Hands-on Preview: Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition

I've held out hope for a Xenoblade Chronicles X Definitive Edition since the original Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition got the remaster treatment on the Nintendo Switch back in 2020. Don't get me wrong, I love the mainline Xenoblade Chronicles series, but Xenoblade Chronicles X is uniquely special.

Xenoblade Chronicles X essentially takes the Xenoblade formula and shifts from high fantasy to a futuristic spacey sci-fi setting. This change creates an incredibly fun and immersive experience for a series built around exploration and a massive open world.

I recently got some hands-on time with the early chapters of the upcoming Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition. I poured hundreds of hours into the original game back on the Wii U, but that was almost a decade ago. Truth be told, I was itching to revisit the world of Mira in XCX, and my hands-on experience just left me wanting more.

The story of Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition starts in the pretty near future in the year 2054. Two warring alien races engage in open combat in space above Earth, putting the planet and humanity in the crossfire. As a last-ditch effort, humanity launches a fleet of interstellar Ark ships with the hope of finding a new planet to call home. Only a few of the ships survive, including one called the White Whale. After a couple of years in space, the White Whale is attacked and crash lands on an alien planet called Mira, with the life pods carrying the colonists from Earth being scattered across the planet.

One of those colonists is you. After being rescued from your life pod by a character named Elma, you join BLADE (Builders of the Legacy After the Destruction of Earth), a private military organization determined to ensure humanity's survival. As a member of BLADE, it's up to you to join Elma and other members in finding and rescuing more colonists in the life pods scattered across the surface as well as exploring Mira and learning more about the planet.

As I said before, exploration is where XBX really shines. Mira is a massive open world teeming with alien life including dangerous creatures of all shapes and sizes. In between progressing through the main story of XBX, you have plenty of other things to do including taking on side missions from BLADE and exploring and surveying the planet. The exploration also ties in with the main story, so it creates this really epic feeling of actually exploring, surveying, and discovering an unknown alien planet.

If you've played any other Xenoblade game, you'll feel right at home with Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition's combat system. It's still based around the more methodical MMORPG-lite battle style. You'll engage in combat with mostly auto-attacks but have the opportunity to execute various skills, each with its own effects and cooldowns. Some skills simply do increased damage, or deal cleave or even area of effect damage. Others, however, can interrupt your opponent's attacks, heal your allies, or even inflict various status effects if you successfully attack an enemy from the side or behind. It's an extremely satisfying combat system that rewards you for actually taking the time to learn both your own toolkit—that continues to grow as you level up—and that of your enemies so you know how to combat them with the skills you have available effectively. Of course, a big change in XBX is that you wield both ranged and melee weapons, so you'll seamlessly switch between the two in combat, and in turn some skills will require you to be in melee range or a minimum distance away from your enemy.

The definitive treatment does wonders for Xenoblade Chronicles X. I honestly think the original still looks pretty good for being almost a decade old at this point, but the improved visuals of the definitive edition are very evident throughout the RPG. Character models are less blocky than in the original, especially around the face. The world of Mira is more beautiful than ever with what looks like more vibrant foliage, and the creatures that inhabit the planet are more detailed.

But visuals aren't the only enhancement in Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition. There are several quality-of-life improvements such as multiple save slots, an improved HUD and UI, and the addition of an on-screen assist guide for performing Overdrive combos. Perhaps the most impactful addition, however, is a new system called Quick Recast. Players can charge up their Quick Recast over time and then use it to be able to instantly use skills again before the cooldown for them is up. It's a great system that makes the combat of XBX even more enjoyable.

My hands-on preview experience reminded me just how great of an RPG Xenoblade Chronicles X is, and I'm excited to see what new content the definitive edition adds to later parts of the game. The massive open world teeming with life creates a truly immersive experience that actually feels like a living breathing world, something few games have pulled off successfully in the 10 years since XBX originally released. If you're a fan of MMORPGs, Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition makes you feel like you're playing in an MMO world, which is a ton of fun. I can't wait to continue exploring Mira when Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition launches on the Nintendo Switch on March 20, 2025.

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