We reviewed Xenoblade Chronicles 2

davton
Thursday, November 30, 2017 | 2:00 PM
8 comments

GSY Review Switch

This year's last big exclusive on the Nintendo Switch is about to ship as Xenoblade Chronicles 2 will be available tomorrow. Taking its inspiration from the 2 previous episodes, can Monolith Soft's new title remain in the top list of Japanese RPGs?

Verdict

Developer Monolith Soft returns with a new excellent JRPG more focused on story and better staged than the X episode released on Wii U. Xenoblade Chronicles 2 has strong arguments to put forward, like its massive and fabulous world, its improved gameplay mechanics, its huge length and its exceptional OST. The technical issues we have encountered (aliasing, texture pop-in, slowdowns, both in docked and handheld modes) are a bit of a shame obviously, but in the end, they never detracted us from all the fun we were having. In short, this new episode in the Xenoblade saga hasn't disappointed us as fans of the series, which makes Chronicles 2 another superb exclusive you shouldn't miss on Switch

On the plus side
A beautiful and gigantic world to explore
An outstanding OST
Superb cutscenes
Tons of things to do

On the downside
Slowdowns can be cumbersome
Texture pop-in can be distracting
The English voice acting is mediocre

High quality stream and download

Commented on 2017-11-30 14:51:00

Thanks for the review and videos.

Your review is in line with most other outlets' reviews.
Simply put, the game is brilliant.

The Switch is finishing the year as it started, with a great game, and what a year it has been for the Switch. It's sucess is more than deserved. On a personal note, it's truly great and satisfying to see Nintendo at the top of its game again.

Nintendo is the best games developer in the world and when they have great hardware to match their great games, is when their "magical talent" is at its best. Here's to hoping the next years are as great as this one for them - and for us.

In reply to

catfish

Commented on 2017-11-30 15:09:34

Thanks for the review guys! I want a Switch...!

Kostchtchie

Commented on 2017-11-30 20:21:48

omfg the voice acting is so bad, my ears bleed, please tell me the there is original voice subs and subtitles

sebasrd24

Commented on 2017-11-30 23:39:45 In reply to Kostchtchie

There will be a free Japanese voice pack DLC available day 1 to download, yes.
And obviously, many thanks to Gamersyde for the review and videos!

Commented on 2017-12-01 08:44:57 In reply to sebasrd24

Posted by sebasrd24

thanks sebasrd

Moonwalker

Commented on 2017-12-03 14:41:55

One question, I watched this on my Xbox One X in the Edge browser and I selected 1080p. Is that how the game will look for me on Switch or is that no indication? When I select 720p,boy is it blurry.

Commented on 2017-12-03 14:56:20

Didn't expect this but the videos played fine on my B6 via USB. Usually MP4 videos from here sady don't play. From a viewing distance of 3 to 3.5m it was fine actually. Looked good enough.