The Yggdrasil II is also stumbled upon accidentally while Setzer buried the Falcon himself in Daryl's Tomb. The acquisition of the second ship is perhaps the only influence from FFVI that was not done better in Xenogears since it has often and rightly been criticized as too convenient.
Apart from these similarities between the airships in FFVI and Xenogears, they both also have projectiles onboard such as Setzer's "Dive Bomb attack" and Bart's "Bart Missiles." And the way the ships can also "fly" under water in one-time cutscenes is similar as per the pictures.
| A scary monster sneaks up on you from behind | A scary monster sneaks up on you from behind |
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In both works there is a jump scare moment when a scary monster attacks the player from behind, and the monster comes in several forms that look identical but have a different color scheme. In FFVI this is the Behemot King attacking you from behind inside the cave on the Veldt, and during the battle it turns out there are two of them you have to fight in a row. In Xenogears this is Bloody attacking you from behind inside the transport ship attacked by Reapers, with Bloody being the second of a similar fight (Redrum being the first). There is also an optional boss in Solaris were you do fight two of these creatures in the same battle, called Bloody Bros. As with many of these similarities, Takahashi seems to have expanded upon what was originally a very small part or poorly executed idea in FFVI.
| An ancient place is buried beneat the surface | An ancient place is buried beneat the surface |
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In both works an ancient place is buried beneat the surface of the planet, and both can be visited as hidden late game sidequests for some additional powerful items and story told through flashbacks and character narration. In FFVI this is the Ancient Castle from 1000 years ago with Cyan doing the narration, and in Xenogears this is the ancient city Zeboim from 4000 years ago with Fei doing the narration. Both are places destroyed during a great war in the past.
Also, getting a path to open up in FFVI's Ancient Castle requires walking a set number of steps just like in Xenogears' Anima Dungeon 2.
Now, before I move on to comparing the ending of both games, I will just list a few more minor similarities I caught, even if they are not very interesting or noteworthy.
Both works have a late game sidequest that lets you search for an amazing treasure.
Both works have dinosaurs, though the Rankar in Xenogears, while clearly inspired by dinosaurs, is not based on a real dinosaur like the Tyrannosaur and Brachiosaur in FFVI.
Both works have a father that abandons his son because he thinks his son is a "monster." In FFVI Gau's father abandoned Gau and dreamt his son was a monster, and in Xenogears Rico's father show hostility towards Rico and calls him a monster. In both works we are uncertain the father knows they have a son.
Both works have a masked father who sacrifices himself. FFVI has Shadow, who hides his identity from Relm, and Xenogears has Kahn, who hides his identity from Fei.
Both works have the terms "Ouroboros" and "Goetia" show up. But in FFVI these are merely the names of minor enemy monsters without significance, while in Xenogears these are terms related to important parts of the plot and themes.
| Factory-esque final dungeon with hark-backs | Factory-esque final dungeon with hark-backs |
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The final dungeon in both works is a mixture of something new and something we've seen previously: factory-esque dungeons with hark-backs to previous dungeons. In FFVI Kefka's Tower has somehow incorporated both the Floating Continent and the Magitek Research Facility into itself. In Xenogears the Deus dungeon is partly the remains of the Merkabah dungeon and somehow has the facility where Ramsus was born incorporated into it. Both dungeons are labyrinths.
Also, before entering the final dungeon there is a question raised about what might happen to one of the heroines if they succeed. In FFVI, if they defeat the Warring Triad and magic disappears, what will happen to Terra? In Xenogears, if they defeat Deus, what will happen to Elly?
The Warring Triad awaits. Deus awaits.
| Party splits up to fight final support bosses | Party splits up to fight final support bosses |
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Before the final battle, at the center of the final dungeon where the main antagonist dwells, the party splits up when fighting "support bosses" that provide power to the center. In FFVI your party splits up to fight the Warring Triad gods (Archdemon, Fiend, and Goddess) before the final battle, and in Xenogears your party has the option to split up to fight Deus' four support orbs/pillars containing Metatron, Sundel, Marlute, and Harlute.
| A brief debate with the final antagonist | A brief debate with the final antagonist |
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Before the last battle there is a philosophical debate with the main antagonist with dialogue text written across the screen instead of using regular text boxes. The style of the dialogue is at times similar, with the antagonist questioning the futility of human existence while the protagonist defends the human position. In FFVI this is the exchange between Kefka and the protagonists (in particular Terra) before they fight Kefka who has become a god, and in Xenogears this is the exchange between Krelian and Fei in the Path of Sephirot between the two fights with "God" in Xenogears.
The main difference is that, while Krelian has merged with Deus, you do not directly fight him like you do Kefka, and the philosophical debate in Xenogears is a lot more mature and better written. Kefka, as mentioned before, is a rather one-dimensional and stereotypical "evil" character whose characterization is only saved by some comedic elements, while Krelian was done with a lot more nuance, depth and sophistication.
I also noticed that FFVI brings up a theme that has been recurring in both Xenogears and Xenosaga. After defeating the last boss (Ouroborus) Elly says about Krelian: "Even looking back held too many memories... And he would have... just wanted to go back... Even though he couldn't..." Earlier in FFVI, when tracking down Cyan in the World of Ruin, you can read one of his letters that says: "There is a human tendency to become shackled by things past, which leadeth us to squander the time we have left. I implore thee not to let this happen."
