I have a new favorite game of all time, surpassing the very first Xenoblade Chronicles game.

I can't put it into words how much I love this game, its story, its gameplay, and most importantly its message, and how it deals with the subject of life and death.

A beautiful game through and through. I have beaten the story but I still have a good amount of sidequests to do, plus the expansion. I'm far from done with this masterpiece!

My favorite video game of all time. Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition is one of the best games I have ever played. From the moment the game begins there’s an enticing fantasy world that leaves you with questions and there’s only more and more of them as the game continues to show more and more crazy things like the Monado being able to see the future, new characters with questionable intentions and so many plot twists, betrayals and mind blowing moments. The way all your questions are able to be answered as the story is fully woven together in its final act is absolutely incredible and one of the most memorable things I have ever seen in a game. The Nintendo Switch version also includes many changes to enhance the experience even more. The graphics have been upgraded with remade HD character models and updated world textures as well as many quality of life improvements to gameplay like a side quest tracker and even some remastered music. This game has some of the prettiest world design I’ve seen from the trees that light up at night in Satorl Marsh to the meteor showers at Eryth Sea, just all the different locations are so gorgeous to explore. The combat is so engaging too with a mechanic that cleverly ties in the core part of the story of being able to see into the future with the Monado into the actual combat itself. Occasionally you can get visions of what your enemies will attack you with in the next few seconds and be able to change the future in time to prevent casualties. It’s incredibly fun and keeps you on your toes through battles. The characters are all so memorable too and you easily get attached to the party so well. Not to mention the incredible soundtrack in this game from the cutscene music to the battle music. If you’re a fan of games with a captivating story, lovable characters, stellar music and beautiful fantasy worlds to explore Xenoblade Chronicles is 100% a must play.

Earthbound has a legacy that looms large. It made me put off playing it for quite some time. Now that I've found the time to finish it, it's an experience that feels greater than the sum of its parts.

Earthbound's script, atmosphere, and general tone feels ahead of its time. Playing through it, I felt like I was witnessing the genesis of inspiration for a large swath of indie games. And these aspects completely held up for me! Earthbound's vision of American suburbia and society is charming and quirky from its rendering of the enemies you fight to the character's you interact with. It tells a story of the power of friendship and community that does resonate.

At the same time, I was surprised to find the JRPG combat felt plodding and not as thoughtful by comparison. The battle system provides plenty of options for strategy, but they feel like they are only truly needed in tricky boss encounters and at the beginning of the game when you have less party members. Those types of encounters remained interesting and tense! However, at a certain point, the most efficient way to get through any battle is to just mash the attack button. This loss of strategy combined with a high encounter rate pads out the game and makes fighting not very interesting. It was a struggle to get through the last sections of the game for this reason. I thought I'd be able to recommend Earthbound as a good first JRPG, but I feel that it's combat system is not a great representation of what the genre is capable of. It can be simple to the point of tedium.

This sore spot still pales in comparison to all Earthbound has to offer. I adore the way the game uses friction to immerse you in its world. You will need to use ATM's to continuously withdraw and deposit money for shops, call your dad to save your game, and manually buy items and physically hand them to NPC's that need them to name a few interactions that give Earthbound a sense of place. A great example of friction positively impacting a game space.

And the final boss battle is jaw dropping. It's a showpiece of nightmarish imagery that culminates with an unexpected vision of solidarity in the face of ultimate evil. I cried. Worth a play!

Favorite Tracks:

Your Name Please: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qKE0GKtPHs&list=PL1kU0pk5M3GCwzveqamX71sW3RmCzuXB5&index=6

Home Sweet Home: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8HLmavya0M&list=PL1kU0pk5M3GCwzveqamX71sW3RmCzuXB5&index=17

Otherwordly Foe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSkwblpGnAI&list=PL1kU0pk5M3GCwzveqamX71sW3RmCzuXB5&index=13

Pokey Means Business: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMCXMg8p9sc

Smiles and Tears: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQVOb1b7iOc&list=PL1kU0pk5M3GCwzveqamX71sW3RmCzuXB5&index=116

This games reception is probably one of the worst of all time and it affects a lot of people’s perception of when they do hop on this game and it takes away all their own opinions to formulate themselves and automatically prepares them to expect the bad and never any good. That being said, this game is a huge test to whether you are able to filter out the bad opinions and listen to your own opinions because honestly this is one of the greatest JRPG adventures continuing off from an already amazing game which is Xenoblade 1.

Getting this out the way as fast as possible, my only complaint was the checks on having certain field skills at certain points in the game and this is more towards the end of the game, this really hits the pacing and it feels just disconnected if you aren’t hitting those field skills correctly and I didn’t have any problems personally but I could see why people are complaining and this is because of the gacha system they implemented for blades. That’s basically my complaint and it’s not that huge, not even contributing to the overall combat and narrative.

