After years of hardship, the Xenoblade series finally received its first proper sequel in 2017 with the release of Xenoblade Chronicles 2. Though not a true sequel, the game still manages to tell a complex and interesting story that helps to expand the world of Xenoblade.
This game is great in many ways, but has its fair share of downsides, and in this article we’ll let you know if the game is worth the purchase or if it should be skipped altogether.
As a side note, this review will contain spoilers for the late game of Xenoblade Chronicles 2, so proceed with caution.
Story:
Jeremy:
While not as good as the original game’s, the story of Xenoblade 2 is still great. The game starts off very slowly, but by the end of Chapter 2 it really starts to pick up.
The game really peaks towards the end of the story, starting from Chapter 7. To me, this is the best chapter in the game. From Rex’s lowest point to Nia’s transformation to Pneuma’s introduction, this chapter fires on all cylinders from start to finish. The subsequent chapters do a good job keeping up the momentum and setting up for an awesome finale atop the World Tree. The action, the connection between the characters, and the stakes all make the back half of the plot something special.
Of course, the first few chapters of the game don’t keep up this same momentum. Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 have a much slower burn that doesn’t really engage the player. There are some great moments, most notably the fight between Malos and Rex in Chapter 1, but otherwise the chapters are just underwhelming.
Certain moments in the game also ruin the flow of the story, usually in favor of comedic relief. Along with that, the game uses a lot of anime tropes, which also ruins the flow. Despite this, some of the humor is quite funny and adds a lot of charm and personality to the game, helping it stand out from the rest of the series.
Antonio:
When I started playing Xenoblade Chronicles 2, I figured I was in for a fun little adventure. You play as Rex, a young salvager who ends up finding Pyra, this incredibly powerful Blade. She offers him the chance to travel to Elysium, a mythical paradise floating beyond the Cloud Sea. At first, I thought it was going to be your typical journey from point A to point B, but pretty quickly things get much more complicated. There are powerful enemies, political scheming, and some really emotional personal moments that completely pulled me in.
Some of the story’s biggest moments happen later on, and I found myself really invested by then. It balances goofy, lighthearted scenes with some surprisingly heavy stuff. I’ll admit, some parts dragged longer than I would have liked, and there’s a good bit of anime-style humor that might not be everyone’s thing. Even so, the world-building is amazing, and by the end of it, I felt like sticking with the story was totally worth it.
Characters:
Jeremy:
The characters in Xenoblade 2 are definitely hit or miss. On the one hand, you have characters like Nia, Zeke, and Pyra who are great characters that you can really get invested in. Then you have other characters, like Morag, Brighid, and Rex that are quite lackluster. Characters like Nia are a great addition to the game and really make the game stand out. Along with several amazing side characters, like Vandham and Fan la Norne, most of the cast really helps to enhance the story and makes the game an overall better experience.
The game is sadly brought down by its more lackluster characters. Brighid and Morag really don’t have much of a personality, and Rex can get quite annoying. I believe that, unfortunately, these characters do hinder the game overall. Rex especially makes many of the scenes in the game very cringy and hard to watch. Now Rex does have his moments, I just wish his character was done a little better.
The villains in this game are on another level. While Ahkos and Patroka aren’t the best characters, the other members of Torna are probably the best villains in the series. We don’t get to see much of Mikhail throughout the game, but when he is on screen, it is a treat. He’s got a lot of great moments, but I think his best moment is his fight with Amalthus. Seeing his story come full circle was just a great moment and really brought a great end to his character.
Jin is also a great villain, and is one of the best characters in the series. He has a tragic backstory that really got me to sympathize with him, even though I knew what he’s doing is wrong. Seeing his redemption and triumph over Amalthus was a great moment that really stands out to me and gives Jin an amazing ending.
Then there’s Malos, where to even begin? Malos is just a great character. He’s funny, edgy, and just an overall badass. David Menkin really sells Malos’ performance and makes him stand out not only from the cast of Xenoblade 2, but from the cast of the entire series. Seeing Malos regain his Aegis powers and use a Monado was also insane and is still one of the most memorable moments from the series. After the disappointment that was Zanza, Malos acts as a breath of fresh air that really ties the game together.
Antonio:
When I started playing Xenoblade Chronicles 2, I figured I was in for a fun little adventure. You play as Rex, a young salvager who ends up finding Pyra, this incredibly powerful Blade. She offers him the chance to travel to Elysium, a mythical paradise floating beyond the Cloud Sea. At first, I thought it was going to be your typical journey from point A to point B, but pretty quickly things got much more complicated. There are powerful enemies, political scheming, and some really emotional personal moments that completely pulled me in.
Some of the story’s biggest moments happen later on, and I found myself really invested by then. It balances goofy, lighthearted scenes with some surprisingly heavy stuff. I’ll admit, some parts dragged longer than I would have liked, and there’s a good bit of anime-style humor that might not be everyone’s thing. Even so, the world-building is amazing, and by the end of it, I felt like sticking with the story was totally worth it.
Related: Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition Is Finally Coming to Switch!
Gameplay:
Jeremy:
Xenoblade 2’s gameplay isn’t the best, and honestly might be the worst gameplay in the series. That isn’t to say it’s bad. By all accounts the gameplay is good and formed the basis of the gameplay for the rest of the series. Compared to the other Xenoblade games, however, it just isn’t up to par.
Blades are a great addition to the series and add a level of strategy that hadn’t been seen before. Besides the numerous blades in the game, aux cores and weapon enhancements give the player a lot of freedom with building their team.
Unfortunately, the combat does not have the same level of depth.