While in both FFVI and Xenogears this is a very small theme, very easy to overlook due to being referenced in only one line; this theme of getting trapped in longing for the past has become a bigger theme in Takahashi's works post Xenogears, especially in Xenosaga III, so I thought it worth noting.
| Final boss with a religious motif | Final boss with a religious motif |
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In both works the fight with the final form of the false god boss takes place in a heaven-like space with a religious motif. In FFVI this is the angel-winged final form of Kefka in the heavens, and in Xenogears this is the angel-winged final form of Deus (or Miang) in the path to the higher dimension. As many people have noted, the "false god" thing is a common trope for the final boss in JRPGs, but as with other familiar tropes the execution, detail, depth, and sophistication in Xenogears makes other JRPGs of the time feel poor and immature in comparison. In particular, the genius of Xenogears is placing the story in our universe and explaining things through scientific concepts, not some made up fantasy world with poorly defined laws.
| Power from ages past disappear from the world | Power from ages past disappear from the world |
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In the ending of both works, after the gods have been destroyed, the power from ages past disappear from the world and the protagonists find themselves in a new status quo. In FFVI, after the Warring Triad and Kefka have been destroyed, magic and Espers disappear from the world. In Xenogears, after Deus and Zohar have been destroyed, Ether and the energy source for Gears disappear from the world.
| Ending - the place starts to collapse | Ending - the place starts to collapse |
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In the ending of both works, the place where the final boss is defeated starts to collapse and the protagonists must escape. In FFVI the characters run to escape the collapsing tower, while in Xenogears Fei and Elly run to escape the collapsing dimensional rift.
| Female main falls during escape, is saved | Female main falls during escape, is saved |
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In the ending of both works, the high-ranking female army character and love interest to another main character falls and ends up in peril, but is saved. In FFVI Celes almost falls to her death, but she is saved by Locke who grabs her. In Xenogears Elly trips and falls, Fei runs to grab hold of her, they both fall down, and are then saved by Krelian who teleports them both to safety.
| Using the last remaining strength of power | Using the last remaining power |
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Finally, in the ending of both works, the "Amnesiac" main character uses the last of the remaining power of ages past to help someone out. In FFVI Terra uses the last of her strength to guide the other protagonists out of the collapsing tower, flying through the air in her Esper form before it disappears. In Xenogears Fei uses the last remants of power in his Gear to save Elly and bring her back. Similar to Terra, Fei and Xenogears are the only ones that can fly. Whether or not Xenogears actually runs out of power is unknown, but if Citan's assessment is anything to go by, and if we consider FFVI as an obvious influence by this point, then I say it is quite likely that was the idea. I think that's all for the similarities with FFVI.
Chrono Trigger (1995)
Next we should examine the influence Chrono Trigger had on Xenogears, considering the higher ups at Square suggested Xenogears should be made part of the Chrono Trigger series and was given to the team that had formed to make Chrono Trigger 2 when development began. Xenogears has often been compared to Chrono Trigger, more than to Final Fantasy VI, even though in a late 1997 preview of Xenogears the only influence from Chrono Trigger Tetsuya Takahashi could recall was the "many pastoral things in the village that shows up in Xenogears." I think Chrono Trigger has had a bit more influence on Xenogears than that, but the amount of influence it had on Xenogears has certainly been exaggerated. Final Fantasy VII also has many surface similarities with Chrono Trigger.
| Chrono Trigger - Opening montage | Xenogears - Unused opening montage |
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The first similarity I would point to, apart from sharing some of the same staff (such as scenario writer Masato Kato and music composer Yasunori Mitsuda), is an "anime style" intro to the game with a montage of various cutscenes set to music. While Chrono Trigger does not actually have Anime cutscenes or a vocal song, the intro montage is clearly inspired by TV Anime openings. Xenogears does not use its Anime montage intro, nor its opening vocal song "Stars of Tears" in the finished game (as Takahashi explains in the 20th Anniversary interview), but the montage was planned, the song recorded and released with the official soundtrack, and still images from this montage can been seen in early promotion material of the game.
The point of interest here is whether this style of opening was influenced by the opening montage of Chrono Trigger, or if it was just coincidence. But I leave that up to other Xenogears fans to speculate. I do think it was a good thing that opening montage ended up not being used, and I am actually not a fan of the opening montage in Chrono Trigger either due to its spoilery, trailer-esque nature.
Although not in the intro of Xenogears, someone also said that the swinging Nisan pendant calls to mind the clock in Chrono Trigger's intro, which I suppose could have been a conscious or subconscious influence as well. And the pendant of an important woman do appear in the story of both works, with Schala's pendant in Chrono Trigger being passed down the generations similar to Sophia's pendant in Xenogears that had importance to everyone in her faith, including Fei's mother Karen.
| Pastoral village and festivities | Pastoral village and festivities |
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So about the "many pastoral things in the village" Takahashi refers to, I assume he is talking about the agricultural small town style of Lahan village at the start of Xenogears with that of Leene's Square at the start of Chrono Trigger, though I actually think that the Aveh festival in Bledavik is more similar to Leene's Square than Lahan village. While Lahan is preparing for wedding festivities, and Mitsuda's musical composition has some similarities, it is not nearly as similar to the Millennial Fair in Chrono Trigger as the Aveh festival and tournament is in Xenogears. Maybe Takahashi did not realize what the staff was doing, but I have little doubt they pulled from Chrono Trigger when they came up with and developed the Aveh festival setting.
