Xenoblade Chronicles Review

[@luqmanr]

That scene with Shulk and Fiora by the beach still left an impression on me :)

[@dquinny5]

which one?

[@josephcross8464]

Am I the only one who didn't find Riki annoying at all, and in fact used him frequently in battle and even found him kinda charming? (Tatsu on the other hand, though)

[@JCrossJ]

Liked both Riki and Tatsu

[@josephcross8464]

JCrossJ You can like em' both just fine, but Riki is hands down the most useful of the two... and he never puts the party in danger.

[@JCrossJ]

Totally right! I really liked Riki because he evolves throughout the story and he was super-useful. I found Tatsu entertaining and he does have his good moments.

[@josephcross8464]

Perhaps my favorite part about Tatsu is how he brags to his Nopon friends about him being the one beating the bad guys when he literally runs for the hills whenever things are about to get dangerous. Heck, the little spud carries two biters on his backpack and he never uses them! Maybe his father is cooler, I wish I could get to know him.

[@Darkstar2630]

Riki was a toppling king in battle. He floored every major enemy within seconds of the fight.

[@Shadiss]

Come on Riki is awesome! Though he is kind of out of place near the end, say for a few charming moments

[@dready8192]

Riki is awesome... the only annoying character is Shulk.

[@cypher838]

@@dready8192 No, shulk is fantastic.

[@soupahmario5869]

"Simple character animations" This is a problem I had with Xenoblade X. In the original Xenoblade, each character had their own idle animations, but now everybody does the same two. I'd post this on the Xenoblade X video but I'm just lazy.

[@Pokeman-vo6ex]

"video music starts playing" ohhh the feels

[@4137Swords]

And yet this game doesn't show up in your Top 30 games somehow...

[@eduardoalbolmnll]

how you dare to be hating on riki...

[@JD-fb8xl]

Riki is off limits for hatred. He's just too funny.

[@golfer435]

Nobody hates Riki, the heropon is the greatest thing ever. And that scene he showed the second time he didn't like Riki is easily one of the best cutscenes in the game.

[@LegendaryOutcast]

It is an annoying character that adds nothing to the story

[@pjk2002]

+LegendaryOutcast Read his heart-to-hearts. He can literally hear dead people. Ever wonder why only he heard Kallion out of the group, minus Melia?

[@cypher838]

@Tastes Like Trash Riki at first was self centered but he grew to care for his friends. Riki was such a great character.

[@colefitzpatrick8431]

I spent 180 hours on this game, and now I want to do it all over again. This game is fantastic.

[@Summer-us5ql]

Is it better than life?

[@colefitzpatrick8431]

Raja Khan That's entirely possible.

[@willbowden6897]

Well now you can with the Definitive Edition

[@Justuas]

rookie numbers

[@jojolaexperiencia7070]

@@Justuas oh yeah how much time did you put un It?

[@samuelshin4746]

I think you don't give the story and characters enough credit. We've over used the word cliche. In a sense, you could call anything a cliche if you thought about it. Good endings, bad endings, powerful active hero, cynical dark hero. If you take a story purely for what it is and not comparing it to others, you will truly appreciate it. Ps: Riki is more than comic relief. He has a lot more personality and you really love him towards the end.

[@allaround360]

That's a fair point. Really almost nothing hasn't already been done in all forms of storytelling. I do think it's fair to point out when a story truly stands out against all stories, though. In the case of this story, it really doesn't, which is fine, but it's not unfair to point it out. Xenoblade felt like a lot of other rpg plots with simply a different set of characters, setting and other world building elements. Overall you can draw parallels to a lot of other rpgs. Personally I think Xenoblade executed it all fine and I very much enjoyed it, but I never felt like I was seeing something I'd never seen before.

[@ShineSpark88]

You have to compare the story to others. Wtf are you talking about? If it's overdone it's cliche. With your logic all JRPG's can have the same story. What a bongo you are.

[@willbill6942]

Sangwoo Shin I’m not sure that anyone who has *actually* played the game would rate it any lower than 6/5. It was absolutely amazing. The visuals were amazing too, and only held back by the Wii’s power. An HD remake is needed soon for this game! The story was way better than a 3.5/5. I’m disgusted that FE 13 was rated higher than XC1 on Gameplay and Story, where it was significantly more flawed in both aspects.

