Ah, well the soundtrack thing was something different. Again, that was from someone who hasn't yet plaed either game. And a good soundtrack is one which remains good, and catchy, over the entire course of the game. The Last Story's soundtrck didn't do that, infact, I can't remember any part of any song. It just wasn't memorable for me.

Perhaps 'laughing' at the guy who said it is a bit harsh, and the wrong word, yes. But I still struggle to see how TLS has a better soundtrack.

And tombi, I only have experience with Xenoblade, so I will tell you what I think of it

Actually hold on I'm going to just go find a post where I posted my initial impressions of it.

Combining some older posts:

Well.

Two hours into the game.

It's very interesting, though it's also making some fundamental fumbles in the opening.

Too long an introduction without the proper hook action-wise

Too much shit to keep track of

Too many gameplay systems and menus

Majora's Mask is the only JRPG that ever justified having a damned quest log

THis day/night system better serve a purpose beyond making me run around areas for hours trying to track down people for affinity lines and the unfulfilling sidequests

It better

"Oh I see, if I talk to people while they gossip about each other, it increase affinities and gives me bonuses. Probably free slot gear like I got for picking up those flowers. This girl just mentioned an artist, so I better go find Kenny again!

Doo doo doo, hey here's where Kenny

Was

SON OF A BITCH WHY IS THIS PLACE SO BIG"

And for the record this doesn't really address my problem with the sidequests, in that they're just thinly veiled ways to incentivize running around for longer than I would otherwise, and exist as a way to extend gameplay without giving me a sense of emotional resonance

That may change

But it's the first impression the game gives, and first impressions are important

I actually haven't played it since.

Which game you will enjoy more, in all likelihood, depends entirely on what you want to play. Xenoblade is a game of a very particular type, and reports of its flawlessness are perhaps overenthusiastic.

Xenoblade really is better or at least equal to TLS in almost every aspect I can think of.

Neither game's story was amazing so they're probably about equal in that though TLS uses one specific story element an annoying amount for me.

Graphics are better technically for TLS but Xenoblade has more interesting art design, particularly in the geography while TLS sufers from a plethora of corridors in often unimpressive locales.

Xenoblade's value is far better than TLS, and I think the battle system works better too even though TLS actually has something new and somewhat inventive while Xenoblade is not nearly as revolutionary as some seem to think. TLS just has these boss fights that focus on a single mechanic that is overly difficult to pull off: a move where you run up a wall and then jump off it to attack the boss.

Xenoblade has a lot to do but a large portion of those subquests are pretty lame and only good for the rewards instead of the quest itself. TLS on the other hand has very little to do but it's interesting.

So yeah, I'd go with Xenoblade unless you have something specifically against MMO-like battle systems.

Perhaps I should clarify my stance:

Both games have flaws. Xenoblade has numerous flaws, but small ones, and mostly outside of the main story (character models, sidequests, difficulty, equipment, menus, tutorial overload etc.), whilst TLS has fewer flaws, but much bigger ones (lack of variety, less than 20 hours long, dull story, uninteresting battle system, lack of freedom).

Both games have advantages. For example, Xenoblade's world is amazing, whilst TLS has a great city. Both have great VA, but TLS' soundtrack is a tad meh. However, TLS' dialogue is genuinly funny, especially Syrenne. Both games have some great sidequests, but TLS has too few, whilst 70% of Xenoblade's are a bit meh.

Both are great games. But TLS' flaws are just too big for me to consider it a contender to Xenoblade. I can forgive Xenoblade's flaws, because of what it does right, it does REALLY right. I suppose it's the same with TLS, but it felt more like a demo to me. Hopefully the Mistwalker and Monolith WiiU projects will capitalise on their strengths and produce even better games.

The choice is yours. If you can forgive Xenoblade numerous small flaws and get over its slow, overwhelming beginning, you'll find, potentially, the roots of one of the greatest JRPG's ever made. However, if you can't, then TLS gives you the better introduction, so long as you can cope with it being short and restricted.

...why didn't I say that in the first place?

Is Xenoblade better than FF XII ? Or at the same level at least ?

As a game, XC is better than TLS
but TLS has a higher production value, everything from the sound, grafix, interface...etc. is much more polished and classy, and thats quite a lot...
i would say
BUY THEM BOTH!!!

Xenoblade, IMO, is like FF12, but better in every way.

Thanks for the response guys. Looks like Xenoblade is the one to go for.

i say get last story...while xenoblade may be the better game, i dont see stock running out while Last Story will be a limited run printing (assuming you are in the US)

Even still, they are both VERY different games and both very good games so i say do a little research and get the one you think you'd like more ^.^

thank you khuutra (sp?). Conegamer i may not be the best source considering yes have yet to play either game (although i'm sure both are great), but it's not hard to find game music without actually playing the games. It's cool that you like the xenoblade soundtrack more. Both are good soundtracks, however xenoblade carries on with a little too much of a rock and folk sounds for my taste in this game genre. I do love the main theme however, and the ending theme is fantastic. The last story has more of a classical feel that i come to expect from rpg's; especially final fantasies (which share the composer and creator/director). I will say i should have stated it more clearly that the tls soundtrack is my preference instead of stating tls wins over the soundtrack department. Although, i do think it was pretty obvious in the following statements. It is usually a rule of mine not to use the word better, because the word in it's self is so subjective. But to those who really care about the soundtrack, i do believe that tls has a more classic sound to it much like what you would expect from the rpg's of old, but with a realistic sounding orchestra. (real sounds can sometimes be hard to tell apart from synths nowadays.)