Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition - Review

Xenoblade Chronicles was originally released on the Wii in 2010, followed by a “New” 3DS exclusive. A little secret I’ll share with you all, the main motivation to upgrade my 3DS was so I could play this game. 10 hours in I just couldn’t go on. I was interested in where the story was going, loved the world it had set up, and was a big fan of the British voices. But I was burnt out. I can’t place my finger on exactly what did it, but getting bogged down in side quests didn’t help. Nearly a decade after its first release, it’s as good a time as any for Monolith Soft to unleash the Definitive Edition. This time I have no choice but to see it through, so will this be the definitive play through?

In the beginning there was a fight between the two gigantic titans Bionis and Mechonis. The struggle ended after both titans were mortally wounded, leaving them frozen in place. On Bionis life flourished. The human equivalent Homs, the elf-like High Entia and the cute round creatures called Nopon. Even though the titans stopped their fight, the Homs were at war with the Mechon, robots from the mysterious Mechonis. The weapon that pushed the Mechon back is the Monado, the only blade that can easily destroy Mechon warriors. A year after the hero Dunban held back the Mechon forces the colonies of the Bionis live in peace, researching the Monado to unlock its true potential the Mechon attack with a powerful new form. Shulk, one of the researchers, finds he is not only able to wield the powerful blade, but he gains the ability to see events in the future. After a terrible loss, Shulk and his best friend Reyn leave Colony 9 to seek revenge against the Mechon.

They meet others along the way who have also been caught up in the Mechon’s resurgence, building a party whose members all have their own reasons to join Shulk on his quest. After many twists and turns the quest becomes much more than revenge. Shulk will have to unlock every power hidden within the Monado to change the future and save the world.

There is so much I would like to delve into with the story of this 40-60 hour JRPG adventure, especially when the game is a decade old. With the series having more exposure than ever on the Switch I can also imagine this will be the first time round for many who got in on the sequel. I recommend leaping in and experiencing the game fresh as possible. While some story revelations you can see coming from a mile away, it really goes all out, helped by the party you’re going to spend a lot of time with. There wasn’t anyone in the party I disliked, but Riki the Heropon was my favourite. Those familiar with the series will be used to the Nopon’s roundabout way of speaking. Riki initially seems like he could be the annoying cute goofball, and while he is a cute goofball, he is as much a part of the team as everyone else. I would be all in on a Riki spin off adventure with an all-Nopon team (more on Nene and Kino later).

As you meet each new character that joins your group you get just enough time for them to be fleshed out before the next addition. Even though the group all come from different areas and races, they all have a common goal and they all work together. On top of the time you get with everyone throughout the story, there are also Heart to Heart moments to obtain all over the world. These moments take part between two specific characters once they have a high enough affinity between them. Affinity is built up through fighting together. This encourages you to change your team around if you want a chance at getting these moments that share that little bit more about each character. Because the team isn’t built on conflict amongst everyone, it makes it enjoyable to see them all together.

Another element that always drew me to this game was the way that the world is built. In short it is beautiful, the environments around the titan are varied and diverse. From the series iconic Gaur Plains to the Eryth Sea, even the Satorl Marsh which you would expect to be dreary swamp is a visual delight. As you journey across/up the Bionis, the game does a good job of communicating where you are. You can look to the sky to see the surrounding parts of the Bionis, or even the Mechonis standing off in the distance. The day/night cycle really brings some visual differences. Looking up at the night sky never gets old.

Xenoblade Chronicles’ combat isn’t turn based, and it’s not exactly what you’d expect from an action RPG either. You have several actions called arts to select from at the bottom of the screen. To use it you need to wait for the timer. If you haven’t played any of the Xenoblade games, the cool down timers are reminiscent of MMORPG combat. While you’re waiting for the cool down you can still auto attack your target. This also helps replenish some of your arts faster. Depending on your preference for offence, defence, magic or support, you choose who leads the party to control the role you prefer. Characters do drop in and out of the party, and it’s many hours before you have the whole group. You’re rarely stuck for variety as everyone's skill sets are different.