[@onslotx3219]

Will Bill your wish is granted

[@onslotx3219]

ShineSpark 88 you don’t HAVE to compare the story to others. They’re just saying that we should look at the story on its own. Sure, making comparisons is a good way to prove things and whatnot, but it isn’t necessary to criticize something. For example, I can watch a movie, pay attention to a story it tells, and then decide on whether it is a good or bad story. All without comparing it to something else. Take the Godfather. I can watch the Godfather and tell you it’s a good movie with an amazing story. Don’t have to compare it to another masterpiece to realize that.

[@supporteedcoffee]

I would put Xenoblade along with Super Mario Galaxy 2, Metroid Prime 3 and Wind Waker when it comes to art design.

[@WarioLand3]

MP3? I know your comment is 6 months old but what made you say Metroid Prime 3 as opposed to 1 and 2? They look the same to me...

[@supporteedcoffee]

***** Because Prime 3 has better graphics thanks to it being on the Wii rather than the Gamecube and can therefore take more advantage of the beautiful art style in the environments which I think the game did.

[@WarioLand3]

***** What about the Metroid Prime Trilogy Collection for Wii? That improved the resolution for 1 and 2.

[@supporteedcoffee]

I've only played the trilogy versions so I don't really "know" the differences but to my knowledge they didn't remaster the visuals of the first to Prime games in the Trilogy Edition just added better resolution and bloom lightning I think so they are still very much Gamecube games.

[@gureguru4694]

aaaand 10yrs later. Xenoblade as a brand is stronger than ever before. i pity those who drop the game because its "too mmo, too hard" or some other copium reason , or just salty fanboys because its exclusive to Nintendo. you guys are missing out, you have no idea lol

[@MikeDaddy]

The convoluted ending sets up for the rest of Xenoblade and Xenosaga to fit into the story

[@JakeBV]

Remaster on Switch!!

[@FuegodeInfierno]

Granted

[@Alex-km7so]

Aged like fine wine

[@megascizor8275]

Yeah

[@markgujelde1440]

Yeah

[@sourcherrycrunch]

Yup

[@maxmorgan3370]

This is still one of the greatest JRPGs I've played to this day, and I'm really excited to experience it again on the Switch.

[@crono3015]

I got the 3DS version and visually speaking, it's tolerable. The game still looks nice. The gameplay is awesome.

[@SamuelSamuelSamuel]

+strange guru I feel the New 3DS version's graphics are more tolerable because for a handheld game it actually looks impressive for it's vast size and art direction. For me, the graphics are strangely more tolerable on the 3DS rather than the Wii.

[@WardenOfTerra]

The gameplay sucks. It's an auto-battler.

[@TechNMusic]

@@WardenOfTerra What? No... XC2 is an auto battle system (especially with the dlc included, you can literally put everything on auto). XC and XCDE have a very intricate system that requires strong knowledge of arts, abilities, and gems in order to take on the most powerful enemies. Even if you are trying to just beat the the main story, you still need a good party structure (which requires good arts understanding along with decent gems). To call XC (XCDE) an "autobattler" is beyond ignorant.

[@mirwana-kataya1662]

I was nodding happily until you called riki a nuisance =-= I just love how everyone gets along, and later the conversation between riki and Dun-dun where so unbelievable touching to me...i just cant help to just love this furball

[@dhay03]

I like Riki. Why do people hate the little guy so much?

[@marche800]

Some stupid foggat that gets banned by Rem He definitely has his moments, plus you kinda get the impression that most of his bravado is just something he does to keep spirits high. He's actually surprisingly wise and fatherly when he needs to be.

[@NEdgyman]

Because he talks funny. Seriously, that's why. If he talked like a normal person he would be known as a family man who left his village for honor and friendship.

[@marche800]

But he still is that. The only reason talks the way he does is that it's just how his people talk. We only think it's weird because it's not how we talk.

[@Zilant-lp2fx]

Probably because of his terrible English voice. Japanese Riki is easier on the ears

[@MakenaForest]

@@Zilant-lp2fx his english voice is perfection

[@Morgan_Blackhand]

Well, with the HD release coming up, I can't wait to finally play this game.

[@collette3428]

Most of the soundtrack, and nearly every great track in the game, were composed by ACE+, not Mitsuda or Shimonura

[@ResonantArc]

Actually most of the soundtrack was composed by Manami Kiyota, who wrote 38 tracks, while ACE+ wrote 24. Yoko Shimomura wrote 11 tracks, so a sizable chunk. Because there were so many composers, I chose to say that it was composed by the "likes of" two composers people who are into jrpgs would likely already know. I was trying to give the audience an idea of what the music in the game is like. I probably could have made it more clear, but it is what it is. I didn't say the soundtrack was written "exclusively" by Mitsuda and Shimomura. If you're really interested in splitting hairs though, Manami Kiyota wrote most of the soundtrack.

