I was a tad worried that Xenogears wouldn't really hold up when replaying it after like 7 years but thankfully that was unwarranted. All the experience I've gotten from playing other JRPGs since then just emphasizes how impressive Xenogears is in comparison. I certainly can't say it's perfect given the blatantly unfinished 2nd half and the half-baked combat which is far too reliant on using the same deathblows over and over again; but the story is still the peak of the genre (admittedly not that high a bar), Fei and Elly are particularly well-written and interesting main characters, the party is likable, the music is great, and there's plenty of cool imagery despite the pixel art aesthetic. Even the troubled disc 2 at least has some of the best story content in the game so I don't really think it's that big of a flaw. Also I really like the character and mech designs. Robots are cool. It's a shame that in a time where remakes and remasters are running rampant, Xenogears hasn't gotten its shot to live up to its full potential yet.