Xenoblade Chronicles 2 - Switch

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)
Release Date: 12-1-2017
Moby Score (1-10): 8
Genre(s): Real-time, Role-playing (RPG), Anime / Manga, Fantasy, 3rd-person (Other), Free camera, Japanese-style RPG (JRPG), Sandbox / open world, Action RPG
Media Type(s): Physical

Lead Rex, Pyra, and the world to refuge

As the giant beasts march toward death, the last hope is a scavenger named Rex—and Pyra, a living weapon known as a Blade. Can you find the fabled paradise she calls home? Command a group of Blades and lead them to countless strategic victories before the world ends.

Each Titan hosts its own distinct cultures, wildlife, and diverse regions to explore. Search the vast open areas and labyrinthine corridors for treasure, secret paths, and creatures to battle and index.

During these escapades you'll get to know a large cast of eclectic characters, including the weaponized life forms known as Blades. Gather these allies, bond with them to increase their power, and utilize their special ARTS to devastate enemies. But to save the world of Alrest, you must first demystify its cloudy past.

• A new story in the Xenoblade Chronicles© series
• The next adventure is on the Nintendo Switch© console—set on the backs of colossal, living Titans
• Discover each Titan's diverse regions, culture, wildlife, equipment, and hidden secrets
• Find, bond with, and command weaponized life forms known as Blades to earn abilities and enhance them
• Uncover the history of Alrest and the mystery of its endless ocean of clouds

Alrest is a world composed of giant beasts, the Titans, who eternally roam a sea of clouds surrounding the World Tree. The people of this world live on the backs of the Titans alongside Blades, weaponized life forms who are awakened from crystals and bonded to their summoner until either dies. The protagonist of this game is a boy named Rex, who lives on the back of a Titan he calls Gramps and makes his living by salvaging ancient treasures that have sunk below the clouds. When a salvaging job goes awry, Rex finds himself bonded to Pyra, a legendary Blade called the Aegis. In return for saving his life, Rex promises Pyra to take her home to Elysium, a fabled promised land atop the World Tree. Not only does he want to honor Pyra's wishes, but Rex also hopes Elysium will provide a home to the people of Alrest as the Titans grow old and die. However, Pyra's power and place in Alrest's legends and history mean several factions hope to take control of her. Rex, Pyra, and their allies will have to face those who wish to steal her away, including a terrorist organization called Torna with particularly nefarious reasons for seeking the Aegis' power.

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is an action RPG set in an open world. The player's party consists of Drivers, who can be directly controlled, and the summoned Blades that grant their Drivers weapons and powers. The active party can contain up to three Drivers at a time, who in turn may engage up to three active Blades. During combat, each Driver can have one active Blade at a time, but may switch to either of the others as needed. Each Blade has their own weapon type, element, role in battle, and each grants a specific stat bonus to their Driver. In turn, Drivers have stat distributions that make them more suited towards certain weapons and Blade roles. Therefore, the player is responsible for assigning Blades that have synergy with both their Driver's specialty and the elemental distribution of the party's other Blades. Both types of character have skill trees and may equip items to further develop their strengths.

Most Blades are randomly summoned from Core Crystals, which can be earned from quests, dropped from defeated enemies, or hidden within treasure chests. Others, such as Pyra, are bonded to a specific Driver over the course of the story and usually cannot be disengaged. Lastly, some Blades come from unique Core Crystals that can only be earned from sidequests. Randomly summoned Blades can either be weak, generic types, or rare ones with a unique appearance and developed personality. The latter group have better stats, more complex skill trees, and unique sidequests. All Blades may be sent on Mercenary Missions, which run in the background and allow disengaged Blades to develop their skill trees and bring back items for the party.

The world consists of both wilderness, where monsters roam, and towns that house shops and other facilities. While exploring, players may encounter points of interest such as obstacles or item gathering spots; any of the party's currently engaged Blades, whether or not their Driver is part of the trio of active battlers, can use their skills to interact with these points to alter the environment or increase the yield of items earned. As the player interacts with a Titan's inhabitants by buying from shops and completing sidequests, that Titan's level of development will increase. This translates to discounts in shops and new Mercenary Missions to undertake. Some of these missions open up trade agreements between the inhabitants of different Titans, which result in the development of new items to purchase.

*** Data by MobyGames.com ***

× Some Disclaimers

  × Video games are pre-owned unless otherwise specified

  × Disc-based video games come with their case and cover art unless otherwise specified

         × PS1 Games May Not Have Their Front Cover Art/Instruction Manual

  × Cartridge-based video games come with just the cartridge unless otherwise specified

  × CD & DVD based discs are resurfaced before we put them out for sale

  × Pre-Owned games may have stickers or marks on them or their cases, either price tags from us or other stickers/markings from other stores or owners.