I think out of every game i've ever played, none of them mean so much to me as Xenoblade Chronicles 2. This game isn't perfect. It has it's flaws. But the good of this game is so great that i'm able to forgive the big flaws. I won't talk about everything because otherwise i'd be here all day but i'm going to talk about this game a lot.

There's just so much to like in this game. The characters and gameplay are this game's biggest strength. I value friendship a lot and while this game doesn't do "power of friendship" (despite one of Rex's battle lines literally being "we'll beat them with the power of friendship"), this game's main cast genuinely feels like a family. Everyone is likable and everyone has enough screentime. Even lesser relevant characters like Dromarch and Pandoria are still present in the story enough times. "Character irrelevancy syndrome" is something i feel that's an issue with a lot of JRPGs when it comes to their main party but Xenoblade 2 manages to avoid that pretty much entirely. Xenoblade 2's main cast is honestly my favorite main cast in any game period.

This weaves into the gameplay because i think the best thing an RPG can do is make it's combat feel like the party is actually working together as opposed to individual actions simply overlapping. The Combo system of this game is excellent and it's flashy enough to where even if you wanted to make the argument that it gets repetitive, it never feels like it gets old. This is helped by the audiovisual presentation represented by the little blue ring accompanied by a "ding" every time you cancel an auto-attack into an Art, an Art into an Art and an Art into a Special. The fact that Art cooldowns are based on auto-attacks and not just you sitting there allows you to feel more involved with the combat more than previous games in the series. I also really like the way healing is handled. By weaving the healing into the combat itself, you can stay alive while still focusing on the combat. Healing will never interrupt the flow, which trust me, happens a lot in RPGs.

While i do prefer Torna's style of it, it's just preference at that point. Everything about the combat is just incredibly satisfying to me and i'd say it has the best gameplay in the series (though i do prefer Torna's way of doing it a bit more).

The gacha-like mechanic, while i understand the criticisms, don't really bother me. And i think gachas just aren't worth playing at all but this game actually managed to take this mechanic and weave it into the story. Unlike gachas, the Blade Summons aren't just a thing you do. It's something that's acknowledged within the world itself and the best part: no duplicates for the Rare Blades. I mean, it wouldn't make sense for there to be.

The story is better than most people like to give it credit for. The way i see it, the story has a consistent buildup. Some parts of the story are low points but it never reaches a point where the story is so good and then it just falls off a cliff (like what happened in the last 20% of Xenoblade 1's story). I do think it could've been a little bit longer but i really only started to think this after going through my fifth playthrough of the game. Or i could just be feeling like that because i know this game like the back of my hand and everything goes by quicker now. Xenoblade 2 doesn't have the best story in the series, Xenogears still reigns supreme in that regard, but it's definitely a fantastic story that some people tend to ignore because of the occasional fanservicy scene (which isn't even a lot, why do some people like to pretend that Ch.2 and 4 make up the whole game?)

Of course, it's a Xenoblade game which means phenomenal music and world design is a must. This game has my favorite soundtrack in the series and while the world design isn't on the same level as Xenoblade X (a game with a world in a tier of it's own above the rest), it's still an amazing world that takes the concept of living on the bodies of giants from Xenoblade 1 and expands upon it. "What if the bodies weren't all humanoid? What if the bodies were actually alive"?

Now, i did say at the start that there are some big flaws with this game and while i can ignore it on account of being my favorite game of all time, it is still worth discussing. The elephant in the room is that the tutorials in this game are doodoo dogshit. If there's one thing that it seems Monolith Soft has been consistently struggling with in the past 10 years, it's tutorials. Xenoblade 1 had fine tutorials. Then Xenoblade X barely teaches you anything. And now Xenoblade 2 tries to teach you but just ends up giving you bad advice or just not actually telling you. I've seen a few people say they couldn't enjoy the combat and there's a 95% chance it was because the game just does a shit job at explaining mechanics and whatnot. If this is you, i suggest watching Chuggaconroy's "Everything I Wished I knew about Xenoblade Chronicles 2" video, as it does a good job actually introducing you and teaching you the mechanics.

The voice acting is also kinda bad at times. Some people definitely exaggerate it but i can't really defend Rex's screams aside from "it's not that bad" and Patroka, who has the worse voice acting in the game by far. The Field Skill checks are also annoying at times. In a series with a focus on exploration, i should not need HMs to do so. I don't mean to sound like huge chunks of the world are blocked off by Field Skills, it's usually just a cave and most Field Skills are for quest purposes anyway but i'd much prefer the way Xenoblade X did it, by simply having it be for treasure troves.

I also do think that Bringer of Chaos, the game's highest non-Custom difficulty, is pretty stinky. It's geared towards NG+ playthroughs, which is fine, but Bringer of Chaos just stops being fun after a certain point. If you want a more challenging difficulty, i'd suggest using Custom to tune it to your liking.

I can't think of any other big flaws at the moment. I could mention some lesser flaws, like how i feel that some of the villains aren't as good as other villains in the game. Two of the main villains are really good, don't get me wrong, but they are basically in their own tier. But that's more of a genre problem, i don't think i've ever seen an RPG with multiple villains and all of them are good. Though i will say i really do like the Torna group's sense of comradeship. Helps them humanize them more.

