This ain’t Shulk’s first rodeo. Xenoblade Chronicles first came out for the Wii, and was then ported to the 3DS not long after. Now, on Friday, Monolith Soft’s beloved side-quest compilation lands on Switch as Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition. It’s a prettier, fine-tuned version of one of the great role-playing games of a previous generation. Don’t look now, but this time next week, there’s sure to be a whole new fan club for Shulk, Dunban, and friends (who aren’t Reyn).
But while adventuring among its sweeping fantasy vistas, fans both new and old might find themselves vexed by the convoluted battle HUD. It is, every so often, an unmitigated disaster. You saw that GIF up top, right?
Compared to the prior two versions, a lot of the pertinent info—including enemy health bars and status effects—has been moved to the HUD. As a result, in the middle of a battle, the screen gets ridiculously cluttered. Trying to figure out exactly what’s happening at any given moment can feel like trying to figure out who’s saying what in a 16-person video call. Whether it’s your first, second, or fifteenth go-around with Xenoblade Chronicles, you’re bound to find yourself wondering what in the Bionis is going on. The following annotated guide will help clear up (most of) the mystery.
Screenshot: Nintendo (Kotaku)
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On the left, you’ll see the three characters in your party [1]. This info is fairly straightforward. The larger bar shows that character’s health (also indicated numerically). Since …….
Source: https://kotaku.com/how-to-decipher-xenoblade-chronicles-definitive-editio-1843709453