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LTTP: Xenoblade Chronicles X - This is a strange one...
- Thread starter ghibli99
- Start date
From my username and pfp, it's clear to tell I love this game. It's easily my favorite Xenoblade and one of my top games of all time. The game is a behemoth and can be intimidating to get into it but man, once you're in it... it's an incredible experience.
Mira is basically the main character and story of the game. Going around seeing new places, meeting new people and experimenting with different battle mechanics is where the game shines. I found that unlike most JRPGs where I'm more concerned about the main characters' quest and the huge stakes that threaten all, I'm more invested in the lives of a bunch of normal people living in the game world who I've interacted with through quests or had in my party and done their heart-to-hearts and affinity missions. My favorite characters in the game have no role in the main plot and one of them isn't even playable. At some point, I think I just got lost in NLA and Mira and never had a single direct line of focus. There was always like 10 things I wanted to do at the same time lol.
All those story quest gates? I almost never had to think about them because by the time I even thought "hey I guess I'll do a story mission", I had done them already. That's because a lot of the requirements will be things like "survey 20% of this place", which is really non-specific and allows you to get that 20% anyway you want. I like that and I think the game does this because the openess of the game world means they can't really track your progression the same way as the linear Xenoblade games. They give you a gate because you start missions in the same place and that means if you weren't required to do stuff inbetween, you'd end up being underleveled and unprepared, especially in later chapters where the difficulty starts to ramp up.
Anyway, it's a blast of a game but it definitely takes a different angle of approach to vibe with what it offers, especially if you're used to what the other Xenoblade games do. You kind of have to factory reset in a way. Hope you have fun with it!
Also that's the Tyrant battle theme. For when you fight the special "mini boss" type enemies.
My advice here would be to turn off your normal JRPG senses where progressing the story is always the priority. Xenoblade X really works in a different way, to be honest, the main quest feels like it's there as a formality so that people have some sort of linear progression to comfortably move through the game with while having a clear singular goal. It helps you focus in on something because otherwise there so much stuff in the game coming at you at once. If you play the game with the focus of seeing the main plot though, I guarantee the game will bounce off you because it's really all about the "side" content.
Mira is basically the main character and story of the game. Going around seeing new places, meeting new people and experimenting with different battle mechanics is where the game shines. I found that unlike most JRPGs where I'm more concerned about the main characters' quest and the huge stakes that threaten all, I'm more invested in the lives of a bunch of normal people living in the game world who I've interacted with through quests or had in my party and done their heart-to-hearts and affinity missions. My favorite characters in the game have no role in the main plot and one of them isn't even playable. At some point, I think I just got lost in NLA and Mira and never had a single direct line of focus. There was always like 10 things I wanted to do at the same time lol.
All those story quest gates? I almost never had to think about them because by the time I even thought "hey I guess I'll do a story mission", I had done them already. That's because a lot of the requirements will be things like "survey 20% of this place", which is really non-specific and allows you to get that 20% anyway you want. I like that and I think the game does this because the openess of the game world means they can't really track your progression the same way as the linear Xenoblade games. They give you a gate because you start missions in the same place and that means if you weren't required to do stuff inbetween, you'd end up being underleveled and unprepared, especially in later chapters where the difficulty starts to ramp up.
Anyway, it's a blast of a game but it definitely takes a different angle of approach to vibe with what it offers, especially if you're used to what the other Xenoblade games do. You kind of have to factory reset in a way. Hope you have fun with it!
This is one of the games where I intentionally drag out battles so that the chorus starts to play haha.
Also that's the Tyrant battle theme. For when you fight the special "mini boss" type enemies.
Oh yeah, I had forgotten about those tyranr battles. The song didn't leave a big impression.
I know what you mean about the main battle theme, I did the same !
Lol this amuses me because people tend to hate the main battle theme but the tyrant theme is probably the most popular song from the soundtrack.
I think they're both bangers though haha
This is the best battle track in the game that is always overlooked though imo:
You can use the Pro Controller to play the game and keep the GamePad off to the side for when you need it. It's a little awkward if you're not playing on a couch or something, but it's workable if you prefer that.
It's a great game. The open world is the main thing of the game; while I wish there were even more bioms you just can't deny it's an extremely fun place to explore and an incredible achievement getting such a gorgeous world running as smoothly (and mostly glitch-free) as it does on a Wii U.