This game is the definition if you have a lick of common sense, not for everyone but certainly for me. People who review this game as a hentai game is doing this entry in the series a big disservice. Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is one of the most misunderstood games ever and it’s just unfortunately gonna stay that way. Following public opinion and sticking with it just makes you look goofy as hell, for the people who dislike this game, they can keep disliking cause it’s obvious that they are just birds Inna flock with no common sense at all.

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is one of the best sequels to a series ever, this cast is one of my favorites excluding one character who contributes jack shit but yeah. I could see why people get turned away by the first four chapters cause it’s definitely slow and it has a lot to build on but what JRPG doesn’t have this same problem to let them cook. The antagonist group with Jin and Malos are really just one of my favorite pair of antagonists ever. Getting into the main cast and Rex, Mythra/Pyra, Nia are just my absolute favorites and just hit very hard especially alongside with the other cast members (again sayin excluding one). Xenoblade 2 cast is just beautifully created and how their characters feel so real on talking about how life is and their own ideals and what matters to them. Zeke also being one of my favorite cast members ever in a party group, the way he was introduced and handled throughout the game was just so good. Rex and Jin being foils to each other, mutuals characters dealing with their own inner strife such as Nia on hiding herself for most of the game until she finally is able to come out and be happy alongside Rex who was able to find his reasons to keep going which includes her, Pyra/Mythra and the party, just so much amazing things going on for the characters that’s just beautiful

The finale stretch is amazing as always for a Xenoblade game and reveals huge things especially more information about what exactly happens and also showing a bit of action in what happened before in XC1s plot that’s connected to the current plot. This story being connected with themes of healing your own wounds, getting up from despair, deciding for yourself whether you should keep going or stop on road, caring for others, carrying on for the next generation of people to take over. It definitely means something to me, something about not just adding into making sure we make our own choices for our future continuing on from xc1, but to make sure we rely on the people around us, to stick true to our own selves especially. The world will always get its way and it will fail the people, it will fail us and shit will happen and it could be tough to recover from it, but there’s always the hope and our own will to keep on going, to keep the people around you and to provide each other with comfort, and when that day comes when said person is to pass or it’s you that passes, we pass on ourselves and our important memories to provide for the future and to keep personally to ourselves to remind us. This world is not a pretty one and there’s always gonna be conflict and sadness, but there’s also the good times when we are happy, it’s as simple as Rex says it.

Thank You Xenoblade 2

"This... is the truth of our world. Memories melt in the morning light and then, a new day begins.

Roads stretch out before us. So many paths. Which do you choose? That's up to you.

Sometimes, you might run astray. You'll stop. Maybe cry out in frustration. But you know what? That's alright. For the roads... they go on without end.

So look up, face forwards, towards your chosen horizon... and just...

walk on."

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 was my first experience with the Xenoblade series, and it blew me away. I'm coming back to write this review more than a year after I've finished it as I regularly find myself to thinking upon the themes of its narrative.

It's easy to lump in Xenoblade 3 into a category of JRPG story of "Attacking and Dethroning God", but I find the narrative to contain deep resonance when reflected against modern times. Xenoblade 3 is a story of a toxic yearning for the present and the consequences it presents. It's a revolutionary story that focuses on the will of the younger generation fighting to grab the future they deserve for themselves. It's a story of the power of community and the power for us all to change ourselves for the better. Xenoblade 3 is all of these themes and much, much more. It's willing to tackle so much in its story to the point that the game could collapse under its weight, but its structure remains stable.

The story has its moments of melodramatic, anime bombast, but it also takes the time to ground its central cast in the quiet moments. The central cast members are given the space to express their aspirations and fears around the warm light of a campfire, to grieve fallen comrades, and to have fun in each other's company. It's special to follow these characters through their respective emotional journeys as they work to build the community that the world of Aionios needs. You can also feel the impact of your efforts on the world around you as you free colonies from oppressive rule and recruit heroes to your cause. You will continue to work with these colonies throughout the game to transform the world into a community of equal collaborators, all working towards a better future.

I didn't touch on it much, but the gameplay and exploration through the world is a joy as well. The game has so...many...systems, but the complexity ramps up over time and I found all of its sytems to mostly add to the experience. Engaging with these systems is how you will spend the majority of your playtime in Xenoblade 3, but it is the themes this game tackles that stick out to me after all this time. It's what makes this experience so special to me.

Favorite Tracks:: I barely even touched on the soundtrack!! It's incredible. Hats off to the entire composition team. These few tracks are the just the tip of the iceberg.

The Bereaved and Those Left Behind: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4MXGl1Qbgg

A Life Overflowing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmi_lZU392Q

Carrying the Weight of Life: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mC5s9KcaHHY

Moebius Battle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NahBomgb0E

Words That Never Reached You: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hs1zwwQuUo