[@collette3428]

And like I said, nearly every great track was composed by ACE+, not Mitsuda or Shimonura, which you highlighted. Kiyota wrote a lot of the incidental music for cutscenes and some areas, while ACE+ did nearly every track that seems to get praise.

[@ResonantArc]

Again, the reason I did that was to give people an idea of what the music is like. Saying it is written by the "likes of" two composers people recognize gives a frame of reference for what they can expect from the music. In retrospect I could have added a sentence to mention ACE+ and Kiyota, which is something I've learned since making this video (uploaded 4 years ago). I didn't say what you're accusing me of saying though. I didn't say the soundtrack was composed exclusively by Mitsuda and Shimomura, but the contributions they made were without question some of the highlights of the soundtrack.

[@clarencejones8180]

Hey Dark Pixel, do you remember Baten Kaitos on the GC? Think you could ever review that

[@ShineSpark88]

Do your research better dude, wtf?

[@ResonantArc]

You are correct, but that's why I said the game was composed by the "likes of" Yoko Shimomura and Yasunori Mitsuda. I do realize that there were a lot of other composers, but those were two names people would be able to recognize and associate with other games they've played. The point was to draw comparisons to the kinds of music you would find in old Square Soft games that people love so much.

[@terriermonisgod]

rikki is mega cute and serves as emotional support both in form of empathy and comedic relief. he is a crucial part of the gang

[@TheCodedtestament]

I came to this game myself expecting little and was rewarded with one of the best JRPG experiences I've had since Chrono Trigger. 

[@remimezelle5402]

That game left a mark on me that will never leave. I don't think I will ever play it again because I don't have the time anymore. But still, sometime, I restart my wii, put the disc back inside, and leave the first screen on. Just to listen the music again, and remember every minute spent inside that piece of art. I think that game has impacted me as much as my first final fantasy. Cheers to everyone who discovered it on wii. ❤️

[@pronoynath1171]

Why don't have time brother? Lot of work or what....

[@jumaanecabrera8091]

Wow. This review was 9yrs ago. Still love how you guys did this video and appreciate your newest videos as well! Your voice has matured as well

[@micahrobbins9635]

I finally bought this game after nearly two years of searching for it and I am so so glad I did. I've only put an hour into it so far, but hearing how good it was from the likes of you and other gamer reviews made me more encouraged to find it, and I'm damn glad I did.

[@IstanaAnginWorldwide]

Wow, this video is almost 10 years.

[@oneish7454]

It should be noted that Yasunori Mitsuda only composed a single track; the ending theme. While Yoko Shimomura did a fair share of the soundtrack (11 tracks), the majority was composed by Manami Kiyota and ACE+

[@andrewclear8905]

By far one of my favorite games of all time, and what is truly impressive is that it didn't have a massive budget. I would even venture to say that the combined world of this game, easily blows away Skyrim and many open world sizes. This game was pure fun. I played it on my wii, and it looked like crap since it was a 65 inch tv I played it on, but if you have a computer that is good enough to play it on Dolphin, upscaled, then you will see a game that is pretty beautiful.

[@fishyperil2153]

I just finished playing this game today . Here are my thoughts on it: the game is pretty polarized . what it does well it does really well, and on the other hand there's quite a few things it does , well, pretty bad. in a nutshell , this is my opinion: + music & voice acting - simply great, epic yet very lively, enjoyable, diverse and sometimes atmospheric. voice acting is great and makes the characters really believable + story & characters - I personally would give this segment a higher rating. although it may seem a bit cliche at certain times, when all was said and done, I was left really glad I played through all of it's unexpected twists and turns right to the, in my opinion, emotionally fulfilling end. the characters are interesting, and very likeable/hateable , respectively . also the philosophical under themes are interesting. + the world - massive world, pretty cool design. sadly, the graphics hold it back a lot else it would have been simply amazing. + mechanics - all the mechanics , from the combat system to the way characters interact with one another are pretty interesting and different. I feel there could be a lot more done with all of it, but the ideas are definitely promising. - graphics - they look like they're from an average looking PS2 game. horrible for 2010-2011. would probably instantly turn off anyone who doesn't have a deeper appreciation of video games as a medium. - content - yes there are many sidequests, but aside from the main story, it's all pretty generic and doesn't seem meaningful at all. there's no emotionally captivating side stories or really anything very interesting you could do aside from just exploring the areas & following the story. the hearts to hearts are a cool idea but are pretty hard to unlock so you'll probably be doing that post game. - items (mostly gear I'm talking about) there's no way to acquire some special gear, like for example go do an optional dungeon or sidequest that will reward you with a bad ass piece of gear. also, the fact that most of the gear shares a design with some other piece of gear. even worse, most of these gear designs are pretty bad. So in conclusion - I think the game is worth playing for any real gamer who's into this sort of thing. The story and the atmosphere keep the game going. The mechanics are ok, pretty interesting , but a lot of room for improvement. But don't expect to get lost in a boundless world full of intricacies such as hidden bosses and interesting sidequests, because aside from the main course it's all pretty generic and kinda empty. The game is flawed in many aspects, and a lot of what you'll get isn't anywhere near top-notch quality ,but I'm really glad Xenoblade got adopted by Nintendo as an AAA franchise , because with all their resources I really believe it will be possible for the creators of the series to make vast improvements on these promising concepts in the future. I actually wanted to play this one first and see how it compares to sequel that was just released in the west a few weeks ago. I wonder if there'll be significant improvements to all the downsides I mentioned here. Can't wait to see !

