The series' reception was generally favourable, though review outlets tended to express more mixed opinions when comparing them with Xenogears, finding fault with elements such as a more lopsided cutscene-to-gameplay ratio and the removal of some of the acclaimed philosophical elements. Set millennia in the future where Earth is no longer the primary homeworld of a spacefaring humanity, the games feature different combat systems between each instalment, all of which are mechanically separate from their spiritual PlayStation predecessor. Due to the legal rights of Xenogears remaining with Square, Takahashi could not create games that were direct extensions of the Xenogears continuity (despite what the end credits originally indicated), so he proceeded on a project that could more accurately be described as a reboot that shared thematic similarities: the Xenosaga trilogy (which was originally intended to be six games), published by Namco from 2002 to 2006 on the PlayStation 2. Though Xenogears was conceived as the fifth episode of a series of six, Square decided against devoting resources to further works related to Xenogears in favour of focusing on its flagship Final Fantasy series, which prompted Takahashi and much of the Xenogears staff to leave the company and form what would be Monolith Soft with the financial backing of Namco. The game, a science fiction JRPG featuring traditional combat that sometimes involves humanoid combat robots called 'gears' - in accordance with various recurrent concepts in mecha genres - was both a critical and commercial success in both Japan and the Americas, and received recognition for its ambitious approach to incorporating major themes into its storytelling and characterization, examining both the principles put forth by reputed philosophers and the theological concepts and devotional practices of several real-world religions. Takahashi, working with a subteam within Square, became the director of what was released in the Americas as Xenogears for the PlayStation in late 1998.

While deciding potential scripts for what would eventually become Final Fantasy VII for the PlayStation, developer Square Enix decided against a script written by employee Tetsuya Takahashi on the basis of it being 'too dark and complicated' for the company's vision of Final Fantasy however, Square allowed him to start the project as a new property instead.

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