Like i mentioned at the start of this review, Xenoblade 2 is my favorite game of all time in my favorite video game series of all time. I haven't even talked about some other things, like how the DLC for this game is one of the best DLC deals i've seen (and that's not even counting the fact that it comes with a whole new game). Or a bunch of neat little details about the world that you'll probably miss on your first playthrough. Because like i said, i'll be here all day.

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is the greatest game of all time, Monolith Soft is based.

#1 game of all time. (DLC) (Collector's Edition)
Love absolutely everything about it, ask me anything and I could be talking for hours on end.
The characters are all great, they are all among my favorites.
The worldbuilding is great, it really feels like an independant world with relations.
S-tier music that can get very emotional or make you feel like you're in a live rock concert.

I had a really strange relationship with this game.
First off - The original xenoblade game is one of my all time favorite games. It has my favorite story and main cast of characters in any RPG (or game in general). It was always going to be nearly impossible for a sequel to top that.
I remember feeling slightly disappointed with X - a really fun game with awesome ideas but a repetitive gameplay loop and hollow story/ characters. When 2 was announced I was genuinely excited to see the series go back to a more linear narrative and similar structure compared to the first game.

I bought 2 on release day and did not get very far - I played for 8 hours at most before calling it quits. I ended up selling it as well because it did not jive with me at all. It was a let down at the time. I found the combat very slow and over simplified, the characters tropey and stereotypical, the writing awful, and the story far from engaging.

This was my first experience. These first few hours are why people give up on the game so quickly.

4 years later I decide to give it another chance. I tell myself I'm going to push through it and see why some people actually adore this game. I can honestly say I'm really glad I did. I also happened to get pretty far in this game before pyra/mythra got added to smash bros, so I actually felt some excitement for that announcement.

This is bad first impressions the game. It's actually insane how much this game improves after a few chapters. I still think the writing is really rough at times (moreso just the character dialogue) - but those moments become rare or non existent after a while. I still can't ignore that the dialogue made me roll my eyes from time to time though. There are some weirdly misogynistic moments early on and a lot of the characters give off the 'horny anime stereotype' impression before the game properly develops them. Also the ass/boob shots got super old.

This sounds really bad, but it's all shoved at the beginning of the game. Which baffles me because these characters genuinely become fantastic and well developed, but they take too long to get there - so it's hard to blame people who are so put off by the first few hours. I won't say they are wrong, but I can officially say that I was wrong in assuming the whole game would be this way.

It was a few chapters in where I found myself realizing how invested I had become in this world. As soon as you reach Indol the game captures the spirit of the original game so well. That spirit from then on lasts until the very end of the game. All of the main party members have unique backstories and motives. I appreciate that they are not simple copies of the first game's cast. I still prefer the first game's characters by quite a bit - but these characters are fantastic. Rex is still the weakest link but he really does find his footing as a solid protagonist. He's the only character who's voice actor is kinda hard to take seriously at times. Everyone else does a stellar job - especially the other party members, jin, and malos. Malos is a really compelling antagonist even though his motivations are sort of generic, but it's his connection with those motivations that make him interesting. I obviously cannot spoil anything here, but the directions this game takes its story are unpredictable and really impressive. The contrasting themes between this and the first game are cleverly thought out and brilliant. The last couple chapters of this game are prime xenoblade.

The combat is also wayyyy better than I originally anticipated. My first time playing this game I was worried it was simplified from the first game. However, I came to realize it is actually far more complex than the first game's combat system. I'm honestly not sure which combat i prefer more. They are similar but the depth of the systems are so vastly different. There is so much strategy and planning involved with every battle. Blades are a really cool idea and theres a pokemon-like aspect in trying to collect rare ones for your party.
To those who don't like the combat based on the first couple hours - I promise it will click with you if you stick with it. As soon as I understood and started utilizing all of the mechanics, the combat became one of the most engaging systems I have ever experienced in an RPG.

Like I said earlier - this is bad first impressions the game on almost every aspect (aside from music perhaps - which is consistently amazing and almost on par with the first game). If you liked the first game but couldn't get far with this one - i promise there is something to get from this experience if you stick with it. I hate when people tell me "it gets good after a while" but here I am essentially saying the same thing.

I still have my problems with it and it even has flaws clear to the end of the game. The dialogue becomes more consistently good later in the game - but there are still moments that make me roll my eyes. There was sadly a couple really serious moments that were stunted by the choice to use a backing track with vocals. It gave me worship music vibes and it felt really out of place during these moments and it distracted me from what should've been a really devastating moment. However, these moments are not common or consistent. I just want to make sure that people are aware that the game doesn't become a perfect masterpiece after a few chapters - but that its positives eventually outweigh the negatives by a lot.

I never expected I would defend this game. I was someone who thought that game was 'overly anime' and kinda hard to take seriously. I'm not even a big anime fan in general, but as a huge fan of the original game, I am so so soooo glad I gave this a second chance. It gives me hope that this team is still capable of making amazing games and stories.