[@dessfred]

I think one of the most important fact about this game is that it almost got denied localisation in europe and America by Nintendo for obscure reasons and was it not for fan's input and restless asking for the game to be translated, it would have stayed a Japan-only game, only available through importation, on a region-locked console. This made me hate Nintendo even to this day.

[@Berserk0653]

The only part of this game I thought was exhausting was the need to communicate with all people at all times of the day to get all the quests and affinity... That said, did anyone else have issues playing on the Wii where the system would restart after getting overwhelmed by the sheer size of the game? I've had to play it via an emulator in order to stay sane because my Wii just resets at the worst moments.

[@denimchicken104]

I agree. Toward the end of the game, focusing on completing all these inane quests and having to run so many miles to get to these people really started to try my patience. It’s the only thing that mares an otherwise stunning and brilliant game.

[@ResonantArc]

I feel like Hiroyuki Ito is the only guy left at Square who understands what good game design is.

[@ResonantArc]

In order of appearance: Seiken Densetsu 3, Dark Souls, Skyrim, Last Remnant, Star Ocean: The Last Hope, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, White Knight Chronicles, Final Fantasy XIII-2

[@golfer435]

But Riki's my favorite character...No seriously, I went into the game hearing about Riki being annoying and found that I absolutely loved his character. He's so innocent. He's like a little tiny naive child and I love him for it.

[@aeschafer1]

I can not agree with you on Riki. He's not the worst mascot ever, but he's terribly annoying all the same. On a scale of One to Jar Jar, I'd put him at about a seven.

[@jodybailey1383]

Dude your review was so full of passion, so moving that I went and bought this game, it was a bit overpriced but good. Thanks man!

[@TheSkittypink]

Sigh I wish this game had an hd port it would look amazing

[@SamuelSamuelSamuel]

+Theskittypink Yeah. There is a very slim chance of that happening though, now that it's on the New 3DS.

[@LiquidusSnakeX]

2 year old post, but you can download it on pc with wii emulator and install a HD texture mod. Very easy to set up.

[@ponymandesperado6261]

Theskittypink your wish is granted

[@jeremychong8541]

Finally announced. Haha

[@andychua2766]

Well now

[@Terranigma23]

Yasunori Mitsuda have only compose 1 song for Xenoblade 1 and Yoko Shimomura have compose 11 songs. The big composer was Manami Kiyota (50 songs) and ACE+ (29 songs).

[@faidou9954]

This rpg, THIS. FUCKING RPG, IS MY FAVORITE JRPG OF ALL TIME! It almost makes sounding like a weirdo to my parents when I told them what game I wanted for Christmas a few years back completely worth it. This game pretty much solidified what my favorite genre of video games are. Future JRPGs should really take notes from this game (and to some extent, XBC2 and X). Yes, even the ones that claim to harken back to the days of 90's JRPGs. This is also the game that sparked my interest into the Xeno series, I'm currently playing Xenogears on the PS Vita!

[@chrisp...chicken1038]

the story and omg the soundtrack is amazing.

[@phath2007]

Man, loved what you did for the genre, the wii, and xenoblade. I will be picking this up when I can find it. Great narrative review style, can't wait to subscribe and check out your other stuff on the channel! Thank you!

[@mistaecco]

Wow, that review might have been the best videogame review I've ever seen. Seriously, you were thorough, descriptive, and answered every question I had and more. You might have just sold me on spending $100 on a copy of this game.

