Five things I don't love about Xenoblade Chronicles (thus far)

So, yesterday I yammered on about the five things that make me clap like a seal (that's a good thing, for those of you who aren't schooled in the ways of these fin-footed mammals) whenever I play Xenoblade Chronicles. Today, as promised, I'm going to yammer on about five aspects of this game that make me a sad panda. (Don't worry, that's the last of my zoologically-themed bon mots--in this post, at least.)

1. Too much information--And by "too much information," I don't mean that I'm finding myself turned off by Shulk's constant comments about that time he mistook Sharla's soup pot for a bedpan (or was it the other way around?). No, what I mean is that, at the moment anyway, this game is throwing way too details in my general direction. There are "arts," gems, quests, maps, floating blue orbs ... ack!  Granted, some of this is sure to be less stress-inducing after I've spent a bit more time with the game, but right now I'm feeling overwhelmed.



2. Just say no to wonky cameras--Xenoblade Chronicles' camera is fine--more than fine, really--while you're sneaking through Tephra Cave or skipping (if only!) amongst the tall grass that covers Gaur Plain. Engage in battle with a number of monsters--or even a single one, if it's large enough--though, and you'll see why I'm calling it "wonky." Thankfully, it's only mildly irritated--and inconvenienced--me thus far. And who knows? Maybe I'll eventually become so adept at the game's controls that readjusting the camera during especially heated moments won't be such a challenge.



3. Why does it look like everyone's melting?--Anyone who has heard anything about this game likely has heard that, at times, it is a sight to behold. Sadly, those times do not extend to Xenoblade Chronicles' cut scenes. That's because the folks at Monolith Soft often choose to zoom in on their in-game models during said cut scenes--and, well, let's just say that the models in question, which look fine from afar, shouldn't plan on winning any beauty pageants.

Five things I love about Xenoblade Chronicles (thus far)

Now that I've spent some time--not as much as I'd have liked, mind you, but surely more than enough--with Xenoblade Chronicles, I thought I'd share a few thoughts about my experiences with this long-in-coming Wii release thus far.

Sp, in this post, as I'm sure you've already gathered from the headline above, I'll talk about the five things I'm currently loving about this Monolith Soft-developed RPG. Tomorrow's post, on the other hand, will detail five things I'm not loving about the game at the moment.

With that said, here are the things that have me grinning ear to ear like the Cheshire Cat whenever I play Xenoblade Chronicles:

1. Its vast, open world--Of all the things that Xenoblade Chronicles' makers promised to gamers, this is the one that excited me the most before I got my hands on a copy. And now that I've not only accomplished that task but taken the game for a spin, so to speak, as well? I'm even more excited--mainly because there's so much to explore.



2. Being able to jump, instantly, to any place you've visited before--Sure, such a feature isn't the most realistic--especially in a game that doesn't try to explain it away with some made-up, sci-fi mumbo jumbo--but, boy, is it ever appreciated by yours truly. I mean, I love running through Xenoblade Chronicles' fields and ruins as much as the next guy or gal, but sometimes I just want to twitch my nose like Samantha on Bewitched and magically appear at my intended destination, you know? Thank you, folks at Monolith Soft, for making that happen in this game.



3. The seemingly-never-ending number of side quests--You can't take a step in Xenoblade Chronicles without someone asking you to find or fetch something for them. Such "fetch quests" usually involve killing a specific beast, or a specific set of beasts, but not always. (Some simply require you to nab a few of those floating blue orbs that are seemingly everywhere.) I'm guessing that annoys some gamers, but I adore it. It helps, of course, that each completed quest earns you some sort of swag, but I'd probably do a lot of them even if that weren't the case.

Hello, Xenoblade Chronicles; goodbye, free time

Please note: I wrote the header above shortly after my copy of Xenoblade Chronicles arrived on our doorstep a couple of weeks ago.

