A spinoff to the cult classic, Xenoblade Chronicles, this game is Monolith Soft’s largest JRPG on the Wii U console. As someone who has completed a 100% run of this game, I will take an in depth look at the game’s mechanics and how it holds up as a gaming experience.
About Xenoblade X
This title is a JRPG that prompts the player to complete a twelve-chapter quest across a planet foreign to humans. You will fight Tyrants - a specialized group of enemies across Mira - and run surveillance on new areas on the planet. To earn money, players can install probes across the map and harvest credits to be spent in the shops.
Monolith Soft developed this game while it was published by Nintendo. Those who played the first game welcomed the spinoff but found that it was inferior to the original. The game has been overshadowed by Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and Torna in the years following its release in 2015. It doesn’t help that the sole console it can be played on is the Wii U. However, there is still an affinity for the game when Xenoblade YouTubers like Enel post guides on the game’s battle system.
According to neogaf.com, the Japanese sales of X were underwhelming in its release year and only reached 115,000 sales. Keep in mind that its Japanese release was in April 2015. The NintendoWorldReport.com website reported that 200,000 sales of X were achieved in the American markets in its first release month.
Development began in 2011 following the release of Xenoblade Chronicles on the Wii. Tetsuya Takahashi, the head of Monolith Soft, approached Hitoshi Yamaguci, a producer for Nintendo, if he would be interested in designing a new sci-fi game based on the Xenoblade universe. From there, development lasted for four years until the finalized product was released on the Wii U console.
This is an overview of the hub world of the game and where most of the progression occurs.
The story of X is the result of the destruction of Earth at the hand of rivaling alien armies. After years of searching, those who survived on the White Whale landed on the planet of Mira. They colonized the planet and set up base in the city of New Los Angeles.
The central villains of the story are the Ganglion - a coalition of extraterrestrial life who have a mission related to humanity’s extinction. Those encountered in the later chapters are confused by the fascination of the Ganglion with humanity. To other races, humans are primitive beings.
Compared to the other games, X’s story is the weakest in impact and quality. Likely, you will not be focusing on the story much beyond a few key plot twists in points of the game.
That is not to say that the story has no interesting aspects. Moreover, the final chapter is where the game’s story is at its prime. After you see the ending, you will beg for Monolift Soft to provide a continuation to the game’s cliffhangers.
Xenoblade Chronicles X’s Gameplay
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Below is a three-hour gameplay demonstration of Xenoblade X.
The default player can be customized by the one playing the game. One can choose the size, skin color, height, gender, tattoos, and name of the avatar. As more characters are accessible, one can set the main character to whichever of the accessible characters.
In all, there are sixteen classes able to be mastered by the player. Drifter is always the first one to be available. The classes are further separated based on their weapon. Once a class is mastered, you can change your class to master a new weapon field. Weapons from different classes can be mixed and matched based on what you have maxed out.
When you are ready to begin a story mission, you will be shown a cutscene summarizing your next objective. To those who get lost, there is a Follow Ball that will hover toward your next mission.
There is a world map displayed on the Wii U GamePad. What is excellent about this feature is that it gives you an idea of what objectives need to be completed in a specific area and doesn’t leave you in the dark about your level of completion.
To speak of the game world, it is divided into six main sections: New Los Angeles, the grassy Primordia, the desert continent of Oblivia, rainy Noctilum, the tundra of Sylvavum, and the fiery wasteland of Cauldros. The vast majority of your activity outside of story missions will be centered in New Los Angeles. Beyond gathering items and defeating bosses, there isn’t much to do in the massive world of Mira.
There are a host of interesting NPCs that add flavor to the experience. The ones that come to mind are the scam artist who is exposed in a side quest, the time traveler who asks you to build a time machine, and the Nopon nomads. Someone who is playing Xenoblade X will likely have no desire to replay the massive game a second time. There is simply too much to do for the game to warrant another playthrough. That isn’t a bad thing. It’s just not worth the effort.
Xenoblade Chronicles X’s Combat
The combat of this game takes inspiration from the previous installment in the Xenoblade franchise. Once you engage an enemy, you have the option to auto-attack in intervals lasting a few seconds. The attacks you want to focus on are known as arts. They can be displayed on a palette during battle and their configuration is manageable in the menu.
Most arts deal with attacking the enemies with more damage than a usual auto-attack. Others heal and grant status effects to the player. My favorite is Ghostwalker. It can grant immunity from attacks under specific conditions and is overpowered when tension levels are elevated. The maximum level for each character is 60.
The most exciting aspect of this game’s combat is the Overdrive mechanic. It can be activated after the events of Chapter 5. The cost of activating Overdrive is 3,000 tension points. Earning tension is possible through auto-attacking and using certain arts.
In Overdrive, the time it takes to recharge an art is reduced and more damage can be inflicted on enemies as long as the effect is in place. Tension earned during this period is able to extend the Overdrive period and increase the benefits up to the maximum multiplier.
A drawback of the combat system is how the game forces you to complete the story before you are able to improve your skills. Many of the acceptable weapons are unable to be purchased until later chapters. In my opinion, it is a poor way of restricting what could have been a more enjoyable way to explore the world of Mira.
An excellent way of slamming monsters at high levels is with the ether blossom build. The link to a demonstration is below.
The majority of this game’s quests are centered in the city of New Los Angeles. When you are unable to receive more quests, it is an indication that you need to progress through the story before returning for quests.
Most quests give goods like armor, credits, and weapons. Some completed quests will fill spaces on the Mira map. Be on the watch for NPCs if you are attempting a 100% run.
The quests are your standard JRPG variety. Someone is looking for a lost item, for example, and they want it returned. There are a handful of eccentric quests that evoked a few laughs from me.
For a game released in the last generation, the game’s character models are of good quality. The best environments include the cliffs of Cauldros, the metal ring in Oblivia, and the high points of Primordia that can be accessed with a Skell.
The developers chose an art style that is realistic enough to match its serious tone while not being gritty. That being said, some of the environments in the world have jagged textures when viewed from afar.
Xenoblade Chronicles X’s Stability
In a normal playthrough of the game, you are unlikely to encounter many bugs. The game never crashed or lagged in my 270 hours of play.
DLC content was available in Japanese editions of the game with the option to buy them at a total of 2,000 yen. They included new party members with their own side quests and affinity charts. In the American release, the DLC was prepackaged in the disc and no extra purchase was necessary.
Patches for the graphics and textures were available in the Japanese release but came with the disc in the American release.
Xenoblade Chronicles X’s Price
The price of the game during its release was $59.99. It has since declined to a range at around $30 in used gaming stores. I purchased my copy two years ago at the price of $25.
The only console the game can be played on is the Wii U. There is no news of a Switch port as of the writing of this article.
Outside of Japan, none of the game’s content is pay to win. The game you get is the total sum of the experience.
Final Verdict: 7.7/10
Pros:
The story will leave you wanting more after the final chapter.
The battle system rewards hard work and experimentation.
Some of the missions are noteworthy even to someone who hasn’t played in two years.
The graphics are stellar for a game on the Wii U.
Overdrive is a fantastic combat mechanic.
Cons:
The story takes a while to arouse interest in the player.
The game forces story progression at the expense of open world exploration.
