Ever since I transferred everything to my new 3DS, I’ve played with the 3D slider permanently on. With Xenoblade Chronicles 3D, though (the first game made specifically for the New 3DS, in that it won’t work on an old one) I had to turn it off, because there was just too much happening on-screen.
Xenoblade Chronicles is a truly giant RPG. It has huge towns and rolling plains, uninterrupted by loading screens, and brims with detail. Its open environments bristle with people and quest icons. Thing is, for the first hour or so I spent with Xenoblade Chronicles, I found it difficult to make a lot of it out. There’s not quite enough detail on the 3DS screen to instantly make out ‘!’ quest icons above characters’ heads in busy areas, combat with multiple enemies is crazily busy, landmark icons crowd out the map, and there’s also a distinct lack of screen real-estate for maps, stats and extra info, which are crammed onto the touchscreen instead.
For that first hour, I really found myself wondering what it might look like on the Vita; just like, when I was playing Xenoblade Chronicles on the Wii, I kept wistfully thinking about what it might look like on the 360 or PS3. But it’s amazing how quickly you adapt. Xenoblade Chronicles is an extraordinary game, one of the standout Japanese RPGs of the past decade, and once your eyes have adjusted to viewing its world in 400 x 240 resolution, your imagination starts to fill in the gaps. It’s a beautiful game with a likeable art style, and although it will never look as comfortable on the 3DS as games that were made with the console in mind, it has downgraded well to the smaller screen.
It helps that it plays so well. Xenoblade Chronicles is equal parts exploration and fighting. The humans of its world live on the long-dead remains of a titanic robot called the Bionis, now covered in grass and bursting with wildlife. There’s a really interesting visual contrast between the outside world, which is green and gorgeous, and the caves and tunnels that take you inside the Bionis, which look… well, like the inside of a robot. The sci-fi touches make Xenoblade distinctive — especially lead character Shulk’s ability to see the future, which has interesting effects both inside and outside battle.
There’s also great, UK-accent-heavy localisation. It’s still so refreshing to play in a video game fantasy world that isn’t inexplicably full of Californians. It really helps Xenoblade Chronicles not to feel contrived, even if some of the names look like they’re the result of replacing one random letter in otherwise normal monikers (Fiora, Dunban). There are Welshmen, Northerners, Scots… and, of course, the traditional Evil Cockney Bad Guys, whose voice actors appear to revel gleefully in going wayyy over the top. For some reason I didn’t expect the full voice-acting to translate to the 3DS version, but it has.
A couple of hours with Xenoblade Chronicles 3D has reminded me what a great game this is, and how refreshing it was in 2011 to play a game that warmly embraced all that’s good about Japanese RPGs without the linearity, over-complication and predictability that plagued the genre in the last generation. It’s so huge in scope that it struggles to fit onto a little console, but I’m rather impressed that it’s managing at all.
This post originally appeared on Kotaku UK, bringing you original reporting, game culture and humour from the British isles.
Comments
12 responses to “Xenoblade Chronicles Is Almost TOO Big For The New 3DS”
I’ve never played the game, but I already wish it was on the WiiU to enjoy better visuals. I only just picked up a New 3DS for MH and Majora’s mask, but I’m already finding myself wishing these games were on more powerful hardware, even the Vita.
I’m playing Monster Hunter Freedom Unite on the Vita, which is a PSP game, and I think it may even look better than the new MH4. Xenoblade is a game that would benefit so much from a WiiU HD rerelease.
Can I ask why? I think MM runs Just fine. I personally think Nintendo is currently showing us why powerfull consoles don’t matter. in my books they are clearly winning the new console race. Sony and Microsoft are selling more for sure but that’s just a name thing. Both those companies have done very very very poorly with the new consoles and broken games
I’m a graphics whore 🙂 Also being spoilt with PC game, with anti-aliasing and well just better everything I find a game like MH4 could be so much more on better hardware. I haven’t played MM yet, so I can’t comment on that – but I believe it would probably be fine like you said.
If you look at MH:Online (only in China at the moment) that’s how I want to play MH.
haha hey, im with you. i do love a good looking game but i just feel like current gamers are obsessed with it and its MAJORLY affecting the quality of games being produced.
I have always said, graphics are way down the ladder of the list of things that make a game good.
I agree, if a game purely rests on visuals it will be a empty experience – on the flip side, some games are held back by limited hardware graphically and functionally.
Mh felt so cramped when I started, having only experienced it on the wii/wii u, but the 3ds is starting to feel like enough after a few hours.
I loved xenoblade, it fixed so much of what was wrong with jrpg’s, the combat was great, and the world was amazing in concept AND execution (the first time you leave the tunnel and the world opens up!). I won’t be getting the 3ds version, I don’t need it again, but it’s great that the game will find a wider audience.
Also, the voice acting by NoE was fantastic. The regional dialects, the cockney robots, and especially it being reyn time.
So hyped for xcx.
I missed out on this game on the Wii because of costs & trying to get hold of a copy when I had the money (more so one with the bonus controller) so am looking forward to this.
It’s one reason I was an early NEW 3DS adaptor.
You connect a part of your body to the New 3DS? must be some new functionality i didnlt know about.
I’ll +1 you, even though many wouldn’t 😛
That mental image conjured up was glorious
Yes, just like in the classic film Videodromo.
If you really want to see how much this game was held back by the Wii’s hardware try running it on an emulator on a good PC. WoW this game actually looks next gen on an emulator.
Dub-only for this version sealed my decision not to bother. Personally I absolutely hated the UK dub, it grated on me even worse than the usual awful american JRPG dubs. Glad I already finished it on the Wii.