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Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition |OT| What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Apparently.
OutrageousFacts
Banned
-Arcadia-
I just switched between Xenoblade 1, 2 and FC and I must correct myself a bit: Xenoblade DE main game looks on par with Xenoblade 2 in terms of iq, although overall graphics are worse Obviously. But strangely enough, FC looks noticeably worse than the maingame! This is even weirder when you play it on tv where FC looks better than the main game.My assumption is that because FC uses some more modern level design and effects/textures, the engine can't handle it as well as the main game that stil has the architecture of a Wii game.
I really hope that the general roughness is because Monolith Soft had this remaster be the 'test project' for all the new employees that joined in the last couple months/years. That'd explain why it's not as good looking as it should be.
Edit: oh great, more shitting on Xenoblade 2's designs. Is this board becoming Resetera? I'm out :/
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Flying Toaster
Member
With you on the bolded.
You know really its Rex is just badly designed in general. I will sign off on the rest.
Played an hour of Definitive edition in handheld mode because almost all of my play is on my lite. Game is night and day better than playing on the 3ds.
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fallingdove
Member
I saw those. Do they combine using the standard Nintendo joycon dock?Sounds like you need to get these Hori Split Pad Pro for your handheld sessions:
ClanOfNone
Member
The Hori pads are amazing if you play all portable like I do, they have literally given the system a second life for me.
iirc they don't have internal batteries, but I haven't docked my Switch in like 2 years so I'm not sure. There is no rumble either, which can be a deal breaker for some. The regular joycons were garbage for people with big hands and these things let me play Gungeon again.
iirc they don't have internal batteries, but I haven't docked my Switch in like 2 years so I'm not sure. There is no rumble either, which can be a deal breaker for some. The regular joycons were garbage for people with big hands and these things let me play Gungeon again.
Resenge
Member
No, they have no batteries and are powered by the console only. I do reccomend them though, miles better than the Joycons.
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hououinkyouma00
Gold Member
I wouldn’t mind jumping into a big RPG on Switch.
Would GAF choose this or Xenoblade Chronicles 2?
Would GAF choose this or Xenoblade Chronicles 2?
AeonGaidenRaiden
Member
Just start with this as its the first game.
ClanOfNone
Member
I had planned on buying this to kill the last week before my job reopens but then I bought Monster Train on Steam and that thing has hooked me good.
Gormless Noodle
Member
Xenoblade 2 has the best character designs of any Switch game and Rex is adorable. Eat shit.
Resenge
Member
There isn't any graphical power difference between the original and Lite models of switch I dont think? so they should play exactly the same. 30fps with minimal dips is what I have seen.
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Eevee86
Member
I prefer 2, but they're both great.
teezzy
Banned
I guess I'm more so curious how it performs in handheld then
JORMBO
Darkness no more
I like 2 better, but if you plan on playing both at some point I would start with 1. You don't have to play 1 to play 2, but you'll get a bit extra out of it if you do.
Resenge
Member
Runs just as well as docked except lower res and a few less effects/lower shadows etc. Its a decent port just dont expect anything amazing. It is definatly the definitive edition.
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Spukc
always chasing the next thrill
Played the start to the first town. Earlier today.
This game looks HORRIBLE in handheld.
All those screenshots i have seen before are def NOT from handheld mode.
Srsly one of the worst looking games i have on my switch. I dont understand how they can't seem to fix this yet again after xbc2
Fyi both borderlands and bioshock look amazing on the switch. And going from those games to this is a bit harsh.
Anyway first impressions.
This game looks HORRIBLE in handheld.
All those screenshots i have seen before are def NOT from handheld mode.
Srsly one of the worst looking games i have on my switch. I dont understand how they can't seem to fix this yet again after xbc2
Fyi both borderlands and bioshock look amazing on the switch. And going from those games to this is a bit harsh.
Anyway first impressions.
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BouncyFrag
Member
The music when it goes into night mode is sooo good.
