Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is a fantastic and massive game. Full of JRPG goodness, longtime genre and series fans might be able to jump right in without much concern for their character progression or anything else. Beginners though might want to keep a few things in mind as they set out on their world changing adventure through Alrest. To try to help you out, here’s a quick Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Beginner’s Guide full of tips for how to get started.
Have Fun and Explore
Before we get into any nitty gritty details of the mechanics of Xenoblade Chronicles 2, just be sure to have fun. The game is gorgeous and has a huge world full of adventure, secrets, and fascinating characters. You should enjoy it, more than anything else. It’s a ridiculously long game, even if you just stick to the main quest, so don’t worry about rushing through, it’s gonna be a while. Take some time out every now and then to do some of the fun side quests, and fight some monsters. This will also help you avoid any grinding later on in the game, which can happen if you rush through the main story.
Use Your Arts Wisely
Basic combat is handled for you automatically. This might seem simple, but it’s actually because everything else about the combat is very complex. Firing off your Arts whenever they are available might pump up your DPS for a little while, but later on there’s tons of stuff to keep in mind. Watch for status effects, such as Break, which you can chain your your abilities to cause even more damage. As more elements of combat get unlocked and explained, be sure to keep them all in mind in the tougher battles. You’ll want to pay extra attention to enemy weaknesses, and use the right Blade to counter attack. Speaking of which…
Unlock All the Blades!
Blades are one of the coolest things about Xenoblade Chronicles 2. These anthropomorphic weapons have amazing designs, and each offers a new way to play for your main character, and his teammates. As you play the game you’ll gain more and more Core Crystals, which can be bonded to your characters to unlock new Blades. Do this whenever you can, making sure to use the rarer ones alongside buffs that give you better odds at cooler Blades. It’s sort of like Pokemon, but with creatures of pain and death…so I guess it’s exactly like Pokemon.
Power em Up
Once you have the Blades you want you’ll need to power them up. Any time you’re in a new town, or your location has leveled up, head to the Blacksmith and see what new items he has. These will often boost your base attack damage, and help deliver victory in those tougher battles. Be sure to get them added to each of your active Blades, but be sure to keep in mind what you might want to use in the future. And your characters can be powered up as well. Every once in a while, head into that Character menu screen and see what items you can attach for extra damage, protection, or other benefits.
Watch the Cutscenes!
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 has some of the longest cutscenes in all of video games, but they’re also some of the coolest. If you’re buying this game, you better be a fan of game stories because that’s the core of the experience here. If you like skipping cutscenes to get to the gameplay, maybe this isn’t for you. There will be times when the game finishes up a 10+ minute cutscene, load you into a gameplay section, then play another cutscene right when you walk around the corner. It’s just how this game works, and you’d better be prepared.
Be Patient
That said, the story does take a little while to kick off. The wonder of Alrest should sustain you for the first couple of hours, but then it might wear off a bit. Trudge through though, because the story is just getting started. Once it kicks in you should be good to go, but that might take upward of 10+ hours before it really does.
And that’s hopefully enough help for how to get started in Xenoblade Chronicles 2. If you have any questions let me know in the comments.