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is one of my favorite games ever. I have some problems with it, but they're so minor that there's not much to say about them. The soundtrack is probably the best I've ever heard. Songs like Tantal (both day and night versions), Bringer of Chaos, and Drifting Souls are some of the major standouts. The cast is outstanding, with very few misses. The only main character I didn't care for was Tora, and even he had some charm. Zeke was definitely my favorite. The gameplay is unique, so I can definitely understand why some people wouldn't like it. For me though, it felt so fun to let chain attacks rip and absolutely demolish enemies. The amount of customization options you have is incredible, to where multiple playthroughs can always be different. It definitely has a lot of replay value. The story is lacking at some points, and absolutely fantastic at others. It's one of the few games which endings can make me cry. It's a 10/10 game for me and I couldn't recommend it enough.

The most fun I've ever had with a JRPG, something I previously attributed to the original Xenoblade Chronicles. The sequel absolutely blows it out of the water gameplay and content wise. This game is packed with content (and it's all GOOD content) and the combat is the best in the franchise. I spent nearly 100 hours playing through the main story doing tons of sidequests and progressing my blade affinity charts. It's fun and rewarding to do sidequests while experimenting with different blade and character setups.

As far as writing goes I don't feel that it's the main selling point of the game, but it's something fans of the overall Xeno lore must experience. The pacing can get a bit awkward, some of the characters don't hit like they should but for any missteps there are a ton of positives to make up for them. The story is very ambitious and has a lot of great moments, the ending stretch is phenomenal. A lot of the stuff here feels out of the realm of possibility that the series established and a little more in tune with something like Xenosaga. Zeke and Jin are my favorite xenoblade character and antagonist, respectively. The party in general has a really cool dynamic in this game and they all have important roles to some degree.

Overall while your mileage may vary with the story and characters it's far from the worst ever in that regard. The gameplay is so good that I'm taken aback by how many people played a game this long, with combat that is apparently daunting for a lot of people, and still claim it's terrible with a straight face.

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is a grand adventure including a fine story and lovely characters. The story is filled with subplots and fan service distracting from the main plot and the story gets incredibly focused after 70% of story progression. Its sluggish combat system feels like a long wait for bureaucrats finally doing their job, but once you finally understand the deep mechanics, it feels like getting a revelation from the Architect himself. The inconsistent tonality of this game is awful and the game design is anything but good: Field Skills and Gacha are slowing down the progress and exploration. Many characters are massively, unnecessarily and questionably over-sexualized which would not be a problem if these were optional costumes, but they are not.

I also want to mention its fantastic soundtrack. It’s probably one of the best video game soundtracks my ears have ever experienced. It carries a lot.

engineered to make me wince but wanted a JRPG in the Switch's first year real bad and gave it a shot. has a feel adjacent to a crusty comedy seasonal anime about a 13yr old with fucked up teeth who can't stop kissing her older brother in an isekai world. i like a lot of its ideas but its tone and script are frustrating. i like starting as a diver-miner worker dude but i hate the guy who is that. he should be chill and real as fuck but he's this lame dork and not in an endearing sense. there are multiple scenes where the little boy accidentally touches tits and they go all "stupid baka pervert!" and i just don't care for it. i've seen this all too many times before, i simply cannot get down with these anime babes. i hear it gets better but it shoulda been good when it had the chance to hook me!!! aside from Nia, i didn't connect with any of the characters. Pyra and Mythra especially bored me to tears (i just don't like those sorts of tropes) and i wanted to throw Rex into an evil boiling cauldron. this game is stuffed with lame anime gfs who call u 'master.' the battle system has a gacha mechanic just to spite me and a UI so overstuffed it invokes violent urges in me like a caged, tortured gorilla. the environments and character models look really great for switch although this game's character design is mostly (Morag is pretty cool the game should be about her) some of the lamest, goofiest, and horniest (in a bad way) i've ever seen in a wide-release game of its pedigree. horny in the most boring way, in a vanilla ecchi way where it's too cowardly to get weird with it. the voice acting is silly (positive) and kicks ass tho. and Nia, she's pretty good.


why did they put this in Smash instead of my boy Travis Touchdown smh. i want the bad anime enjoyer, not the bad anime

Xenoblade 2 is one of my favorite JRPGs of the last decade. The characters are charming and interesting, and the soundtrack is absolutely wonderful, though excellent music is to be expected from the Xenoblade series.

I initially found the combat sluggish, but realized that I was actually playing the game incorrectly. Pouch items (art recharge, special recharge, base affinity up, and party gauge gain) and fusion combos (when a driver combo is used at the same time that a blade combo is occurring) fix the combat's sluggishness. XBC2's combat can be incredibly rewarding. It's probably one of my favorite real time menu systems, but the tutorials do an asinine job of teaching you how to play optimally. In fact, the in game tutorials sometimes give you information that is objectively wrong or misleading.

Chuggaaconroy has a proper combat guide that explains this much better than I ever could. I actually didn't realize I was playing the game incorrectly until I watched his video.

When docked, Xenoblade 2 is absolutely gorgeous, but it looks like crap in handheld mode.