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When Xenoblade Chronicles 2 came out in 2017 as one of the first big hitters for the Nintendo Switch, it was hard not to be wowed. Monolith Soft’s long-awaited follow-up delivered an unbelievably expansive open world, complete with a strategically satisfying combat system and an unforgettable narrative. The sheer scope of the world of Alrest had to be seen to be believed, especially on the original Switch hardware.
That scope didn’t come without issue, though. If Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is known for anything amongst general audiences, it’s that its performance is incredibly rough. It often struggled to even hit its target framerate of 30 frames-per-second, image quality was subject to constant blur, especially in handheld mode, and slowdown made menu navigation a nightmare. It’s quite a large blemish on an otherwise fantastic RPG.
This made Xenoblade Chronicles 2 a prime candidate for a Switch 2 upgrade, and Monolith Soft has finally provided it as part of its plans to bring the entire trilogy to the Switch 2. The result is Xenoblade Chronicles 2, as Monolith Soft had always envisioned. The technical uplift here feels like something of a fever dream, coupled with new content and smart changes to the general experience that cement Xenoblade Chronicles 2 as one of the all-time greats.
The most obvious upgrade here is in the framerate. While the original targeted 30, with frequent drops into the 20s, the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition aims for a much loftier 60, which I couldn’t fault despite all my testing. This is true for both handheld and docked modes, with the menu slowdown also being completely eliminated, bringing it more inline with other entries in the franchise.
The oft-blurry image quality is also a thing of the past, with the Switch 2 Edition bolstering 4K resolutions in docked and full 1080p HD in handheld. It completely transforms the way you take in the world of Alrest. You’re no longer distracted by suboptimal picture quality and imperceptible environments, instead taking in the grandeur of the Cloud Sea and the Titans that inhabit it. This increased picture quality also extends to all cutscenes, which is a godsend.
There’s also new content in the form of Merc Assault, additive to the existing Merc Group mechanic within the base game. It allows you to undertake and actually play the Merc Missions from that system, taking control of your chosen party of Blades. It’s a good bit of third-person hack n’ slash fun with a surprising amount of depth. It’s also nice that it’s intrinsically tied to the main game and provides a look into what a more action-focused Xenoblade might look like.
My only real gripe with this package is that it isn’t quite definitive. It’s lacking the expansion pass for the main game, which means it doesn’t come bundled with the Torna – The Golden Country expansion. It feels like a strange omission given Torna was also recently updated to take advantage of the Switch 2’s hardware, and is such a pivotal piece of the broader story being told here.
Despite this one shortcoming, there’s simply too much to love about this package. This is without getting into the new Blade, Momo, the fact that Field Skills use all Blades instead of just equipped ones, and he inclusion of new skins for Pyra and Mythra. After nearly 10 years, Xenoblade Chronicles 2 finds new life on the Switch 2, with a technical uplift that vastly improves the original experience. If you’ve yet to dive into Rex’s journey, or are just looking for an excuse to dive back into Alrest, this is the way to do it.