At the time, I planned on spending a good portion of the following weekend playing this open-world, Wii-based RPG. The hubs threw a bit of a wrench into the works, though, when he suggested we leave town for an impromptu vacation (to Las Vegas and Tucson).

As I'm sure you can imagine, that last-minute getaway kept me from diving into this Monolith Soft-developed game. This weekend, though? No plans whatsoever. Well, other than playing Xenoblade Chronicles as much as possible, of course.


                       I have no idea where this location exists within Xenoblade Chronicle's 
                                            world, but I can't wait to experience it.

I played it for a few hours last night, by the way, and already I can tell I'm going to like it. The one aspect of Xenoblade Chronicles that I'm not yet sure about is its real-time battle system. It's a bit irksome, for instance, that your character automatically attacks enemies once you've engaged them in combat. Thankfully, the manually-activated special attacks (called "Arts") inject these events with just enough involvement and strategy to keep them from feeling like the game is playing itself.

I'll do my best to post more impressions of this title sometime next week. In the meantime, are any of you currently playing Xenoblade Chronicles? If so, what do you think of it?

See also: Previous Xenoblade Chronicles posts

Acquisition #127: Xenoblade Chronicles

It could be said that I've been looking forward to getting my grubby little hands on Xenoblade/Xenoblade Chronicles for some time. In fact, I've been looking forward to it since at least June 9 of 2010, when I published this post about how it's possible to strip characters down to their skivvies.

As some of you may remember, I should have added the European version of this open-world RPG, made by the more-than-able folks at Monolith Soft, to my collection as far back as September of last year. Sadly, the copy that I pre-ordered from sendit.com either was never shipped or was lost while crossing the ocean. Thankfully, Nintendo of America announced its intention of releasing Xenoblade Chronicles in the US shortly after I gave up on ever receiving said copy.

I know this is becoming commonplace in these "Acquisition #123" posts, but I have yet to play my just-acquired (late last week, to be more specific) copy of this game. Oh, I've unwrapped it and spent more time than I should have gazing at its disc (which, I must say, is quite pretty) and manual, but I haven't popped the darn thing into my Wii yet.

I plan on doing just that this weekend, though, so expect a slew of (hopefully positive) Xenoblade Chronicles-centric pots in the coming days and weeks. In the meantime, why don't those of you who also added this game to your collections tell me what you think about it?

See also: Previous 'Acquisition #123' posts

Hubba hubba, part trois

It's been almost a year since I last wrote about the guys I consider to be gaming's hottest hunks, so I think it's about time I chimed in on this steamy subject once again, don't you?

The five studs below have been placed in alphabetical order, by the way. If I were to organize them from hottest to hot-but-not-quite-the-hottest, I'd probably put either Garcia Hotspur or Sigma in the pole position.

Chuck Greene (Dead Rising 2)--I included this series' dark-and-scruffily handsome Frank West in my first "Hubba Hubba" post, so why not include the blond-and-scruffily handsome protagonist of its second entry in this one? It helps, of course, that Greene looks more than a bit like actor Aaron Eckhart. Sure, he shows up as a psychopath in Dead Rising 2: Off the Record, but nobody's perfect, right?

Dunban (Xenoblade Chronicles)--Dunban is a special guy. Not only is he one of the few people capable of wielding the Monado, the legendary "energy blade" that serves as the centerpiece of this long-awaited Wii RPG, but he has a jaw so square it would make even Viggo Mortenson jealous. And then, of course, there's his flowing locks and muscular, tattooed torso. The only strike against this studly solider, as far as I can tell: He has a rather questionable sense of fashion. Oh, well, who wants to see him clothed anyway?

Enoch (El Shaddai)--To be completely honest, Enoch, the protagonist of this PS3/Xbox 360 action title, isn't my type. Oh, he's easy enough on the eyes, but he's just a bit too ... pretty for me. (I mean, look at that hair! Is Fabio his role model or something?) His guardian angel, Lucifel, on the other hand, is much more my cup of tea, if you get my drift. Still, I thought I should include a blond or two on this list, so there you go. (Pointless aside: Go here if you'd like to see some fan art that depicts Enoch and Lucifel "in flagrante delicto.")

