Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna ~ The Golden Country Review

Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna

I’ll never say no to more Xenoblade, but this Torna expansion is definitely the weakest game in the series. And I know, I know, it’s not fair to call it a standalone game (even though it can be played as one), because it’s meant more to supplement XC2 instead of being an all-out sequel or prequel. The amount of content surpasses what any DLC pack would have provided, though. I’ve done almost everything there is to do in the game and am just over 20 hours. However, I’ve been intentionally trying to drag things out to make it last longer and am hunting down treasure chests I wouldn’t have cared as much about had this still been part of XC2 proper.

The thing is, while there appears to be a lot to do on the surface, you only have access to two areas: a watered-down version of Gormott from XC2 and a new Titan called Torna. To be fair, though, Torna is huge and has some fun secrets and gorgeous scenery. It really feels like this was scooped right out of the main game. Alas, that also makes it somewhat frustrating, because I kept expecting the world to open up even more and continue to surprise me, but you just don’t get that here. Torna’s where you’ll spend the majority of your time, and you’re not gonna meet many new comrades along the way. This isn’t a game about finding the perfect team but rather getting to know the one you’re given.

There are some familiar faces, of course, but I think this prequel does them a disservice, making once stoic characters like Jin and Brighid seem kind of silly. Plus, their whole goal is to stop Malos, but we already know Malos is the main villain of XC2, so what’s the point of any of this? Granted, the story in a Xenoblade game always plays second fiddle to its adventure mechanics. In Torna, however, the battle system’s been streamlined a bit, and side quests aren’t really optional anymore. You have to raise your “community level” a certain amount before you can face Malos, which means helping out the citizens of Torna. It’s weird to be forced to do side quests, but how else are you gonna get your money’s worth?

Reviewer

Clark
I love gaming so much, I wrote a book about it.

Published by

Clark

I love gaming so much, I wrote a book about it.