Lahan Village, and Fei subsequently being banned from the village, actually reminded me more of Potos Village from Secret of Mana than Leene's Square in Chrono Trigger. And I have reason to believe Takahashi was familiar with and has been influenced also by Secret of Mana given that he apparently sought out Hiromichi Tanaka (most famous for the Mana series at the time) to help him develop Xenogears, as well as the many similarities between Secret of Mana and Xenoblade Chronicles.
| Eccentric inventor character | Eccentric inventor character |
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A secondary main character in both works belong to the archetype or trope of eccentric scientist, inventor, or engineer, who serves the role of clarifying and explaining concepts and other things to the main character. In Chrono Trigger this is Lucca and in Xenogears this is Citan, though I doubt this was an intentional influence since Tetsuya Nomura came up with the original idea for Citan as an "Asian, tactician" type character, and early in the script Citan also mirrors Locke from FFVI in that he plays the role of a guardian or protector to the "amnesiac" main character. Still, since neither the influence from Nomura nor Locke necessarily implies an inventor, it is possible that this particular detail was inspired by Lucca and her father.
I also noticed that Chrono Trigger seemed to have an apparent reference to Super Dimension Fortress Macross when Lucca refers to her telepod invention as a "Super Dimension Warp." Xenogears famously also references Super Dimension Fortress Macross with the "Super Dimensional Gear Yggdrasil IV." However, in the more accurate DS script of Chrono Trigger the telepod is referred to as a "hyperdimensional transporter," so I assume that in the original Japanese this was not actually a reference to Macross.
A similarity between the character Marle from Chrono Trigger and Bart from Xenogears has also been pointed out, due to both being "rogue royalty" characters. However, I think this is coincidence and not even a subconscious influence given that both Edgar and Sabin from Final Fantasy VI and Faris from FFV are clearly the influences behind Bart. Beyond the "rogue royalty" element there is no other similarity between Marle and Bart, and, as I have stated previously, I need at least two similarities to take something seriously as a potential influence. And preferably those two similarities should not just involve a color or the first letter of a name.
On the gameplay side, I noticed that in Chrono Trigger the characters follow behind you on field maps like in Xenogears instead of merging into one main character like in FFVI or FFVII. However, gameplay similarities is of less interest to us here where we are mainly concerned with story influences.
| Prison, sewer, and boss on a bridge | Prison, sewer, and boss on a bridge |
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A bunch of minor similarities that can be lumped together is the presence of a prison break subplot, a boss battle on a bridge, and a "mini-dungeon" in a sewer in both works. However, besides these basic concepts, they are ultimately not that similar in their execution. Since each of these only constitute one similarity, I do not think they had much of an influence on Xenogears, and if they did it is not very interesting.
The future world of 2300 AD in Chrono Trigger does have a lot of genetically engineered monsters which is something similar to Xenogears, and may have added to that concept in the developers mind. Though apparently the future in Chrono Trigger is a homage to Phantasy Star II which also had genetically engineered monsters, so perhaps that RPG also had an influence on Takahashi. Phantasy Star II, for example, is a science fiction RPG that used Western real world names (such as Rudger Steiner, Hugh Thompson, and Anna Zirski) and was a forerunner for epic, dramatic, character-driven storylines dealing with serious themes and subject matter in role-playing video games as early as 1989. It also used names Takahashi himself has used, such as "Noah," for a spaceship carrying the main antagonist who is a female A.I.
Other minor similarities between Chrono Trigger and Xenogears, often related to gameplay in both works, are puzzles you need to memorize, and the presence of conveyor belts in factories (Chrono Trigger also has conveyor belts in Magus' castle).
| An alien destroyer of worlds | An "alien" destroyer of worlds |
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Now we get to the big one, the part of the stories that make people argue the works are similar, to the point that some people back in the day used to refer to Xenogears as a "spiritual successor" to Chrono Trigger. The person who wrote the most in-depth and comprehensive review and analysis of Xenogears prior to this study guide, a person named Paul Eres, even went as far as to refer to Chrono Trigger as an early "first draft" of Xenogears. When I first created the study guide his review and analysis was still up on the internet, which is why quotes from him sometimes still appear in my articles. And I will quote him here as well:
"I should first draw attention to how similar this plot setup is to the idea of Lavos in Chrono Trigger (which was an earlier game by many of those on the Xenogears game design team). The plot of Chrono Trigger can be looked at as an early 'first draft' of the plot of Xenogears, with the similar but not identical idea of an alien monster that lands on a planet, advances that planet's civlization, feeds off of it, creates children, and then destroys the planet. Civilization in Chrono Trigger, as here, was created and intended to prosper for the sake of some giant thing almost beyond human comprehension. The plot of the game in Chrono Trigger, as here, involved freeing humanity from its enslavement by a world-owning creature. There were other minor simularities between the games as well, even to the extent of repeated character archetypes (the Three Wise Men who are masters of technology, a blue-haired semi-villain which is more on your side than you thought), locations (cf. Shevat and Enhansa), and situations (losing and regaining the main character). Also, they both had cuts: both were originally planned to be much more than they finally were.
"The differences between these games are also worth looking at: Xenogears is longer (about three times as long), involves eternal recurrance instead of time travel, has a more serious atmosphere (the characters despite being of comparable ages are much more mature in Xenogears), and is more essentialized (has less extraneous elements, is more focused) and thus more pleasing aesthetically. The main difference between Deus and Lavos is also important: Deus created humanity goals, whereas Lavos just parasites off of it and influences its development for its goals.
"I do think that understanding one does help in understanding the other (this is why I intend to review one after the other), this is true of any two stories written by the same author but especially true when the two stories are plot-cousins as these two are. So for best effect study both this game and Chrono Trigger."