Garcia Hotspur (Shadows of the Damned)--On the surface, Hotspur is your typical bad boy: He's covered in tattoos, he's got a facial scar, he has an affinity for leather (jackets, especially), his hair is dark and unkempt ... you get the picture, right? Dig a little deeper, though, and you discover that this questionably-named hunk has a softer side, too. (During the course of this Grasshopper Manufacture-made game, he goes to hell in order to save his true love.) Can I get an "awwwwwwwww"?

Sigma (Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die)--The Wikipedia entry for this upcoming Chunsoft-developed 3DS/Vita title says that Sigma, its main character, enjoys making risque jokes. In other words, he's pretty much the perfect guy. After all, it suggests he has a (crass) sense of humor as well as model good looks and a penchant for wearing what looks like a (form-fitting) mechanic's get-up. Be still my heart.

Honorable mentions: Hawke (Dragon Age II), Lucifel (El Shaddai), Reyn (Xenoblade Chronicles) and Skyrim's "Nude Muscle Bears" (link NSFW).

See also: 'Hubba hubba' and 'Hubba hubba, part deux'

Five additional games I'm looking forward to playing in 2012

If you failed to see yesterday's post--which covered the first five (of 10) games that I'm looking forward to playing in 2012--check it out here.

For those of you who read (if not thoroughly enjoyed) that post, here are the final five games I'm hoping to get my grubby little hands on at some point in the next 12 months:

Mario Tennis (3DS)--I've mentioned before that I'm a tennis nut, right? If not, now you know. I'm also a huge fan of Nintendo's Mario Tennis games--especially its portable ones. The 3DS iteration looks to be the best of both worlds: It's got the great graphics of the console versions and the take-it-anywhere fun of the handheld versions. Will it have an RPG mode, too? My fingers and toes are crossed in the hopes that it will.

Ni no Kuni (PS3)--The Japanese version of this Level-5 RPG--made in partnership with the folks at Studio Ghibli--bombed and reviews of it weren't much better, but you know what? I'll probably buy the North American version regardless shortly after I finally obtain a PS3 (hopefully sometime in 2012). It simply looks too good to pass up, even if it ends up being a bit of a bore.

Rhythm Heaven Fever (Wii)--In all honesty, this may be the game I'm most looking forward to playing in 2012. Why? I enjoyed the hell out of its predecessors--the import-only original, made for the GameBoy Advance, and its DS-based sequel, released in 2009--and I'm fully expecting to love the hell out of this one, too, especially since it takes the series back to its roots and uses buttons only (as opposed to waggle).

Sugar Shooter 2 (Mac/PC)--I've never had as much fun shooting the clothes off of a muscle-bound baddies as I did while playing the original Sugar Shooter last year. As such, I'm chomping at the bit to do more of the same as soon as this sequel--which will be made available to Mac as well as PC owners this time around--hits the streets (or at least the Internet) sometime next year.

Xenoblade Chronicles (Wii)--Can you believe this open-world RPG will be coming to North America in 2012? I can't. I'm glad it is, though, as I desperately want to play it. Don't tell anyone, but this will be my first Monolith Soft-developed game. Yep, that means I've never played any of the Baten Kaitos (GameCube) or Xenosaga (PS2) titles. Just proves there's a first time for everything, eh?

Now that I've rambled on (and on and on) about the games I'm itching to play in 2012, which ones are all of you looking forward to experiencing in the coming year?

So, did you pre-order a copy of Xenoblade Chronicles?

I don't know if you realize, but Monday was Dec. 19--the date Nintendo of America started taking Xenoblade Chronicles pre-orders through its online store.

Did you nab yourself a copy? I did, and I'm very much looking forward to arriving on my doorstep sometime next April.