Shulk’s Monado also carries extra arts that unlock throughout the story when they become relevant. Whether it’s enhancing everyone’s attacks to do more damage to Mechon or purging enemies auras that help shield them. Making the most of these is vital to dealing with the tougher enemies, especially in combination with everyone else's arts. There’s also chain attacks where everyone in the active party can chain arts together for maximum damage. The ability to see into the future using the Monado is not just something for the story, it can also be utilised in combat. You may get warnings of big attacks from enemies, showing who will attack and to whom, and what the damage will be. There’s a timer for you to warn someone else from the party to use a move that will halt the attack, or you can step in and try and stop it from ever happening.

Xenoblade Chronicles has had some features from the beginning that should just be a standard. Even today games still haven’t got with the program. Fast travel is available from the get go, as long as there’s landmarks to travel to and you’re not in combat. With the size of the different sections of the Bionis it is a lifesaver to be able to quickly get around. Loading is also really fast, it never feels like a chore to jump around the Bionis.

When your party is wiped out after being caught off guard, respawning nearby is simple and painless (ignoring the whole just having died thing). It can happen really quickly too when a super high level creature gets caught up in your fight. When you respawn it’s at the nearest landmark, even any chests you haven’t yet open will still be there.

So when you’re not following the map marker to the next event, what else is there to do in the big open world? Side quests, lots of them! NPCs with exclamation points over their head will gladly give you one or more jobs to do while you’re out there grinding for EXP. Most fall in the category of fetch quest, or kill a certain number of creatures. They can get overwhelming, you could easily spend hour upon hour trying to complete them all. The upside is that they’re optional, and you can usually accomplish them while you’re progressing. It’s easy to fast travel around, and objective items or creatures are visible on the map. Some quests are part of a narrative, involving named NPCs. This gives you a glimpse into the lives of the people that inhabit this world. Some quests will give you a choice on how to solve it, usually with a glimpse into the future to see the outcome you need to change.

Because you’re not required to do the side quests to progress, it’s hard to fault them much as they give you more to do in those wide open spaces and a reason to explore. There are some time-based quests that will expire once you move past a certain point in the game. Once you get to the points in question you’ll understand why, but up until that point they don’t give you any indicator to how long you have. I found this frustrating because if you don’t want to miss out on any quests and items they provide as well as the affinity you gain you can burn out quickly. If you’re willing to risk spoilers it’s worth at least looking into what points in the story these quests expire so you can pace yourself.

The most immediate difference you can see with this Definitive Edition is the visual upgrade. Character models in particular benefit greatly from this overhaul, with their appearances being styled closer to Xenoblade Chronicles 2 visuals.

The game never required a complete overhaul, they didn't go all out either, and it was never meant to be a full remake. Some people may have to temper their expectations, on the Switch the game is never going to be a performance powerhouse.

Similar to Xenoblade Chronicles 2 there is a dynamic resolution. This means sometimes the game looks amazing, at others it looks a little blurry. In handheld mode it’s not as noticeable, it definitely looked alot better on my Switch than it did on the (New) 3DS. Playing the bulk of the game in handheld mode it looked good and ran well f98% of the time. In fact, any noticeable frame drops happened in minor moments in cutscenes. If you are expecting a 60fps 1080p remaster it was never going to happen. If this keeps you away from this game it’s a real shame. The game still has some of the most visually striking environments for the modest hardware Monolith Soft has to work with. I never got tired of looking around and seeing the Bionis and how the world is built upon this titan, seeing the starry sky or seeing the differences between night and day.

Another key upgrade to the game is the soundtrack. You can easily switch between the original OST or the Remastered OST. From my time with the original I can confirm the music was already really good, and now it's even better. If you’re a purist to the original OST then you never have to have the updated tracks sully your ears, everyone wins! There is also the option to switch between the English dub and the original Japanese voices. The British voice acting might not be for everyone, I really enjoyed it. While the repetitive battle phrases can get tiring, the voices are as endearing by the end of the mammoth story.

There have been quality of life improvements made to the game as well. If you’ve bounced off of the original Xenoblade like I did, I am pleased to share with you that this edition makes it more accessible. This time round there is a ‘Casual Mode’. This makes combat a little less difficult and EXP easier to gain. If you just want to enjoy the story I would recommend this mode from the get go. Even on Casual mode you’ll be looking at over 40 hours to finish the story. If you’ve played the game before or find it too easy already, you can also access the Expert Mode. This allows you to hold onto EXP so characters only level at the rate you want them to. You can also turn these modes on and off if you find that they don’t suit you, the game never gives you a consequence for doing so. The casual mode does strip some of the more technical aspects of combat, but it doesn’t make the game a cakewalk either. You still need to use your Arts and your party to the fullest, higher-level enemies can still pummel you into the ground. There are likely a heap of other small tweaks and UI improvements that long time fans will recognise, more likely to bring it more up to date with Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and its expansion. For the most part everything feels easier to manage, although I do wish the game was clearer about what items you collect are needed for something and what is safe to sell off.

