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==Development== ''Xenogears'' was produced by [[Hiromichi Tanaka]], who previously worked on the [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System|SNES]] game ''[[Secret of Mana]]''. The scenario of the game was written by director [[Tetsuya Takahashi]] and by [[Soraya Saga|Kaori Tanaka]].<ref name="Credits">{{cite video game |title=Xenogears |developer=[[Square (video game company)|Square]] |publisher=Square |date=1998-02-11 |language=ja |scene=staff credits}}</ref><ref name="soraya" /> [[Yasuyuki Honne]] served as art director,<ref name="firstlook"/> while [[Kunihiko Tanaka]] was responsible for the character designs.<ref name="credits">{{cite book |editor=Square Enix |title=Xenosaga Instruction Booklet |year=1998 |publisher=Square Enix |page=36}}</ref> Tetsuo Mizuno, [[Tomoyuki Takechi]], and ''[[Final Fantasy]]'' creator [[Hironobu Sakaguchi]] were executive producers for ''Xenogears''.<ref name="credits"/> [[Koichi Mashimo]], an animation director and his studio [[Bee Train]], was in charge of the anime cut scenes.<ref>{{cite web| publisher=[[Square Enix]]| title=Xenogears Anime| url=http://na.square-enix.com/games/xenogears/anime.html| access-date=2008-08-17| url-status=live| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080930234300/http://na.square-enix.com/games/xenogears/anime.html| archive-date=2008-09-30}}</ref> The CGI sequences were created by [[Shirogumi]].<ref name="Credits"/> ''Xenogears'' started out as an early concept conceived by Takahashi and Tanaka for the Square game ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]''.<ref name="soraya">{{cite web |url=http://www.siliconera.com/2010/06/11/soraya-saga-on-xenogears-and-xenosaga/ |title=Soraya Saga On Xenogears And Xenosaga |author=Yip, Spencer |date=2010-06-11 |access-date=2011-05-27 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222161735/http://www.siliconera.com/2010/06/11/soraya-saga-on-xenogears-and-xenosaga/ |archive-date=2015-12-22 }}</ref> Their superior in the company deemed it "too dark and complicated for a fantasy", but Takahashi was allowed to develop it as a separate project.<ref name="soraya" /> The project began under the working title "Project Noah".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.playonline.com/archives/psgame/Xenogears/staff.html|title=Xenogears - Inside Staff|language=ja|publisher=Xenogears Japanese website|date=2002|access-date=2015-12-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011113231926/http://www.playonline.com/archives/psgame/Xenogears/staff.html |archive-date=2001-11-13|url-status=dead}}</ref> The main impetus for Takahashi was that he was growing frustrated with the ''Final Fantasy'' series.<ref name="CreatorInterview"/> The initial concept was to make ''Xenogears'' a sequel to ''Chrono Trigger'', but after multiple clashes with the company over this and unspecified practical difficulties, it was decided to make it a completely original title. Due to this initial development idea, there were concepts unsuited for a fantasy world, so a compromise was made by incorporating both fantasy and science fiction into the game's world.<ref name="CreatorInterview">{{cite web|url=http://www.playstation.jp/psstyle/talk/02/01.html|title=Creator's Talk - Tetsuya Takahashi|language=ja|publisher=[[Sony]]|date=2002|access-date=2015-12-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050205173819/http://www.playstation.jp/psstyle/talk/02/01.html |archive-date=2005-02-05|url-status=dead}}</ref> Development took approximately two years, and included a staff of thirty developers. Preliminary planning and creation of the backstory extended to several years before that.