Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille Zur Macht - Reception

Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht received praise from critics, earning a generally favorable 83% on Metacritic.com. Most critics enjoyed the well-developed plot and characters, but argued that the long cut scenes ruined the pacing of the game. Episode I was given GameSpot.com's "dubious honor" award for the "Most pretentious game of 2003". GameSpot did however praise the game in their review, scoring it 8.1 out of 10.

Critics agreed that the game's strongly developed characters were a highlight. GameSpot.com's Greg Kasavin wrote that "Despite the amount of time you'll spend with all these characters, Xenosaga isn't very heavy on character development, but its cast is endearing nevertheless." Noting that the game's characters do not stand out for costume design or weaponry, IGN's Jeremy Dunham said that the cast is "possibly the most realistic portrayal of protagonists we've yet seen on the PlayStation 2" and that "the depth of each personality is so vast that it's akin to that found in modern literature." The game's plot found more mixed reviews, although it gained much praise. Kevin Jones of GamingAge.com stated that "Xenosaga has that extra special something that has been missing from RPGs for the last couple of years, an enthralling, profound story that leaves you truly wanting more." Jones believed that the character designs and animation styles in Xenosaga were not up to par with expectations, though. Dunham explained that the game's complexity would be too intimidating or "inactive" for casual gamers, but "For those of us who like this sort of thing, however, Xenosaga is a deeply enriching thrill ride towards the cosmos." Christian Nutt from GameSpy disliked the length of the game's reliance on cutscenes, claiming that it slowed the pacing of the game.

Critical reception of Episode I's gameplay was mixed. GamePro's review criticized the complexity of the battle system mechanics, including the A.G.W.S. battles and tech point system, later admitting that the "strange tweaks Xenosaga makes to the standard system are pretty intriguing". Dunham warned players that they must stay "open-minded" about the seemingly small percentage of actual gameplay compared to the number of cut scenes, stating that "there's plenty to do, despite what you may have heard elsewhere." He praised the combination of attacks and Tech attacks the players have the ability to use and the mini-game Xenocards.