History YMMV / Xenoblade

* BaseBreakingCharacter: Riki. There are those who don't enjoy his character, given his habit of ruining dramatic scenes with his grating voice, childish concerns and speech patterns (as well as the fact that a lot of his CharacterDevelopment come from Heart-to-hearts, which are optional whereas everyone, even Reyn and Sharla, speaks in and get CharacterFocus during the main story). There are others who find him absolutely hilarious and enjoy the fact that he is both comic relief and also a character with depth in his own right from said heart-to-hearts. And then there are those who love him for his surprising usefulness in battle.

** The Optional Side boss is known as Bana the Betrayer, the chairman of a secret red orb cartel who sold illegally made red orb to clubs in Alcamoth in order to turn a profit. The boss fight with Bana ends up being a difficult boss that is four levels below Zanza and has attacks that can devastate the party all while the theme tragic decision plays,(a song that plays at plot-important moments ends up being the boss theme. At the end of the sidequest Bana is punished by being forced to run on the wheel in the pollen works factory.
** The Battle against Egil and his face Mechon Yalodboath during the event at Mechonis core is another highlight of the game because Egil is the leader of Mechionis and is willing to destroy the Bionis for the preservation of his people. The fight is no cakewalk because of Yaldobaoth it shelf will unleash mechon to swarm you, he can blind, and art seal the party. When Yaldoaboth reaches half health he will perform an attack called Mechonis Slash X which will destroy the Bionis and instantly end the fight but can be prevented if the energy devices powering Yaldobaoth are taken the fight will continue till all his health is gone. The icing of cake that is the boss fight is that when the fight is over Shulk spares Egil and the two warring sides of Bionis and Mechonis finally make peace. But then Shulk gets shot by Dickson...

* BaseBreakingCharacter: Riki. There are those who don't enjoy his character, given his habit of ruining dramatic scenes with his grating voice, childish concerns and speech patterns (as well as the fact that a lot of his CharacterDevelopment come from Heart-to-hearts, which are optional whereas everyone, even Reyn and Sharla, speak in and get CharacterFocus during the main story). There are others who find him absolutely hilarious and enjoy the fact that he is both comic relief and also a character with depth in his own right from said heart-to-hearts. And then there are those who love him for his surprising usefulness in battle.

** The Optional Side boss is known as Bana the Betrayer, the chairman of a secret red orb cartel who sold illegally made red orb to clubs in alchomoth in order to turn a profit end up being a difficult boss that is four levels below Zanza and has attacks that can devastate the party all while the theme tragic decision plays,(a song that plays at plot-important moments ends up being the boss theme, and at the end of the quest Bana is punished by being forced to run on the wheel in the pollen works factory.
** The Battle against Egil and his face Mechon Yalodboath during the event at Mechonis core is another highlight of the game because Egil is the leader of Mechionis and is willing to destroy the Bionis for the preservation of his people. The fight it shelf is no cakewalk because of Yaldobaoth it shelf will unleash mechon to swarm you, he can blind, and art seal you and when he gets down to half health he will perform an attack known as Mechonis Slash X which will destroy the Bionis and instantly end the fight but can be prevented if the energy devices powering Yaldobaoth are taken the fight will continue till all his health is gone. The icing of cake that is the boss fight is that when the fight is over Shulk spares Egil and the two waring sides of Bionis and Mechonis finally make peace. But then Shulk gets shot by Dickson...

** The Optional Side boss is known as Bana the Betrayer, the chairman of a secret red orb cartel who sold illegally made red orb to clubs in alchomoth in order to turn a profit end up being a difficult boss that is four levels below Zanza and has attacks that can devastate the party all while the theme tragic decision plays,(a song that plays at plot-important moments ends up being the boss theme, and at the end of the quest Bana is punished by being forced to run with wheel in the pollen works factory.
** When the party reaches the control room of Mechonis, Egil reveals he is now controlling Mechonis and you must fight him and his mech Yaldaboath. When he takes a certain amount of damage, he activates three Energy Devices. If these aren't destroyed before the bar runs out in 2 minutes, the Mechonis will inflict infinite damage on the Bionis, killing everyone on there and resulting in a definite Game Over. You will be desperate to bring down your foe to save the entire world. The emotions in this are truly wonderful as at the end of the battle, Shulk and Egil are able to make peace and understand each other's point of view. Everything seems to work out at last. But then Shulk gets shot by Dickson...

