vgmusicologistAfter being heralded as a refreshing evolution of the formula, I was rather surprised by just how much this game adheres to classic JRPG structure and artifice. It’s a very traditional story of the impending apocalypse and your rag-tag band of misfits who come together to stop it while spouting the equally traditional messages of loyalty, diligence, teamwork and friendship conquering all.
The world concept is pretty neat; though the idea of living on the body of a dead god isn’t exactly new, I don’t believe I’ve seen it done so… literally. Though many mythologies involve a deity becoming the earth or the ocean or the sky, etc, none of these elements resemble an entity we’d think of as a life form, so the myth only applies in a metaphysical sense. The Xenobladiverse however, is literally the surface of two inconceivably huge mecha, the features of which are often clearly visible in the sky.
There are some neat practical innovations: truly robust fast-travel, no random combat, a daytime/weather cycle that is more than cosmetic, and a quest tracking system that takes a lot of the slog out of the old “go here, get this thing, come back” experience. I especially appreciate the way multiple quest targets can show up on the map simultaneously, eliminating a lot of single-purpose voyages. However, the sheer number of sidequests the game throws at the player all but negates the advantage of these new expediencies. Some of these are clever and world-building, but most amount to no more than pointless filler. The regularity with which I am asked to exterminate a specific number of native fauna with almost no pretense has begun to grate on me. It’s tonally dissonant as well, as the game puts a lot of time and effort into showcasing our heroes’ personability. Shulk is patient, thoughtful, and emotionally vulnerable, Reyn is a fiercely-devoted, lovable oaf; it feels strange to have them hunting so many wild animals at someone else’s whim.
I’m a bit divided on the combat system; part of me thinks it’s unnecessarily complicated, and part of me is impressed by how smoothly all the parts fit together. For the first few chapters it seemed as though a new explanation dialogue appeared at virtually every major battle, introducing a new combat mechanic. The gradual additions are appreciated, of course; I’d probably have suffered an aneurysm if they’d thrown everything at me from the start, but after awhile I began to have thoughts like, “Oh no, ANOTHER combat mechanic? Am I ever going to fully understand how this game works?” The action in battle is often too chaotic and disorienting for me to feel like I’m applying the mechanics effectively anyway.
There’s crafting too, which strikes me as more of a western RPG element, but perhaps all modern adventure games are required to have one now. It’s not even a particularly interesting crafting system… apart from actual crafting animation itself. I’m not even sure how to describe it; the two selected characters stand on either side of the gem furnace and take turns doing….. things to it while exclaiming wildly at each other as it change colors, and sometimes the effort… uhh… heats up. And that description doesn’t even come close to doing it justice. The action on-screen is some kind of perfect ballet: Equally bizarre, campy, and homoerotic. One may, of course, hold the A button to fast forward through this performance, an expediency of which I have made virtually no use. After crafting dozens of gems, the spectacle still fascinates and delights me. Doubly so if the two crafters happen to be Shulk and Reyn and they just happen to be in only their underwear.