Earlier this year, I had the chance to start addressing a major blind spot in my gaming background by finally trying the Xenoblade series. Starting with Xenoblade Chronicles X might not have been the best choice, according to a few fans I talked to, but it was nonetheless an incredible journey. That said, Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is exactly the kind of experience I was looking for.
Monolith wants to attract newcomers to the series in preparation for next year’s Xenoblade Genesis, and the Switch 2 upgrades continue to be the best way to enjoy these, at least in my experience as a complete novice to the series.
Monolith Soft is a developer that prides itself on maximizing the capabilities of the often extremely limited hardware they have to work with. Even then, you could feel there was not much they could squeeze out of the likes of the Wii U or the Nintendo Switch. Miracle workers as they are, fans wanted to see what they were capable of, and these re-releases serve as a small taste, and they are worth it every single time thus far.
Let’s get the basics out of the way. The game runs at a silky smooth 60 FPS with absolutely no drops, at least during my dozens of hours of playtime, in either docked or handheld mode. That, paired with an enhanced resolution that reaches 4K docked but still holds a gorgeous 1080p on handheld, makes Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Switch 2 Edition worth the journey back to Alrest if you played before, and a must-have in your library if you’re curious about Genesis.
Beyond the technical department, XC2 Switch 2 offers quite a lot of new content when it comes to gameplay. You can get access to a new Blade, Momo, which will be a welcome addition for those on their second or third playthroughs, but by far my favorite piece of side content is Merc Assault, where you’ll control six non-common Blades throughout different missions, letting you freely swap among them seamlessly. It features a massive departure from the series’ signature combat, as you’ll need to actively input commands, more akin to an action game.
The mode feels like so much more than an afterthought, as it’s fleshed out and developed just as much as the main story’s combat. Basic attacks will charge Role Arts, which in turn generate Ether Pods that grant bonus effects depending on the type.
Special Arts are all flashy, with stylish cut-ins taking place for even the simpler ones. The challenge lies in having to bring a balanced squad to complete each mission objective, which can be simply wiping out enemies or surviving for a set amount of time.
Your roster shares HP, so hot-swapping Blades is encouraged, forcing you to think on the fly about how to maximize an enemy’s weakness. Even taking advantage of the environment plays a huge role, as Field Skills (abilities Blades can use in the open world for extra bonuses) play a neat role in Merc Assault. Field Gimmicks are small treasures you can pick up in each combat scenario, adding an extra bit of incentive to your squad-building process.
There are dozens of progressively harder challenges, making for a rather beefy gameplay update that made me spend quite a lot of hours trying to crack some of the hardest ones.
All the brand-new bells and whistles are great, but the overall package wouldn’t be worth it if the main course wasn’t as tasty as the side dishes. I’m not saying anything revolutionary here, but there’s a reason Rex, Pyra, Mythra, and the rest of the gang have become an iconic bunch in the JRPG landscape—the game rules.
The story is fairly simple but lets characters shine through and through, even if the English voice acting robs some of the most earnest or climactic moments of the emotional weight they deserve, since it’s still hilariously off-putting. It’s one of the few times I truly think playing in Japanese makes for a completely different experience.
What I absolutely adored about the game’s story is how little handholding it had. You’re tossed right in the middle of Rex’s adventure as a salvager. There’s little fanfare about what the Cloud Sea is, or how Titans came to be. It’s a lived-in world, and you just happen to accept the whimsical nature of it, as there’s a comforting sense of normality stemming from its inhabitants.
It trusts you, as the player, to stick with the narrative, rather than consistently putting a carrot on a stick to compel you to move forward. It makes you earn those answers and fills you with a proper sense of fulfillment because it isn’t constantly beating you over the head with questions about why the world is the way it is.
Gameplay is super solid as well. Moving from XCX to this made for a far easier time trying to understand the mechanics and the nature of auto-battling. Blades act as Pokémon-like figures, with unique elemental affinities, moves, attributes, and even skills they can use in the open world to help you find items or gather extra resources.
Progression is much more streamlined but remains as engaging as in X, as both Rex and the Blades you control can improve over time, giving you access to Arts right from the get-go, as well as other stat bonuses that will help you with tougher challenges.
Listen, you already know all of that; you’ve likely played Xenoblade or know what to expect at this point. The bottom line is that if Xenoblade Chronicles 2 was already a must-play almost a decade ago, you’re doing yourself a disservice by not having this in your Switch 2 collection in 2026.
And that’s it. Stick with us at Gfinityesports.com: your go-to source for all things Xenoblade.