A lot of people seem to not know that you can turn off the battle results after every turn so the battles are a little less dragged out... It's located as an option in the start menu. The original games had this, too.

I remember hearing there was a prequel coming out for Baten Kaitos and thinking “Wow, I can’t wait till it comes out in Europe.” Turns out, I could. It’s been 20 years.

Please, support Baten Kaitos and maybe, we'll have Xenosaga trilogy HD Remaster!

I just finished baten kaitos 1 for the first time and I have really loved the game. The combat and the music are amazin, the story and the environments are very enjoyable. Also the possibility to play the games at *2 speed and renove enemy encounters made my experience a looot better

I remember back in the day my family didn't have much money for games and I had to pick between Baten Kaitos and Twilight Princess. I've always wanted to play Baten Kaitos since then but could never find it. Excited to finally be able to play it!

I absolutely loved the first game and was really disappointed that Origns never came out in the UK. Kalas being a "jerk" is a big part of the plot and has one of the best surprises in any game out there. It's definitely worth playing. The non English voices are really disappointing, and I just hope they do a free DLC patch with the English voices.

No review yet has mentioned that you can just turn off the battle results screen. You don’t have to sit through the damage menu every time somebody attacks. You can turn that off in the options menu and just have the damage numbers pop up above the characters heads after a combo is finished.

I'm sure it's already been pointed out in the comments, but Kalas is *supposed* to be a jerk through most of the game, and as his guiding spirit, making decisions that go against his own goals will hurt your relationship with Kalas (which influences how often these super powerful elemental attacks randomly show up in Kalas' deck). Obviously there's story spoiler stuff later in the game which I won't spoil here but is a great twist on the classic JRPG formula!

Got so many memories of these games back on the GameCube please pick these great games up

its a shame that this series hasn't had a lot of support, it's really really good.

For me, the art in these games is timeless. Kinda like how you can go back and play Super Mario World and it still holds up. With the ability to take the combat almost completely out of the experience, these games are worth playing just to experience the art and music. As the reviewer noted, this company also always writes depth into their stories, so that won't disappoint. The only real point of 'mileage may vary' in these games is the combat. If you enjoy it, play it, and if not, then turn it off. It's an easy recommend at that point.

I've never seen Baten Kaitos and now I discover that it is very similar to Chrono Cross, which is wonderful since Chrono Cross is one of the games of my life. I want to have the opportunity to play Baten Kaitos a dis with this HD remaster. 🤩

Waiting for my physical copy to arrive, should hopefully be today!

I'm a big Xenoblade fan and I haven't played either Baten Kaitos game yet, but a friend of mine (who has BK as his favorite game of all time) told me that XC2 reminds him a lot of Baten Kaitos in terms of setting and thematically elements, even XC2's ending reminds him a lot of Baten Kaitos' ending as well in a very good way. It's also interesting to know the creator of Baten Kaitos Yasuyuki Honne was the one who build the concept models of Bionios and Mechonis and showed them to Nintendo. The titan setting of the XC games exists thanks to him. Based on this information, I like to think the Xenoblade series is basically a love child between Xenosaga and Baten Kaitos.

The first Baten Kaitos was and still is one of my favorite Jrpgs. I don't remember if the gamecube version had an option to listen to the music of the game but I'm glad this version has. The soundtrack is great. And I like the kind of a story book look of the game and I don't mind missing English dub. Also the battle system is good. I appreciate the damage screen, I can have a time to think my next moves, do I need to more attack or heal someone. And finally I can play the second game which skipped Europe back then.

I listened to the review and noticed that you explained barely any of the plot. I think the plot is actually a driving force of playing the game.

I'm just tired of "remasters" MISSING things or having inferior elements to the original. I don't care if most everything else is improved, it doesn't feel like a truly definitive version. Baten Kaitos Remaster just leaving out the entire English dub irks me... even if it wasn't amazing to begin with! In the same way, I don't care if Paper Mario TTYD improves the visuals quite a bit, cutting the frame rate in half is not ok!

Having played BK 1 physically on Switch, it definitely is worth it.

This is the RPG I hold closest to my heart because it's the one that introduced me to the genre back in 2003 when I was 15 yo. Still can't believe I'm playing this on the Switch 20 years later. I will never forget how I literally jumped off my couch the day they announced it on that Nintendo Direct.