[@ResonantArc]

Thanks, man! $100 is a lot to spend. I was lucky enough to preorder and get a copy when it came out. I think it's a very worthy game to have in any RPG enthusiast's collection.

[@golfer435]

Pretty any price for a copy of this is a good price. You will get your money's worth out of this game. Drop that $100 on it, you won't regret it.

[@Kennykuhhh]

This is quite possibly the greatest review of any game that I have ever seen. Well done!

[@Dimensiom]

Having completed this game years ago on original hardware, I have finally decided to start up a New Game+. Thanks to Dolphin and a HD texture pack, the problems of low-resolution graphics with muddy textures is negated. I even have the option of playing in stereoscopic 3D (yes, I am aware of the 3DS version but that has even muddier textures).

[@Dimensiom]

@Therealchris929 Lol I own the Wii version, so I just ripped the disc.

[@pronounjow]

Nice concise review. In 2 gameplay attempts, I never got past level 10 because I thought the gameplay was far too complicated (I watched my brother play instead until he stopped in Central Factory, and he didn't know or care about Mechonis Core, but I did know from watching the game here on KZbin), but your review almost makes me want to revisit the game with that boiled-down gameplay perspective. Now if only I could play the game... My brother has it. With that unfinished save file. He refuses to play the game any further. Lol (I'm not the reason for that, though)

[@GileadsFinest]

Great review. I disagree about the visuals being a 3.5, however. They push the Wii to its limit, and ultimately without the Wii this game would have never been made. The developers simply wouldn't have had a big enough budget to make a game this big with modern-day graphics. What never ceases to amaze me about this game is how beautiful it is, far more so than almost any other modern game out there. The colors and art direction are so superb that it doesn't need tons of pixels to look good.

[@gomu269]

Why can't more reviews be as thought provoking and insightful as this splendor of presentation? I've already been playing for some time, but this just might be what I needed to get right back to it since it more than deserves to be played! By the way, how would you describe your response on the news about Monolith Soft's new Wii U game known to bear that glorious 'X' marking?

[@PoogiBear1]

Just came back to this review as I start the Definitive Edition, hopefully it being handheld means I can get through this now

[@VonSeux]

heart to heart MADE this game to me, it simply expanded the whole thing and game a extra purpose of exploring and fighting

[@jenniferlott9656]

4 stars? That's like an 80%. This game is at least a 9.5/10.

[@ResonantArc]

That's your opinion. I don't rate games on a 100 scale. My ratings can be seen more like this. 5 = Amazing (Instant Classic) 4 = Great 3 = Good 2 = Bad 1 = Abysmal (Broken/Incomplete)

[@inigo1880]

Wyatt Chartrand fuck off

[@alvarojgp]

I just came to say that I am 19 hours into this game and loving every minute of it. All in preparation for X.

[@Sagasaurus]

Did you end up liking x?

[@sokumotanaka9271]

The only think I'd have to disagree with is that riki's an annoying character. If you watch the cutscene were the group gets seperated (melia, dunban and riki) This cutscene is the perfect example of why I disagree with people who find Riki annoying and pointless. It's easy to forget that Riki is more than just comic relief, comedy that is good or bad depending on your sense of humor, that Riki is actually the oldest member of the party, a father who has raised children and understands how people think and feel. He's so much more complex than just a silly sidekick, His chat with dunban si so heartwarming and his kindness to stop so melia could rest (even if she didn't want to admit it.) cements his bond and standing as a great character. He's deep and developed and a interesting character just like the rest of the Party

[@maxg2335]

This is the only game where I can put over 100 hours into each play through and still never get tired. Even by the fourth play through I was still having a blast. Also I always liked the battle system but the 4th play through made me appreciate it even more when I decided to fight al the unique monsters, the difficulty made me rethink strategy, moves, party combination, equipment it was so exhilarating beating a giant mechon after planning ahead with a perfect strategy.

[@ResonantArc]

I haven't yet. I may or may not do one for the Last Story, but Pandora's Tower comes out in just a few days!

[@gamerprince-tl5hg]

100% agree with everything in this review. Xenoblade Chronicles is the game that proved that JRPGs don't have to be boring corridors to tell a good story.

[@RichardHannay]

Also, someone must have mentioned this already, Yoko Shimomura only composed like three or five songs (which includes the opening theme) and Yasunori Mitsuda only composed the ending song... ACE+ and Manami Kiyota composed pretty much the main bulk of the songs played throughout the game...