In the meantime, I think I'll watch and then re-watch this Wii game's official trailer (which can be viewed here) and/or waste my time daydreaming about running through the location shown in the screenshot above.

See also: 'Coming to America after all: Xenoblade Chronicles'

Let's Play: 'Which Box Art is Better?' (Xenoblade Chronicles edition)

The folks at Nintendo of America revealed Xenoblade Chronicles' box art yesterday afternoon (via the company's Facebook page). Unsurprisingly, said box art doesn't differ much from the box art created for this Wii game's Australian, European and Japanese counterparts.

Don't believe me? Well, here's the art that graced the cover of the Japanese version of the game, released as Xenoblade in June 2010:

Nintendo's crack team of designers zoomed in--just a bit--on the illustration and added the word "Chronicles" to the cover before releasing the game in Australia and throughout Europe a few months ago, as the image below makes abundantly clear:

So, how have they changed up Xenoblade Chronicles' box art in anticipation of this open-world RPG's North American release next April? (Read about it here.) They went back to the original, zoomed-out version of the illustration that appeared on the Japanese version's cover, for starters. After that, they added in a subtitle that's so subtle it's almost nonexistent.

Personally, I like the European and Japanese covers more than the North American one. Honestly, I'm surprised Nintendo of America's designers didn't just go with the more-than-fine Euro art, since all they had to do to it was replace the PEGI rating with an ESRB one. I guess they wanted to earn their paycheck.

Anyway, that's my opinion this time around. Which one do all of you prefer?

See also: Previous 'Which Box Art is Better?' posts

Coming to America after all: Xenoblade Chronicles

Oh, Nintendo of America. You are a conundrum, aren't you?

After suggesting again and again over the last few months that you had no plans to bring the much-ballyhooed Xenoblade Chronicles to the States, you rather non-chalantly send out a press release this morning revealing that the Monolith Soft-developed RPG will hit store shelves across the good ol' US of A this coming April.



Strangely, said press release also revealed that this open-world RPG will be sold, for $49.99, exclusively through GameStop stores and Nintendo's website. (Although GameStop's already taking pre-orders for the title, Nintendo won't be taking them until Dec. 19.)

So, how many of you are planning, as I am, to jump on the Xenoblade Chronicles bandwagon as soon as it hits the streets?

See also: Previous Xenoblade Chronicles posts

Le sigh: It seems my copy of Xenoblade Chronicles got lost while crossing the ocean

Shortly after I wrote and published this post, I contacted the folks at sendit.com and asked if they thought my copy of Xenoblade Chronicles (which I ordered on July 6 and which was shipped, or "despatched," on Aug. 16) was still making its way across the ocean to my doorstep or if they thought it had gotten lost somewhere along the way.

Sadly, their response suggested that the latter option is more likely than the former. They even had me fill out a form that asked how I'd like them to proceed--i.e., should they send another copy of the game or give me a refund? I chose "give me a refund," so hopefully they'll do just that in the next few days.

Will I ever see this title screen on my TV?

As soon as I receive said refund, I'll order another copy of Xenoblade Chronicles from a different retailer. I've heard good things about game.co.uk, which is selling the game (here) for just £29.99--£34.99, or about $55, if you include shipping to the States--right now, so I'll likely go with them when all is said and done. Here's hoping things go a little more smoothly the second time around...

See also: 'My copy of Xenoblade Chronicles has been despatched' and 'I just pre-ordered Xenoblade'

For those of you wondering: Yes, I'm still waiting for my copy of Xenoblade Chronicles to arrive

I just noticed that this post--"My copy of Xenoblade Chronicles has been 'despatched'"--is getting a lot of hits this week. I'm guessing that's because some of you are eagerly awaiting my impressions of this import-only Wii title?

Unfortunately, it has yet to show up on my doorstep--despite the fact that it was "despatched" over a month ago. (On Aug. 15, to be exact.) I can't really complain, though, as I knew before placing my order that The Hut Group has a history of painfully slow shipments.