- Paul Eres, Xenogears 4-Part First edition review, (2003)
Even though fans of Xenogears have made less comparisons with Chrono Trigger in later years, this old quote illustrates how Western fans used to view the game's influences before more and more information about its development came to light. The idea that Chrono Trigger can be viewed as something like an early draft for Xenogears seems silly today, as even Final Fantasy VI would be more appropriate to call an early draft of Xenogears.
But I preserve this excerpt from Eres since the psychology involved is still being reflected in today's Xeno- fans, who will often say that Xenoblade Chronicles is a "spiritual successor," an "easier-to-understand Xenogears," that Xenogears is something like a first draft or early prototype of the Xenoblade Chronicles series, and that for best effect fans should study both. But this notion is just as silly today as it was back then, even with the meandering references in the latter series of games. Or should we start saying that Xenoblade Chronicles is a twice removed "spiritual successor" to Final Fantasy VI and Chrono Trigger that also, for best effect, are worth studying along with the Xeno- games? Because, technically, you could also make that case. At some point the term "spiritual successor" stops having any relevant meaning, and I still think that phrase only works best for Xenosaga in relation to Xenogears, but none of the other titles. I would argue the first Xenoblade Chronicles is more a spiritual successor to Secret of Mana than to Xenogears.
I will address some of Eres' other comparisons further down, but in regards to Lavos as an influence on Deus, I do not think Lavos influenced the concept of Deus more than the Warring Triad from Final Fantasy VI, the Devil Gundam from Mobile Fighter G Gundam, the lore about the living weapon "The Evil" from Macross 7, or Mother Brain from Phantasy Star II. In fact, and as I speculated during the Final Fantasy VI section of this article, I think the Warring Triad concept also planted the seed for the idea of Lavos in Chrono Trigger and that the similarities between it and Deus has a lot to do with a shared influence. Each new Square game used to build upon ideas from its direct predecessor, and, after the more industrial, technological style of Final Fantasy VI, several of their games started to become more sci-fi. This included Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy VII, and Xenogears; all three of which involve a parasitic alien threat that crash-lands on a planet in prehistoric times, uses its powers to genetically alter and control human beings across history while acquiring energy resources to prepare for the next journey, and is unsealed over the course of the narrative with the party fighting it across multiple transformations to prevent it from annihilating the planet. And Takahashi was involved in all three of these works at different stages.
Eres acknowledges what makes Lavos and Deus different, so I will not repeat it here. I would just add that Lavos is more alien to the humans in Chrono Trigger than Deus is to humans in Xenogears, since humans directly came from Deus and are also related to its creators. The timeline on the planet in Chrono Trigger also stretches far longer than 10,000 years and with humans already existing before Lavos' arrival. Still, some aspects of how Deus was implemented - the way its nature influences civilizations, sleeping underground, controlling evolution for its own purpose - could have had some influence from Lavos. I would also point out two other things that are similar. First, both games have post-apocalyptic settings in the wake of destroyed civilizations; and "The Day of Lavos" sounds similar to "Days of Collapse," possibly being a reflection of Masato Kato's contributions to the script. Secondly, both Lavos and Deus take possession of a female human to act as its representative, since both actual entities are completely silent in their respective game.
| Female character working on behalf of Lavos | Female character working on behalf of Deus |
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I am talking about Queen Zeal from Chrono Trigger and Miang from Xenogears, whom are both female characters with blue-ish hair that acts as representatives of the big bad in their respective game. Possibly there was some influence here since none of the other influences for Deus involved a possessed female representative. An antagonist possessing bodies of others was present in Secret of Mana, but that character, Thanatos, seems more like an influence on Grahf, since he was a male character with a horned helmet actively looking for a suitable host. Miang is random and has no choice. In particlar, I think the part where it is said that Queen Zeal changed "almost completely over night" when the Mammon Machine was finished is similar, and also when her son, Janus, claims "She's NOT our mother! She looks like mother, but inside she has changed." This part seems too similar to Fei's experience with his mother Karen to be a coincidence.
Another somewhat similar part is Queen Zeal saying "You'll be one with the Omen, Lavos...and me!" and Miang saying "as a reward, I'll allow you to be assimilated into Deus along with this girl..." which would also involve becoming one with Miang. And similar to the Gazel Ministry in Xenogears, Queen Zeal says "I plan to live with Lavos, and control the universe forever."
These many similarities between Xenogears and various Square games makes me wonder if Takahashi was trying to implement and improve upon ideas from all of Square's classics (not just Final Fantasy) so that his game would be the best (which it is), and why some gamers have referred to Xenogears as the ultimate amalgamation of JRPG tropes. It also explains why many long time JRPG fans originally had difficulty getting into Xenogears since so many things looked familiar at first glance and I guess they were getting tired of it. But for those of us who pretty much started with Xenogears it feels like the other way around. At least in my case, I have a hard time getting into the story of earlier Square titles since most of their tropes and ideas were done much better in Xenogears.
The main difference between Queen Zeal and Miang however, especially in how it relates to Lavos and Deus, is that Deus actually is a female consciousness/A.I. with a female main body it ultimately needs to get back to, while Lavos remains otherworldly and beast-like with Zeal mainly behaving as if she is drunk on Lavos' power. In fact, and related to tropes being done better in Xenogears, I was frustrated with the final confrontation in Chrono Trigger since the core of Lavos seemed to reveal that Lavos was not a mere beast but an artificial creation operated by a human-sized alien in a space suit. I wanted to learn more about Lavos at that point but there was nothing. Queen Zeal, the nature of her personality change, and her ultimate end was also a bit disappointing since nothing about her was really explored and instead she was just written as another one-dimensional bad guy who disappears with no follow up. I guess Miang was not done much better in that regard, but at least Miang had a lot of mystery to her that would likely have been explored in prequels and she and her relation to Deus was explained in more detail.
| Three Wise Men who are masters of technology | Three Wise Men who are masters of technology |
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Another similarity Eres and others have pointed out between Chrono Trigger and Xenogears is the presence of three sages who are masters of technology and originated from an advanced country floating above the clouds which is run by a queen with a name that starts with a "Z." This is most likely the influence of Masato Kato's contributions to the story, since he specifically wrote Shevat and probably the sages. Because of this I am unsure this similarity should even be called an influence rather than a callback, easter egg, or reference, since the same man came up with both ideas. That is also why I am not including the presence of Lucca in Lahan Village at the beginning of Xenogears as an "influence" since that is clearly a cameo reference from Chrono Trigger that Masato Kato put in there.