[@stokesa3122]

"Each character is well-developed" *Zooms in on bewbs*

[@neogilgamesh9999]

This review is REALLY good, it perfectly lets the audience know that this game does have a few flaws but the overall excellent presentation and management of art design, story and gameplay make XBC a gem among modern JRPGs One thing I love about Xenoblade is that it truly encourages exploration of the vast world instead of just going where you need to go next by tangibly rewarding you for participating in extracurricular activities like sidequests, achievements and even rebuilding a colony

[@Deeplycloseted435]

Just started playing this on the Wii U. Slow start but I will press on.

[@Alazerith]

Xenoblade Chronicles is the best game I've ever played in my life. It wipes the floor with the WRPG's and JRPG's of this generation. Western RPG's with their bare-bones plot and lack of characters. Japanese RPG's with their annoying characters and overbloated story structures. Xenoblade takes all that and finds a middle ground. Every character is smart (including Riki) and you do believe that these heroes can save the world. Music, gameplay, and voice acting is all incredible. It blew me away!

[@vinnien]

Tears came. Xenoblade Chronicles has a special place in my heart. Thank you.

[@balbanes1]

There was one major problem with this game, they gave you way too many experience points for doing nothing, this caused you to become severely overleveled if you wanted to do quests, if you are more than 5 levels higher than an enemy they don't even agro, there were whole parts of the storyline where I could just walk through the entire area without having to fight anything. They should not have given exp. for quests, this would have solved the problem. The battle system in this game is very rewarding and challenging but I found myself avoiding battles in order to not become overleveled which is counterintuitive. This game brought me back to the golden age of RPG's and was totally worth purchasing a New 3DS XL just to play it.

[@lnsflare1]

Have you tried No no Kuni for the PS3? It's got problems, but it was great seeing an overworld in such a beautiful art style.

[@Alazerith]

A decent story? I'm sorry but that is an incredible understatement. The story of Xenoblade Chronicles is brilliant, unique, and incredibly smart. I could go on for hours about the underlying philosophical themes this story presents and none of them are thrown in your face. The ending is beautiful and epic, and completely captures what the story was going for. Xenoblade Chronicles is what Mass Effect 3 should have been. Great review, but the story is better than you make it seem.

[@Maren617]

I liked what you said in this review so much I subscribed immediately. Very good review!

[@dezheathen]

You are not gonna disrespect Riki like this.

[@beegyoshi8401]

Someone actually saying something thats not positive about xenoblade chronicles? Gotta subscribe

[@ResonantArc]

Being remade. I'm very busy with another really large project right now, but I'm in the midst of another playthrough of FF4 right now.

[@ResonantArc]

Thanks! Glad you're going to pick it up. It's freaking awesome!

[@dani3po]

I played on Dolphin, which I think is the best version available technically. Battles are fun, but the world is too big for the sake of being big. Reminds me of a racing game called "Fuel" which developers claimed it had the biggest open world for a racing game at the time. Too bad they forgot to populate it with interesting things to do.

[@danielhorack8533]

I think when I started up this game for the first time I almost cried hahahahahaha I felt like i was dreaming and was sooooo happy that this game came out. When I played this I felt like I was playing an old school game with ne game mechanics. Love it.

[@dinlio5484]

I've put 400 hours Beat all quests skill trees lvl 99 beat super bosses and all achievements

[@TheCreepypro]

nice to see this once again

[@MenfisRetroSpace]

Best of that generation? ...must be your, YOUR best! By any chance do you play in that past generation: NinoKuni, Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey?

[@ResonantArc]

That scene was really good, I'll admit. If Riki had more moments in the game like that to balance his silliness I would have liked him a lot more. He was a great combat character :)

[@MakenaForest]

his scene on the fallen arm earned my love

[@WhoLoc]

Ur reviews r really good, I've enjoyed watching a bunch of ur FF reviews and now this one, it just makes me so hyped to play this again. R u planning on reviewing xenoblade chronicles X? It's killer u should think about reviewing it. Anyway man I look forward to see more reviews from ur channel.

[@ResonantArc]

+Who Loc Thank you! I just started a file on Xenoblade Chronicles X last night. I'm recording the footage as I play so I'll definitely do a review for it if I ever find time to finish it!

[@WhoLoc]

+Dark Pixel Gaming definitely a lot of mechanics too take in at first lol but yah this game is awesome man, well I look forward to ur review whenever it's up man.