Loved these back on the GameCube 😊

I wasn't, and still am not, a seasoned JRPG player, so when I played Baten Kaitos back in the day I was blown away by the beautiful settings and music. It's a shame they don't seem to have taken their time with updating the visual presentation to even upscale all of the textures. :(

Me, a 1987 kid, loved Baten Kaitos and when a saw that origins was going to be released I wanted to play it so bad and eventually a friend borrow it to me for another game (remember when we use to do that?). I never had the chance or time to play it though. Now, almost 20 years later I finished BK origins and I loved it (thank you Nintendo for releasing the remastered version). This review is mostly right but it is the same with most games that are a product of their time, don´t expect it to fit right away. BK is like watching a pretty good show with A LOT of content between stories.

My copy should be arriving in the mail today!

i have both of them on the GC, yes the game is from the old era, which tbh for me this make it a hidden gem, not only on the gc but now on the ns, i am planning on buying it since i never could finish the games on gc, coz of the old school grain, now that the game is portable the grain will be much more relaxing and enjoyable

Calling the graphics PS1 equivalent it’s definitely a stretch, but Ok.

Not having the English VA is so disappointing. Yes it's kind of terrible but I love it. I play Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean every so often. Hands down one of my favourite JRPGs. Also the combat is not as bad as he makes it, I beat it as a kid.

I hope they will add English dub it was so great

There's a couple of things I'd want to mention: -You can turn off the damage results screen -There's a speed boost for battles -Kalas is a jerk for an important plot reason but it's a spoiler -For defending against enemy attacks, Kalas and Gibari are able to defend with their attack cards as long as you discard one card and you can keep using the weapons as armor. Mizuti has much higher defense than Xelha if you are struggling against later bosses.

10:07 you can go in the options menu and turn off the results/ damage dealt screen.

I absolutely adore Baten Kaitos and I already adored it 20 years ago, ESPECIALLY because of its combat. It's that challenge between planning ahead and yet also reacting quickly to the ever-changing situation in combat that has me going back to this game again and again just to enjoy the combat again. Now with the remaster and its quality of life features you can freely adjust and speed up the combat to whatever challenge you like or even just remove it completely if it's too complex for you, which is a crime in my eyes, but hey the option is there xD As for "Kalas being unbearable"... I wonder if Zion ever played past what was originally the first disc of the game xD Because Kalas being the way he is is very much intentional and honestly what makes Baten Kaitos's story a lot more unique than the traditional goody two shoes protagonist. I think most people who played Baten Kaitos will agree that it's Kalas' character that leads to some of the most unforgettable moments, not just for Baten Kaitos, but for JRPGs in general.

Tri-Crescendo involvement as co developper (with them taking even more of the job for Origins) being completely ignored/completely left out will always be sad It's not like they just "assisted" on making the game, it was more or less a 50/50 job with Monolith, it's also why it's completely different from what Monolith did and do afterwards

Honestly, the English dub missing means I won't pick it up. Strips the nostalgia from when I was young (and it's bizarre to exclude them)

I played and beat both games when they were originally released. I was VERY hesitant about the randomness of the card-battle system at first, but I ended up loving it. Even regular encounters became an absolute blast! Definitely play both games all the way through, and good luck to everyone who will be fighting two tough bosses in a row with a long cutscene in-between.

Namco Bandai is usually the worst and laziest one when it comes to "Remasters". Klonoa and Tales of Symphonia were some of their latest victims. About this one.... unstable performance, lacking Voice Acting (Not missing Eternal Wings but Origins was great). Yeah, it checks out. The damage screen and black fade outs are still there, but can you at least speed them up like in the Final Fantasy modern versions?

The combat is not as bad as he says it is, give it a go I´m having a blast and it is certainly more accessible than a Persona game a series which I also love. In my opinion I still don't see a reason why it would not sell well, but I digress. try it, I'm having a blast! PS: There's an option to simplify battle results ;)

I most definitely hope it's worth it. I've been playing it for the last week or so. I'm only on the 2nd island. Named my guardian Zanzibar.

the damage screen is really useful towards the end of the game to plan the next move in the battle. kalas is meant to be hated just stick around to the end of the game to find out why :D

Dropping the English dub makes the originals the superior versions for me. Baten Kaitos had anime funny-bad dubbing, and Origins had it genuinely good. Otherwise, it certainly still feels like the same games, and I love both of them a lot. I think there's a lot to like about both battle systems. Origins simplifies the process but the speed of it makes it feel very satisfying. But there's something really fun about the first game's battles, searching for matching or straight numbers while dodging contradicting elements. And as you get far into the game, each card will have three or even four numbers and you have even less time to make a battle plan at the start of your turn, making it more hectic.