<ref name="CreatorInterview"/><ref name="XenoPerfect2">{{cite book |title=Xenogears Perfect Works |publisher=Digital Cube |isbn=4-9250-7532-2|language=ja |pages=288–294|year=1998}}</ref> The word "Xeno" had been decided between staff from an early stage, with its meaning being "something strange or alien". "Gears" was chosen from multiple suggested words. The game's Gears were not present during early stages, with their places being filled by traditional summoned monsters. The game's use of anime cutscenes was chosen as it was difficult to properly recreate Tanaka's Gear artwork into 3D CGI. The game's engine was also designed to be best suited for the 3D map displays and battle arenas.<ref>{{cite magazine|script-title=ja:『ゼノギアス』を作った男たち - Interview with Xenogears Staff|trans-title=The Men who made "Xenogears" - Interview with Xenogears Staff|magazine=[[Famitsu|Famitsu PS]]|issue=1998–02–20|pages=109–111|publisher=[[Enterbrain]]|language=ja}}</ref> Takahashi had wanted to create the game in full 3D, but the PlayStation's capacities meant this could not be managed, resulting in the current mesh of 2D sprites against 3D backgrounds.<ref name="CreatorInterview"/> The themes and story were greatly influenced by the works and philosophies of [[Friedrich Nietzsche]], [[Sigmund Freud]] and [[Carl Jung]], as well as dystopian science fiction films such as ''[[THX 1138]]'' and ''[[Soylent Green]]''. According to Tanaka, the reason for this correlation was simply due to a common interest with her husband. According to her, the story revolved around "where do we come from, what are we, where are we going". There was a large portion of story and artwork that did not make it into the final game.<ref name="soraya" /> The game's second disc consisted mainly of narration by Fei and Elly of events following the party's escape from Solaris. While it was popularly assumed to be due to budget constraints, Takahashi later revealed the full reason; as his team was inexperienced they were unable to create the entire proposed game in the expected two-year development time, so instead of ending prematurely with the end of the first disc, Takahashi offered up a compromise which became the second disc's content, allowing the staff to finish the game within time and budget deadlines.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://kotaku.com/the-real-story-behind-xenogears-unfinished-disc-2-1796151112|title=The Real Story Behind Xenogears' 'Unfinished' Disc 2|last=Schreler|first=Jason|publisher=[[Kotaku]]|date=2017-06-15|access-date=2017-06-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170616051709/http://kotaku.com/the-real-story-behind-xenogears-unfinished-disc-2-1796151112|archive-date=2017-06-16|url-status=live}}</ref> Square had announced that ''Xenogears'' may not have come out in the United States due to "sensitive religious issues".<ref name="nextgen"/><ref name="ign">{{cite web| first=Francesca| last=Reyes| date=1997-09-06| title=TGS: No Xenogears for US| url=http://ca.ign.com/articles/1997/09/06/tgs-no-xenogears-for-us| website=IGN| access-date=2015-10-02| url-status=live| archive-url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20151003060926/http://ca.ign.com/articles/1997/09/06/tgs-no-xenogears-for-us| archive-date=2015-10-03}}</ref> The English translation of ''Xenogears'' was the first instance in which an English localization team worked directly with Square developers. It was the first major project of Square translator Richard Honeywood. According to Honeywood, translating the game was a particularly difficult task due to it containing numerous scientific concepts and philosophies. He came into contact with it because its previously assigned translators quit or asked for reassignment due to its challenge.