TEST of Xenoblade Chronicles 2: A cruise to paradise?
Despite the technological limitations of the Wii and the New 3DS, Xenoblade Chronicles has established itself as the most accomplished work of Tetsuya Takahashi, the father of Xenogears and Xenosaga . His story has finally found a world to its measure, to the point that the digression without borders of Opus X then tends to dilute too much. Armed with his sharp feather, the pilot of Monolith Soft splits a second episode, with famous reinforcements among his troops. Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is it a new start, or the most successful iteration of the series?
Such storms crossed by Tetsuya Takahashi to build his saga, Xenoblade Chronicles 2 begins under dark skies, until reaching the limpid Alrest, a sea of clouds that evokes the fullness of Xenoblade Chronicles.
The World Tree overlooks the horizon, less idyllic than it seems, these limbs sheltering the peoples banished from the Elysium, refugees on the Titans. But these gigantic flying creatures are dying, while their inhabitants are tearing themselves apart, tensions fueled by limited resources, or the way to exploit them. The Recuperators are thus intended to plunge under the fog, looking for materials and other artifacts, while the Pilots are similar to soldiers, accompanied by entities provided with an artificial intelligence, the Blades. From this background, the fundamental themes of the series are immediately apparent, be it its peaceful and ecological purpose, the link between man and machine, or the quest for immortality, among others.Xenoblade Chronicles 2 simply follows the journey of one of these treasure hunters, Rex, soon joined by Pyra, his "sister blade".
Xenostyle
The assumed cliché of the characters does not prevent them from having character, emphasized by the different regional British accents and the emphasis a bit too theatrical dubbing in English. Moreover, the Japanese voices (available gracefully in DLC) better transcribe the subtleties of sweet sourness typically Japanese or rogue, which contrasts with the dramaturgy of cinematics, true flags of this staged affirmed, though substantially grandiloquent. Ditto for the colorful manga look and bouncy curves of the main protagonists with more expressive features drawn by Masatsugu Saito, the dark facet of the casting by Tetsuya Nomura being less original. However the sometimes huge design of the Blades, fashioned by multiple illustrators - including Xeno's mother Soraya Saga - is reminiscent of the heteroclism inherent in Takahashi's work. The remark also applies to the soundtrack, thanks to the collegial return of ACE and Yasunori Mitsuda as conductor, with a large reinforcement of Celtic melodies, electric guitar and traditional instrumentalisations, synonymous with soaring symphonic in perfect harmony with these vertiginous panoramas.
A titanic world
A call from the sea that naturally echoes the contemplation of this gigantic universe, composed of floating archipelagoes with unfamiliar landscapes, even suggesting that Xenobladetirelessly repeats his score. This show is certainly one of the most impressive on mobile, despite its appearance sometimes grainy and slightly vague to hide the aliasing, more marked on the console screen than the TV. This is undoubtedly the very acceptable counterpart to the globally stable frame rate in such abundant environments, between the beautiful atmospheric effects, the lush vegetation and the massive fauna. Especially despite the sporadically late appearance of textures, it does not hide the exhilarating sense of exploration of this macrocosm if alive. Because beyond the changing weather and the cycle of days, the tides influence the topography. As we swim on the mist, some passages become temporarily passable, or vice versa, so that these islands reduced to the surface compared to the continents of opus X reveal an astonishing scale on the vertical axis. In addition, their architecture is intended to be sprawling, the relief maliciously concealing the nooks according to the perspectives.
In land (more or less) known
This impression of constantly rediscovering the places results partly from the absence of a detailed map permanently visible; the transparency or miniaturized display of the surroundings cannot replace the GamePad. Added to this is the usual possibility of teleporting, almost without loading time, a principle that is decidedly practical but which does not encourage us to immerse ourselves in geography, and even reveals itself here in conflict with the scenario whose development is forbidden theoretically. to travel at times. In order not to lose the thread, or to get lost at all, fortunately remains the main or optional quests explicitly indicated in the log and the points of interest automatically listed, among which are the areas of recovery. Alas thequick time event (often concluded by a jousting) can be summed up in loot, essentially made up of mechanical bric-a-brac. The dilettantism of this occupation testifies to an idea insufficiently excavated, unlike the skills learned during the epic to open chests and climb to places otherwise inaccessible. Inspired by Zelda , this model of progression further densifies the structure of these large spaces.
Regional folklore
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 aims to integrate these systems in an organic way within the game and its history, starting with the development of cities, subject to the expenses in the stalls and the accomplishment of various missions. Their relatively classical content is accompanied by a cascade of twists that highlight the work of writing and careful translation, vocabulary possibly flourished in support. The key, a supply of items rising and prices down, a fortiori when one appropriates the shops. However, this desire to instill a culture leads to surprising concepts superfluous, such as nights at the hostel to gain levels, cooking local food and crazy things to take in his bag to enjoy temporary bonuses (books , perfumes, antiques among many other trinkets). Note also the refining of auxiliary hearts in order to justify the fundamentally collection of ingredients, as its impact seems initially limited compared to the improvement of weapons and other accessories. But like interlude sequences that replace heads-to-heads to maintain relationships, these elements have a meaning, and it points to the Blades.