I'm a bit biase when it comes to Baten Kaitos I & II because I grew up playing the games when they first launched. Definitely, a nostalgic remaster that was much needed, but I would have loved it more if it was remake. Sad about the no English VA because I honestly loved the English VAs, especially for Baten Kaitos Origin. Guillo's English VA was legendary!!! Overall, both are still some of my favorite JRPGs to date.

i like the games and can't only partly understand the critic... i actually just come from sea of stars and i enjoy baten kaitos so much more just because the story plays out so much more interesting

Fwiw, the first game is definitely my favorite. The combat feels more in depth, and has a more interesting story. It's one of my favorite games on the GC.

Where possible, you should try to mention the amendments to certain text in the game, as it can change your perception of the characters. Only for purists, but they will make up a decent portion of potential buyers for games like this.

I absolutely loved this on GCN and am so freaking ecstatic it's on Switch since I can't emulate it anymore. Definitely getting!

Milliarde's English VA was excellent. It's a shame that the dub is missing.

I think it's a fresh take making the main character kind of a jerk. I personally love flawed characters

Something that you got slightly wrong is that Baten Kaitos was not released too long before Nintendo took Monolith into its fold. In fact, Baten Kaitos Origins is cited as the game that convinced Nintendo to take in Monolith thanks to its sheer artistry and passion. Otherwise Monolith was most likely going to dissolve. Without Baten Kaitos, there would be no Xenoblade Chronicles.

Never played BT Origin but loved the first one, can't wait to get a physical copy !

And, omg, Kalas' jerk attitude is literally a plot point that gives BK one of the most unique and celebrated plots in video game history lol??

I didn't even realise it came out, Nintendo could've thrown this game a bone in the last direct telling people it was coming soon

I had these when then came out. It was amazing how realistic it is. If you leave food items in your inventory for example, eventually it'll turn to rot. There's a sequence near the end where you need cheese and the way to get it is to grab milk at the beginning and let it turn into yogurt, and then later it'll turn into cheese. The battle system was also unique, just think of it like poker. The numbers on the cards will give you bonuses based on the combination they're played.

Playing through the first game now for the first time, it's pretty interesting. Not big on the amount of obtuse permanent missables and it definitely feels like a slowburner at times, especially with the battle pace. Definitely some things that haven't aged well. But the world concept and battle system are fairly compelling. The deckbuilding is pretty fun, the unpredictabity in which your deck develops provides some (occasionally frustrating) surprises, and there is some neat risk/reward in the ability to stock up levels for bigger pay-off... though it seems bound to break the game's balance in time and render late party members obsolete. (I just got the third major macguffin.) I wouldn't say it's amazing, definitely not. There's some interesting ideas a future game could build on. But I am not necessarily sure this series warrants a revival. It's still decently enjoyable, though. Just be prepared to deal with some outdated design. On the note of the review, Kalas being unlikeable is definitely intentional. And personally, I don't hate it. I think it's kind of refreshing to having the main protagonist not simply be unequivocally good and empathetic in every scenario. And granted, Kalas is definitely a jerk, but our first couple party members more than balance him out.

The yogurt bit got me good, Zion 🤣 Great original review and very nice post-review thoughts!

I had forgotten about Baten Kaitos until I was going back through old games, and remembered I liked this game. Though can't remember it. Watching you in the battle I recalled the bambo shoot, and that brought to mind a lot of the game. This was a great game. The items in particular how they are used and how they transform were interesting. I also recall the music was exceptional in the game.

Gonna be honest, as a pure game, I liked Origins more. Baten Kaitos 1, other than specific encounters which are massive difficulty spikes, had some really broken mechanics that killed difficulty as long as you knew what you were doing: build your deck around the enemies of the area and keep spirit numbers in mind and you'll mostly cruise through the game. If you chose to wait around to get a bunch of Wonder Momo in Anuenue you pretty much immediately killed the game's difficulty there and then, less than halfway through the game. Origins also had broken stuff but most of it is only accessible in the late stage of the game, and sometimes that broken stuff is very much necessary because the game starts tough and only gets tougher, but avoided some typical trappings of RPG fake difficulty by doing stuff like healing you after every battle (so no running around with a dying party and no healing items like in a very specific segment of BK1), nor ever forcing you into tough fights without your full party once you get it (one because, again, the game is tough, and second because you only have 3 party members in this game). The simplified weak>medium>heavy system with a ton of sub-combo options is also a lot more interesting and engaging than in the original because the whole game is a lot more fast-paced.