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Didn't get to play today (the data pack downloads took forever), so I played Hyrule Warriors DE instead, which is another game that is going to take me some time to fully 'crack', since this is the first game of that type that I'm playing, and the sheer amount of *stuff* in it seems pretty overwhelming! Anyway, not to get too off-topic...
No worries; if it's better and it doesn't have to access the disc as much as it does without the data packs, I'll consider that a win. :)
Thanks for this. It echoes what others have said, and I do think getting back into my BOTW mindset of just setting out to do stuff and not just focusing on the main path will make a big difference. Had I done that with BOTW, I would have had an awful time!
Yeah, that's what I was doing at first, but it just got annoying. LOL So, using the GamePad exclusively will have to be the way of things with this one. :)
I really loved this game. I really want a sequel both because I want this style of game back and because the world was super intriguing and there are hanging plot threads. Fuck the objectifying garbage in some of the enemy and armour designs though. The fact that it has cosmetic armour slots so I could block that shit helped my enjoyment of this game a lot.
The area themes are fantastic. I'm just gonna post Noctilum (Day) because I effing love this song. Favourite jungle environment song ever.
Upon starting the game, I spent like an hour in the character creator both because I was indecisive and because the character creation theme is so unexpectedly awesome.
Oh! I have some screens saved from a few years ago. The... I can't remember what they're called. Those things you can set up to auto-generate resources at certain points on the map. These screens are how you set up the Noctilum and Oblivia ones to make the big bucks.
For the one in Japanese, numbers 1, 4, 5, and 6 are Research, 2 is Copy, and 3 is "strengthening" (I don't remember what that one's called so I just translated the kanji in the image lol).
Edit: Oh, one more tip. You said you're just starting Chapter 5? I believe it's after completing Chapter 5 that a certain important sidequest opens up below the city, the completion of which allows you
The area themes are fantastic. I'm just gonna post Noctilum (Day) because I effing love this song. Favourite jungle environment song ever.
Upon starting the game, I spent like an hour in the character creator both because I was indecisive and because the character creation theme is so unexpectedly awesome.
Oh! I have some screens saved from a few years ago. The... I can't remember what they're called. Those things you can set up to auto-generate resources at certain points on the map. These screens are how you set up the Noctilum and Oblivia ones to make the big bucks.
For the one in Japanese, numbers 1, 4, 5, and 6 are Research, 2 is Copy, and 3 is "strengthening" (I don't remember what that one's called so I just translated the kanji in the image lol).
Edit: Oh, one more tip. You said you're just starting Chapter 5? I believe it's after completing Chapter 5 that a certain important sidequest opens up below the city, the completion of which allows you
back into the character creator to fully redo your character from the ground up. Very cool option.
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I got back into it tonight, although just briefly. Wow, the data packs make a *huge* difference with the disc drive seek/read sounds. My wife immediately noticed the change.
I'm just kinda running around Primordia right now getting a lay of the land, activating data probe points (I'm guessing the ones I can't for the life of me find are only accessible via Skells?), discovering new areas, etc. It's a lot of fun just exploring, although every time I run into something I can't access because my field skills are too low, I gotta just shake my head. LOL
I'm just kinda running around Primordia right now getting a lay of the land, activating data probe points (I'm guessing the ones I can't for the life of me find are only accessible via Skells?), discovering new areas, etc. It's a lot of fun just exploring, although every time I run into something I can't access because my field skills are too low, I gotta just shake my head. LOL
Thanks for the tip about the probe points. I was wondering how to maximize those, although I'm not worrying about it too much at the moment. And that spoilered bit is cool too!Oh! I have some screens saved from a few years ago. The... I can't remember what they're called. Those things you can set up to auto-generate resources at certain points on the map. These screens are how you set up the Noctilum and Oblivia ones to make the big bucks.
For the one in Japanese, numbers 1, 4, 5, and 6 are Research, 2 is Copy, and 3 is "strengthening" (I don't remember what that one's called so I just translated the kanji in the image lol).
Edit: Oh, one more tip. You said you're just starting Chapter 5? I believe it's after completing Chapter 5 that a certain important sidequest opens up below the city, the completion of which allows youback into the character creator to fully redo your character from the ground up. Very cool option.