That said, here's hoping my copy of Xenoblade Chronicles is still meandering its way across the ocean and hasn't been lost or otherwise "mishandled"...

See also: Previous Xenoblade/Xenoblade Chronicles posts

My copy of Xenoblade Chronicles has been 'despatched'

Oh, suuuuuuuurrrrrrre. I was all ready to make fun of the folks at The Hut/SendIt/Zavvi for telling me my copy of Xenoblade Chronicles had been "despatched"--and then I discovered (via dictionary.com) that "despatch" is an acceptable alternative to "dispatch." Harrumph.

Whatever. All that really matters is that this open-world RPG, which will be released throughout Europe on Friday, is on its way across the ocean to our doorstep. How long it takes to arrive on said doorstep, of course, is anyone's guess. I'm expecting it to take a few weeks, but I won't be at all surprised if it takes longer.



Regardless of when my copy of this Monolith Soft-developed game shows up, you can rest assured I'll take and post a few Glamour Shots-esque photos of its packaging shortly after I rip it open.

See also: 'I just pre-ordered Xenoblade (or, who needs Nintendo of America when you've got The Hut?)'

I just pre-ordered Xenoblade (or, who needs Nintendo of America when you've got The Hut?)

Of the three Japanese RPGs game-starved Wii owners have been begging Nintendo of America to bring stateside, the one I'd most like to add to my collection is Xenoblade. Thankfully, that Monolith Soft-developed game will be released in Europe in just a few months--on Sept. 2, to be more specific.

When the game hits the streets of London--or Paris or ... wherever else it'll be sold in Europe--it won't be called Xenoblade, though; no, the powers that be at Nintendo of Europe had to spruce it up a bit, make it sound more "epic." As a result of their shenanigans, it'll be called Xenoblade Chronicles when it arrives on European shores.

Although I think it's a completely silly, not to mention completely unneeded, change, it didn't keep me from pre-ordering a copy of it this morning after hearing that thehut.com is selling the standard version of the game (not the special edition pictured to the right) for the bargain-basement price of £29.85 (about $48).

Before any of you follow in my footsteps, I should warn you that I've never before ordered a game (or anything else) from The Hut and as such I can't vouch for their reliability as sellers or shippers. (Side note: I've heard that shipments, especially overseas ones, can take some time--up to a month--to arrive, but I'm willing to deal with that because I really want this game.)

I should also add that, had it been an option, I would have pre-ordered Xenoblade Chronicles from sendit.com instead, as I've ordered Euro-only games from them in the past and have never experienced any issues. Unfortunately, they aren't allowing people to pre-order it at the moment.

Anyway, I'll let you know what comes of all of this. I'll also let you know when and if the other two Japanese RPGs North American Wii owners have been clamoring for--The Last Story and Pandora's Tower--are given European release dates.

See also: 'Nintendo of America gives the finger to Xenoblade, Pandora's Tower and The Last Story fans'

Nintendo of America gives the finger to Xenoblade, Pandora's Tower and The Last Story fans

In response to the recent campaign that called for a stateside release of The Last Story, Pandora's Tower and Xenoblade, Nintendo of America posted the following (rather annoyingly cheerful, if you ask me) message on its Facebook page yesterday afternoon:

Thank you for your enthusiasm. We promised an update, so here it is. We never say “never,” but we can confirm that there are no plans to bring these three games to the Americas at this time. Thanks so much for your passion, and for being such great fans!

The Redmond, Wash.-based company also aimed this tweet at folks foolishly clamoring for that trio of Japanese RPGs:

Thanks for being such incredible fans! Unfortunately, there continues to be no plans for NOA to release these 3 games right now.

Really, they could have just flipped us the bird, told us to buy Wii Play: Motion and been done with it, don't you think?

