I have been a fan of this team's work across their various publishers, and Xenoblade definitely has recognizable DNA. With the disclaimer that I have not yet finished the game, I can already see a typically strong focus on story and character design. Art is rich within the confines of the platform, and while I can't say I remember much of the musical score offhand, it does fit the areas and it doesn't get tedious. Combat is once again completely redefined from past and similar titles, but once you're eased into the complexities, the system flows quite well.
Most strikingly, there has been some very obvious effort in Xenoblade to streamline out aspects which typically slow down or break the flow of RPGs: Saving and loading can be done virtually anywhere. Consumable items are nonexistant (and you don't miss them), so farming is fairly irrelevant. Enemies significantly weaker than the player simply do not attack unless actively engaged, and enemies significantly stronger telegraph their strength well enough to be avoided. In combat, basic attacks are carried out automatically whenever characters are in range, so battle orchestration becomes an act of choosing when and how to direct and deploy characters' unique abilities. A liberal instant travel system makes backtracking/revisiting a breeze. Gimmicks and subgames are conspicuously sparse. I will dock a few points on the sheer number of sidequests available, which can tend to derail story progress, but at least quests are all tied to named and fleshed-out NPCs rather than stapled onto a faceless board purely for completionism. Plus, most are considered 'completed' as soon as requirements are met, without even needing to report back anywhere.
The net result is, I must concede, a game which feels far more like a MMO than a typical JRPG, even though certain JRPG elements remain strong. It is not the classical formula of turn-based challenges bolted onto an independent narrative e.g. traditional Final Fantasy, but it does stop short of the complete freeform experience e.g. Elder Scrolls which has been in vogue recently. Offhand, I might liken it to a Final Fantasy XII (but with more kinks worked out, and less focus on content for content's sake) or a Last Story (but with less dynamic action and more party/control flexibility), or perhaps a modern Star Ocean (albeit with considerably less character development complexity). If you're just looking for a build a character / save the world open-ended timekill, you can do far better for the price. If you want a game that's going to be well-known and well-traveled, that you can look up, grind through, and check off your list, you can do better for the price. However, if you look at an RPG from the price backwards to the amount of time and investment you'll be able to put into it, and the fresh, engaging experiences you'll get out of it, Xenoblade Chronicles is thus far standing up to the $80-odd I got my copy for, and I could definitely see deluxe packs with additional materials being worth more.
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Reviews with images
... was supposed to and so far the game works great. I was worried it would not come in ...
My package came in 1-2 days before it was supposed to and so far the game works great. I was worried it would not come in time for Christmas but It did. No complaints.
Top reviews from other countries
Jason Soper
he seems to like it. I personally don't like these types of ...
Reviewed in Canada on January 12, 2018