Yeah there are a few areas that are high up and you can't reach without a skell. However, there are sometimes data probes that are just hidden well and you need to look around for them. I won't spoil which one but I know there's one in Primordia that is kind of tricky to spot.
Also just so you know, with the field skills, I recommend prioritizing leveling up Mechanical first since those are the ones needed to access probes.
A Switch Xenoblade X version with a new continent may make me salivate.
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Kinda funny thinking back on how un-modern this was. It was well-advertised in Directs and online and such, but if you were just buying the game because you saw it on the shelf the only idea you'd have would be from a paper insert IIRC, and maybe something on the back cover. If you bought it used you might generally have no way of knowing, depending on what you got besides the disc.
Part of the issue is likely tied to the fact that it's one of two Wii U games to use installs to help cut down on load times, so they never really made a system for installs; hence utilizing DLC. The other game to utilize an install (BotW) had a mandatory one, so visibility wasn't an issue. As a completely off-topic aside, I find their method that time to be funny - when the Wii U ran the game off the disc, it saw the game version as 0.9. On the disc itself was an update to version 1.0 - and updates get installed to storage. 0.9 was missing all the data 1.0 installed to storage, and attempting to refuse the update and run the game threw an error that you needed a system update (yes, system update, curiously - probably because something as bizarre as installing a game update off the game disc itself is something Nintendo did not bake into their OS).
I played through it last year on CEMU (if you have multiple monitors and a decent PC, this is the way to go honestly), and it ended up being my favorite of the bunch. If you really get into the side stories Mira has the most depth out of any Xenoblade world out there.
Just a great game, all around.
Just a great game, all around.
This is a game that is disappointingly close to amazing. I loved exploring but the combat is weighed down by it's dream of being a subpar mmk
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I can't for the life of me find the one here... I've been running in circles like an idiot for hours. It's driving me nuts! LOL
I did read about putting field skill points into mechanical, so I'm at 4 for that at the moment.
I just checked my box and I don't see mention of it anywhere (no insert except for the generic e-manual one, and I don't see it listed on the outside packaging). Maybe they added something in a second run if there was one?
As my first Xenoblade I really REALLY liked this game. Just running around unlocking all the nodes and what not was so fun. I really hope it gets a remaster on Switch to fix up the awful UI and general graphics shortcomings (that pop in is INSANE!). Oh and just overhaul the online functionality. What a mess that was, ALL of it.
Oh level 4? You're in a good place already.
I did read about putting field skill points into mechanical, so I'm at 4 for that at the moment.
Also yeah, that's on top of Talon Rock (the huge mountain directly over head). So you do need the skell.
Don't know how interested you are in using guides vs playing blind but there is an insanely good interactive map someone made that basically tells you what's in every segment: https://frontiernav.jahed.dev/explore/xenoblade-chronicles-x/visualisations/maps
Personally, I didn't use this until I was doing end game grinding and 100% completion since I like to discover things on my own and the game is about discovery but hey, I'm not everyone so I thought I might as well let you know this exists.
I checked mine as well and don't have one, I think I made it up. Not a great move on their part.
Currently working trough this one, and I really really dislike this game. It is just no fun, and I just wish it to end as soon as possible. I'm currently trying to grind money to buy the higher level mechas so I can cheese trough the last 3 chapters. Does anyone know a fast way of doing it cause i currently feel like i'm looking at a 10-20 h grind to just buy the first mech...
I'm sorry you're not having fun. I really enjoyed this game. Why keep playing if you dislike it?
But for making money, most of it comes from the probes. I will quote part of my post from earlier in the thread:
Oh! I have some screens saved from a few years ago. The... I can't remember what they're called. Those things you can set up to auto-generate resources at certain points on the map. These screens are how you set up the Noctilum and Oblivia ones to make the big bucks.
For the one in Japanese, numbers 1, 4, 5, and 6 are Research, 2 is Copy, and 3 is "strengthening" (I don't remember what that one's called so I just translated the kanji in the image lol).
Oh awesome! I'll look into setting up the probes and try to rake in money whilst sidequesting.
And as for why I keep playing, i guess it's kinda stupid. But this was the game I bought my entirely Wii U for. Was hoping the game would get more enjoyable as I kept playing. And it is the last game I have to beat before I have cleared all my Wii U games.
That screenshot T_T
I'd love to see Monolith take on an MMO model again; at least the Switch would (presumably?) have better legs to handle it.