It is kind of fitting that the three Gurus of Life, Time, and Reason in Chrono Trigger, named Hasshu, Bosshu and Gasshu in the original Japanese version, were changed to Belthasar, Gaspar, and Melchior in the English localization. With those names later actually being used for the Shevat sages in Xenogears, it makes the similarity even more explicit. But the clear Chrono Trigger reference also contributed further to the assumption that Masato Kato was the man behind the scenario for Xenogears, when in fact the scenario is overall more similar to Final Fantasy VI.
| Advanced sky city, Kingdom of Zeal | Advanced sky cities, Shevat and Solaris |
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Not only is the floating country Shevat in Xenogears influenced by Chrono Trigger's Eternal Kingdom of Zeal from Chrono Trigger, but I think some aspects of The Holy Empire of Solaris is as well. It is worth remembering, however, that Takahashi came up with the original concept for Solaris around the same time Chrono Trigger was being developed, when he was working on ideas for Final Fantasy VII, so I don't think the Eternal Kingdom of Zeal served as the main influence. But one aspect that is quite similar, is the sense of decadent superiority the citizens of both countries have towards more primitive humans on the surface; referred to as "Earthbound Ones" in Chrono Trigger and "Surface Dwellers" in Xenogears. "Those lacking magic have always lived beneath the clouds, as the 'Earthbound Ones.' After all, they lack what we have..."
The advanced technology, the blissful ignorance, the evil leader, the attachment to Lavos, and the downfall, all resembles the Holy Empire of Solaris enough that I would be surprised if the Kingdom of Zeal did not serve as an influence. I would say this similarity is actually stronger than the one between Lavos and Deus. Experiments with magic done for the queen is also similar to experiments with people's innate ether abilities in Xenogears, although that concept already has an earlier predecessor in FFVI that Xenogears more likely borrowed from. In fact, the concept of people in ancient times abusing their power until magic was banned to use except for wizards is similar to FFVI and further suggests that Chrono Trigger also borrowed from that game. And like the cult of Kefka in FFVI there is a cult of descendants of mystics around the memory of Magus in Chrono Trigger.
| A blue-haired semi-villain | "A blue-haired semi-villain" |
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The next similarity Eres points out is "a blue-haired semi-villain which is more on your side than you thought," obviously referring to Magus in Chrono Trigger who at first seems to be behind the emergence of Lavos but is later revealed to be trying to kill it, and Krelian in Xenogears who is working to resurrect Deus but secretly has a different plan going against some of the bad guys himself. But I think this similarity is a bit of a reach since Krelian, while he started out as a past-life comrade to the main characters and saves them at the end, never outright turns against Deus but instead puts it to a different use in the pursuit of goals that are nothing like Magus' attempt at revenge and search for his sister. Even the blue hair thing is a bit of a stretch since Krelian only had blue hair in the past, but maybe they were trying to combine influences from both Kefka and Magus. We know that Karellen from Childhood's End and most likely also bits of Kefka from FFVI had an influence on Krelian, so Magus seems like a distant third influence at best.
However, I am not going to completely dismiss this possible link since the way Magus, for a part of the narrative, makes himself useful to Queen Zeal (the evil leader of a corrupt elite nation above the clouds and the representative of Lavos) while having his own secret agenda and rogue aims, is quite similar to the way Krelian has made himself useful to Miang (the representative of Deus) and the leaders of Solaris while secretly doing his own rogue things. But that is the only thing I think is worth mentioning as a connection, since Krelian is not an option to join your party like Magus is, and as a villain you also never directly fight Krelian like you do Magus. At best, and vaguely, I guess there is also a bit of a similarity in the way Magus transformed and deformed Glenn's body into a human frog with the way Krelian transform people into grotesque mutations as part of his work for Solaris, but that is also stretching it.
| Losing and regaining the main character | Losing and regaining the main character |
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The last similarity Eres mentions is that of losing and regaining the main character, which also happens in FFVII. But since losing and regaining a main character already happened in FFVI (which I think is the more logical influence) I do not think Crono was the basis for what happens to Fei. The only similarity is that you lose Fei (the second time) in front of Deus awakening similar to how you lose Crono in front of Lavos awakening. But the main character in Chrono Trigger differs from Terra, Cloud, and Fei in that he actually dies when you lose him. The original plan was not even to regain Crono, but through time travel temporarily recruit an earlier version of him to finish the quest. More importantly, Crono is a silent protagonist, which certainly did not influence Xenogears, though it may have influenced the original idea for Xenoblade Chronicles where they considered using a silent protagonist.
| Energy modification machine | Phenomenon modification engine |
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Another similarity I have heard mentioned is that between Chrono Trigger's Mammon Machine (Demon Machine in Japanese) and the Zohar in Xenogears, but that is another similarity I mostly disagree with. The Mammon Machine draws and magnifies the "infinite power of Lavos" whereas the Zohar is the source of "infinite power" in Xenogears that Deus and Slave Generators in Gears draw from. The Zohar is also not a boss that you fight, like the Mammon Machine. If anything, I would say the Mammon Machine more resembles a Gear or other Zohar-powered machines and "God Machines," so there might be some influence there. The only direct similarity with the Zohar would be the in-battle quote "Mammon M. modifies all energy..." which sounds a bit like the Zohar's phenomenon modification abilities, but I do not know how accurate the translation is. Also, the word "Ether" is sometimes used for magic in Chrono Trigger, though not always like in Xenogears.