(Via gonintendo.com)

Xenoblade, Pandora's Tower and The Last Story fans take out their frustrations on Nintendo of America via Facebook, Twitter, YouTube

Well, it seems that a rather sizable contingent of North American Wii owners has had it with Nintendo's failure to localize its recent trio of top-shelf Japanese RPGs: The Last Story, Pandora's Tower and Xenoblade.

What are they doing about it? They're taking out their frustrations on the company via the usual channels--e-mail and snail mail, especially--but they're also doing so via Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

For instance, nearly 3,500 comments in favor of a North American release for the above-mentioned games have been posted on Nintendo's Facebook wall in the last few days. Many similar comments have been aimed at the company's Twitter account thanks in large part to the folks behind Operation Rainfall.

Another way gamers are showing their support for a North American release of The Last Story, Pandora's Tower and Xenoblade: They're pre-ordering them (in the case of Xenoblade) and adding them (in the case of The Last Story and Pandora's Tower) to their wish lists on Amazon.com.

For more information on this campaign, check out this discussion thread at NeoGAF.com or click on the Operation Rainfall link above.

The DS and Wii ain't dead yet!

The folks at Nintendo all but ignored the DS and Wii during their E3 presser yesterday morning. In fact, they mentioned just one DS game--the DSiWare version of The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures--and one Wii game--The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword--during the 90-minute event.

Thankfully, the systems aren't quite as dead as they currently appear.

The company's press site, for instance, suggests that Nintendo will be bringing at least four more DS games to the States in the next year: Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker 2, Kirby Mass Attack (aka Atsumete! Kirby), Professor Layton and the Last Specter and Super Fossil Fighters.

Also, along with previously-announced Wii games like Mystery Case Files: The Malgrave Incident and Wii Play: Motion, Nintendo will be bringing something called Fortune Street, Kirby Wii, Mario Party 9 and Rhythm Heaven to North America at some point in 2011 or 2012 (the last two games in the afore-mentioned list are labeled "TBA").

Because I'm especially excited about Kirby Wii and Rhythm Heaven, I'm going to share their must-see trailers below.

Here's the trailer for the former:



And here's the tailer for the latter:



Sadly, Nintendo's press site says absolutely nothing about The Last Story or Xenoblade at the moment. Does that mean the company has decided against bringing these RPGs to North America? I hope not.

On the bright side, both games are supposedly going to be released in Europe later this year, so I guess I can import either or both of them from sendit.com if need be.

This game's still coming to the States, right Nintendo?

It's been more than a year since Tetsuya Takahashi's Xenoblade was revealed and just over three months since it was released in Japan, yet this free-roaming RPG remains without a North American (or European) release date.

Sure, the game has appeared--as Monado: Beginning of the World--on all of Nintendo of America's release schedules since the aforementioned reveal, but the only date that has, thus far, appeared alongside the game's name on said schedules is "TBA."

Not sure why that's a travesty? Feast your eyes on the following "field map exploration" trailer:



Sure, the game's graphics are a bit on the blocky side (especially compared to similar efforts on the PS3 and Xbox 360), but everything else about it is so grand that I have no problem looking beyond that particular pitfall--or looking forward to its still-to-be-solidified Western release.

Xenoblade just moved up a few spots on my 'most wanted' list

You've heard of Xenoblade, right? Don't be embarrassed if you haven't--although the folks at Nintendo surreptitiously unveiled this Monolith Soft-developed RPG during last year's E3 event (it was called Monado: Beginning of the World at that point), they didn't say much about it until a few months ago.

So, why has it moved up a few spots on my "most wanted" list? I think I'd rather show you than tell you.



Yep, the image above shows two of Xenoblade's main characters in their underwear (or are those supposed to be swimsuits?). (If you prefer the ladies to the gents, here's a pair of screenshots that show two of the game's female characters in their skivvies.)

Now, I'd be lying if I told you those images turn me on, but I wouldn't be lying if I told you I'd get a kick out of controlling a half-naked character (or two) in an open-world RPG.

(Via NeoGAF)