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Interesting about the pop-in. I've noticed it a bit with ground foliage, but it's better than XC:DE's from what I can tell. I've also noticed some interiors popping in as I get closer to caves, but that's about it. Maybe it is more pronounced once Skells come into play.
Thanks! I've bookmarked it and looked at it briefly (which is awesome -- very similar to the BOTW map I used late-game), but yeah, I generally only look at guides if I'm completely stumped or I don't want to mess something up (like fusing items in other games which I seem to have bad luck with LOL). Or in this game, figuring out where my best chance of finding collectibles are, which has been the case for all of these games. But yeah, for now, just playing semi-blind. :)
My favourite XC by a country mile. A sci-fi Xenoblade that hits all the right spots for me, and the worldbuilding throughout the sidequests is world class.
This needs to be ported to Switch. And a sequel after that.
This needs to be ported to Switch. And a sequel after that.
Most probes can be reached on foot with good and clever jumping and taking advantage of terrain collision you think you may need a Skell/Flight for, likewise with a Skell with no Flight and it's a fun challenge, I think you should try it out.
You need a Skell with flight for that one, never figured out how to get it on foot or just a non-flying Skell.I can't for the life of me find the one here... I've been running in circles like an idiot for hours. It's driving me nuts! LOL
I did read about putting field skill points into mechanical, so I'm at 4 for that at the moment.
I just checked my box and I don't see mention of it anywhere (no insert except for the generic e-manual one, and I don't see it listed on the outside packaging). Maybe they added something in a second run if there was one?
I really love this game but the writing is so cringe worthy; the experience of the well crafted and beautiful world really contrast with the same amateurish jokes rehashed dozens of times.
As a huge Xenoblade fan, I really, really want to like it, but I just can't. Some of those issues are related to the game itself, which is just so...different from the other games, but I also associate it heavily with some very bad events from my life that occurred at the same time I started to play the game, so it's strongly tainted by that too. I've given it a look in Cemu a few times, but the technical experience - while better than it was the first time I looked - still isn't really great compared to where XC1 was when I rediscovered it via Dolphin.
Still, I hope it gets an eventual remaster to Switch or its successor. Maybe by then I'll be willing to give it more attention.
Still, I hope it gets an eventual remaster to Switch or its successor. Maybe by then I'll be willing to give it more attention.
I dread the day that they pull the plug out of the eShop and my HDD potentially dies. Lord of all games they're porting, this one needs it most for future proofing unless you go CEMU.
It has lot of cool stuff but holy fuck there's a moment later in the game you're forced to increase your social level with the general dude out of nowhere when i didn't even care for this mechanic previously, and shit is so slow to increase, it was like the worst decision ever i've seen in a Monolith game. Like, imagine if reaching social link 5 with the tv guy was a requirement to proceed in the main story of Persona 4. It was pretty much that.
Also, at the point Skells are available, the game turns into Mecha Gran Turismo where you need to grind for money. For a LOT of money.
The game would probably be a lot more enjoyable with a infinite money cheat.
Also, at the point Skells are available, the game turns into Mecha Gran Turismo where you need to grind for money. For a LOT of money.
The game would probably be a lot more enjoyable with a infinite money cheat.
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Oh, there are non-flying ones? I thought the gift of flight was the whole point of them. LOL
Hmm, good to know! I'll have to keep this in mind along with the 50 others things I have going on right now!
basically how it works is you eventually unlock a Skell and then later in the game there's a quest you have to do that unlocks the ability to fly in them
This is my favorite game of all time and I'm always happy when it gets brought up here. So many here appreciate it.
The amount you learn about the world through the affinity and side quests is incredible. Those are a must I feel like to get the most that the game has to offer. I think I spent 200 some hours with it. Such a fun world to explore.
The amount you learn about the world through the affinity and side quests is incredible. Those are a must I feel like to get the most that the game has to offer. I think I spent 200 some hours with it. Such a fun world to explore.
Kind of it is, but all of them can fly but not at the start of when is the soonest you can get them as that involves a "story" (for lack of a better word) beat.
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Unfortunately, I didn't get to play at all yesterday, but it's all I can think about today. Wish I had another week off. LOL rickyson33 and Apocrypha Thanks for the Skell info.