The Ocean Palace and Black Omen in Chrono Trigger also resembles Mahanon and the Merkabah in Xenogears a little, especially the floating Black Omen. However, I think this kind of advanced technological end game fortress already had a bit of a tradition going back to the floating Mana Fortress in Secret of Mana, so I don't think the Black Omen was necessarily the influence.
| Huge aeroplane "Blackbird" | Huge aeroplane "Goliath" |
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The last similarity I have heard people bring up is the one between Chrono Trigger's great aeroplane "Blackbird" and Xenogears' "Goliath" ship. I agree that this seems like an influence, given that both the Blackbird and the Goliath are similar looking aeroplane ships that get shot down by a smaller vessel over the ocean, and the sneaking vents (and being able to look down vents on the field map in Kislev underground just like on the Blackbird) are similar in both works.
I also found a few more similarities on my own that I have not seen anyone else bring up, though they are not very big and I am unsure they served as an influence. But I figure I should mention them anyway.
| Annihilation event and the end | Annihilation event and the beginning |
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I noticed that the ending in 1999 AD if you lose to Lavos in Chrono Trigger resembles a little bit the opening of Xenogears, with the flashing monitors, the Director (in the former) and the Captain (in the latter) accepting their end as they tell their crew to evacuate, and finally an external view of the planet as thousands of people die due to Lavos and Deus. The main difference being that this is one of the many ending sequences in Chrono Trigger while it is the opening sequence in Xenogears. A bit of influence from Chrono Trigger here seems likely to me.
Another minor similarity is the way Masa and Mune in Chrono Trigger combine and become one, which brings to mind a little bit the theme of how two people can become one in Xenogears. But I think this might be a coincidence since Masa and Mune are merely two identical magical creatures that literally combine to become a mythical sword (the Masamune), whereas the theme of becoming one in Xenogears emphasized complementary differences (foreign things becoming one) and was therefore more likely influenced by Super Dimension Fortress Macross and the human-Esper love story in FFVI.
I also noticed that the word "Aeon" appears in Chrono Trigger, in late game armor equipments such as "Aeon suit" and "Aeon helm." Seraph Angels in Xenogears were called Aeons in Japanese. Aeon is a Gnostic term for a type of angels. While unlikely to be an influence, it does show, just as in the case of several minor enemies in FFVI having names like "Ouroborus" and "Goetia," that Japanese RPG developers are generally familiar with Gnosticism and Western occultism, possibly as a result of research done on Western traditions of magic to find ideas and inspirations for their Western inspired fantasy worlds.
The name of the magician, Nolstein Bekkler, in Chrono Trigger made me think of the name Kahran Bekker, the boy whose identity Ramus originally stole as mentioned only in Xenogears: Perfect Works.
The Dust chute in Chrono Trigger's Geno Dome made me think of the Dust chute in Xenogears' Etrenank 3rd Class Area.
Probably as a reflection of Masato Kato's contributions to the script in Xenogears, especially the Shevat portion, the words "fear," "sorrow," and "hatred" are used by some NPCs in the Eternal Kingdom of Zeal: "The completion of the Ocean Palace will allow Zeal to last forever! And there will be no fear or sadness, just eternal peace." And: "The prophet's aura is full of hatred and sorrow." Unfortunately, I think this means these same words from the NPCs in Shevat are coincidental, merely part of Kato's writing style, and probably not reliable as a potential key to figure out the main themes (or origins of the main themes) for Xenogears' three main story arcs, even though a theme of Xenogears was indeed "sadness" and later the Xenosaga trilogy had "fear." I suppose it is not impossible that Masato Kato suggested the main theme or themes, but somehow I doubt it.
And the last similarity I found in Chrono Trigger that reminds me of something in Xenogears is when Mother Brain, a boss influenced by the main antagonist from Phantasy Star II, says: "Listen well, humans. Lavos's children will one day have to leave to seek new planets, and prey. This world COULD sustain them...if humans were not around... We robots will create a new order... A nation of steel, and pure logic." The idea that robots - creations made of steel - should replace humans, reminds me of Nikolai's speech during the attack on Shevat. Though rather than serving as an influence, this might just be another facet of Masato Kato's style of writing.
Overall I had some issues playing through Chrono Trigger this second time, and I found the battles to be far less enjoyable than those in Xenogears. Not so much because the battle system is badly designed, but because the enemies and especially the bosses are. They take forever to beat, even when they are not difficult. I am surprised Chrono Trigger does not get more criticism in the game play department since I also found traversing Death Peak with the wind to be far more annoying than traversing Babel Tower in Xenogears, and I cannot fathom why we don't hear an equal amount of complaints about it. Back when I first beat it I must have used save states or something because this time I did it legit and fell down at least ten times and having to do repeat enemy encounters over and over before I finally made it through. I never had that kind of problem with Babel Tower in Xenogears, even on my first time through the game.
