Xenoblade Chronicles X - 3 Year Anniversary!

[TheGoodHoms]

Xenoblade Chronicles X was released in North America on December 4th 2015. To this day it is still my favorite game of all time. The vast alien world of Mira, imaginative monsters, refined combat system, pulse pounding soundtrack, excellent voice cast, and so much more create a wonderful experience filled with adventure around every corner. The game isn't a masterpiece, but what it does well, it does REALLY well. Xenoblade is definitely more well known for it's more story driven games like XC and XC2, but the exploration focused XCX captivated me in a way few other games have. Tell me what you think of Xenoblade Chronicles X and where you think the series can go next.

Edited December 5, 2018 by TheGoodHoms

[Armagon]

Me commenting on this is gonna be weird since Xenoblade Chronicles X is the one Xeno game i haven't played (unless you wanna count the two Xenosaga spin-offs but no one cares about Freaks and Pied Piper) but it's not like i'm completely unfamiliar with it.

For starters, even without playing the game, i already acknlowedge Planet Mira as the magnum opus of Monolith Soft's world design. I honestly can't think of a better video game world. Like all Xenoblade worlds, Planet Mira feels so alive but what seperates it from the rest is that there are no restrictions. Sure, some parts are blocked off but once you get your Skell, you can go literally anywhere.

The sidequests are top-tier and the only other Xenoblade game that has that level of quality sidequests is Torna ~ The Golden Country. It's something i hope future Xenoblade games keep focusing on because Xenoblade 1's sidequests are ass and Xenoblade 2 had some generally alright sidequests with the highlights being the Blade quests.

The music, while i love it, i will say it is an aquired taste. I used to hate Black Tar but now i love it. Xenoblade X in general has some really good vocal tracks, with Melancholia being my favorite out of the bunch (and why does it only play in a menu? I mean, it plays in some Affinity Missions too but it's so underused). 

I actually do like the game's more lyrical approach to it's battle themes. Black Tar, Uncontrollable, Wir Fligen and The Key We've Lost are all bangers. Shoutouts to NO.EX01.

And of course, we can't forget about the area themes. All of them are amazing (not NLA tho) and i only wish the songs themslevs went on for longer.

I'm not gonna comment on the combat itself, i have to actually play the game first. All i'm gonna say is that if it ever gets ported to the Switch, i hope they sack the Art Pallete in exchange for having every Art mapped to one of the four buttons on the Joy-Cons. Xenoblade 2 and Torna made me realize that the Art Pallete is kinda dated and also takes a good chunk of the screen.

The story, it's decent. It's definetly on the lower end of the scale regarding Xeno stories but i'd actually put it over Xenosaga Episode I. The story sequel baits hard and the villains were laughably bad but i understand that the this was the one Xeno game where the story intentionally akes a back seat.

Monolith Soft has said they do want to make both a Xenoblade X2 and a Xenoblade 3 and regarding the former, i just want for them to keep improving on what they've done. Like i said before, i'd defienitly want them to keep the Arts mapped to the buttons like in Xenoblade 2 and Torna. And i'm saying this prematurely since i haven't played X but i do think that Torna has the best combat in the Xenoblade series so if Xenoblade X2 can take Torna's battle system and combine it with the level of customization X had, it would be a wonderful treat (i actually want this to be the standard in the series going forward regardless of whether it's XCX2 or XC3).

Story wise, while it might take a back seat again, i do hope they keep exploring the mysteries of Mira (that concept art is too mysterious) as well as making the Ghosts relevant. 

Edited December 4, 2018 by Armagon

[PeaceRibbon]

Xenoblade X is definitely up there as one of my favorite games. Character customization is fun, especially being able to create your own fighting style and changing strategies even within the same class is so much fun (my favorite is the tension hungry but delightful Galactic Knight Healer I made).

The absolutely massive character roster can be seen as a little overwhelming if your goal is to see all of the things but on the other hand it lets you hang out with the BLADEs you want and ignore the ones you don't, minus the characters you'll want to befriend in order to get your primary load-out those spicy unique arts.

The game looks great with its creative visual direction in its landscape, almost to the point where a location can still wow you on your 5th visit. Sylvalum anyone?

The soundtrack is also absolutely stellar, my favorites being Wir Fligen, Sylvalum's theme, The Way, and Uncontrollable. Sometimes I wonder if I'll ever play a game where Hiroyuki Sawano's work doesn't improve it in all honesty.

Also my division has been and always will be Mediators. Street cops forever!

Edited December 4, 2018 by PeaceRibbon
How did I forget UNCONTROLLABLE?!

[King Marth 64]

16 hours ago, TheGoodHoms said:

Xenoblade Chronicles X was released in North America on December 4th 2015. To this day it is still my favorite game of all time. The vast alien world of Mira, imaginative monsters, refined combat system, pulse pounding soundtrack, excellent voice cast, and so much more create a wonderful experience filled with adventure around every corner. The game isn't a masterpiece, but what it does well, it does REALLY well. Xenoblade is definitely more well known for it's more story driven games like XC and XC2, but the exploration focused XCX captivated me in a way few other games have. Tell me what you think of Xenoblade Chronicles X and where you think the series can go next.

Umm... you misspelled “Chronicles” in the topic title.

Also, I’m still playing Chapter 5 in Xenoblade Chronicles X as of right now and wanted to finish those side quests and wanted to try out those side missions to get more characters. I still like the BLADE members that I’m still currently using as of right now.

[TheGoodHoms]

9 hours ago, King Marth 64 said:

Umm... you misspelled “Chronicles” in the topic title.

Fixed! Thank you for noticing.