12:00 Well his name DOES sound like "callous" aka cold hearted. Coincidence? I think not. That said, I too have seen the cover art around a lot and because of that and the very unique name have wanted to eventually dive into the game myself, but that was until I finally sat down and watched a review of the original game earlier this year and learned of what an unbearable dickward Kalos is. And okay, having an asshole protag CAN work if you can relate to what makes them that way AND if they eventually come around to NOT be a dickbag.... BUUUUT like Zion I too prefer to play characters I actually like from the get go. If I don't like my protag, I ain't motivated to play. And that's not to say they all need to be goodie-two-shoe Shounen characters who kiss babies and help ducks cross the road. They are allowed to be flawed, but SHOW me that they HAVE redeeming qualities and that they try their best to be a better version of themselves.

To be honest, I thought Kellas being a Jerk was part of the charm of the game. Finally I wasn't the goody goody, power of friendship protag. And the way his character progresses through the story makes it finish off really nice. I really loved the game. Weirdly enough I tried using origins on an emulator and found the combat to be dull. The deferent elements, cards, and all the complexities of the first game was something that was soooooooooo satisfying when pulling off a 0 to 9 combo in 1 element with a finisher at the end :D MAN that was pure gold

I kinda just want to disagree with all your personal opinions given at the end. It seems more like this game is not for you than anything else.

Don't buy it for now ! It needs a big patch for constant slowdowns and micro freezes. I stopped playing after 6-7 hours. Couldnt stand it anymore ! After Klonoa and tales of, it is the third time Bandai Namco releases a shit port of a game which should run perfectly on switch. Thats really the last time I buy one of their game for switch. They obviously prefer to release games in a shity state instead of postponing the release and work on their port. Total lack of respect for consumers. Yes, both games are playable but performance are unacceptable.

They should have included the English voices. I’m glad you can just breeze through with max damage AND speed it up!

Bamco releasing a remaster with missing features and bugs? I'm shocked!

I was waiting for this, but somehow missed seeing literally anything about this being released until i saw the digital version on sale today. I want this physically!!

Bought this game because I love the Xenoblade series and it did not disappoint. Definitely shows it’s age a little compared to new monolith games but there is a few quality of life changes that make it better (eg, speeding through battles, turning off encounters, etc). Overall a great game :)

Was going thru people posting localization changes this morning. So just wanted to write that these editions of the games have some 1990s nintendo style of censorship going on for some reason. It's nothing major but they could've left it alone so people could've played with the game's original English Dubs

Uh Zion? PlayStation 1? 😒 Really? Gonna have to disagree, I've never, ever seen a PlayStation 1 game that looks like this...

I played both countless times in the GC. My first and favorite rpgs hands down. Still, i do not recommend them to my friends because I can see they are indeed a product of their age - plus I don’t want to hear them say that and break my heart 😂 I think it’s fair to point this out, but it’s very unfair to say games like Ocarina of Time are perfect when they have the worst camera+controls I ever found in a game. Yeah, I did not play it as a kid, and gave up on playing it now because it’s that bad. But no one says it’s a product of its age for Zelda…

I'm still working on the first one and man it's sluggish. I'm playing using the pro controller too, and it seems to have difficulty registering bottom left inputs when playing cards. It was easier on the game cube due to the c-stick having an octagon input. This makes me miss so many plays during my turn because I'm not 100% precise with the bottom left input. The game is great and fun though. I still have my original copies too. So glad this series was resurrected. I'm doubtful this combo will sell enough for a new title. Well worth playing, but just be ready for some slow going.

I recognize that the games aren't perfect, but to say they look and play like PS1 era RPGs is simply insane. Whomever wrote the review has either no sense of perspective or likes to exaggerate considerably hahaha

How is the result screen (which can be turned off in the options btw) in BK1 “useless”??? It’s the way to see which elements the enemies are weak and resistant to! And to know how well you did! I’ll never be able to understand how someone can prefer the battle system of Origins over BK1…

Oh wow, this is a super uninformed review. Reminds me of 2000s magazine reviews where they played the game for a couple of hours.

I played a little of the first one. But I really don't like how this remake was designed. It gave you those "features" to skip over battles and win instantly, but then not enough EXP was given to the characters to level them up at all. And then when some forced battles occur, my party just keep dying and there is o way to go back to previous places to grind even if I want to now. So I got stuck.

I remember seeing a friend play this game growing up, and I could never for the life of me place what the game was called. Then, this game was announced for an HD remaster. I've always wanted to try it, and it somehow completely skipped my mind that it was a Monolithsoft game. I love the Xenoblade games and would love to see remasters and remakes of some of their earlier titles.

We didn't get the second one in Europe so I really want to pick this up.

PS1? Ridiculous.