Secret of Mana (1993)
I am not the only person who have noticed the similarity between Square's Mana series and MonolithSoft's Xenoblade Chronicles series, especially the first two entries, and, as I brought up in the previous Chrono Trigger section, there is reason to believe Takahashi was familiar with Secret of Mana since he sought out Hiromichi Tanaka (Writer, Designer, and Producer of Secret of Mana) to help him develop Xenogears.
Secret of Mana appears to have been the first Square game that started to lean into science fiction and technological settings, even using the "Earth All Along" trope that Takahashi started reusing in Xenoblade Chronicles. After Secret of Mana in 1993 there was a gradual increase in high tech settings from Final Fantasy VI in 1994 to Chrono Trigger in 1995, Final Fantasy VII in 1997, and finally Xenogears in 1998 being the most sci-fi of them all. It is, however, easy to overlook Secret of Mana for Xeno- fans since neither Tetsuya Takahashi nor Soraya Saga were directly involved with that game. But as Square employees and RPG fans they no doubt played it, and unused features in this title had been appropriated by the Chrono Trigger team (which Takahashi was a part of). Secret of Mana was also a huge hit for Square.
While the similarities between Secret of Mana and Xenogears are not as many as between Secret of Mana and Xenoblade Chronicles, there are a few similarities that may have served as an influence on Takahashi's first game.
| Orphan protagonist banned from home | Orphan protagonist banned from home |
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Both Secret of Mana and Xenogears begins with an orphaned main protagonist living in a happy small town village with friends before coming across a mysterious weapon linked to powers from ages past that invites destruction upon the village. Afterwards, the young protagonist, who had been taken in by the village elder, is banned from the village. In Secret of Mana this is protagonist Randi being banned from Potos village, and in Xenogears this is Fei Wong being banned from (what's left of) Lahan village. Years prior, Randi's mother and Fei's father had brought them to their respective village before disappearing. While the weapon they come across are quite different (a sword in Secret of Mana and a giant humanoid robot in Xenogears), both are devices that serve as a similar plot trigger to force an adventure upon the hero.
There is also a vision and a bit of mystery and foreshadowing involved when the protagonist comes across the weapon that will set them on their journey: Randi sees a ghost of someone, and Fei sees a vision of his past self. And friends from the village turn on the protagonist with aggression, particularly one of the kids: Elliott in Secret of Mana and Dan in Xenogears. Also, one of the friends in both games is named Timothy, though it seems Secret of Mana's Timothy was called Ness in the original Japanese version. The amnesia trope also shows up in Secret of Mana, with the Sprite character that does not remember anything about its past and joins the team to try to recover its memories.
| Sword gets fixed in underground caves | Gear gets fixed in underground caves |
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Early on in both games, the protagonist finds himself in underground caverns and gets help fixing his "weapon" by a master that resides in this location. In Secret of Mana Randi gets his sword fixed by a dwarf blacksmith, and in Xenogears Fei and Bart get their Gears fixed by one of the Shevat sages. This one could be coincidence but, who knows. Subconscious influence perhaps.
| Antagonist needs a suitable body to possess | Antagonist needs a suitable body to possess |
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In both games, a main villain in a horned helmet - who has existed for hundreds of years - is in need of a suitable body to possess. In Secret of Mana this is the dark sorcerer Thanatos, and in Xenogears this is Grahf, the "dark lord." One can also draw a parallel between Thanatos and Miang, especially considering how the plot twist related to this plays out (as I will examine further down). Both Thanatos and Grahf feed on hatred and destruction and lives on in spirit by taking over mortals as their vessels. The main difference is that Grahf is directly connected to the main character as an additional layer to his psychology and thus needs his body as the ultimate host, while Thanatos is another one-dimensional antagonist who is merely looking for a host that can withstand his evil without crumbling to dust.
Antagonist Thanatos from Secret of Mana is also slightly similar to antagonist Krelian from Xenogears in that they both double-cross the evil empire's Emperor and his henchmen, killing them and seizing control of the "Fortress" the evil empire has been trying to revive, then making use of it themselves. The main difference is that Krelian kills Emperor Cain indirectly (through the use of Ramsus) and the Emperor's henchmen (the Gazel Ministry) are no longer really his henchmen when they get taken out. The Merkava fortress is also not revived like the Mana Fortress is, though it is based on revived technology, designs, and the revival of something else (Deus).
| Sunken continent connecting to our Earth | Sunken continents connecting to our Earth |
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The most interesting similarity between Secret of Mana and Xenogears is the way both games connect their in-universe worlds to our real Earth, and both games do this through lost, sunken "continents" that connects to an ancient past of advanced technology. In Secret of Mana this is the "Lost Continent" (localized as "Sunken continent") and in Xenogears this is the submerged continent that belonged to the Zeboim civilization as well as the central hull of a titanic spacecraft known as "Mahanon" that is also referred to as a "continent." The Lost Continent and Deus within Mahanon are both referred to as sleeping beneath the ocean and then rise from it.
So both games are set in our distant future, and in the aftermath of one or more disasters, featuring lost continents beneath the ocean. The main difference is that Secret of Mana actually takes place on future Earth, which has somehow transformed into a magical fantasy-esque world, with an important world tree, in the aftermath of some disaster, thus making it more similar to the Xenoblade Chronicles series of games; while Xenogears takes place on a whole different planet somewhere out in the vast universe but connects to Earth history through remnants of a titanic colony ship that has preserved records of Earth's civilization, as well as a later civilization on this planet that revived some of our Earth's customs (such as Christmas Trees and New Year celebrations).
