A good article on the Amazon.JP reviews.
"On the one hand, the above reviewer and many others like him hoped that the game would be closer to the first Xenoblade Chronicles, and that it could’ve been a higher quality single-player title if Monolith Soft had focused less on the online aspect. Meanwhile, there are others that expected a full-blown MMORPG-style game, but got what they’d consider an offline MMO, instead. The takeaway here is that RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles X aren’t common in Japan, and the nature of the game threw a few people off.
Once again, some may feel that an overall 3.5-star rating is on the lower side of the scale, but as previously mentioned, there’s an overwhelming number of 4 or 5-star ratings, and unlike other games with lower ratings, most of these come from misconceptions regarding what the game was supposed to be, rather than actual problems with it. On the whole, Xenoblade Chronicles X has been well-received in Japan, so let’s end this with one of the more positive reviews the game received.
“I’ve played countless open-world games from the West, but I just don’t think they’re for me; however, I’m also not very familiar with our recent [Japanese] RPGs, so I decided to buy the game upon learning that it is a Japanese-style open-world RPG. Following that, I’ve found it to be the proper evolution of Japanese RPG that I’ve been waiting for, with wonderfully made maps, and it’s very fun to explore. I’m so addicted to it. If you’d like to witness the true evolution of RPGs from the Super Famicom to PS2 eras, or if you like open world games but aren’t into Western titles, I definitely recommend this one.”
