Baten Kaitos Origins

Game Info

Publisher: Nintendo

Developer: Namco Bandai Games - Monolith

Genre(s): Role-Playing Game

Players: 1

ESRB Rating: RP (Rating Pending)

Release Date: September 25, 2006

Summary

Baten Kaitos Origins takes place 20 years before the first Baten Kaitos game. It explains how the diabolical Emperor Geldoblame rose to power, and it also fills in many details about the heroes from the first title. In addition, players will learn about the origins of the world itself and why the Lost Ocean is returning. The hero, a blue-haired young man named Sagi, was sent to assassinate the Emperor but found the job had been done for him. Blamed for the death, he’s now on the run with two friends – a robot named Guillo and a young woman named Milly. In the initial stages, the player’s party will progress in a linear fashion, moving from one area to the next along a set path. After playing the game for a few hours, players will acquire a ship that lets them visit areas in the order of their choosing, allowing them to either pursue optional side quests or blast through the main mission as they see fit. Unlike traditional RPGs, where characters gain levels in categories such as strength and agility, the majority of leveling-up occurs by procuring better Magnus cards. There are more than 600 different Magnus cards in Baten Kaitos Origins, some of which have truly fantastical properties. Players can acquire cards in many different ways, including trading, buying, winning as spoils of war or by creating them themselves. [Nintendo]

Also On Metacritic

GAMES: Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean

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What The Critics Said

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What Our Users Said

Vote Now! The average user rating for this game is 8.6 (out of 10) based on 8 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Todd S gave it an8:
Baten Kaitos Origins, a card-based RPG, is a prequel to Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean. Although it's a prequel, newcomers to the series can jump right in. It improves in almost every way: a much better battle system, better plot, scarier foes, allows the protagonist to fly, much better voice acting, etc. Baten Kaitos Origins should be played for it's 60+ hour length, side modes, great battle system, and satisfying boss battles. Though it's puzzles and dungeons encourage backtracking, which is probably the only major downside, it's worth a try. It's underrated, and probably in bargain bins now, so if you like RPG games, then you should try this game.

J. A. gave it an8:
What a tough game to score. Origins is an improvement in many ways - great characters, far superior voice acting, better story, and elements to its card battle system that can definitely be counted as improvements. However, there are other ways that the game holds itself back from being truly great. The use of only one deck for all three characters is very akward, I never got used to it throughout the game, even though I liked some of the differences to the system itself. The locations are mostly reused from the last game, which unfortunately robs the sense of majestic beauty that the first game had because we've already been there before. As for its high difficulty that many critics bring up, I really did not find it to be too difficult, once you get into the groove of the new system and learn how to build a winning deck. There is some level grinding required, but I never had to grind for more than one or two levels, and there are ample enemies all near whatever "boss" you are stuck before to level off of. I felt a "8" was appropriate because not everything new about the game is an improvement, yet it still managed to suck me in like the first did.

Derek S. gave it an8:
Baten Kaitos Origins is a great expansion to the previous game. Graphics: 7 Sound : 8 Gameplay : 7 Storyline : 9 Difficulty : 9 Replay : 9 Pros: Improved voice acting, protagonist, and leveling up ; Great story which fans will feed on ; Long lasting and challenging adventure. Cons : Completely different presentation makes this game feel like an outcast compared to the previous ; Barely any improvements on the graphics.

Kevin R. gave it an8:
A very solid sequel/prequel that delivers a better story than the first game, but a much less entertaining battle system, which suffers from un-needed complexity. Overall, it's a satisfying experience, even though it could have used more polish.

Tiago G. gave it a10:
Very good game!