After Xenoblade Chronicles X received a Nintendo Switch 2 Edition earlier this year, it was only a matter of time before the rest of the Xenoblade Chronicles games got their own. While we have a while to wait for 2 and 3, Nintendo has once again put more Edition in their Definitive Edition with Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition. This upgrade costs $9.99 and allows the game to run at 4K and 60 frames per second.
Well, that’s the idea anyway. After loading up my New Game Plus save near the end of the game and continuing the plot from there, I encountered several frame dips, both in gameplay and cutscenes. It’s still 60 most of the time, but the dips are frequent enough and noticeable. I could see one every time Dunban used a Monado Art in the prologue, for example. They do seem to happen more in cutscenes than during gameplay, particularly when there’s heavy depth of field, but in all honesty, I’d still rather have this upgrade than stick to 30.
The visual upgrade is great, but likewise not perfect. The higher resolution makes character outlines much more noticeable and distinct, particularly on noses, which I like a lot. However, it also reveals many imperfections in the texture work that were harder to see before. A lot of textures look great, while others still seem like they’re directly from the Wii version - particularly some ground textures like in the Bionis Sword area. There’s also at least one instance where you can easily see where a character’s body texture is mirrored, though this character is technically a spoiler, so don’t look too closely at the gallery below. Oh, cutscenes also have rumble now, which is neat.
It’s a very weird contrast that the game’s visuals now sit in, and fixing it would probably take more work than a $10 upgrade would justify for development. I was fine with Xenoblade X’s visual oddities in its NS2 version, but I find this harder to excuse. (As an aside, it’s funny that the pre-render at the start of the game actually looks worse than the game itself now.) Load times don’t seem to be too much better either, even with the game downloaded onto my device rather than going through my Switch 1 cart with the upgrade pack as DLC.
This isn’t simply a visual upgrade though; this pack adds two major things to the game: voiced Heart-to-Heart scenes and Xenoblade Kart. OK, it’s not called Xenoblade Kart, it’s the Ether Jet and the Nopon GP, but it’s still pretty hilarious. After reaching the Refugee Camp on the Bionis Leg, you can speak to a new Nopon NPC who will give you a quest to get her some Ether Cylanders. Completing the quest will unlock the Ether Jet, a high-speed vehicle you and the rest of the party can board by pressing ZL and ZR together. While aboard, you can cross great distances quickly, especially when boosting, but you can still be attacked and knocked off by monsters.
The Ether Jet will also grant you access to the Nopon GP, a special mode where you can race around as any playable party member in either Score Attack or Battle Race modes. You’ll unlock more courses as you progress through the story, too (with some feeling a little… uncouth, given what happens in the plot). These courses weren’t exactly designed for kart racing, taking place in already existing areas, but that makes it all the more hilarious.
Score Attack has you racing through a course to get the highest score possible, as the name implies. You do this by running Ether gems, reaching each NEXT goal to extend your time, and eventually reaching the finish line. You can chain together three Ether gems of the game color (Red, Blue, or Green). This will increase your score greatly and make the next chain score you even more points. It’s a lot of fun, and a nice change of pace from the main game. Battle Race is your more traditional racing mode, pitting you against all the other members of your party, each with their own stats and vehicle, in a typical race. The AI here is not very good at racing. I was a full minute ahead of the person in last place on my first attempt, but it’s still an enjoyable mode. As opposed to Score Attack, you’re encouraged to take weird shortcuts between NEXT goals, rewarding you for knowing each map inside and out.
Completing each course in both modes, as each character (and reaching a set score), will reward you with a brand new piece of gear for that character. This gear has a special bonus, giving the Ether Jet increased acceleration and boost speed when you wear a full set. Unlocking every piece of gear for every set will permanently unlock these bonuses, no matter what you wear. The new outfits are all much more sci-fi than the rest of the gear in the game, which is pretty cool. I’ll definitely be mixing and matching with my usual outfits for each character, because Melia’s new hood with little holders for her wings is just adorable.
The Nopon GP and Ether Jet do bring in some new voice acting along with the Heart-to-Hearts, and it does sound like they got most, if not all, of the original actors back. It’s been almost 15 years since some of these characters have been in these roles, though, and you can definitely hear a difference in pretty much everyone. Except Fiora, Fiora sounds exactly the same (probably because she’s been doing pretty much the same voice for Tataru in Final Fantasy XIV). Reyn is probably the one who sounds the most off. His delivery just isn’t as energetic as is typical of the character; he’s not enunciating his consonants quite as much as his previous performance. It's a softer delivery. This is probably only something people who have played this game three or more times would notice, but it’s still worth mentioning.
Personally, I’ve been waiting specifically for these upgrades to drop before I replay the trilogy, and if a code was not provided by Nintendo, I definitely would feel my $10 was well spent. I can recommend picking this up both for veterans and newcomers, though both should be aware that there are a few flaws in the package.