I think when I hop back in, I'm going to run around NLA to see if there's stuff I've missed or any Affinity quests I can do right now. My quest log is filled with a bunch of stuff from that terminal, which I don't know if that's a good or bad thing, but like the other Xenoblade games, I just take on everything I can and work my way through when I can. And like those games, I do love that many quests auto-complete when you achieve their requirements. I wish every RPG did that.
The current story quest has me going into sectors where the enemies are a decent number of levels above me, so I'm taking the hint that I should focus on other stuff for now. :)
I think when I hop back in, I'm going to run around NLA to see if there's stuff I've missed or any Affinity quests I can do right now. My quest log is filled with a bunch of stuff from that terminal, which I don't know if that's a good or bad thing, but like the other Xenoblade games, I just take on everything I can and work my way through when I can. And like those games, I do love that many quests auto-complete when you achieve their requirements. I wish every RPG did that.
The current story quest has me going into sectors where the enemies are a decent number of levels above me, so I'm taking the hint that I should focus on other stuff for now. :)
If the game is not asking you to take them down you can still be in area you just need to channel your inner Solid Snake. As for taking them down you be can using some cheese strats/setups/builds but some enemies are legit hard even if they're a lower level and even if you know what you're doing/not your first playthrough.
The game does a decent job of avoiding grinding. If you do all of the missions you mostly shouldn't need to, but there are a couple points where it might become necessary and there are some tyrants set up to grind on. I don't remember what the early game tyrant was but there is a late game one post flight ability that you can use to max every playable character out on in a pretty short amount of time.
There's a giant flower in Noctilum with an insect tyrant surrounded by minions inside of it. You need skells to take it out but it's a pretty week tyrant named Joker. Once you can defeat this group, they hand out gobs of experience. A level 50 skell with a team of level 30s armed with Phoenix and G-buster can wipe this group out. You'll need to look up where to find Phoenix and G-buster though, as I believe they are enemy drops. Weapons well worth the effort.
However! Just because there are high level enemies doesn't mean you should stay out. You can stealth your way past a lot of stuff. I certainly did. See what you can jump your way up and over.
I would just avoid Basic Missions altogether (those that you pick up through the big terminal) except for gathering missions where you already have everything you need. They will auto complete as soon as you close the terminal window.
Normal Missions (those that you pick up from NPCs) and Affinity Missions are where the world-building and character development are. If you haven't already, go and talk to every NPC in NLA so they are added to the affinity chart. Choose both conversation options. More people on the chart means more Normal Missions will unlock. Normal Missions are a decent way of raising affinity between your character and your party members through conversations with quest givers and other NPCs. High affinity, in turn, unlocks Affinity Missions.
Once you learn Xenoblade X's gameplay loop, it can be hard to stop playing.
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Apocrypha and DragonKeeper Thanks for the encouragement! Yeah, I've been generally OK going through higher-level sectors, but sometimes you get a bit overwhelmed or pull a Lv. 60 enemy and get one-shot. LOL It's still fun though, and even if I wipe, most attempts aren't fruitless and I discover a new location or treasure location. It's definitely a lot of fun!
This is great advice -- thanks! I've been doing a pretty good job about talking to everyone, but I can't remember if I chose both dialogue options in every case, so might as well double-check my work and do a complete loop of the city. :)
Yeah, that's pretty normal on a first (few) playthroughs until you learn enemies aggro locations.
A minor note a lot of people overlook in party composition. While you can never bench the mime, you don't have to play as them. You can make any character your party lead. It's a small thing but I liked playing as other characters.
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I haven't messed with that yet, but I might soon. Still coming to grips with some of the new combat mechanics, even though they are similar to the first game (some arts having the exact same names IIRC).
On the topic of classes, who is good for support/healing? Seems like I'm wiping mostly due to nobody having good healing arts so far. My avatar is heading down the Full Metal Jaguar path, so I suppose I could change, but I kinda want to complete that branch before working down a different one (if that's recommended).
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Ah yes, healing. Nobody is really a healer, though Irina is the closest thing you get. You know as you fight you get those button press prompts, like little quicktimes? Nail those to trigger healing. There are also Arts and Auras that heal, but the "b" prompts are the main way.
Stick on the path for now especially as it has the best weapon type as one of it's types in the game, and as DragonKeeper said the game doesn't really have traditional healing.