<ref>{{cite web | author=Cidolfas | date=2004-05-30 | title=Interview with Richard Honeywood | url=http://www.ffcompendium.com/low/interview.shtml | publisher=FFCompendium | access-date=2008-09-06 | url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150602083814/http://www.ffcompendium.com/low/interview.shtml | archive-date=2015-06-02 }}</ref> In a later interview, Honeywood stated that the biggest issue was with the multiple religious references, and the concept at the end of "killing God", which needed to be adjusted so that it remained faithful to the original premise while stepping around some content that might offend. Honeywood may also have had a hand in the Japanese naming of Deus: the staff were originally going to call it [[Yahweh]], and during his argument against it he said "It's dangerous" (ヤベーよ, ''yabē yo''). The Japanese staff found the similarity between Yahweh and ''yabē'' amusing, and, according to Honeywood, decided to call the boss Yabeh in Japanese.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://kotaku.com/5794922/how-one-man-stopped-square-enix-from-letting-gamers-kill-yahweh|title=How One Man Stopped Square-Enix From Letting Gamers Kill Yahweh|author=Cohen, Drew|publisher=[[Kotaku]]|date=2011-04-22|access-date=2015-12-20|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222075924/http://kotaku.com/5794922/how-one-man-stopped-square-enix-from-letting-gamers-kill-yahweh|archive-date=2015-12-22}}</ref> Square Enix released ''Xenogears'' on the Japanese [[PlayStation Network]] on June 25, 2008, and in North America on February 22, 2011.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/02/20/the-drop-week-of-feb-21st-2011-new-releases/|title=PlayStation.Blog|website=PlayStation.Blog|date=20 February 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110223055536/http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/02/20/the-drop-week-of-feb-21st-2011-new-releases/|archive-date=2011-02-23}}</ref> ===Music=== {{Main|Xenogears Original Soundtrack}} [[File:Yasunori Mitsuda (2019).jpg|thumb|right|upright=.8|[[Yasunori Mitsuda]] composed and produced the game's original score.|alt=A photo of Yasunori Mitsuda]] The music in ''Xenogears'' was composed and produced by [[Yasunori Mitsuda]].<ref>{{cite web| first=Sharon| last=Sung| title=Xenogears Original Soundtrack| url=http://www.soundtrackcentral.com/cds/xenogears_ost.htm| publisher=Soundtrack Central| access-date=2008-08-17| url-status=live| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081006063740/http://www.soundtrackcentral.com/cds/xenogears_ost.htm| archive-date=2008-10-06}}</ref> The ''[[Xenogears Original Soundtrack]]'' was released on two discs and published by [[DigiCube]] in Japan in 1998. The score contains 41 instrumental tracks, in addition to a [[choir|choral]] track and two songs. According to Mitsuda, the music of ''Xenogears'' belongs to the [[traditional music]] genre.<ref name="linernotes">{{cite AV media notes |title=Xenogears Original Soundtrack |author=[[Yasunori Mitsuda]] |year=1998 |type=booklet, Japanese |publisher=[[DigiCube]] |id=SSCX-10013 |location=[[Tokyo]]}}</ref> Though he first described it as stemming from "a world of [his] own imagining" rather than any specific country,<ref name="linernotes" /> he has also claimed a strong [[Music of Ireland|Irish]] or [[Celtic music]] influence.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.n-sider.com/contentview.php?contentid=352&page=3 |title=Play! A Video Game Symphony |access-date=July 25, 2008 |publisher=N-Sider |author=Brandon Daiker |date=May 30, 2006 |page=3 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120509193559/http://www.n-sider.com/contentview.php?contentid=352 |archive-date=May 9, 2012 }}</ref> There are two vocal tracks included on the OST, and both are sung by [[Joanne Hogg]].<ref name="qa june 2002">{{cite web|url=http://mitsuda.cocoebiz.com/qanda/qanda_06-02.html |title=Questions from June, 2002 |access-date=2008-08-17 |publisher=Procyon Studio |first=Yasunori |last=Mitsuda |author-link=Yasunori Mitsuda |date=June 2002 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080325060744/http://mitsuda.cocoebiz.com/qanda/qanda_06-02.html |archive-date=March 25, 2008 }}</ref> One of the tracks, "Stars of Tears", did not appear in the final version of the game. It was originally intended to play in a [[cut scene]] at the start of the game along with the main staff credits. The scene, however, was removed for pacing issues, as it would have made the combined opening movie and introduction scenes last roughly ten minutes.