If you missed anything in one of the many lengthy cutscenes/events, there is now the Event Theatre. I found this very useful on a few occasions where I missed a part of the cutscene. You can also rewatch any Heart-to-Hearts. The Event Theatre even lets you choose the time of day when applicable, a touch they didn’t have to include.

One thing that doesn’t seem to be included is the 3DS additions, such as the amiibo functionality with the Shulk Amiibo, unlockable 3D models, or the music library. Honestly the game isn’t worse off for it, but if you’re hoping they were carried over into this edition you’ll be disappointed. But the Switch isn’t as portable as the 3DS for using it as a music player. Also, the character models unlocked through tokens felt like it was more of a gimmick for 3DS features instead of any meaningful addition.

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For the long term fans of Xenoblade Chronicles, one of the biggest inclusions would be the Epilogue; Future Connected. After the world-changing conclusion of the original game the epilogue could have gone in many different directions. Future Connected follows Shulk and Melia a year later as they search for the High Entia’s former home. If you have played the main story you’ll know there is a lot to unpack after the war between the races on the Bionis and the Mechonis. I wish I could go further into details, but if this is your first time playing the original Xenoblade Chronicles I don’t want to give away the story. It’s not long before a mysterious attack strands the pair on the Bionis Shoulder. Shulk and Melia must stop a powerful new force only known as the Fog King that threatens the world.

Shulk and Melia aren’t alone for the journey. Riki’s Nopon children, Kino and Nene, help fill out the party. Along with a Riki spin off Kino and Nene would need to join the adventure. Initially it can be a little disappointing that more of the original team aren’t joining you, but Kino and Nene more than make up for it. The two Nopon add some levity to a story that explores some heavy themes, while the war is over there were heavy losses. Melia also has to face up to the responsibilities that her role within the High Entia entails. Shulk feels like he’s just along for the ride, not that it’s bad, but this is really Melia’s story. It’s not quite as high stakes as the main story, but they’re still important. The epilogue will keep you busy for around 10-20 hours, depending on difficulty and if you attempt every side quest.

Combat is mostly the same as the main game, the big difference is that Shulk no longer has the same powers that came with the Monado. Chain attacks are out, as well as the ability to see into the future. The rest of the powers are intact or modified, so overall it still feels like fighting as the Shulk you know. Instead of Chain attacks you now have a group of Nopongers to help turn the tide of battle. The Ponspectors are Nopon prospectors you find throughout the Bionis Shoulder. There are three types that give you access to different team attacks. Not only are they useful in battle, but as you roam around the Shoulder they will follow you around in a little group which is just too cute.

Being a shorter adventure means that the Heart to Heart events wouldn’t work so well. The whole affinity system is scrapped for the epilogue for the better. Instead, you just need to have the two relevant characters in your active party at the same time to activate the new ‘Quiet Moments’. I enjoyed these more than the Heart to Hearts, if only because you don’t have to luck your way through multiple choice options for more affinity points. You can just spend some time with the characters and hear them discuss the trivial, or address themes from the main story. It made me wish that they had incorporated it into the main story, maybe even just remove the affinity restrictions for casual mode because I just want more of these conversations.

Xenoblade Chronicles was a game I struggled to enjoy. No matter how much I was into the premise and the world, it just didn’t click. The Definitive Edition is much more accessible to everyone, whether you’re new to the series or have played the original several times over the decade. For the people who don’t have 60 hours to play or just want to enjoy the story, Casual mode works wonders. The Expert mode will give the fans something to sink their teeth into. On top of all that there’s also the brand new epilogue! This Definitive Edition is everything you could have hoped for - a more accessible game, a story with characters that keep you invested, within a world you don’t often see in games. The visual upgrade helps the characters look better than ever. There are moments where you can tell this came out some time ago, yet the world manages to still be a delight. The remastered/remixed music just enhances everything else, it makes me hope that we’ll be able to get the full soundtrack. The Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition is worth your time, made better by finding the definitive home on the Switch.