Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is rightly considered as one of the most impressive Nintendo Switch games ever released, even with the technical limitationsMonolith Soft had to contend with, which resulted in poor image quality, especially in handheld mode, and 30 FPS gameplay which often fell below the target in the most intense combat encounters making it ripe for a proper upgrade. With the Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, these issues are mostly addressed, and some significant quality-of-life improvements make this edition of the game a must purchase for both returning players and newcomers.
As highlighted in the comparison videos shared by GVG and Nintendo Life, the Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is truly transformative, addressing the vast majority of visual issues, and upping the resolution to make the journey through Alrest with Rex and Pyra even more beautiful. Handheld mode obviously sees the most significant improvement, with a bump to 1080p resolution from the measly 378p – 540p resolution range on the original Nintendo Switch. Although it is not an action-oriented RPG, 60 FPS gameplay is also a significant change.
While the performance and visual improvements would be more than enough to make Xenoblade Chronicles 2 a more than worthy purchase on Nintendo Switch 2, it’s select quality-of-life improvements that take the cake, primarily the changes made to Field Skills. While exploring Alrest, Rex and his companions often find obstacles or navigational challenges that require having Blades with certain Skills in the active party. This required players to often change up their active party line-ups just to proceed, resulting in a very clunky open-world experience.
In the Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, however, just having a Blade with the required Field Skill is enough to clear the challenge, if it meets the level requirements. This makes exploring the worldsignificantly better, as players don’t need to switch between multiple menus or mess up their formation just to keep exploring.
Although Xenoblade Chronicles 2 on Nintendo Switch 2 introduces plenty of significant, positive changes, the new version of the game also comes with a critical bug. As the game has an issue likely caused by scanning certain amiibo that sometimes deletes the third accessory slot, which can be purchased for New Game + mode, so it’s probably better to hold off playing a second playthrough until the issue has been fixed
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is the second updated release for the series, which will be followed by Xenoblade Chronicles 3 later this year. With Xenoblade Genesislaunching next year, the entirety of the series will be available for the current-generation Nintendo system, making it even more a very enticing system for JRPG lovers.
About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack.
After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi “Suda51” Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA’s president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3.
When he’s not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.
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