[@fbritannia]

I've been playing this game throughout the year and while I have enjoyed it I don't think it's the greatest game ever as some people think it is. The story and characters aren't amazing but they are really fun (Rikki is easily the best character xD, I usually hate the small animal companions from most japanese media, but for se reason I find Rikki unbearably cute). The art design and overall sound design are fantastic. However the things that hold the game back for me is a bad script (Not as bad as others from the genre, but still kinda forced) and horrid mission structure, the game feels very much like an MMO and while the exploration itself is very fun, the missions are very redundant and boring. Also the combat itslef is not to my liking except when using Melia or Rikki, which I find to be a lot of fun. I've been playing Kingdom Hearts and it's becoming one of my favorite gaming series after beating 1, RE:COM and 2. So that might have a little bit to do with my problems with the combat (also Dark Souls)

[@kurisu3000]

Didn't you guys do a retrospective for this on your podcast?

[@davimelo9181]

interestingly enough, the story puts al bhed-like dressed people to fight machines

[@ResonantArc]

Absolutely :) hopefully I'll get around to it one day.

[@laserwolf65]

After hearing so many great things about this game, I finally picked it up. I gave up about 5 or so hours in though. I just didn't enjoy the battle system. I kept dying, so I thought I just had to grind more, but that didn't seem to help. Maybe I'm just dumb, because I simply could not grasp it. It's a shame, too, because I've heard nothing but good things about the story and game world.

[@ResonantArc]

I'd keep at it, man. Watch some LPs or something to learn how the battle system works. It's really enjoyable once you understand it.

[@ByungSuk]

That's exactly how I felt when I first started playing. I also got lost A LOT and I couldn't figure out how to advance the story. The world is so massively huge that I didn't know where to go. Admittedly, the game has a huge learning curve. I bought it a while go and for whatever reason decided to give it another go. I finally figured out how most of the game works and how to navigate through the world. Now I'm pleased with my purchase and I am loving it. It's a hard game in every sense of the word but its rewarding. You can't just stand still, that will kill you. You have to keep moving, select your perfect timing, let your teammates take some of the heat, attack then heal. You have to keep so much in mind and be ever watchful of what is happening. Once you learn that, its very rewarding. It's not a pick up and play game, you have to study the mechanics.

[@johnnyscifi]

I love these developers. Xenogears is still on my top ten. I need to play this. Awesome review, man..:)

[@paxhumana2015]

Yes, the combat system and the License Board things were cool (even The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim used a similar system as well), but, despite the real-time encounters that were in that game, I honestly preferred the real-time combat that was in games like Chrono Trigger, Dark Cloud 1, Dark Cloud 2/Dark Chronicle, White Knight Chronicles 1 and 2, Final Fantasy XI, Rogue Galaxy, and the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and The New Republic games. Xenoblade Chronicles does these thing right.

[@trollingisasport]

Each character is 'well developed'. I see what you did there heh

[@aarondx3764]

I don't get it

[@lewis9s]

And now it’s getting rebuilt from the ground up to the switch! I can’t wait to play this game for the first time!

[@ResonantArc]

Seiken Densestsu 3 was not, but Secret of Mana was. I just liked the 3rd game a lot more. I was playing a fan translated version of it. Star Ocean is alright... but I wouldn't bother playing the two newest ones. A lot of people liked Star Ocean 3 but I wasn't a fan.

[@RichardHannay]

For me, the moment Riki really shined was when they were in the Fallen Arm in the beach cutscene with Melia and Dunban (Melly & Dundun)... you know what I'm talking about. (Never watched any of the Star Wars so I can't really compare) Also I like using him in combat due to his brokenness... Stacking up Bleed, Burn, Freeze, Poison effects on bosses is so satisfying.

[@k1ngan1m3tr011]

Definitive edition murdered its own game.... Xenoblade is so good and I’m surprised I missed it for the wii. After 180 hours and completely doing everything I can I immediately bought Xenoblade 2 for the switch... As a new fan I can easily say they are both good...Unfortunately I can’t find X in the Nintendo store so there goes that...but both 2 and 1 are good imo.

[@chriscollins8301]

Holy crap, AMAZING review dude. You should be getting paid to do this, seriously.

[@mrbastos]

I need to replay this game using the 4K patch someone made. Such a great game

[@telltellyn]

Sakaguchi himself said Ito was the best designer at the company. He directed FF6/9/12, designed the ATB/ADB/Chrono Trigger's battle system, jobs/magicite/junctioning (which he was taken off early, hence its flaws), originally designed FF9's battle system to be the fastest in the series before Sakaguchi reversed that. He was also behind FF6/Chrono Trigger/FF9's interactive scenes (like the opening to CT and 6's opera). Wherever Ito goes, I will follow. We know he's making something at least...