** Zanza the game's Final boss is an amazing climax to the game's story fighting the god who made life hell on Bionis and Mechonis and constantly creating and destroying the world in an endless cycle to preserve his existence. The fight is self pays off because Zanza is a three-phased boss fight with a great challenge, fantastic music, and a climactic end when he meets his maker at the receiving end of Shulks own Monado.

** Finally completing the chapter-spanning, drug-busting sidequest that started all the way back in Satorl Marsh with 'Preventing Starvation', you at last get to fight the lynchpin behind all this: Bana the Betrayer, all the more surprising considering what the race is normally like. The battle isn't necessarily flashy or anything although Bana does fight you from the Bionis equivalent of a pterodactyl and hits hard. 'Tragic Decision' plays rather than the typical boss music, hitting home the entire tragic nature of this quest.

** Zanza the game's Final boss is an amazing climax to the game's story fighting the god who made life hell on Bionis and Mechonis and constantly creating and destroying the world in an endless cycle to preserve his existence. The fight is self pays off because Zanza is a three-phased boss fight with a great challenge, fantastic music, and a climactic end when he meets his maker at the receiving end of Shulks own Manado.

** One challenge in Time Attack Mode, "He of the Metal Face", pits the player against a high-levelled Metal Face. Since Time Attack missions can be done at any time, this gives ''Fiora'' the opportunity to face off the faced mechon who almost killed her.

* CultClassic: It's a hardcore game on the Wii and it only had a very limited run exclusively through Gamestop in America. Despite this, it's considered one of the best {{Eastern RPG}}s of its generation.

** Bana, the ArcVillain of the late-game "Find the Kingpin!" sidequest[[labelnote:Sidequest Spoilers]] Not only is he the only [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Nopon]] [[BadassAdorable fought as an enemy]], but he's [[ImprobablePowerDiscrepancy higher level than Egil was at his strongest,]] and both fights are scored to [[SadBattleMusic "Tragic Decision,"]] which in Bana's case makes for some hugely PlayedForLaughs SoundtrackDissonance. Some fans have run with this, giving Bana some of Egil's lines ("Hom-hom blade... not cut deep enough!") and playing him up as the real villain of the game[[/labelnote]]. Like Rotbart, [[AscendedMeme the developers have noticed Bana's infamy,]] which resulted in another Bana being a recurring villain in ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'' and the original 'pon himself returning for another round in ''Future Connected''.

** Bana, the ArcVillain of the late-game "Find the Kingpin!" sidequest. Not only is he the only [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Nopon]] [[BadassAdorable fought as an enemy]], but he's [[ImprobablePowerDiscrepancy higher level than Egil was at his strongest,]] and both fights are scored to [[SadBattleMusic "Tragic Decision,"]] which in Bana's case makes for some hugely PlayedForLaughs SoundtrackDissonance. Some fans have run with this, giving Bana some of Egil's lines ("Hom-hom blade... not cut deep enough!") and playing him up as the real villain of the game. Like Rotbart, [[AscendedMeme the developers have noticed Bana's infamy,]] which resulted in another Bana being a recurring villain in ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'' and the original 'pon himself returning for another round in ''Future Connected''.

* MemeticBadass: The Territorial Rotbart, a Unique Monster in the Gaur Plain who has become synonymous with being one-shotted in the early game, to the point where [[AscendedMeme they brought him back]] for both ''[[VideoGame/XenobladeChroniclesX XCX]]'' (in the form of a SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute) and [[VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2 the sequel]].