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.procyon-studio.com/special/qa_2003b.html |title=Q & A {{!}} Form |access-date=July 24, 2008 |publisher=Procyon Studio |author=Yasunori Mitsuda |date=September 2003 |language=ja |author-link=Yasunori Mitsuda |url-status=live |archive-url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20080725204935/http://www.procyon-studio.com/special/qa_2003b.html |archive-date=July 25, 2008 }}</ref> The other, "Small Two of Pieces ~Screeching Shards~", was the first ending theme with lyrics to ever appear in a game developed by Square.<ref name="xenogears">{{cite web|url=http://mitsuda.cocoebiz.com/discography/xenogears.html |title=Xenogears |access-date=July 25, 2008 |publisher=Procyon Studio |author=Procyon Studio staff |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080930201530/http://mitsuda.cocoebiz.com/discography/xenogears.html |archive-date=September 30, 2008 }}</ref><ref name="aevloss">{{cite web |url=http://www.squareenixmusic.com/reviews/aevloss/xenogears.shtml |title=Xenogears Original Soundtrack :: Review by Aevloss |access-date=July 26, 2008 |publisher=Square Enix Music Online (unrelated to Square Enix) |author=Aevloss |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081007125528/http://www.squareenixmusic.com/reviews/aevloss/xenogears.shtml |archive-date=October 7, 2008 }}</ref> An arranged soundtrack of ''Xenogears'' composed and arranged by Mitsuda was released as ''[[Creid]]''. For ''Creid'', he expanded on the theme from the original album of having Celtic influences in "easy-to-listen-to" [[popular music|pop]] tracks to create an album of arranged ''Xenogears'' music with a more prominent Celtic style.<ref name="xenogears"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.squareenixmusic.com/features/interviews/yasunorimitsuda.shtml |title=Interview with Yasunori Mitsuda (October 2005) |access-date=2008-07-25 |publisher=Square Enix Music Online |author=Chris |author2=Harry |date=October 2005 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080918035436/http://www.squareenixmusic.com/features/interviews/yasunorimitsuda.shtml |archive-date=2008-09-18 }}</ref> The album contains a mixture of vocal and instrumental tracks, and combines Japanese and Celtic music together in its pieces.<ref name="JAPCELT">{{cite web|url=http://mitsuda.cocoebiz.com/qanda/qanda_07-02.html |title=Questions from July, 2002 |access-date=2008-07-22 |publisher=Procyon Studio |author=Yasunori Mitsuda |date=July 2002 |author-link=Yasunori Mitsuda |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080325060749/http://mitsuda.cocoebiz.com/qanda/qanda_07-02.html |archive-date=March 25, 2008 }}</ref><ref name="RPGFC">{{cite web |url=http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/xeno-creid/index.html |title=Creid: Yasunori Mitsuda & Millenial Fair |access-date=2009-07-02 |publisher=RPGFan |author=Gann, Patrick |date=2000-10-15 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090424071504/http://rpgfan.com/soundtracks/xeno-creid/index.html |archive-date=2009-04-24 }}</ref> The album features five vocal tracks and five instrumental tracks.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mitsuda.cocoebiz.com/profile/resume.html |title=Profile - Resume |last=Mitsuda |first=Yasunori |publisher=Cocoebiz |access-date=2009-08-08 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080930231533/http://mitsuda.cocoebiz.com/profile/resume.html |archive-date=September 30, 2008 }}</ref> The main lyricist, Junko Kudo, wrote the lyrics to four of the five vocal tracks, while Mitsuda wrote the lyrics to the title track, which were then translated from [[Japanese language|Japanese]] to [[Goidelic languages|Gaelic]] for the recording.