Both games even include ancient recording devices that provide fragments of information from these ancient civilizations. Video recordings in Zeboim ruins from news channels show a similar political system as our Earth, complete with a Prime Minister, and while Secret of Mana merely has ancient audio devices, they are actually called "Veedios" and include references to the game show Jeopardy, Abraham Lincoln, and country music. Also, both games have an ancient subway station you can walk through that is meant to evoke the style (and remnant) of our civilization's contemporary subway systems.
It would be absurd to regard this as a mere coincidence so I would definitely say it is an influence much in the same vein as many of the Final Fantasy VI and Chrono Trigger influences. Especially as this influence continued all the way into Xenoblade Chronicles, which returned to borrow some more things from Secret of Mana and was possibly meant to be MonolithSoft's answer to Square's Mana-series along with Soma Bringer.
| A loved one's body is "hijacked" in fortress | A loved one's body is "hijacked" in fortress |
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Both Secret of Mana and Xenogears have a similar plot twist scene towards the end of the narrative where the body of a character who is dear to a protagonist is unexpectedly revealed to have been possessed by a "body jumping" antagonist after this antagonist's seeming defeat, and in both games this takes place in the "revived" fortress. In Secret of Mana this is Primm's love interest Dyluck being possessed by Thanatos inside the Mana Fortress, and in Xenogears this is Fei's love interest Elhaym being possessed by Miang inside the Merkava fortress.
A similarity can also be drawn between Thanatos' possession of Dyluck and Grahf's possession of Fei's father Kahn, since Kahn makes a similar sacrifice as Dyluck in the end, but since this does not take place inside a fortress I think the Elhaym possession is more similar.
And that's the main similarities between Secret of Mana and Xenogears, apart from some other generalities like having an advanced civilization be the bad ones, trying to control the world. Personally I do not like Secret of Mana and I am surprised so many people hold it up as their favorite game to this day. This is a game where as a means of transportation you are shot out of a cannon barrel like in some children's cartoon, there are mushroom people straight out of Super Mario Bros., some of the village music will give any normal person a headache, the real-time battles will still freeze you in place so you can never avoid getting hit when bosses do magic spells, and your other party members will get themselves constantly stuck and killed on normal enemies due to the clunky AI. It is one of the less enjoyable games I have played and yet reviewers have compared the story to Lord of the Rings, said it had "some of the best music ever heard from a cartridge" and "the best combat system ever designed." Incomprehensible. There may be more similarities between Secret of Mana and Xenogears but I could barely make it through one fourth of the game before I simply had to drop it and skim the rest of the generic story on YouTube.
Phantasy Star II (1989)
I have not played Phantasy Star II, nor have I watched a full playthrough on YouTube, so I cannot say much about it. But knowing this game had an influence on and was referenced in Chrono Trigger, I read up on it a bit on various Wiki sites. The following are some things that sounds similar to Xenogears and may have served as an influence also on that game, not just Chrono Trigger.
Just like in Xenogears, the story of Phantasy Star II is set on an alien planet in our distant future, with the main antagonist being a system created to subjugate the people on this planet by design of humans from Earth who long ago had to migrate from their place of origin. The main difference is that this alien planet in Phantasy Star II already had a native population when humans found it while in Xenogears the population on the alien planet are creations of the system.
| Female A.I. antagonist created by humans | Female Bio-A.I. antagonist created by humans |
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Just like in Xenogears, this antagonistic system is a female artificial intelligence who can improve conditions on the new planet and make it more suitable for human life, similar to terraforming. Although little of the terraforming idea remains in the final version of Xenogears, the Deus system is first activated near a planet that is undergoing terraforming, and Soraya Saga, who came up with Deus, referred to the original concept as a "Terraforming weapon out of control" in one of her older website CVs.
In Phantasy Star II this female A.I. system makes use of an incident to ban all space travel and manages to cut off contact between planets. In Xenogears, after an incident involving the Deus system, the planet it crashes onto remains mysteriously isolated from other planets for 10,000 years. It is possible the Deus "accident" somehow facilitated the breakdown of interstellar space travel and galaxy wide communication, and that Phantasy Star II may have served as an inspiration for this. But this is just conjecture.
The spaceship that migrated humans from Earth is called Noah in Phantasy Star II. "Project Noah" was an early development codename for Xenogears, and is also the name of antagonist Krelian's plan to save human beings in Xenogears. Both the spaceship Noah in Phantasy Star II and the spaceship Merkava (Deus) that serves as Krelian's Ark Plan "Project Noah" in Xenogears serves as the final dungeon in their respective game.
The antagonistic female artificial intelligence in both works - Mother Brain in Phantasy Star II and Original Mother Elhaym/Miang in Xenogears - are often depicted as naked humanoid women with long hair. The main difference is that Original Elhaym/Miang is predominantly organic rather than mechanical or virtual.
The concept of cryogenic sleep shows up in both Phantasy Star II and Xenogears, though not in a particularly significant way. Genetically modified monsters also appear in both works.
Street Fighter II (1991)
The character Blanka from Capcom's famous fighting game Street Fighter II inspired the design of the character Ricardo Banderas in Xenogears. This is a confirmed influence, stated in the interview with Kunihiko Tanaka from the Xenogears 20th Anniversary Concert Interviews.
| Blanka | Rico Banderas |
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Street Figher II was a game I had as a kid and enjoyed a lot, though these days it feels a little slow compared to later fighting games. Still, the slowness adds a dynamic feel to it. While I did notice that Rico looked like Blanka, I thought the similarity may have been a genuine coincidence or subconscious influence. Kind of funny that Takahashi also played this fighting game a lot and was a huge fan.
Back to Works that influenced Xenogears.
