Yesterday, I finished Baten Kaitos Origins with about 50 hours of game time. That time could have been close to 90 hours if I decided to do everything. I have a review for it that's about done, but I wanted to share some initial thoughts.
The game was great, but not perfect. It's biggest problem was that it overstayed its welcome. The majority of the scenarios felt overly extended. Instead of getting to more good plot progression, the game would continue to add more and more padding. It wasn't that bad at first because you got to see Sagi, Guillo and Milly interact with one another and really get to know each other. However, by the time I reached the second disc I was tired of the excellent plot getting interrupted by mountains of filler.
I know a few folks on here were wondering if it was important to play Eternal Wings before Origins. I would say yes upon having seen the game's conclusion. While Origins does take place before EW, things have so much more meaning to them when you play in order of release.
Between the two games, both had excellent graphics and music. Origins had better voice acting, but both games allowed it to be turned off. Both games have excellent stories, but the pacing was much better in Eternal Wings whereas the overall plot was better in Origins. Combat was much better in Origins. In fact, another reason why I suggest playing Eternal Wings first is so you can appreciate the changes they made to the combat in Origins. I'm not suggesting that the combat in Eternal Wings is bad, but it did need polish. Also, little things like leveling up and classing up improved in Origins, too.
Overall, a fantastic game. It's a real shame that this series is no longer on anyone's radar because there is still so much potential for it in terms of story and game play. Kickstarter, anyone?
