Why is a final edition of Xenoblade Chronicles important?

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The recent Nintendo Direct was packed with good news – Smash announcements, Animal Crossing details, curry in Pokémon – so much so that everyone waited impatiently for the last announcement. Now, in general, I'm puzzled about what will block a live – it must be something big and unexpected, right? But this time, one way or another, I felt that it would be related to Monolith Soft. I (with the rest of my TL) could just feel it in my bones.

And I knew, from first piano chord, what was happening.

A wave of emotion invaded me when I saw the trailer unfold before me: see Shulk, Fiora and all the environments made as nice as they were was like some kind of fantasy from my list the craziest wishes. Of course, not everyone was so jazzy. A colleague said to be disappointed with the final announcement – wearing a seven-year Wii game meant for the conclusion of a Direct? This is certainly not a reason to get upset. At a certain level, I can not blame anyone for this reaction. But on another point, I feel the need to explain why the final version of Xenoblade Chronicles is not like the flood of other ports offered by the switch, it symbolizes much more.

First, there is the game itself. J & # 39; I waxed poetic on Xenoblade more times than I can count (as can testify all those who speak to me in real life), I do not buzz eternally here. But it's simply a game that is unparalleled as a complete JRPG package: in size, scale, size, and size, it eclipses just about every other role-playing game. The soundtrack is rich and evocative. The landscapes are vast and dynamic. The characters are grounded and textured. The world is imaginative and infinite.

In fact, I would say that the original Xenoblade had only one flaw: its visual fidelity, which pushed the Wii to its limits to give all the visual splendor of its fantastic world. Now that it has been redone effectively for the Switch (not only with resized, but completely redone models of characters), this singular task is being cleaned up. The intensity of my enthusiasm does not excite the idea of ​​seeing characters like Dunban and Melia in HD, but also the magnificent sites: Satorl Marsh, Valak Mountain and even new places. (We did see Bionis shoulder at the end of the trailer, and the idea of ​​having more content in Xenoblade is almost unfathomable.)

So, a definitive edition refines a game that has begun to age. But that alone does not capture the full scope of what makes the announcement so compelling – for this we need to look at the ad itself and understand the story of Xenoblade as a game and a franchise.

Xenoblade is almost ten years old. It was launched in 2010 in Japan, after a long development after the troubled end of the previous Monolith Soft franchise, Xenosaga. It was published at a time when JRGP languished, perceived as obsolete and irrelevant by criticism. It took many dedicated fan efforts – begging, begging, and imploring Nintendo – to get him out of North America via Operation Rainfall, shortly after his release to the EU (even a year after his first edition). Release). In North America, it has been published in limited quantities as a GameStop exclusive. It was perceived as nicer than the niche.

Since this publication, the legacy of Xenoblade has grown and grown. A dedicated fanbase sprouted. Sales exceeded expectations in the West. Two suites – an almost linked fallout (Xenoblade Chronicles X) and a "sequel" (Xenoblade Chronicles 2) – have helped to increase the stock of the franchise to the public of Nintendo. Monolith Soft themselves have become more recognized through their work on great games like Breath of the Wild. The game has been republished on Wii U and New 3DS. And, of course, Shulk appeared in Smash Bros., which in itself offered a greater marketing opportunity than anything else.

At the end of a Nintendo Direct presentation, sensational finale, the most expensive product was Xenoblade Chronicles. Xenoblade, a game that was to be the subject of an election campaign before even being launched in America. Xenoblade, a twilight game from an aging console. Xenoblade, a game that a majority of people had scratched at the announcement of Shulk in Smash Bros. It is no longer such a dark RPG for fans of the genre, it is a real juggernaut.

And that, I think, brings me to the simple reason why I'm happy that the definitive edition exists: more people will play Xenoblade. It was a tricky game to get your hands on – Wii copies were notoriously rare, and not a ton of people had the Wii Us or the new 3DS – and even then, it was a much darker title . But word of mouth, smash appearances and a reputable suite have created the ideal conditions for its popularity to grow. And if it goes as well as I hope, it bodes well for Xenoblade as a franchise and for Monolith Soft. And I sincerely hope that will be the case.

What was once a game almost left on behalf of dusty tablets of unlocalized history has now closed a Nintendo Direct console.

Talk about changing the future.


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