A decade after its initial release, Xenoblade Chronicles X still delivers. Its intergalactic adventure still feels thrilling and dangerous. Its underlying themes concerning the nature of humanity (and its convoluted power structures) are still eerily relevant. Hell, even its big plot twists—note the intentional use of the plural—still hold up.
The new Definitive Edition making its way to the Nintendo Switch this week is superior in every way to the Wii U original. Moreover, many visual and quality-of-life enhancements help to put the title more in line with what one would expect from a modern action RPG of this caliber.
This is all to say that Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition is a landmark late-system release on the Switch, and its sheer scope means, at least for the consummate completionists among us, this could well be the game to see you all the way through the end of the console’s lifespan and the impending arrival of the Switch 2.
Yes, XCX: DE provides an astounding amount of quality entertainment value for your gaming dollar, but there’s one thing it doesn’t provide: instant gratification.
As your player character, one of the few Earth refugees active on the faraway planet of Mira, struggles to survive in a world teeming with aggressive indigenous life and antagonistic alien threats, you too will struggle. The odds always seem to be firmly stacked against you—even as you find yourself welcomed into BLADE, the organization responsible for the growth and safety of the human settlement known as New Los Angeles.
From the hub of New LA, you’ll unlock important story missions, take on various smaller fetch quests, and build relationships with both your rotating cast of squadmates and scores of NPCs, all in the hopes of taming this uncharted planet and recovering the Lifehold, where the remnants of humanity safely rest.
And, if you’re anything like me, you’ll die. A lot. Because Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition is, just like Mira itself, a tough nut to crack.
This is reflected in all elements of gameplay, but surely none more clearly than in its robust battle system. It combines automatic basic attacks with stronger, flashier moves called Arts and carefully timed button presses—a complex dance you must master if you expect to save civilization as we know it.
During frenzied combat, you’ll be treated to both an epic pop-rock soundtrack and the cacophony of your squadmates calling out the names of their attacks like the anime protagonists of old. It’s kind of a lot, and this is by design. XCX bombards you with information, almost overwhelms you with stimuli, and it’s your primary job as the hero to synthesize all this.
Those various audio and visual cues serve a purpose, to direct you to use the appropriate attack, item, or buff to strengthen your assault against an enemy that almost always outclasses you in one way or another. The opposition regularly seems to have the numbers advantage or the size advantage or some cool new attack they’ve been saving especially for you. In contrast, what you and your team have is the indomitable human spirit, which is, in and of itself, a complex and varied instrument.
Perhaps this is why, even four chapters and a dozen hours into my playthrough, I realized Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition was still metering out the basics of its nuanced combat system—data that I occasionally needed to revisit in the game’s newly streamlined but still exhaustive HUD system. (The presentation of which, for the record, is nicely legible on the OLED Switch even in handheld mode!)
I did this supplementary research with relish because, even being vaguely aware of the next big plot point from my time with the original release, XCX is just that compelling. Each iterative victory felt earned and each temporary setback (read: gruesome death at the hands of a monstrous foe) served the grander purpose of helping me grasp the skills I needed to help humanity thrive.
Sometimes this meant deviating slightly from the path prescribed by the newly retooled Follow Ball or isolating an enemy to make it harder for more reinforcements to join the fray. Other times it meant wisely using a nearby substation to change the time of day at will, thus eliminating the more hostile creatures that appear by night. But many times, it just meant fighting through things faster and smarter and more deliberately.
This is largely possible thanks to the game’s new quick cooldown function, which allowed me to execute the Art needed to complete a specific combo or take advantage of a lingering status effect even when said Art was still technically in its cooldown phase. Of all the game’s new bells and whistles, this is the one you’ll encounter the most and it’s by far the single best improvement.
While the upgraded graphics are also another welcome addition, the human cast still lags behind the lush environments, hulking creatures, and crazy future tech in terms of visuals. While obviously a step up from the Wii U, you’ll likely notice the occasional shiny plastic face or the odd sausage finger in the game’s many cutscenes. These human models also seem to be the thing primarily sacrificed to speed up load times, so expect a lot of character pop-in—especially in the urban environment of New LA.
Also note that, while the improved combat speed does help the game progress at an improved pace, this narrative still takes its sweet time, unfolding deliberately across ensuing chapters. (And for those of you who played the game in its original form, yes, this means it still takes a long time to gain access to Skells, XCX’s spectacular transformable mechs.)
But getting there, as they say, is half the fun. Working your way through a nicely streamlined class system, scouting new environments and connecting their nodes in the map-integrated FrontierNav interface, and simply building a rapport with the people of New LA all feel rewarding in their own right. Sure, not every element of the game feels as frantic and visceral as its trademark combat, but there’s much to enjoy in those quiet moments too.
Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition is a novel rather than a short story, an aria as opposed to a fast food jingle. It takes its sweet time, but that makes the ultimate reward—which, this time around, also includes some fresh post-game content—all the more meaningful.
Review and promotional materials provided by Nintendo of America. This post contains affiliate links. Tatsu taste like poison poop!