Smiles and Cries
Member
can't stand Xenoblade fans shitting on Rex stahp!
just love what you love back to the grind
how many chapters was this game again?
just love what you love back to the grind
how many chapters was this game again?
jshackles
Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
Good to hear!I feel like i'm the only one that thinks the game looks decent in handheld it doesn't really bother me. I thought XC2 was worse in some areas. Just started it today.. loce it so far..you were rightjshackles .. I would say i am into it more than XC2 at the beginning.
I'm also not too bothered by the game's resolution. I have a homebrew-enabled Switch and can't even be bothered to configure the game to run with higher clockspeeds or to optimize the game's ROMFS config files. I'm playing entirely in handheld mode. There are a few spots where I've been like "oh it's kinda blurry" or "oh it's weird how the grass texture pops in" but it honestly hasn't lowered my enjoyment of the game in the slightest.
Smiles and Cries
Member
I have done this too many times
pee break at cutscene press Pause when I comeback I forget to press the same button to unpause instead I instinctly press A to continue skipping the important story
had to go back to check the story theather
loving this game again I don't mind how it looks because in my memory it is still an upgrade over the original
the story still gives me the feels but I am trucking along this time, running out of chapters I think
pee break at cutscene press Pause when I comeback I forget to press the same button to unpause instead I instinctly press A to continue skipping the important story
had to go back to check the story theather
loving this game again I don't mind how it looks because in my memory it is still an upgrade over the original
the story still gives me the feels but I am trucking along this time, running out of chapters I think
Smiles and Cries
Member
most of them are timed I am proud of myself for finishing them all, this game made it easier to do since it tells you where you need to go on the map
It is also nice for my level up greed
Smiles and Cries
Member
I don't want to put on fall resist but I need to quit falling off this mountain
-Arcadia-
Banned
Lite helps a bit with the lower resolution in handheld. On both systems, it seems to be nowhere near as bad as 2, and looks fine. The exception seems to be the new chapter they added, where the resolution crashes pretty hard.
That said, I still kind of feel like the game is somewhat intended to be played in Docked. It’s nowhere near as pretty in handheld, even if handheld is solid and looks good enough in its own right.
Eevee86
Member
I prefer the Home button so I cant screw it up.
BouncyFrag
Member
Just looking for some general tips for skills and abilities to level up.
-Arcadia-
Banned
I’m reminded that half the challenge in these games is adapting to all the things they throw at you, often on-the fly. Lol.
It’s a Mariana Trench of game mechanics, basically, with the tutorials section more resembling some kind of user manual than a game.
Sometimes I do wonder what it’d be like if they toned down that complexity, and made it a bit more approachable, but I get the feeling that this series is this good, precisely because this developer follows its heart and it’s own ideas.
It’s a Mariana Trench of game mechanics, basically, with the tutorials section more resembling some kind of user manual than a game.
Sometimes I do wonder what it’d be like if they toned down that complexity, and made it a bit more approachable, but I get the feeling that this series is this good, precisely because this developer follows its heart and it’s own ideas.
jshackles
Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
I played some more last night, I'm right around 21 hours in now. I just finished the swamp level but I've been doing tons of side quests and such (since a lot more open up after this) and mostly just filling in my map and fighting some bigger / tougher enemies that are scattered about. I'm level 33.
I'm really feelin it! This game is sooo good.
I'm really feelin it! This game is sooo good.
Smiles and Cries
Member
the more I compare the cutscenes from the Wii and this version the more I appreciate the upgrade graphics. The story is beautiful it deserved and updated look. I would not mind seeing it done again in another 5 years or so.
back to the grind
back to the grind
Danjin44
The nicest person on this forum
Oh yeah I love the new visuals, characters have proper expression in their faces this time.
Smiles and Cries
Member
what button can I press to remove the dotted line for the story quest? I just want to explore a bit before I move the story forward
jshackles
Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
I don't think there is a button you can press. If you press + then go into the options, you can disable it though.
BouncyFrag
Member
I’m into ch 3 and I’m hooked. I’m currently obsessed with this track.
Belmonte
Member
As someone with a completionist tendency, Eryth sea/Alcamoth broke me so hard that I stop playing Xenoblade for 6 years. I pick up it again only last year, start reading a guide which usually I'm against and now I'm having a lot of fun. It was a nightmare. Not to only complete the quests but find them.
Nice!This fixes the biggest problem of the original Xenoblade IMO. Is it easier to find the quest giver also?
I completed them all too, but I'm not that proud, heh!
Touch fuzZy. get BizZay
Member
Game is amazing, binged a ton and I'm enjoying it even more than the first time I played it.
Critiques of the graphics are very accurate though, you really can't grasp how rough it looks until you play it for yourself. Cutscenes look great, like a first party switch game, but during world exploration things can get very muddy. Not that the beauty of Xenoblade's world doesn't shine through at times, but overall the visual experience is a bummer. Which is a shame because everything else really is definitive.
Tons of game changing quality of life improvements to the interface, amazing music, time attack challenges with rewards, frustrations removed from questing, it's all great stuff that make this the best version of the game. Even the special name bar tyrant mini-bosses get looks awesome, and it warns you about whether they do spike damage which is super helpful.
I tried to fight red name bar tyrants (way higher level than me) with my low level characters and it was a joke lol. There isn't a hope in hell until you have all sorts of late game powers and equipment. But brown name bar tyrants (5 levels higher) make for challenging, exciting fights. My wish to focus on the damage multiplier bonus in chain attack mode really doesn't work in the early game though. There aren't enough tension and affinity bonuses to extend chain attacks, and the characters don't have a diverse enough colour palette to their arts to build the multiplier at low levels. Maybe when I'm level 50 or so.
Getting S-rank on the time attacks is pretty easy in free mode but I was having a lot of trouble S-ranking Dunban's restricted time attack until I watched this video:
Basically you want to ignore chain attacks because they take too long, and focus on building your talent gauge so you can use blossom dance to do quick damage to the mechon, otherwise you'll take way too long for S-rank.
One last thing: I've been playing with mini-map, and the rest of the hud, turned off completely when exploring the world so I can just enjoy discovering things. Then when I want to do some questing I turn the mini-map on because it's super helpful and efficient. I really like playing this way and I recommend people try it.
Critiques of the graphics are very accurate though, you really can't grasp how rough it looks until you play it for yourself. Cutscenes look great, like a first party switch game, but during world exploration things can get very muddy. Not that the beauty of Xenoblade's world doesn't shine through at times, but overall the visual experience is a bummer. Which is a shame because everything else really is definitive.
Tons of game changing quality of life improvements to the interface, amazing music, time attack challenges with rewards, frustrations removed from questing, it's all great stuff that make this the best version of the game. Even the special name bar tyrant mini-bosses get looks awesome, and it warns you about whether they do spike damage which is super helpful.
I tried to fight red name bar tyrants (way higher level than me) with my low level characters and it was a joke lol. There isn't a hope in hell until you have all sorts of late game powers and equipment. But brown name bar tyrants (5 levels higher) make for challenging, exciting fights. My wish to focus on the damage multiplier bonus in chain attack mode really doesn't work in the early game though. There aren't enough tension and affinity bonuses to extend chain attacks, and the characters don't have a diverse enough colour palette to their arts to build the multiplier at low levels. Maybe when I'm level 50 or so.
Getting S-rank on the time attacks is pretty easy in free mode but I was having a lot of trouble S-ranking Dunban's restricted time attack until I watched this video:
Basically you want to ignore chain attacks because they take too long, and focus on building your talent gauge so you can use blossom dance to do quick damage to the mechon, otherwise you'll take way too long for S-rank.
One last thing: I've been playing with mini-map, and the rest of the hud, turned off completely when exploring the world so I can just enjoy discovering things. Then when I want to do some questing I turn the mini-map on because it's super helpful and efficient. I really like playing this way and I recommend people try it.
Touch fuzZy. get BizZay
Member
For Reyn I like War Swing for hitting multiple enemies and building the talent gauge. I also really like sword drive cause it does a ton of damage. Sharla I like shield bullet and the healing skills. Shulk I levelled backslash for damage, shadow eye to remove aggro and stream edge because it hits multiple enemies, inflicts break and fills the talent gauge.
Here's a video explaining the combat but it has mild spoilers for the first 15-20 hours of the game
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Danjin44
The nicest person on this forum
I dont know, I personally didn't have much issue with the visuals and without out the doubt it much better looking than original game but even then I had blast with games with even rougher looking visuals like Fire Emblem Three Houses.
Touch fuzZy. get BizZay
Member
I should add that I always play up close to a large HD television. People may have a very different experience if they sit a sensible distance back or if they play on handheld. I tried handheld for 20 mins and I honestly don't see anything to complain about with the visuals when the screen is so small. That's just my first impression though, I heard a lot of complaints levelled against XC2 in handheld mode so I was curious to try it briefly, and thought it was good but I always like to play on a big screen.
I'm not comparing it only to the original but also to my dream of the definitive version of this classic game and what I know this hardware is capable of, when the time and resources are expended to squeeze as much eye candy out as possible. I understand why they didn't do that, but a flaw is a flaw.
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-Arcadia-
Banned
The visuals are one of the most strangely mixed bags I’ve seen in a long time.
Wii assets and animation, Switch assets and effects (to their credit, it comes together nicely), and the resolution of a PS4/Xbox One game port (maybe a bit higher). Add in the grass on Gaur Plains spawning in about 20 feet away, with blurry textures past that and it’s all just a very WTF mix.
I feel like this needed more time in the oven, optimization, and budget, visually.
It might have been better for Monolith Soft to outsource to a porting house, with close supervision and involvement, and for Nintendo to actually loosen the purse strings more than a fraction.
With all this in mind, it’s certainly the best way to play the game, no contest, and often quite beautiful. When things are redone, it goes above and beyond the typical remaster by quite a bit. It’s just that it’s a bit sloppy in execution sometimes, and feels like it could have been more.
Wii assets and animation, Switch assets and effects (to their credit, it comes together nicely), and the resolution of a PS4/Xbox One game port (maybe a bit higher). Add in the grass on Gaur Plains spawning in about 20 feet away, with blurry textures past that and it’s all just a very WTF mix.
I feel like this needed more time in the oven, optimization, and budget, visually.
It might have been better for Monolith Soft to outsource to a porting house, with close supervision and involvement, and for Nintendo to actually loosen the purse strings more than a fraction.
With all this in mind, it’s certainly the best way to play the game, no contest, and often quite beautiful. When things are redone, it goes above and beyond the typical remaster by quite a bit. It’s just that it’s a bit sloppy in execution sometimes, and feels like it could have been more.
Herr Edgy
Member
Couldn't resist. Xenoblade is my favorite series and while I thought X was pretty bad and 2 had some serious flaws (whereas I think the first's "flaws" are either good or add to the charm) it's the one series I always look forward to.
Bought the collector's edition from a scalper. 140€ instead of the normal 90€.
Can the new 'QoL' (dumbing down) mechanics be disabled? I don't wanna be shown a line to my target. I love how sometimes even small fetch quests made you immerse yourself due to smart structuring of the game world. Going by memory, some intel and an educated guess would be enough to get the general area, and from thereon it would be quick to find your target. This is from when there was 'design' in level design and not just 'environment art'.
Bought the collector's edition from a scalper. 140€ instead of the normal 90€.
Can the new 'QoL' (dumbing down) mechanics be disabled? I don't wanna be shown a line to my target. I love how sometimes even small fetch quests made you immerse yourself due to smart structuring of the game world. Going by memory, some intel and an educated guess would be enough to get the general area, and from thereon it would be quick to find your target. This is from when there was 'design' in level design and not just 'environment art'.
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