[@anipaper2]

i think it's a fair review, but i disagree on the negatives you pointed out. the game, technically, does not look very good. however, due to the art design, the game looks absolutely amazing, easily more good-looking than some modern games. and Riki. he isn't just a comic relief. he is also a very deep character. he has some of the deepest insights of the entire groups, and he actually has a very good reason to being so silly - he is the comic relief for the group. he is silly in order to make the party's members happy, not just for the players. and the dialog during battle is simply amazing. while it is very distracting(it took me a few battles into the second area after the battle music changed to realize it changed). while some of the lines are general and uninteresting("we musn't be careless", "let's move on" "*enter name*"...), some are absolutely amazing("oh yeah, rey..." nope), especially when they are formation's specific ( reyn:"You can't have a rainbow without a reyn, baby!" melia:" Dunban, i think you need to have a talk with reyn" dunban: " no, let's pretend it didn't happen". this one cracks me up every time)

[@benvids]

The same team went on to assist with Breath of the Wild’s world. I think it shows.

[@PixelNeoGamerPlays]

Haven't played this game and so looking forward for the NSW release.

[@paulrok1298]

And Now we are getting a remake for switch. Hopefully you will do a 2020 review xD

[@vgnvideogameninja2930]

Why, so he can underrate it with an 8 out of 10 (or 80%) score again? The review is a joke. This game is a masterpiece and much better than the rating he gave it at the end. This is a 90 out of 100 game at least. 92 on Metacritic.

[@jrpgcentral3237]

Finally decided to pick the game up but I have a couple of issues; 1. You kinda have to use shulk, because the AI does not use manado arts, so I'm forced to do them myself (I want to use Dunban). 2. I have to buy the ability to further character growth, but finding the exact merchant carrying a certain ability is so irritating.

[@chuckbatman5]

You only really have to use shulk against Mechon, and later on in the game it becomes easier to kill mechon which gives you more freedom. But yes, the AI is really bad at shulk

[@castblast4063]

AI for shulk is good with normal arts, Monado arts is where is AI gets drunk

[@Vyse195]

break, topple, daze, your best friend against strong monster, even a few bosses.

[@Artimes.]

Holy crap, how do you get your voice to sound like that?? This is by the best most professional and analytical review ive seen on this game. Also delivery the obvious falts like hardware limitations. (Enter Xenoblade Chronicles X :p, em i right?) I like listening to fan reviews, and stay clear from critics cause they tend to be very biased towards the mainstream market.

[@ResonantArc]

Thank you! I'm not sure exactly what you're referring to with my voice, but that's just how I talk, haha. At the time I made this video I was using my Canon 7D to record audio, so that's basically all I did on this one. For my new videos I actually record and master my voice in a more traditional and professional way.

[@Artimes.]

@@ResonantArc I can't believe this was 6 years ago when I first made this comment. I have just recently started watching your video's again and you guys are something else. I have never seen such a level of in depth analysis and deep dive of these games. Exploring things like the industry, the history of gaming, the art and visual style of the medium. It is quite astonishing to say the least and after watching alot of your pod casts and retrospective reviews, it has provided me an entirely different perspective on some of these age old classics. I also must say that you have come ALONG way, since this video. One of the other things I can't seem to stand with modern games these days is the limitations of volume and scale in games which seems to be more restrictive by today's advanced technology. Remember the days of massive over worlds, multiple continents, various cultures and locales of like 20-30 towns. Now days you will get lucky to get like 4 or 5 major city like hub locations in an rpg. Anyways keep on keeping on with this content. I really lookforward to seeing some of my favorite classic PS rpgs, like Legend of Dragoon, Skies of Arcadia, Grandia, Final Fantasy IX and Chrono Cross.

[@StylexSai]

I bought this game listed at GameStop for $52.99. I checked it out and the total came out to about 58 dollars. I was pretty pissed at the crazy tax that shot up the price, but when I went home and seen this game on eBay for approx. $90+ I was super stoke! I can't wait to play this awesome game.

[@eirianodalis4992]

Wait what? You give music and sound 4/5? Xenoblade Chronicles has the best soundtrack in the entirety of gaming! So diverse, so much emotion, and it goes so well with the story and overworld. Well well, I guess you did not like the sound effects or something. For me, XC is most probably my favorite game of its generation. I will probably consider it begin a masterpiece in the future. It is just an amazing feeling playing the game.

[@Xelpherpolis]

Riki is the best character in the history of fiction and anyone who disagrees is objectively wrong.