<ref name="qa april 2002">{{cite web|url=http://mitsuda.cocoebiz.com/qanda/qanda_04-02.html |title=Questions from April, 2002 |access-date=2008-07-22 |publisher=Procyon Studio |author=Yasunori Mitsuda |date=April 2002 |author-link=Yasunori Mitsuda |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080325060739/http://mitsuda.cocoebiz.com/qanda/qanda_04-02.html |archive-date=March 25, 2008 }}</ref> Celtic singer Joanne Hogg did not reprise her role in ''Creid''.<ref name="qa june 2002"/> Instead, Tetsuko Honma sang the four tracks written by Kudo, while [[Eimear Quinn]] sang "Creid".<ref>{{cite AV media notes |title=Creid |author=[[Yasunori Mitsuda]] & Millennial Fair |year=1998 |publisher=[[DigiCube]] |id=SSCX-10018 |location=[[Tokyo]]}}</ref> ''[[Myth: The Xenogears Orchestral Album]]'', an album of music from the game arranged orchestrally by Mitsuda's own music company Procyon Studio, was released on CD and vinyl in February 2011.<ref>{{cite web|last1=North|first1=Dale|title=New Xenogears orchestral album gets a vinyl version|url=https://www.destructoid.com/new-xenogears-orchestral-album-gets-a-vinyl-version-194809.phtml|website=Destructoid|date=22 February 2011|access-date=8 February 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170211080318/https://www.destructoid.com/new-xenogears-orchestral-album-gets-a-vinyl-version-194809.phtml|archive-date=11 February 2017}}</ref><ref name="RPGFArranged2">{{cite web|last=Maas|first=Liz|title=Xenogears Orchestral Arranged Album In The Works|url=http://rpgfan.com/news/2010/524.html|publisher=RPGFan|access-date=2010-10-06|date=2010-10-06|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101030032346/http://rpgfan.com/news/2010/524.html|archive-date=2010-10-30}}</ref> A Blu-ray album entitled ''Xenogears Original Soundtrack Revival Disc - the first and the last -'' was released in Japan on April 4, 2018. The album is a remaster of the original soundtrack, plus outtakes and other content.<ref>{{cite web|title=「ゼノギアス」の音楽が20年の時を経て蘇る|url=https://natalie.mu/music/news/267607|access-date=25 April 2018|date=2018-01-31|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180426080256/https://natalie.mu/music/news/267607|archive-date=26 April 2018}}</ref> A 20th anniversary concert was held in Tokyo, Japan on April 7 and 8, 2018.<ref>{{cite web|title=Xenogears 20th Anniversary Concert Set For April 7–8 In Japan|url=http://www.siliconera.com/2017/12/08/xenogears-20th-anniversary-concert-set-april-7-8-japan/|access-date=25 April 2018|date=December 8, 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180426144303/http://www.siliconera.com/2017/12/08/xenogears-20th-anniversary-concert-set-april-7-8-japan/|archive-date=26 April 2018}}</ref> ===Merchandise=== There have been several Japanese books and comics published concerning the ''Xenogears'' franchise. ''Xenogears God Slaying Story'', a series by Masatoshi Kusakabe, was published by [[Shueisha]] in 1998.<ref>{{cite book | title=Xenogears God Slaying Story : First Chapter (Japanese Language Text) (Paperback) |isbn=4087030687 |author1=日下部匡俊 |date=April 1998 |publisher=集英社 }}</ref> [[DigiCube]] published both ''Xenogears Perfect Works'' and a memorial album named ''Thousands of Daggers'', which contains the entire script to the game in Japanese, along with screenshots.<ref>{{cite book | title=Xenogears Thousands of Daggers (Tankōbon Softcover)| date=30 May 1998 | publisher=デジキューブ |isbn=4925075276 }}</ref> Two manga books, ''Xenogears Comic Anthology'' and ''Xenogears 4koma Comic'', were released by [[Movic]]. Movic released wallscrolls, notebooks, pins, keychains, stickers, and postcards depicting the ''Xenogears'' cast.<ref>{{cite book|title=Xenogears Comic Anthology|publisher=Movic|year=1998|isbn=4-89601-398-0|language=ja}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Xenogears 4-Koma Comic|publisher=Movic|year=1998|isbn=4-89601-399-9|language=ja}}</ref>
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