Blades to do everything
Collaboration with their Pilots encourages the acquisition of useful virtues sometimes on the ground, sometimes in combat. On the one hand, these talents facilitate, for example, the harvesting of plants, allow the deciphering of inscriptions or the removal of obstacles. On the other hand, these evolutionary capacity trees specific to each Blade reinforce their pilot's abilities, such as increased damage and resistance to alterations. Obtaining these characteristics depends on the prowess (more or less well defined) to be achieved during the confrontations most of the time, in parallel with the growing agreement with the Drivers, a source of greater efficiency. Nevertheless the blade is not confined to the role of elementary support, since it determines the weapon used, and therefore the Pilote class, with its own panel of Arts placed here on the facade buttons. An arsenal of techniques with which it is now possible to juggle by swapping the Blades - at the rate of one trio per warrior - following the turn of hostilities and the desired strategy. As a result, the battles are even more striking, although they tend to drag on, especially in the face of enemies who rally their congeners.
Piloting arts
Obviously, there is always time to attract the most gregarious away, or avoid the clashes, even if it is more difficult to flee, for lack of being able to manually rewire his weapons. We must also be wary of the vagaries of the soil, especially on the edge of cliffs or in a confined environment (rather poorly managed by the camera), in order to maneuver the opponent and target its weak spots. This dynamic approach leads to the full range of options, especially the feints, the imbalance routines coupled with the timing-based combos suggested by the other Drivers, and now no cries of cacophonic encouragement, with the exception the famous "even, even, even" nopons. So we sail in territory known to veterans, on the other hand the tutorials are too brief for the neophytes, probably for fear of saturation. Notwithstanding the three buttons ridiculously doomed to play the sticky notes, the disappearance of the digital record deprived of these explanations thereafter, unless you use the photo function, or buy them from terse informants. No need to debate on these savings of end of candle, it goes without saying that some may suffer from this lack of accessibility, even the interface clearer.
Artisanal crystal
In his defense, this Xenobladekeeps his philosophy firmly tolerant, with defeats without incidence or almost. And in the absolute, the experience is expressed in tens, or even hundreds of hours, a long-term vision that requires a certain amount of learning by its own means, a little old fashioned. The opportunity to send his Blades fulfill the additional tasks of the Brotherhood of Mercenaries in margin of the advance harmoniously illustrates this approach, oriented on the duration. What to collect more items, and contribute to the prosperity of the various regions while making fruit the attributes of the Blades in reserve. Because we quickly have many more or less common blades, created through the "crystal-hearts". These are of different types, at the like Blades born of their resonance with a Pilot, to which they remain then linked (precious transfer protocols authorize the changes). Minor Blades are distinguished by their generic appearance, and their sociogram is much less well supplied. Of course, chance has a significant influence, as well as the Boosters used during the process, a source of frustration for collectors, and moreover with the obligatory pre-backup on the only proposed location.
Waves to the soul
Yet this exciting random parameter considerably expands the choice in terms of team composition given the versatility of drivers, and their potential for evolutions for some intimately grafted during the adventure. A phenomenal wealth that the DIY of an artificial blade, in this case robotic such as Poppi would not have been able to generate alone. But this personalization factor has a crucial impact on the endgame (with the resurrection of the unique beasts at will), the successive parts and the future downloadable contents, for lack of the least dimension online multiplayer. Difficult to complain, even if some will accuse Monolith Softto have finally been content to mix the cards, taking up so many components of the saga. Rightly, but for the better, because Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is in turn nothing more than the culmination of an immense mythology that has been rewritten, refined and extended many times, in the tradition of the ineffable work of Osamu Tezuka in his field, to forge this sharp blade of J-RPG, so that everyone can make "this strange and penetrating dream of a woman [...] who is, each time, neither quite the same, nor quite another ". Thank you, Mr. Verlaine, and above all, thank you, Mr. Takahashi.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2enhances the saga in all areas, starting with the staging, even force the line to the caricature to better mask the seriousness of the underlying purpose. Ditto for the a priori less spreading world that unfolds majestically on the vertical plane, its densified architecture making the exploration even more exhilarating, with a large reinforcement of symphonic flights. These lush environments literally overflow with life, tides and folklore to support. And if some ideas are not sufficiently developed, while there remain some wanderings inherent to the series, the gameplay gains in edge thanks to the symbiotic support of the Blades. Their evolving talents serve both on the field and during combat, a versatility that the system of random creation enriches through the formation of teams. What broaden the horizons of this experiment dedicated to the long term, and bring the story both poetic and philosophical Monolith Soft firmament. Remains a vague impression of déjà vu, considering the recovery of the essential components of Xenoblade, since here is precisely the iteration the sharpest. Nothing is born or perishes, everything is transformed.
| WE LIKE | WE DO NOT LIKE |
|---|---|
| * The most amazing show ever seen on (trans) portable. | * The typical Japanese humor likely to displease some. |
| * The character design resolutely affirmed. | * The visual aspect sometimes blurry and granular (notoriously in portable mode). |
| * Quality dubbing, in English or Japanese a fortiori. | * The practice too dilettante recovery. |
| * The lyricism of the themes and the cosmopolitan orchestrations of the soundtrack. | * The succession sometimes grueling of jousts because of the massive fauna. |
| * Optional missions rather elaborate. | * The always delicate management of the hazards of relief and the camera in a confined environment. |
| * The very organic integration of the elements of the game. | * The regrettable lack of true notice (including digital). |
| * The increased dynamics of the battles. | |
| * The variety of rare blades and their potential for improvement. | |
| * The suspense generated by the forge of new recruits. | |
| * The abundance of ancillary occupations pending the DLC. |
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CREDIT
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