Xenosaga: Episode I - Der Wille zur Macht

Artbook

Like Xenogears before it, Xenosaga has a companion artbook published with it that contains original artwork used in the conception of the game as well as details on characters, events, locations and background story. It should also be pointed out that some of these events are *modified* (like the game) from those listed in the similar Xenogears: Perfect Works guide.

History and language

• Like Xenogears, Xenosaga is full of references to the Bible and to Jewish mythology in general. For example, the mysterious energy Zohar means "glow" in Hebrew and is one of the central aspects of Jewish mysticism (Kabbala).
• The sign written on Zohar is Alef, the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
• One of the game's main characters is called Ziggurat. Ziggurats (also spelled Zikkurat or Ziqqurat) were tower-temples in the ancient Mesopotamia (today's Iraq). The famous Babel Tower was most probably also a ziggurat.
• The scientist Joachim Mizrahi, one of the game's central figures, has probably Israeli ancestors. "Mizrahi" is a popular family name in Israel, and the word itself means "eastern" in Hebrew.
• Another Biblical trivia: the 13 Zohar emulators possessed by Kukai Foundation are named after the 12 pupils of Jesus and Jesus himself (Child of Mary). The Zohars are also numbered - by letters of the Hebrew alphabet, that also serve as numbers (alef = 1, bet = 2, etc).
• Did you notice how Albedo always calls Momo and other Realian girls ma pêche? This is a common affectionate word used in French language, but literally it means my peach. Does it have any other meaning in the context? Yes, it does: momo also means "peach", this time in Japanese.

Special edition

Got about $200 to burn? For that cash, you can pick up a Special Edition Box of Xenosaga, which comes with the game on two DVDs (with different artwork on the discs), an artbook, a keychain, a portfolio, and a cold-cast statue of KOS-MOS.

Awards

• GameSpy
  • 2003 – PS2 RPG of the Year
  • 2003 – #10 PS2 Game of the Year

Information also contributed by Unicorn Lynx and WildKard