Xenoblade 1 Vs. Xenoblade 2's Opening

So… Xenoblade 2 has not gotten off to a great start for me.

Source

While I’m still chewing through this monster of a game: one thing stood out to me instantly: 

the story of Xenoblade 2, to be charitable, is pretty horrendous right now. Or at least, it’s gotten 

off to a really bad start plot and pacing wise. So, in perhaps an unfair (yet cathartic) comparison, 

I’m gonna compare Xenoblade 2’s opening hours against Xenoblade 1’s! Spoilers ahead, we’ll be 

going until the main character gets the signature blade of each game. Without further ado, here we 

go!

(Oh and here are some links to videos documenting these openings)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEOr95_ahIY&list=PLpVpBRIlzWuAYEtHYRKU_umVtbs0wu7I4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ir_dwZ0nedo

So both games open with a sweeping shot and some exposition of the world and the myths behind 

it, and right away Xenoblade 1 is making things far more dynamic and interesting. We actually see 
the two titans clashing, and we see the myths in action. Xenoblade 2 just has a shot of the clouds, 
and then we go straight to Rex’s daily life. It’s just so much less engaging than opening on a shot of
2 massive beings locked in a grand battle, you know? We don’t see any of the world or the
backstory, we’re just told what’s what over what may as well be a blank screen for all it’s making
me care.

These two plots diverge here, as 2 jumps straight into daily life, while 1 quickly zooms in on a grand 
battle, where the basic controls are taught to you as you control Dunban using the Monado. This 
battle scene is actually really good storytelling. We learn about the Mechon, the fact that there is a 
raging battle between the Homs and Mechon, how the Monado is the only blade that can easily 
dispatch them, a bit about Dunban and Dickson, a cliffhanger for Mumkhar’s fate… I think you get the
idea. This scene sets a lot up and fleshes out the world, and more importantly, uses the scenario to 
engage you with and expand on the world rather than just talking about it.

You can definitely see the impact of this when both games start to expand on their quiet, daily life at 
first, with Rex and Shulk (one year after the battle). Xenoblade 2 has to kind of awkwardly introduce 
new things and exposit a lot, while Xeno 1 is more free to expand on your current knowledge. 
There’s a military base, of course because the Mechon are a threat. Shulk is studying the Monado, 
obviously, because it’s so powerful. It’s little things like that that make the story flow so much more 
efficiently during the more slow, paced parts of it.

Xenoblade 2 is, by comparison, much more rushed and choppy. We never get a sense of the world 
around us, as we’re confined to tiny areas like a trading hub or a ship for hours of the game. Rex is 
thrust all over and back and forth for the sake of plot and exposition, never feeling like it’s totally 
natural. There’s no drive to the plot, no characters are being firmly established.

These are where the two stories somewhat diverge. Xenoblade 1 then follows Shulk in a bit more 
daily life, then he and his friends go on an errand, and while they’re out the mechon attack Colony 9. 
Meanwhile in Xenoblade 2, Rex is offered a job, takes it, and while on the job he’s betrayed and killed.
I’m gonna be looking more generally at them, now.

So to lay out how Xenoblade 1 does it better, well, basically everything? It’s the little details, like the 
mechon attack instantly being a huge deal in your head due to the battle from before showing how 
deadly they are. It’s in the voice acting, which is snappy and metered, with a good sense of feeling 
natural and flowing. It’s in the tension and engagement, which never slows down and makes you 
attached to these characters fending for their lives.

Xenoblade 2 has none of this, and suffers as a result. You’re never given clear direction and focus, 
and always kept in the dark. None of the characters get enough development besides maybe Rex a 
little. Perhaps this was the point, but it leads to a story with little drive and motivation, giving you 
nothing to care about. The world is constrained to tiny ships, not grand and open for you to explore 
until after the first chapter.

Also whoooooooooooo boy the voice acting is some of the worst I’ve ever heard how did this ship 
seriously it’s so awful

Finally, to drive my point home, let’s compare the big climaxes of both prologues: when the
respective protagonists get the signature blade of their games. Xenoblade 1 has a dramatic battle, 
where our protagonists attempt to save their town. Shulk mysteriously is able to use the Monado and 
see into the future, and then tragically, Fiora is killed, despite their best attempts otherwise. It’s a 
scene that builds up character, foreshadowing, and genuine, real emotion and tragedy. Go watch it 
for yourself, I can’t do it justice.

In Xenoblade 2 Rex is stabbed in the back, brought back to life, and then there’s a big fight.

I just… the problem with Xenoblade 2 is that it tries to be so straightforward, tries to be a fun 
anime game, but in doing so it forgets to include good, basic plot engagement and interest. I’m never 
given a chance to emotionally engage. I’m never given a good sense of the world. The game tries to 
build mystery by leaving me in the dark, but instead it gives the effect of just giving me nothing to care 
about. And when you compare it to Xenoblade Chronicles 1, well, it is absolutely no contest.

Salmon Run does a lot with a little

So I’ve been playing a ton of Splatoon 2 lately. More specifically, I’ve been very interested in the Salmon Run PvE mode added in for this sequel, and it’s actually a super interesting example of how to stretch out content well.

If you look at if from pure content, Salmon Run is super limited in what it’s got. 3 maps. No ability to customize your gear. Only 8 main enemy types. And this is supposed to be a long lasting mode how?

Well, smart game design is how! To start, you have no control over your weapon loadouts every shift. Whatever the game gives you, you’ve gotta stick with. No min-maxing your loadout here. What this does is create a ton of imposed variety on the player. You can’t ever make one strategy and stick with it. Got an awesome gameplan hinging on the charger player? Too bad, tomorrow's loadout doesn’t have a charger. Better think on your feet! It makes constantly shifting your strategy a must, so you’ll never get tired of the same old.

Salmon Run’s also got things to shake up the general gameplay. The different roundtypes of glowflies, grillers, darkness, and the mothership give injections of something completely new that you have to scramble to deal with. During ordinary rounds too, high tide, low tide, and fog can all put a noticeable spin on how you have to deal with the upcoming wave. Combine that with different loadouts forcing different strategies for each and every new wrinkle, and you can see how the variety starts to take shape.

Let’s also not forget the punishing difficulty level. Seriously, at the highest level, salmon run is absolutely insane, and you’re probably not going to win most of your games in it. That only helps, however! The ever looming threat of failure makes every round tense and engaging. You’re never once going through the motions, because the motions are trying to kill you in a different way every time.

And finally, you’ve got the oft hated limited nature of it. Salmon Run is not always able to be played, and you may only enter it during certain times during the week. This… does undoubtedly lead to stretching the mode’s content out. After all, people will think back on it more fondly if they can’t have it right then, and will be more eager to play it at all because it’s limited. It’s just how our psychology works. On the other hand, this is an awfully artificial and fairly player unfriendly way to “expand” the time people will be interested in it. If your life schedule doesn’t line up with salmon run, too bad, you can’t play it. I’m not a fan of it. Regardless of my distaste, it does show that the devs were thinking of designing around limited content, at least.

Salmon Run does a lot with a little, and I applaud it for that. I of course wish there were more maps and more variety, but what we have now means I’ve never once gotten bored with the mode. And as Nintendo shows that they plan to add more content, I have very few complaints with it.