Board 8 > How is Xenoblade Chronicles 2

(+) Yeah! (+)

I'm about to start it, but afraid to go into the other topic

Is it better than X

Is it more similar to 1

Is it super long
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boob sword

edit: and butts
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No.

Yes.

Yes.
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Grand Kirby posted...

No.

Yes.

Yes.

I feel like question one can't possibly be no if question two is yes
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It is.
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StealThisSheen posted...

Grand Kirby posted...

No.

Yes.

Yes.

I feel like question one can't possibly be no if question two is yes

1 is better than X so it's very possible
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Then perhaps I should get clarification

Do you really like X or is 2 just bad
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oh wait

is it better than X

yes
yes
yes then
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KommunistKoala posted...

StealThisSheen posted...

Grand Kirby posted...

No.

Yes.

Yes.

I feel like question one can't possibly be no if question two is yes

1 is better than X so it's very possible

That's my point. 1 is good and X is pretty bad so if it's like 1 I can't see how it's not better than X automatically
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StealThisSheen posted...

Then perhaps I should get clarification

Do you really like X or is 2 just bad

Both.
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I still really like it and am having a lot of fun, but it makes a number of questionable decisions that hurt user friendliness. It's just odd since most of the problems seem like they'd be easy to fix, so it leaves me feeling like Nintendo probably rushed Monolith to have it out this year, and thus they didn't have proper time to polish it.
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mnkbear907 posted...

I still really like it and am having a lot of fun, but it makes a number of questionable decisions that hurt user friendliness. It's just odd since most of the problems seem like they'd be easy to fix, so it leaves me feeling like Nintendo probably rushed Monolith to have it out this year, and thus they didn't have proper time to polish it.

Could you go into detail a bit on some of that?
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The map is really bad (I know it just got patched but it's still not GOOD), and there's this really strange gatcha box system with the blades (essentially a basic job system) that isn't entirely necessary but sure as hell makes you feel really bad about not farming for rares.

Also the side quests aren't NEARLY as bad as 1's but they are still somewhat tedious.
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Man, that gatcha stuff really depresses me every time I hear about it. What's wrong with the map?

I am Sheen now
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StealThisSheen posted...

I feel like question one can't possibly be no if question two is yes

It's a valuable signal that lets you know the person's opinions are backwards
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The biggest problem with the map is areas have multiple levels, but only one is seen on the map. So when you see a marker, it won't tell you how high or low it is. The quest marker has an up or down arrow for this, but it doesn't lead you through the actual route, so it can be a huge pain to figure out how to actually get where you need to go. It would be so much better if the map had layer functionality and marked where entrances to tunnels and ramps and things were.
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Other UI annoyances include inconvenient blade switching to activate field skills, super subpar sorting options for blades and items, lack of being able to check a blade's chart upon bonding or letting you release it immediately if you don't want it, the menu hell that is merc missions, and other small things.
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I don't mind the map, but the menus are atrocious.
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Thanks for the explanations, y'all. Yeah, many reviews seemed to dock points for the game being so quizzically user-unfriendly. Odd duck.
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Yes
Yes
Yes

Game is more uneven than XC but still really good.
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Nearing the end game right now, and I'd say the game at its heart is better than Xenoblade Chronicles. That said, the utter head-scratcher that is the decision to make blades obtained via gacha hurts the game immensely. The blade system itself is REALLY cool, but who gets what blade - or if you even get good ones at all - is completely random.

That by itself wouldn't be too terrible, but the item to get a blade off of one character and on to another is absurdly rare. Like, three in the entire main game rare. (Plus 5 extremely late game and "farmable" through a nightmarishly tedious process post-game.)

I feel like they were going for a "no two players will have the same experience" type of thing with your party makeup being different on any given playthrough... but it doesn't really work because each character has a role that they clearly excel at, and pulling a tank blade on your healer for example with extremely finite chances to fix it just ends up being frustrating rather than a cool experience.

Even with that massive problem, I still feel like I'd be more likely to replay this than the first game, so maybe that gives you an idea of how good the "on" parts of this game are.
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Just starting the game now (still in the prologue I assume, since I have no Blades yet). Any tips for new players?
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Much better than X

Not quite as good as XBC1

It's quite long but the game time can be a bit deceving because for some reason it continues to tick while in sleep mode.
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I wouldn't get too into fighting until you get the ability to equip multiple blades. Your power increases by a large margin when new parts of the battle system are open to your.

Having multiple elements when equipping blades is more important than basically anything else.
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I'm at Chapter 6 and over 50 hours in.

- Story is given as much if not more focus than 1 and while it is obviously better than X, it isn't particularly close to 1, yet.

- Character interactions don't quite hold the same charm as 1 but it is serviceable.

- World is supposed to be bigger than 1 but so far (from the ones I've seen) it doesn't feel like it. Dwarfs in comparison to X so I don't known which article was that stated it is gonna be bigger than X. What a buncha jokers.

- Gameplay mechanics are deeper than 1 but probably not deeper than X. Acquiring Rare Blades is easily the most flawed system and I'm not a big fan of playing an 8-bit mini-game (ala No More Heroes 2) to upgrade Poppi either.

- Map sucks. Not by design but rather by the interface you use to access it. You will get used to it though.

Overall it is better than X but not on the level of the first game. I'm just a little halfway through the storyline right now so my opinion could change.

Oh and better pay attention to those tutorials because if you zone out and plan to view it later it won't be archived.

better yet just use the switch's screenshot feature to take pictures of tutorials
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