Ok this does NOT look like a Psone RPG. I now question if you played rpgs on the ps. This does not need to be compared to FFx in my opinion. The 2d back grounds are well drawn and the whole game is a fever dream from fei, in xenogears. Just saying. Peace.

Don’t need to rush and play limit physical release and they could have redub the game but didn’t.

"Why is there yoghurt in this cap?" "Well, it used to be milk and well... time makes fools of us all!"

I really hope they add the English dub back in, bad or not it was my childhood.

2024 started well when i heard about this like a couple of weeks ago only. All i ever wanted was being able to play BK again AND discover its prequel, that only relameased in japan back then

if im not mistaken, your turns are on a timer? atleast in the first one... people who like cards and deckbuilders typicly dont like feeling pressured by timed turns. atleast not sub 30 second turns anyway.

I still have my GameCube copies of Baten Kaitos and Origins. Those were interesting games at least, but I didn't know it at the time until much later that there was an option to disable the end turn result screen which would've made the game play out in a much better pace than it did; that option should be in the HD Remaster as well. Kalas definitely not the most likable lead, as his spirit guide, I would take a lot of opportunities to annoy this Marth lookalike. Origins has a much better battle system and mercifully less time degrading magnus cards or if I remember correctly, no degrading cards at all. I might get the physical copy, shame that it is import only.

Monolith Soft in their infancy. 1 is one of my all time faves.

I remember playing the first game but I'm hesitating because of the lack of the English voices and no physical release outside Asia. The dubbing wasn't great for the first game but still part of my nostalgia and the release feels incomplete without it.

Was there another video game with a similar premise of the player being a guardian spirit, and talking and making choices with the protagonist? I've seen a snip-it of it on this channel in the middle of last year. I thought it was this game, but the clips I've remember has English dub.

Have you even played a PS1 game before? Graphics like these would melt the system.

They are fun old school jrpg once you get past the card thing. It’s not as off putting as I thought it would be.

Did they not include the difficulty setting for origins? You could put it on "easy mode" which didnt change anything about the health or dmg values, but it paused the action meter of you and the enemy, when you can pick cards, it allowed you to savor the combos and animations, as you didnt have to constantly stare at your cards. Really miss this feature

Nothing worse than reviewers that play a couple hours of an rpg and then think they can give an "informed" opinion on it.

But the real wings he got were the friends he made along the way And i came here just to make that reference 😂

I wish Monolith would release Xenoblade Chronicles X on Switch...

I had the first one for GameCube and would love to own it again. The only thing keeping me from getting it is there’s no plan for a physical release in North America.

I'm thinking of selling my Gamecube copy of Baten Kaitos Origins now. Picked up two months before lockdown for about £30. I also have the first game and the official Future Publishing strategy guide. Maybe someone on eBay would like a complete set?

Short answer - hell yes

Will consider getting it if they put the English dub in it [it was a lazy remaster in that regard to omit things that are a key part of the original release], will be sticking with the Gamecube originals (I own both) otherwise. They're some of my favourites, amazing games.

Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean is one of my favorite games, period, and I adore Kalas. I was ecstatic when the remasters were first announced, but the removal of the English voice acting kept me from jumping on this. (I actually really, really love the English dub of the first game.) I should pick it up to show my support, but I kinda lost interest once I heard the English dialogue was gone.

I can always appreciate Tillamook product placement.

Calling this “Playstation era” is really messing me up, haha.

Hardly PS1 graphics lmao. And you can make the battle in BK Eternal Wings go faster, you know. They give you the option to skip that screen that pops up after attacking and defending. These are excellent games IMO

Oh come on, don't stoop to that primitive mentality level of "looking like a PSone/PS2 game". The game definitely doesn't look anything close to the PSone graphics, even with those pre-rendered backgrounds being a thing here.

Well! Baten Kaitos Origins was NEVER released in EU. So this is a blessing for ALL european gamers.

Baten Kaitos 1 has been one of my all-time favorite RPGs for many years since I played it on the GC when it was originally released. I loved it so much that I even got a fan cel made of Kalas. xD I'm happy to be able to play again on modern consoles, but... some of the "upgrades" they went with here sort of detracts from what the game was trying to do back in the day. Like why remove the 4 numbers on the cards and reduce them to just one each...? Granted, I haven't gotten far into the remaster yet, so maybe that shows up later, but I felt it helped make even normal battles a bit scary at times. I mentioned this next thing in one of my streams of the game, but... I really dislike it when remasters just stretch the screen and blur to go from 4:3 to 16:9. Also... was it really necessary to add that ugly border around the screen...? It might be a minor nitpick, but... it annoyed me. lol