PixlBit

Expansion Pass 2 Game #3/Blog a Day#25

Hello everyone, how are you?

The Switch is no slouch when it comes to JRPG's. I do believe that the system was made with rpgs in mind due to how convnient it is to play games on it. Sure, a good number of those are ports of older games. However once in a while get some good ones that were originally made with the system in mind. Nintendo has some really great ones too like Fire Emblem and Xenoblade. Today we are going to talk about Monolith Soft's rpg epic, let's dive into the Cloud Sea as we take a look at Xenoblade Chronicles 2...   

 

 

                                               I really love how calming this looks

Same with many games in 2017, Xenoblade Chronicles 2 was announced that same year during that one Nintendo Switch presentation. It was another game I was hyped for as I am a fan of the series, but this one would officially bethe last big Switch game that would release in 2017. I got the game but unfortunately my Switch was having issues so I had to play it on short bursts, but once I got a new Switch it was free game. So how is the game?

The game takes place in the world of Alrest, a world that is covered in a sea of clouds known as the Cloud Sea. The Cloud Sea in inhabited by massive creatures known as Titans and humanity lives on these Titans. In the game you take control of Rex, who is a salvager and in the game he meets Pyra, a Blade, we'll cover Blades in a bit. In the game Rex promises Pyra that he will take her to the fabled land of Elysium. However the journey won't be easy as there are many who want to stop them at any cost.

The world of Alrest is vast, just like the Cloud Sea and in the game you'll be going from Titan to Titan. The Titans themselves are I suppose you can call them countries and like I mentioned they are populated by people. Not all of them are populated but you can bet that you'll meet some npcs at most of these. I really love how each Titan is different, like even the people who live there are different as well as their culture. It's really cool how unique each place really is. But be careful because one thing every Titan has is monsters. Some are aggresive, some aren't but you have to be careful what you pick a fight with or you'll end up regretting it.

 

 

                                 The environments the Titans have are really pretty 

As you advance through the story you'll meet up with other characters who will join you on your quest to Elysium. Each of these characters can use their own Blades. But what are Blades you ask? Blades are beings who channel their power through weapons that the main characters, or Drivers, use in a battle. You can obtain more Blades through Core Crystals. Sometimes you may get a generic Blade, and in rare circumstances you get the highly coveted rare Blades. What I don't like is the gacha system that comes to Blades beause you never know what you'll get from a Core Crystal. 

"But Captain N, where can I play this game?" Well on the Switch obviously. The thing is the game is unfortunately out of print and Nintendo doesn't want to reprint it for some reason. You'd think they would with how popular the series has gotten over these past few years. And with Xenoblade Chronicles 3 releasing later this year you'd think they would take the chance to do so. Well the good news is that you can still get it digitally if you want to play it, so at least it's still available in some way.

But wait! There's More! Xenoblade Chronicles 2 has an Expansion Pass that adds more content to an already massive game. This expansion pass adds more sidequests, more BLADES, toname a few. It also adds Torna - The Golden Country, which is an all new story that takes place 500 years before the events of Xenoblade Chronicles 2. It's short but you can get more mileage out of the main game and obviously gives you more lore and how some of the stuff that happens here makes sense. The Expansion Pass is definitely among my favorite dlc expansions, it's really good.

 

                        Various Blades have their own unique design and personality

Final Thoughts: Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is definitely among the best JRPGs on the Switch. I loved the world of Alrest and I loved the idea of going to different Titans to see how the ares are. I think the characters are good as well and the music in these games is just incredible. I really loved the idea of Blades, I thought that was pretty cool. But I ust didn't like the idea of having a gacha like system in order to obtain rare Blades. But what I do love about rare Blades is that each one has a unique design and personality, it's really cool. 

The only main problem that I could honestly think of that will put off people looking to jump into this game for the first time is the battle system. I never had a problem with it myself as I grasped it as soon as I got hit with new mechanics, but I will say for those not familiar with these games will have a hard time getting the most out of it. It's a shame because it's definitely one of the most satisfying battle systems out there.

While I think the original Xenoblade was better in many ways, this one still great as well and worth playing. Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is technically a sequel to the first game, but it features a new setting and a new cast of characters. Monolith Soft is definitely among Nintendo's best developers along with HAL Labs. They help Nintendo with other games and they still have time to work on their own games which is impressive. Definitely give the series a go if you love rpgs and haven't played these yet.

 

          The Battle System from Torna is largely the same with some extra tweaks

 Always help those who help you. That's the second rule of the Salvager's Code!

Well that is it for game #3, game number #2 is coming up soon. Thanks for reading and...

 

 

*All images except the first one were taken by my Switch and copy of the game*