Xenosaga Pied Piper
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Xenosaga: Pied Piper (ゼノサーガ パイドパイパー) is a 2004 role-playing video game co-developed by Monolith Soft, Namco, and Tom Create. Published by Namco, it was released for mobile devices in Japan. The game follows a pay-per-chapter model, costing ¥525 per chapter. A spin-off of the Xenosaga trilogy and part of the broader Xeno metaseries, it explores the Ziggurat 8—a key character from the main Xenosaga series—century before the events of Xenosaga Episode I.
Development and Release[edit | edit source]
The storyline for Xenosaga: Pied Piper was conceived early in the development of the Xenosaga series. It was incorporated into a mobile game format after Namco's mobile division approached Monolith Soft. The game's script was co-written by Tetsuya Takahashi and Soraya Saga, with Pied Piper being Soraya Saga's last project for the Xenosaga series. The title of the game is a nod to the German legend of the Pied Piper of Hamelin.
Originally released through Vodafone live! on July 14, 2004, the game was later made available on NTT DoCoMo's i-mode service on July 5, 2006. It is one of two Xenosaga games to remain exclusive to Japan. In 2023, a fan-translated video walkthrough was created to preserve its legacy.
Gameplay[edit | edit source]
Similar to the mainline Xenosaga games, Pied Piper follows a traditional RPG format with adjustments for mobile devices. Players control Jan Sauer, the protagonist, exploring environments from a 2D overhead perspective. The narrative advances through a combination of conversations and cutscenes, while battles are conducted in a turn-based system reminiscent of Xenosaga Episode I. Characters use "Boost" points to interrupt enemy turns and perform early actions. Jan, skilled in knife-based attacks, and other characters utilize specific actions, including standard and special attacks triggered by points accumulated through previous battles.
Synopsis[edit | edit source]
Set 4000 years in the future, a century before Xenosaga Episode I, Pied Piper unfolds in a future where humanity has colonized another part of the Milky Way galaxy under the Galaxy Federation's rule. The story follows Jan Sauer, a Federal Police Special Operations member investigating terrorist attacks on the Federation's hyperspace transport network, U.M.N. The antagonist, Voyager, is a mysterious figure responsible for these attacks and brutal crimes against civilians. As Jan investigates, he becomes entangled in complex political negotiations involving the Immigrant Fleet theocracy and their worship of the Zohar artifact.
Voyager, whose real identity is Erich Webster, is driven by his addiction to information and seeks the god-like entity U-DO. As he nears death, Erich manipulates the Immigrant Fleet to communicate with U-DO. Rejected, he is reborn as a Testament by Wilhelm, the immortal CEO of Vector Industries, after killing everyone close to Jan. Jan is forced to choose between becoming a Testament or death; he opts for the latter, only to be resurrected as the cyborg Ziggurat 8, a pivotal character in the Xenosaga trilogy.
Chapters and Release Dates[edit | edit source]
- Chapter 1
* Part 1: July 14, 2004 * Part 2: August 2, 2004
- Chapter 2
* Part 1: September 1, 2004 * Part 2: September 15, 2004
- Chapter 3
* Part 1: October 1, 2004 * Part 2: October 13, 2004
Gallery[edit | edit source]
External Links[edit | edit source]
- Xenosaga: Pied Piper - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenosaga:_Pied_Piper
- Xenosaga: Pied Piper - Game Footage on YouTube https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLoaSGGH-nHoLZzJ_oNdBTMnwGd7AIIAH1&si=h1FF76mVIJ0AujCM
