Why Xenoblade Chronicles stands strong as one of Nintendo’s best games
Why Xenoblade Chronicles stands strong as one of Nintendo’s best games
Posted on July 11, 2026 by Ethan in Features, New Nintendo 3DS, Switch, Wii
Xenoblade Chronicles has been through a lot since its original release in 2010. At first, it wasn’t even slated to receive an American release – the game was eventually localized by Nintendo of Europe, but even with a complete English dub, Nintendo of America had no intent for a stateside release. Eventually, fan outcry in the form of Operation Rainfall helped convince Nintendo to release the game in North America as a GameStop exclusive in 2011
Fast forward to today, and the original Xenoblade Chronicles is one of the most highly-rated JRPGs of all time – and even though it’s over 15 years old, it still holds up as one of Nintendo’s best. So if you’re on the fence about getting the new Nintendo Switch 2 Edition and our review of its new features wasn’t quite enough to convince you, maybe this overview and breakdown of the game as a whole will
As someone who has played all four games in the series, there are a few things that make these titles uniquely Xenoblade. As in, they all share some common strengths: memorable environments, (mostly) well-written and likeable characters, and a deep storyline with lots of foreshadowing. That last one is particularly important, because it creates a sort of replay value – once you beat a Xenoblade game and know the story, every time you replay it you’ll notice new bits of foreshadowing that completely flew over your head the first time around.
As the first game in the series, Xenoblade Chronicles not only establishes all of these fundamentals – it does them extremely well. You’ve almost certainly seen Shulk in Super Smash Bros. by now, and in this game, he goes on a revenge-fueled quest to stop the Mechon, a robotic force who invaded his home. Of course, that’s not all there is to the story – in practice, it winds up much more complicated than that. But without going into too much detail, Xenoblade’s story is a special one. It’s got great villains, lots of character development, heartwarming moments, and everything in between. It’s much better to experience it for yourself if possible.
Xenoblade Chronicles’ gameplay is unique, though it might take a little bit of getting used to for new players. Rather than your typical turn-based JRPG, the game goes for a real-time approach. You take control of a single character (normally Shulk, but you can change your character if you want) while two others are controlled by AI. You can move your character around, and every few seconds, they’ll automatically attack the opponent to inflict a small amount of damage. Each character has their own set of Arts, which are basically special moves of sorts that recharge over time.
One common trend with the first Xenoblade Chronicles game specifically is that most of its systems are easy to understand at a baseline level, but for those willing to dive deep and do things the optimal way, things can get very complicated. Indeed, combat is simple enough if you just want to experience the main story – the game even has a Casual Mode option with no penalties that drastically reduces the difficulty – but if you want to become powerful enough to take on superbosses, there are a lot of intricate systems to learn.
Another classic Xenoblade trait that’s present in all four games, it’s always possible to make your party ridiculously overpowered if you set them up just right, and this game is no exception. Once you tackle the combat’s learning curve, it’s pretty fun – though I personally prefer Xenoblade 2 and 3’s combat systems myself
I do have one minor issue with combat. In this game, Shulk has visions of the future during battles if an enemy is about to deal severe damage or KO a party member. A lot of times, I’d find myself spotted by a high-level enemy and run for my life, only to be stopped by a vision telling me what I already knew: I was moments away from disaster. Not a huge deal, especially in Casual Mode where it’s much easier to take on stronger opponents. But a minor annoyance nonetheless. It’s also important to note that characters in Xenoblade are constantly talking during battles. That’s probably something else that would take getting used to if you’re a new player, but it’s not a significant flaw for me.
You can’t talk about Xenoblade Chronicles without bringing up its environments. The story takes place on the Bionis, a massive titan that houses most of the game’s locations. It does a fantastic job of making you feel small in a huge, vast world. You’ve got now-iconic areas like Gaur Plain, as well as memorable locations like Satorl Marsh and Eryth Sea. Even though this game isn’t new by any means, its environments still look gorgeous to this day – they’re so unique and colorful, and they’re fun to explore especially with the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition’s new fast-travel Ether Jets.
And all of these memorable locations are elevated even further by Xenoblade’s incredible music. Every single area has a catchy theme to go along with it, both for daytime and nighttime. The battle themes, like You Will Know Our Names, are fantastic – then there are climactic cutscene themes like Engage the Enemy, as well as great atmospheric pieces like Satorl Marsh and Eryth Sea. If you sink more than a few hours into this game, you’ll definitely remember several standout pieces from it. And great soundtrack is a strength that’s retained in the sequels, too.
Really, the only other thing I can fairly criticize here is that the quests are a little bit dry and bland. But a good few of them do contribute to the overall world-building aspect, so I’d definitely recommend doing at least a few quests if only for the extra experience points they offer. The Nintendo Switch 2 Edition of the game does currently suffer from minor frame drops, but it’s nothing that even comes close to ruining the experience. Nintendo Switch 2 is still the best way to play Xenoblade Chronicles, and I can’t wait for the same upgrades to come to Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and 3 later this year.
Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition is releasing on cart (not a Game-Key Card) on July 30, which you can pre-order here
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