Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Review - Is like a rainbow in the clouds

Humanity is banished from paradise, but no one knows why. But Rex is about to find out when he accepts a nice assignment. We may participate in this Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Review. In a sea of ​​clouds through a fairytale world, on the way to Elysium. Is this trip worthwhile? Read on soon!

In 2010 Monolith Soft with Xenoblade Chronicles for the Wii. The game was quite popular and got a remake for both the 3DS and the Nintendo Wii U. And now it's time for the official second part in the Xenoblade Chronicles series. A game with a whole new theme.

The Xeno series has been running since 1998 and with Xenoblade Chronicles 2 already gets the tenth part. And every part of the franchise has a different setting than the previous parts. It keeps the franchise fresh every time, while you know what to expect. The previous part, Xenoblade Chronicles dates back to 2010 and was received so positively that in 2015.

Now it's time for the official second part of Xenoblade Chronicles. A JRPG with its own theme that appears exclusively for the Nintendo Switch. This game takes us into the clouds and if we have fun there you can of course read below!

An assignment that is too good to be true

Humanity is banished from the paradise Elysium in Xenoblade Chronicles. That is why people wear their days in Alrest. This is a torn world where huge animals called Titans function as living islands in a sea of ​​clouds. Rex also lives on a Titan, called Azurda, and trades stuff that he, as a Salvager, emerges from the cloud sea.

But if one day he is trading his trade with the Nopon (the rabbit-like creatures from the first part) gets a big assignment. One that can change his life. A bold check only to pick up a package under the guidance of a group of others. It sounds almost too good to be true! And of course it is also.

The package in question appears to be Pyra, a dormant Blade. The assignment goes horribly wrong and Rex runs off with Pyra and Azurda. Pyra must at all costs to Elysium, but that is not without a struggle, given the hunt for the duo is open.

A huge adventure

Then begins a great thorough story of more than 70 hours in which you explore all the angles of Alrest. And then we are only talking about the story itself. The islands are all huge and each has its own ecosystem complete with the many creatures that live there. Only the diversity of the world is enough reason to spend hours on every island.

Apart from that, there is plenty to experience on every island alongside the storyline and exploration. You can approach the countless NPCs that you come across to find out more about the world and a part of it also offers you side missions. If you get started with this, Xenoblade Chronicles 2 will make it easy for you to come through the winter, because the counter will go well over 100 hours! After a while the side missions do fall a bit, but that should not spoil the fun.

Certainly not because the game offers you a lot of variety in the fighting. The combat system in Chronicles 2 is the same as in the first part, so a real-time combat system. You play with the Joy Cons in the holder or with the Pro Controller (the game does not support motion controls ) and this goes very smoothly, although almost every key has a function.

The standard attack is always carried out automatically if you are close to an enemy. You have to use the special attacks manually and have a cooling time. But there is a twist in Chronicles 2 on the famous fighting system that makes it feel fresh. There are Drivers and Blades in the game.

The Driver is the attacking character and the Blade is the power behind your weapon. Pyra is a Blade, but the game has many other Blades that you can connect to Core Cristals. Each Blade has its own characteristics such as an element that comes with your attacks and a set of unique attacks.

Teamwork above all

And if you manage to combine those unique attacks in a combo, you can cause serious damage to your opponent. Especially when you get your combometer completely full. Then you can release an 'all-devastating' attack on the opponent. It is a fighting system that can provide exciting situations, but can also make a fight very complicated.

The latter is mainly due to the special effects and many characters in a fight. In total you can battle with three characters, which means that there are six characters to fight. In addition, there are the enemies of course you are fighting against. The commotion that all these characters bring on one screen is, especially in the handheld mode of the Switch, sometimes quite unclear.

As befits a good JRPG, after every fight you earn XP, which makes you stronger. And your Blades will also become stronger. The latter goes not only by simply fighting, but mainly by completing goals in the world.

It is a fun system that keeps you constantly busy. Perhaps the most important element in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is keeping track of your equipment. You can still be so high in level, but if your weapon is not good, do not put a dent in a packet of butter. Collect weapons and accessories, or in this case, Gems.

Limited power

Better Gems provide stronger characters and also a better connection between Blade and Driver . And if your band is good you can hand out a lot of beating much easier. Enemies will lie down faster and you can enjoy the world around you sooner.

Because that always looks amazingly worked out. As mentioned, the world is huge and diverse, but in terms of detail it is often your eyes to look out and enjoy the great soundtrack. Monolith Soft has designed almost everything with a lot of care and the fruits are very good to see. Very occasionally there is a character that comes across as somewhat simple, but this is always an NPC that just passes by.

Furthermore, the colors splash (usually) from your screen and the animations look very smooth. And the day and night cycle in the game ensures that a world remains interesting for longer. Unfortunately, you notice very well that the game is held back by the power of the Switch. In handheld mode, the game looks less breathtaking, but the biggest problem comes up in framedrops when it's busy on the screen.

In addition, it sometimes happens that a cut scene starts to falter. The video then runs happily, while the sound and subtitles suddenly do not run synchronously. The result is a particularly confusing whole despite the English voices (Japanese is available in a patch upon release). This is really a miss, because it is precisely in the cutscenes that the feeling of such an RPG has to come across and that is not always the case here.

Conclusion

The more limited power of the Switch comes to mind at times like this and makes sure that Xenoblade Chronicles 2 does not come across as it should. Fortunately, this is not always the case and then the game is great. Almost everything matches the game with a few minor mistakes.

For example, some side missions are somewhat repetitive, some NPCs look very simple and the game knows framedrops . This definitely does not outweigh the many hours of smooth gameplay that the game offers in the most diverse environments. Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is like a rainbow in the clouds; the game is great, but the Switch sometimes stops you.

Pros

➕ Audiovisual a gem
➕ More than 100 hours of gameplay
➕ Great in-depth story
➕ Great fighting system

Cons

➖ Knows framedrops in handheld mode
➖ Is limited by the Switch
➖ Some characters worked out less

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