On the contrary, auto-attack battle systems were popularized by MMOs. Also, the terms "buff", "debuff", and "aggro" also originate in MMOs, even if the concepts didn't. Yet Xenoblade still uses MMO terminology...

I gotta buy this game, even if it takes me a while to get to it. Lineage aside, I think this game is important because it's a really good game for the Wii. The Wii is pretty much on its way out but we need to support good games. Showing support now could mean we get more good software when the Wii U is released.

It's a JRPG. That's a genre that has has a really tough time this gen. Good JRPG's have been few and far between. Gotta keep this gener alive by showing that there's a market for it. Next time I go to Gamestop, I'm getting it (I may just order it online since there's no rush for me to play it). It's an issue of principal, this time.

Xenoblade was a fairly good RPG, but it was not as good as a lot of people make it out to be. It wasn't even the best of last year, as Radiant Historia (in my opinion) was clearly superior. I also did not think it was as good as past Xeno games - due to a story and setting that was nowhere near as interesting. The Xenogears and Xenosaga universe is much more vast and much more interesting.

The main quest is alright, but a lot of the side quests were fairly chorish; and the rest are mostly automatic because you'd get them along the way anyway.

The battle system had a lot of unnecessary components, and it became a game of spamming various commands. Running around the field was not something that was very fun. It also didn't allow for much control at all over more than one character; similar to Final Fantasy 13.

The equipment system was a simplified version of Final Fantasy 8's system which required considerable more time on it to accomplish much less - plus refining materials required going into a specific place in a town, rather than just doing it in the menu anytime anywhere. The junction system is also not as robust as FF8's, some equipment you get will allow for fewer junctions, whereas in FF8, as you develop your GFs (which replace equipment in FF8) you gain more junction slots, more skills, and more options.

Essentially, Xenoblade does things adequately, and while I can't say I am necessarily disappointed in the gameplay (as Xeno-games are usually weaker in these areas) I was hugely disappointed in the story. One positive thing I can say about it though, is that if you play along the main story, the game flows better than any other of the over-sized world RPGs since probably Xenosaga Episode 3, and is probably better than most of those types of games overall. It is one of the better oversized world RPGs, but there are lots of better RPGs that came out this generation, and Xenoblade is overrated when compared to games like Radiant Historia, Dragon Quest 4, 5, 6, and 9 and others. But if you compare it to RPGs like World of Warcraft, Skyrim, FF13, and other sorts of padded/repetitive over-sized world type games, then yeah, it's a lot more fun, and much more solid. Much of Xenoblade did remind of of Gran Pulse in FF13, except with other people, and not completely pointless.

Monster Hunter isn't an RPG either, it's somewhat of an action/fantasy-hunting game; and the main reason it is popular is because it is an engaging local-multiplayer game. Single player Monster Hunter is almost depressing to play if it's not to advance your game to play alongside friends later.

Xenoblades battle system and WoWs battle system are very similar
i like turn based ones more but stil this is a great Rpg

Ya Spurge I know you always put links and the name of the writer. So when you said you hadn't made a single topic yourself since 2010 I was like wahhh! My wall of words on the subject is simple if you give full credit to the original author and that credit is fully visible then I see nothing wrong with posting someone else's work. Of course if you do not give clear credit to the author or you hide the name or allow people to give you credit that is stealing and immoral. On forums code of conduct is usually first come first serve, I do not like to make a duplicate thread. If I write one and find out someone beat me to it, sometimes I have been beaten by as little as a minute. I apologize to the guy who beat me and request my thread be taken down out of respect for both the guy who beat me to it and those who like to read my topics. If someone duplicates my topics in a provocative manner I do begin to turn hostile because it is disrespectful to the topics original creator and the readers of VGChartz. Nobody wants to scroll through three identical topics.

Something that sells 500k doesn't represent the direction of anything mainstream. And if you're going to go niche, Persona I believe sells more (and imo is better). You could make an argument that Demon Soul's is the direction of Japanese gaming too.

It sold, and will sell more.

My opinion of it is, it's a great game, not the second coming of christ.

Seems fairly important considering it's the second highest JRPG rated on an aggregate site. It looks like a promising IP and I'm sure more JRPG devs will take note of its success.

This is going to be one of the best games of the year, hands down, can't wait
to play this game. I love the soundtrack on the extended trailer of the game...
JustAwesome

As someone who is balls deep in the game, this is one you shouldn't miss.

Everything you said about Xenoblade Chronicles makes it look like the game I was looking for since I played mmorpgs. I already had an interest in it but now it grew a little.