9 hours ago, King Marth 64 said:

Also, I’m still playing Chapter 5 in Xenoblade Chronicles X as of right now and wanted to finish those side quests and wanted to try out those side missions to get more characters. I still like the BLADE members that I’m still currently using as of right now.

Definitely try to get every party member you can and switch out which ones you're using every so often to raise your affinity with them to unlock more side quests and heart to hearts.

On 12/4/2018 at 6:53 AM, Armagon said:

I used to hate Black Tar but now i love it.

I felt the same way. The weird thing is that rap really isn't my thing, but somehow Black Tar kept growing on me and now it's my favorite song in the soundtrack, albeit somewhat ironically.

On 12/4/2018 at 7:29 AM, PeaceRibbon said:

Also my division has been and always will be Mediators. Street cops forever!

We Reclaimers are busting our butts out there braving unspeakable dangers trying to find the Lifehold and you're saving cats from trees!

[PeaceRibbon]

18 minutes ago, TheGoodHoms said:

We Reclaimers are busting our butts out there braving unspeakable dangers trying to find the Lifehold and you're saving cats from trees!

B-but that cat is an invaluable resource! Everything brought from Earth has important survival or scientific value! I can't let it fall and get injured!

[Water Mage]

Honestly it’s still my favorite Xenoblade. The world and lore are just so interesting! And the aliens races are so well written!

Why alien race is you guys’ favorite?

Mine are the Tree Clan Prone, there’s something about their simplicity and how genuine they are that I really like.

[TheGoodHoms]

@Water Mage My personal favorite alien race in the game is probably the Orphean. Not only are they very visually appealing to me, but also their racial quirks are implemented really well as to preserve each Orphean's individuality rather than falling for the old "planet of hats" trope, which could have easily been the case considering they have a semi-hive mind thing going on. Also they make really cool looking armor and weapons.

Edited December 6, 2018 by TheGoodHoms

[Interdimensional Observer]

Although I do recognize the various issues of this in every facet, I have come to really like XCX. It is a shame Monolith isn't going to port it to Switch (and why can't they find someone else to do it with a small handful of Monolith overseers? Nintendo got somebody else to remake OoT and MM rather than do it themselves, how much harder could it be?), ideally with a litany of tweaks and additions to expand it. The game should be available to a larger audience.

 

On 12/6/2018 at 7:15 AM, Water Mage said:

Honestly it’s still my favorite Xenoblade. The world and lore are just so interesting! And the aliens races are so well written!

Why alien race is you guys’ favorite?

Didn't finish all the sidequests, but I do think the NPC and enemy aliens (ignoring one-offs and two-offs) were fairly well handled. My breakdown, from less to more liked:

1. The Nopon is the worst of the bunch, being out of line with the game's general art and narrative direction, and Tatsu is a sin which Monolith can never cleanse itself of. But they do interject a little good humor from time to time as a silver lining, and Nopon Skells in that great hypothetical called a sequel could either be WTF amazing, or WTF baaaad! And it does establish them as a race present throughout the present Xeno franchise.
2. Milsaadi- Why don't they get any sidequest attention? The bestiary stuff on them sounds good.
3. Cave Clan Prone- just the brutes of the Ganglion, not much else. But at least they don't break the tone like the Nopon.
4. Definians- The idea of them is cool, if generic, the problem is that they are overused and used badly in some cases, like Boze's 3rd Affinity Mission.
5. Zaruboggans- They're barely there, but they have a purpose, which I'll get to more later.
6. Wrothians- Beast humanoids with a Japanese flair, more fantasy than sci-fi. Not bad, their designs are cool, but nothing terribly unique.
7. Tree Clan Prone- Peaceful people among the otherwise brutish and ugly race, this is a nice contrast for humanizing the Prone overall.
8. Manon- We did not need the Nopon when the Manon exist. They're small and weak like the Nopon, they're lazy too with some quirks like the pizza obsession. Perhaps in a way cute to some, but certainly not as obnoxiously kawaii as the Nopon, and they fit into the overall picture of things. The Nopon, being primitive natives of Mira, do in a way allow the Manon to be high-tech, since if they were high-tech and native, then Mira should have actual civilization galore and not just wilderness. By being geniuses, the Manon provide a subtle rival among smart aliens with the best-handled alien race in XCX...
9. The Orphe! Design-wise, their insect-inspired bodies are more creative than some of the others here, and we get a good deal of lore with them. 

I will add I like how we get a full hierarchy of the Ganglion system from the NPC aliens. "Ganglion" Ganglion (Luxaar and that one lady) + Ryyz (I hate her) at the top, Prone comprise the bulk of the forces, Milsaadi are elites, Definians are super-elite. Orphe provide the R&D brains, the Zaruboggans are the menial laborers doing the absolute worst of the tasks. 

 

On 12/4/2018 at 6:53 AM, Armagon said:

Xenoblade 2 and Torna made me realize that the Art Pallete is kinda dated and also takes a good chunk of the screen.

Genius! It also makes firing off arts faster. Assign to - the AI commands, to + the Overdrive mechanic. Use the shoulders to toggle other things, like getting in/out of a Skell and swapping from melee to ranged weapon and vice versa.

 

Also, Curator here, out to collect and research native things, be it Ganglion tech, ancient ruins from who knows when (please explain Mira XCX2), and lots and lots of indigen guano. 

More seriously, I love BLADE's defined divisions of labor, much as I do the Ganglion racial split. It is just a little detail, but this bit of world-building, a rational planning of workers and goals, is sound reasoning when game plots can be lacking in that.

 

The soundtrack is growing on me too, not so much Black Tar or the NLA theme, but the rest is decent to good. It wasn't until recently that I on my own found out what "raTEoREkiSImeAra" meant, clever Sawano.