Compared to the first game, there are much fewer options for the player in combat. Each blade only has three arts and their special art. Each special art has a different type, corresponding to the blade type. This can be used to create different combos and cause different type orbs to float around the enemy. Those orbs serve to help the player extend their chain attacks, which I don’t think is a bad idea, but it still makes me long for the first game’s combat. I find myself especially missing talent arts, which made every character feel unique.
My biggest gripe with 2’s gameplay, however, is with the core crystals. Why did Monolith Soft feel the need to make Xenoblade 2 a gacha game? There was no need to force the player to summon for blades, it just slows gameplay down to a halt. This is especially true for areas like the Spirit Crucible Elpys where you need a certain field skill to even enter, that being Ancient Wisdom.
I wish that every blade had an alternate method of obtaining. You could keep the gacha mechanic as an easy, hassle-free way of obtaining a blade, then have a special quest for each blade that varied in difficulty, which would allow the player to summon said blade at the end of the quest. That would’ve made this much less of a pain and would’ve made it much more fun to collect every blade.
Antonio:
This is where things got a little rough for me at the start. The game throws a lot of mechanics at you right away, and the tutorials didn’t do a great job explaining how things actually work. I spent the first few hours confused about what I was supposed to do in battle. It wasn’t until much later that things started to click, and once they did, the combat became super fun and strategic.
The fighting system mixes auto-attacks with Arts and Blade abilities, so it’s all about timing and planning rather than just smashing buttons. Pulling off combos and Chain Attacks felt amazing once I figured it out. Some fights went on a bit too long for my taste, especially against higher-level enemies, but when things worked, it was incredibly satisfying.
The Blade system was kind of a mixed bag for me. Collecting new Blades was fun, but the whole luck-based gacha system got frustrating fast. Sometimes I’d open a Core Crystal hoping for something awesome and end up with another random Blade I didn’t care about. Plus, the field skill requirements that block your progress if you don’t have the right Blades got pretty annoying.
Setting:
Jeremy:
The setting of Xenoblade 2 definitely doesn’t live up to the world crafted in the original Xenoblade, but it’s still an interesting world nonetheless. The different titans all feel unique and seeing how the countries on each titan interact with each other really helps to enhance the story and develop the world in a unique way.
Unfortunately, there aren’t too many unique locations that stand out, especially compared to the first game, but there are a few that do stand on their own. Olethro Playhouse has become a pretty iconic location, the World Tree and Elysium are very cool concepts, and the Land of Morytha gives us a very interesting glimpse into Klaus’ world. So while not the most iconic setting in the series, the world of Xenoblade 2 still does a great job of creating interesting locations that help to expand upon the world of Alrest.
Antonio:
Alrest is absolutely gorgeous. Each Titan you explore feels like a whole new world, with its own environment, culture, and design. I loved wandering through the bustling trade city of Argentum, and Gormott’s forests are still stuck in my head because they’re just so beautiful. Every area had something new to discover, and I often found myself getting sidetracked because I wanted to see every corner of the world.
But as much as I loved exploring, the navigation system drove me crazy. The mini-map is confusing, and I got lost way more often than I should have. Quest markers didn’t always help, and there were times when I had no clue where I was supposed to go next. It was frustrating, especially when I was really into the story and just wanted to keep moving forward.
Soundtrack:
Jeremy:
Xenoblade 2’s soundtrack is nothing short of a masterpiece. I’d go as far as to say that it’s the best soundtrack that the series has to offer. There are too many great tracks to talk about, almost the whole soundtrack is a hit. The tracks have a variety of different moods, from somber to thrilling and everything in between. Being able to go from a song like Drifting Soul to a song like Counterattack in just one fight sequence is incredible.
All of the fight music in this game is great. Battle in the Skies Above, You Will Recall Our Names, and Incoming! are all great tracks that really enhance the combat. Even the area themes are great. Roaming the Wastes and Leftherian Archipelago are incredible tracks that stand on their own, which I almost never say about any area theme. My favorite theme in the game has to be After Despair and Hope. This song really captures the theme of the final boss battle and truly is the perfect song to end a fantastic story.
Antonio:
The soundtrack in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is honestly one of the best I’ve ever heard in a game. Yasunori Mitsuda and ACE knocked it out of the park. Whether I was in a tense boss battle or just roaming around, the music always fit the mood perfectly.
“Counterattack” got me pumped every single time it played in battle, and tracks like “You Will Recall Our Names” gave those tough fights even more energy. Even the quieter exploration themes made wandering through the world feel magical. There were moments when I’d stop moving just to listen to the music. It made every scene, even the small ones, feel like a big deal.
Conclusion:
Jeremy:
Overall, while Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is not as good as the original game, it still has its charm and stands strong within the franchise. The soundtrack is phenomenal, the story is good, especially towards the end of the game, and many of the characters are some of the most memorable characters in the franchise. The game is lacking in certain areas, though, such as with its gameplay, the areas in the game, and some of the cast. Despite these faults, the game is still a great game that we recommend you check out, especially if you are a big fan of the rest of the Xenoblade series.
Antonio:
The soundtrack in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is honestly one of the best I’ve ever heard in a game. Yasunori Mitsuda and ACE knocked it out of the park. Whether I was in a tense boss battle or just roaming around, the music always fit the mood perfectly.
“Counterattack” got me pumped every single time it played in battle, and tracks like “You Will Recall Our Names” gave those tough fights even more energy. Even the quieter exploration themes made wandering through the world feel magical. There were moments when I’d stop moving just to listen to the music. It made every scene, even the small ones, feel like a big deal.
Other Contributors:
