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[MetatronM]

So Carna was changed to Sharla? That's really weird. I can sort of understand Fiorun(g) to Fiora, but this feels like changing just for changing sake.

Not complaining about it. It's just weird.

Carna is too close to "meat" in many Romance languages, and this game's translation was originally for the European market.

Probably not the best idea to have boobs and hot pants named "Meat" running around.

 

[frequency]

Carna is too close to "meat" in many Romance languages, and this game's translation was originally for the European market.

Probably not the best idea to have boobs and hot pants named "Meat" running around.

Ah, that makes sense! Thanks!
I think I like "Sharla" better. "Carna" always made me think of "Carnival".

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

Ah, that makes sense! Thanks!
I think I like "Sharla" better. "Carna" always made me think of "Carnival".

My aunt's name is "Charla" though (pronounced the same way). It's killing me

 

[Jswanko]

Had Shulk wearing "Swim Shorts" because they were the best things I owned but after watching several cutscenes lose their dramatic tension because of his nearly bare legs I had to downgrade.

 

[SecretMoblin]

Alright folks, I'm at the point in my playthrough where I can show you a neat little touch included by the developers. There are minor location spoilers here, and this can be accessed when your party is roughly level 22-25 or so in the game.

When you get to

Spoiler

the Colony 6 area after saving Juju, you can take the elevator down to the "Splintered Path" area. On one of the dead ends, you can clearly see the Bionis' knee and thigh (the first image). Remember, you were just at this area, where the Gaur plains are. It's too dark to make out any features, but if you pan the camera down, you can see a bowl-like area on the Bionis' calf/shin (the second image). This is Colony 9, where you started the game!

http://i.imgur.com/sCVUK.png

http://i.imgur.com/mQzYp.png

Sorry for the image quality; I used my crappy webcam. It's easier to see it when you get there.

 

[frequency]

My aunt's name is "Charla" though (pronounced the same way). It's killing me

That's why I usually dislike when characters have "normal" names in games. I've run into a few situations where a character is named like someone I know and it always feels weird. It's even worse when that particular character is really cool but is named after your jerk sibling!

Had Shulk wearing "Swim Shorts" because they were the best things I owned but after watching several cutscenes lose their dramatic tension because of his nearly bare legs I had to downgrade.

That's one reason why I dislike equipment changing appearance in story-heavy games. Thankfully, Xenoblade isn't particularly difficult so I just always wore the best equipment that still looked liked it fits in with everything else.

 

[chaosblade]

I'm now about 4.5 hours in. I'm really liking this game. The battle system is incredibly deep, and it seriously just keeps on layering more and more. I'm kind of struggling to grasp it all; but luckily I've only died about three or four times, so it's not terribly frustrating. I'm trying not to overlevel, but I also am afraid I'll end up underleveled if I don't grind mobs occasionally. Luckily, battles are enough fun to not make it seem like a chore.

Doing sidequests you come across is a much quicker and easier way to keep leveled up, as well as just exploring and finding new landmarks and areas, and unlocking achievements. All of that nets you experience.

Of course, killing some things along the way isn't a bad thing, but you shouldn't feel the need to go out of your way and kill every bit of wildlife in sight to stay leveled up when there are more efficient ways to do it. Ways that also won't get you burnt out on the battle system.

 

[anaron]

Alright folks, I'm at the point in my playthrough where I can show you a neat little touch included by the developers. There are minor location spoilers here, and this can be accessed when your party is roughly level 22-25 or so in the game.

When you get to

Spoiler

the Colony 6 area after saving Juju, you can take the elevator down to the "Splintered Path" area. On one of the dead ends, you can clearly see the Bionis' knee and thigh (the first image). Remember, you were just at this area, where the Gaur plains are. It's too dark to make out any features, but if you pan the camera down, you can see a bowl-like area on the Bionis' calf/shin (the second image). This is Colony 9, where you started the game!

http://i.imgur.com/sCVUK.png

http://i.imgur.com/mQzYp.png

Sorry for the image quality; I used my crappy webcam. It's easier to see it when you get there.

:O

 

[L00P]

Had Shulk wearing "Swim Shorts" because they were the best things I owned but after watching several cutscenes lose their dramatic tension because of his nearly bare legs I had to downgrade.

Oh man that totally happened to me too. Made me chuckle during the cut scenes

 

[-GOUKI-]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPI4WLEQ5as

Woah the game was originally called Manado Beginning of The World. Holy shit it looked different back then.

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

Doing sidequests you come across is a much quicker and easier way to keep leveled up, as well as just exploring and finding new landmarks and areas, and unlocking achievements. All of that nets you experience.

Of course, killing some things along the way isn't a bad thing, but you shouldn't feel the need to go out of your way and kill every bit of wildlife in sight to stay leveled up when there are more efficient ways to do it. Ways that also won't get you burnt out on the battle system.

Cool. Thanks for the tip!

I've "accepted" every single quest I've come across. Is there any reason not to? There's no quest limit or anything, is there? And also, I haven't gone out of my way to complete any, but still have just by playing the game. No need to go back to the quest-giver correct, unless they need me to return something, right?

Thanks!

 

[TDLink]

Cool. Thanks for the tip!

I've "accepted" every single quest I've come across. Is there any reason not to? There's no quest limit or anything, is there? And also, I haven't gone out of my way to complete any, but still have just by playing the game. No need to go back to the quest-giver correct, unless they need me to return something, right?

Thanks!

Yeah, there is no quest limit. You can have as many as you want. Some quests require you to return to the giver (often if they are called some specific name). Most of the quests (the generic kill x of something, collect x of something, kill some named something) don't require you to return to the giver and complete when you finish the objective.

 

[Seik]

Dolphin in action

Wondahful

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

Yeah, there is no quest limit. You can have as many as you want. Some quests require you to return to the giver (often if they are called some specific name). Most of the quests (the generic kill x of something, collect x of something, kill some named something) don't require you to return to the giver and complete when you finish the objective.

Sounds good. Thanks

 

[chaosblade]

Definitely planning on doing my replay in Dolphin. I already started out with Dolphin and got up to the end of Tephra Cave just to try it out a while back. Took some screenshots along the way.

 

[raven777]

Definitely planning on doing my replay in Dolphin. I already started out with Dolphin and got up to the end of Tephra Cave just to try it out a while back. Took some screenshots along the way.

Dat title screen! It looks completely different from mine on Wii!!

 

[rockx4]

About 4 hours in, this game is awesome. This game incorporates so many features that I wish was in every JRPG. There's actually a dungeon minimap, it's like I'm in some bizarro world. So many recent jrpgs lack even the most simple features like a working minimap for all locations, and the ability to save anywhere.

 

[Zekes!]

For any JRPGs in the future that build off of Xenoblade in the future, something I'd still like to see is improved mobility. Being able to freely jump and climb around would make exploration even better.

 

[The Awesomest]

Ughghhgh how am I supposed to beat Xord? I'm at the spot where you have to fight him and actually win this time. For the first time, at least. The tutorial says I have to fill that little bar and use the triangle attack to break and topple but people keep dying before that's even possible! My party is at level 24 or 25.

 

[SecretMoblin]

Ughghhgh how am I supposed to beat Xord? I'm at the spot where you have to fight him and actually win this time. For the first time, at least. The tutorial says I have to fill that little bar and use the triangle attack to break and topple but people keep dying before that's even possible! My party is at level 24 or 25.

Spoiler

Make sure you take out his minions first. Make sure Sharla's healing arts are leveled as far as they can go. Make sure you're outfitted with the best equipment possible, and put good gems on the right equipment. If you need to, a level or two can make a world of difference.

Also, if you're not completely comfortable with the mechanic yet, go somewhere with an abundance of easy enemies and practice chain attacks and break/topple.

 

[Zekes!]

Ughghhgh how am I supposed to beat Xord? I'm at the spot where you have to fight him and actually win this time. For the first time, at least. The tutorial says I have to fill that little bar and use the triangle attack to break and topple but people keep dying before that's even possible! My party is at level 24 or 25.

Yeah I had problems with this as well. Just focus on the enemies he summons to build up your party meter

 

[Varjet]

I'm really surprised that some people seem to think that the battle system is complicated. It's just some simple mechanics but they stack on top of each other quite nicely. Only thing I didn't get initially were chain attacks. Thought they were a waste of bar.

 

[MetatronM]

Ughghhgh how am I supposed to beat Xord? I'm at the spot where you have to fight him and actually win this time. For the first time, at least. The tutorial says I have to fill that little bar and use the triangle attack to break and topple but people keep dying before that's even possible! My party is at level 24 or 25.

Spoiler

Use the other little Mechons to fill the party gauge. Remember the party gauge fills faster on successful actions, like hitting an enemy from behind with a back attack or from the side with a side attack or with Topple after a Break, etc. And remember to use Enchant for them.

Otherwise, everything SecretMoblin said.

 

[ErasureAcer]

37 hours in. LVL 35. Game is still amazing. I've completed so many quests!!! 4 Stars with Colony 9. =)

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

Alright, I feel like an idiot. Could use some help on an early boss (5 hours in, 3 person party, lvl ~17)

Spoiler

The tentacle boss that has Juju and was about to get Sharla. I beat the first version of it, but then it goes to a higher platform, and you have to tackle it there. I feel like I'm doing everything right. My skills are leveled up, I have some decent (non-default, at least) gear, and I'm making sure to use the Monado's powers as often as possible. I warn my teammates when needed, and use my shield when needed. I do my best to tackle from the appropriate sides - and while I don't manage every time - I do alright. But I keep dying over and over again. I can barely get it down to half-health. Is there something I'm missing?

Thanks!

 

[Socreges]

WHYYYYYY

Seriously, why hasn't it shipped yet?

 

[Starwolf_UK]

I had a problem with this as well. I understood the Break/Topple mechanic, but I had no idea how to initiate a Chain Attack. I also sat there for like 15 minutes unable to die because Dunban kept coming over and reviving me when I became incapacitated. I eventually had to just ask GAF how to start the Chain Attack.

I had the same thing. I nearly finished the fight without (I don't think it would let me) then accidentally hit down on the D-pad on the centre art...

Did I just not grind enough? Is that it? Was I supposed to spend twenty hours in the opening field killing defenseless butterflies or something?

I was thinking and this hit me...

I'm gonna say that if he's using level 1 arts, that is like the entire problem, because of how leveling decreases the cooldowns so much.
That and having decent gems in equipment are really the most important thing at that point.

Are you equipping armour/weapons with better stats? That would explain the whole dying very quickly part.

One question: how to import save from the Wii version? I tried copying to my SD card but I couldn't find anything that was conspicuously a save file for Xenoblade. I have my Wii home-brewed up now if that helps.

In the private folder there should be a S**E folder (I don't remember what ** are). Point Dolphins at that save import at that.

edit: and with composite cables! the component inputs no longer work, apparently.

There is always S-Video.

Kind of OT question. Can the new model wii be used with the stand? I see some bumps there for padding but I don't trust it not to topple over w/o a stand lol

Given it does not come with the stand I doubt it. Why not place it horizontal?

So now i got the choice of taking

Spoiler

Dunban

with me in combat, but since its only 3 characters, i might have to switch...but i love my team of Shulk(DPS), Reyn(tank) and Sharla(healer). Might as well stick with them until the end, but i fear like this could hurt my affinity with other characters i wont use.

Most people ditch Reyn at this point. I say Sharla or Shulk (I found healing isn't that useful when you regenerate health outside of fighting). As for affinity. It won't go down and chances are Shulk and Reyn are pretty high (unless you put Sharla in second party member slot).

ps: How do I use affinity coins?

Going with what everyone else said about skill links on the talent trees (think about how you want to complete the trees, do you want to focus on one branch or get lower skills from other branches) number of affinity coins is level+uniques slain. Also when you unlink a skill those affinity coins are freed up so experiment all you want.

Alright, I feel like an idiot. Could use some help on an early boss (5 hours in, 3 person party, lvl ~17)

A few things to remember. Shield only works on attacks followed by a roman numeral. Also that battle is the debut of

Spoiler

Monado speed (which increases agility by some crazy number...though only for evade not accuracy)

so that might be the better one to use.

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

- A bunch of stuff -

Wow! Quite the helpful post! And you snuck my question/answer in there, too! Thank you I'll keep that in mind tomorrow when I give the game another whirl.

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

Also; DAT atmospheric rain:

**super-de-duper light spoilers**

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5272/7059920451_857082c10d_b.jpg

So good. The music, plus sfx, plus visuals are just awesome.

***

I'm obviously very early in the game. About how many unique environments do I have to look forward to? I imagine in a ~100 hour long title, I can expect to see more than just grassy fields, water/lakes, caves and generic towns, correct?

 

[Exterminieren]

So.

Spoiler

Has anyone discovered DAT SPIDER yet?

 

[tborsje]

Hey guys. Should I be selling all the random materials that I find, or is it worth hanging on to them for potential quests? What I'm talking about is all this crap:

Sorry if this has been answered recently, this thread is moving fast.

 

[Zekes!]

Most people ditch Reyn at this point. I say Sharla or Shulk (I found healing isn't that useful when you regenerate health outside of fighting). As for affinity. It won't go down and chances are Shulk and Reyn are pretty high (unless you put Sharla in second party member slot).

I didn't ditch Reyn (and Sharla) until I got Riki. Riki + Dunban is a dope pair.

 

[SecretMoblin]

Hey guys. Should I be selling all the random materials that I find, or is it worth hanging on to them for potential quests? What I'm talking about is all this crap:

http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/655/sx4p012.png

Sorry if this has been answered recently, this thread is moving fast.

It's worth saving several of each, just in case. But that item you have 33 of? you can ditch most of those. And the bigger the bag, the rarer the item, so don't be too hasty. Money isn't terribly important and your inventory is huge, so don't worry about collecting a ton of random stuff.

 

[Liferebooted]

Sharla + Riki + Melia = OP.

 

[Gambit]

Yes. The dub is wonderful.

I was wondering about that. I loved the dub. It's the most quote-worthy dub since StarFox 64. To me it felt like it added a lot to the characters. But I haven't played it in Japanese.

How is it for people who understand Japanese? Does the dub add something? Or take away quality? Is it about the same?

 

[Antagon]

Reyn is still useful when fighting groups. Dunban is only a good tank for single enemies.

 

[Gambit]

Reyn is still useful when fighting groups. Dunban is only a good tank for single enemies.

I think my naked Dunban was dodging just about everything thrown his way. Even if there were multiple enemies. But you might be right that his attacks never trageted groups.

 

[tborsje]

It's worth saving several of each, just in case. But that item you have 33 of? you can ditch most of those. And the bigger the bag, the rarer the item, so don't be too hasty. Money isn't terribly important and your inventory is huge, so don't worry about collecting a ton of random stuff.

Sounds like a good idea, cheers.

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

"I missed!"

"That's okay!"

"This is easy!"

"It's Reyn time!"

"We won!"

"What a bunch of jokers!"

lol

 

[Scofield94941]

only about 2 hours in and I am loving it. The fighting system is awesome. I also put the graphics on the BRIGHTEST setting and I think it looks loads better than on normal. You can see so much things clearer. So happy to have another great game for Wii.

 

[Zenaku]

I was wondering about that. I loved the dub. It's the most quote-worthy dub since StarFox 64. To me it felt like it added a lot to the characters. But I haven't played it in Japanese.

How is it for people who understand Japanese? Does the dub add something? Or take away quality? Is it about the same?

I'll probably be met with claims of "weebo" or the like, but personally I don't like what I've seen of the translation.

The voices are great for the most part, but some of the characters seem off. One scene in the Japanese version had a character show a huge range of emotions at once, while the english translation showed nothing but anger in the same scene. Riki's IQ feels like it's been lowered slightly (Melia-chan to "Melly"; one being an acceptable way of addressing someone, the other a childish nickname). Above all, the translation paid absolutely no attention to the timing of the scenes and BGM; one important scene had a character reveal something the very moment the BGM flared up (done purposely by Takahashi) whereas the English version let's the info out 2 sentences or so earlier, destroying the impact I felt in the Japanese version.

Basic stuff really, and it'd likely still be great for most RPG fans, but it still bugs me. A little like watching another countries adaption of your favourite show; it has the same characters, same settings, same story and same music, but it still feels a little off.

 

[Rebel Leader]

WHYYYYYY

Seriously, why hasn't it shipped yet?

I don't think Nintendo processes orders on sunday... So hopefuly it ships for you soon

 

[Rebel Leader]

Dolphin in action


Wondahful

What armor are you wearing?
----
I know I can gift items...But I haven't been able to figure it out

 

[SecretMoblin]

I know I can gift items...But I haven't been able to figure it out

Menu -> Items -> Check Items -> Collectibles tab -> select a collectible and "present"

 

[MoogleWizard]

After playing this game I want every RPG to have a British dub, it's that awesome.

 

[Einhander]

I'm considering cancelling my nintendo.com store order of the Xenoblade bundle and ordering from gamestop.com, instead. It's been backordered since the game's release date and I'm not sure if I want to chance the game going out of stock at gamestop.com. This is frustrating.

 

[Ultratech]

Sharla + Riki + Melia = OP.

I used a lot of Dunban + Riki + Melia, which is just as OP. The only bad thing about Riki is despite having tons of HP and lots of good skills, he can't hold aggro for crap.

Although, you could probably sub in 7th for Dunban. With the right skill/equip combination, you don't even really have to use many skills for 7th, with that uber Haste + Auto-Attack. But I prefer Dunban due to better banter and tankiness.

Reyn is still useful when fighting groups. Dunban is only a good tank for single enemies.

Sorta. Reyn excels in aggroing everything around him and using quite a few AoE attacks to keep them in focus. Dunban excels in Evade Tanking, so even if he does have lots of stuff on him, he's likely not getting hit (assuming he's set up properly). However, Dunban is considerably frailer than Reyn, so take that if he's hit, it'll probably hurt.

Although with Dunban's skills, he's either grabbing aggro from everyone else and tanking, or dropping it and being an attacker. Dunban has very few AoE attacks, so he is somewhat better vs single enemies. Both have some good auras depending on what you wanna do with them though.

I'm still early in the game (just got Sharla) but I think I am missing something with the chain attacks, because they don't seem to be anything special except for popping off some emergency heals (I'm probably doing something wrong, will backtrack in this thread for info).

Also, does anyone else have issues changing targets when there's more than two? I've been playing as Reyn because the AI doesn't seem to be able to tank competently but sometimes when one of the other members pulls aggro I can't seem to switch my target to the loose mob... even if the mob is positioned in front of me it sometimes feels like the targeting system jams up or something or outright refuses to target the mob in front of me.

In the early game, Chain Attacks are just good for forcing Topple or other effects. Later on with good Affinity, they're downright beastly and dish out some major damage. Think my best combo resulted in about 130k+ damage. I'd have to check.

As for targeting, what controller are you using? I know for the remote, you have to hold Z and move the cursor. (I think that's right...?)

 

[cametall]

I'm still early in the game (just got Sharla) but I think I am missing something with the chain attacks, because they don't seem to be anything special except for popping off some emergency heals (I'm probably doing something wrong, will backtrack in this thread for info).

Also, does anyone else have issues changing targets when there's more than two? I've been playing as Reyn because the AI doesn't seem to be able to tank competently but sometimes when one of the other members pulls aggro I can't seem to switch my target to the loose mob... even if the mob is positioned in front of me it sometimes feels like the targeting system jams up or something or outright refuses to target the mob in front of me.

Awesome game though, it has pulled me away from ME3.

 

[joetachi]

I'm still early in the game (just got Sharla) but I think I am missing something with the chain attacks, because they don't seem to be anything special except for popping off some emergency heals (I'm probably doing something wrong, will backtrack in this thread for info).

Chain attacks are the best way to do high damege on a short amount of time.

 

[cametall]

Chain attacks are the best way to do high damege on a short amount of time.

Is there some sort of trick to it? I'll use same colored Arts but the damage done doesn't seem very high, maybe my expectations are too high.

Can I change the order each character attacks in? When I only had Shulk and Reyn I couldn't chain into a topple because Reyn always went first (when I controlled him).