** [[BigBad Zanza]], the god of Bionis, is the mastermind behind the game's plot and a [[EvilIsPetty monstrous excuse]] of a deity whose insatiable pride ruins countless lives in an effort to prolong his own. Revealed in [[VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2 the sequel]] to be one half of the scientist Klaus who accidentally destroyed the universe in his experiments, Zanza became a cruel monster who repeatedly [[OmnicidalManiac exterminated all life]] on Bionis through the Telethia whenever they drifted away from him, even possessing the noble giant Argas and managing to destroy Agniratha in his attempt to destroy the rival goddess Meyneth alongside all Mechonis. Living on in the Monado after he was sealed away, Zanza murders a young Shulk and the expedition team who discover the Monado before reviving the boy and using him as a host for years. In the final act of the game, Zanza has Shulk killed again by his disciple Dickson to take form once again, transforms the High Entia into Telethia to repeat the extermination of Bionis all over again, and murders both Meyneth and Egil before destroying Mechonis, dismissing everything and everyone as mere bacteria and food to sustain his own cruel existence. Even in spite of all of his hollow justifications for the perpetual cycle of misery he has created, Zanza is revealed at heart to be nothing more than the definition of [[ItsAllAboutMe megalomania and endless arrogance]], disgusting almost every single being who knows of his true evil.

** Getting Colony 6's special to level one isn't as bad, but still annoying. You need to a Light Rain Element that is only dropped by the Aqua Nebulas the Bionis Leg. Not too bad. Oh, the drop only occurs during a thunderstorm, which is a royal pain in the ass because you have NO CONTROL OVER WEATHER EFFECTS, and if you change time on the clock, it doesn't bother telling you what the weather is so you have to go on it from guesswork. Even then, it's VERY rare for the Aqua Nebula to drop the item, and you kill them all, you have to wait for them to respawn and then get another thunderstorm going. It can be traded via overtrade from a character at the Refugee Camp...but of course said character will immediately move to Colony 6 once reconstruction begins, so his trade offers change after that.

* AwardSnub: The lack of any nominations for ''Definitive Edition'' at the Game Awards 2020 caught quite a bit of flack from fans of the series. Of note is the exclusion of a nomination for the soundtrack, which many viewed as ignoring the effort that was put into rerecording the music for the rerelease. To many ''Xenoblade'' fans, the fact that ''[[VideoGame/Persona5 Persona 5 Royal]]'' recieved a nomination over ''Defintive Edition'' was salt in the wound.

** A rather nasty one developed with ''VideoGame/Persona5'' in 2020. Initially, it started out in between the releases of ''Personal 5 Royal'' and ''Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition'', where fans would be arguing over which game was the better JRPG, though that calmed down for several months. However, after it was revealed that ''Persona 5 Royal'' was nominated for Best RPG at the Game Awards while ''Xenoblade'' [[AwardSnub wasn't]], tensions immediately flared back up due to the bitterness of ''Xenoblade'' fans upset over not receiving recognition, with fans of both sides ragging on the other side. It could also be seen as an extension of the UsefulNotes/ConsoleWars, as ''VideoGame/{{Persona}}'' games mainly favor [=PlayStation=] platforms, while ''Xenoblade'' is outright owned by Creator/{{Nintendo}}.

* StrawmanHasAPoint: Dunban is portrayed as wrong for trying to kill [[spoiler:Mumkhar]], with Shulk portrayed as right for stopping him, on the grounds that [[spoiler:Mumkhar is a Homs]]. In his argument, Shulk compares [[spoiler:Mumkhar to Fiora, who has also been turned into a Face Mechon.]] However, while [[spoiler:the storyline indicates that Fiora has been brainwashed (the truth is that she's actually been possessed), Mumkhar is clearly acting of his own free will.]] More importantly, [[spoiler:at the time of the argument, Mumkhar is actively trying to kill the party,]] so killing him would be a justified act of self-defense.

** Relatively minor, but after beating ''Future Connected'' on the Definitive Edition, Kino and Nene are added to the NG+ title screen. However, both are vertically stacked above Riku, doing the same animations as him, despite not being on the same solid ground; it generally looks like they're moving on thin air, rather than Riku's head.

* SpecialEffectFailure: The visual effects on the remaster are quite nice, giving all sorts of detail to everything... until you reach Frontier Village and you notice that the Nopon's mouths ''do not move'' when they are speaking to you, whereas Riki is using the infamous "Pixel mouth". You wouldn't have paid much attention on the rather blurry character models of the Wii or on the compressed screen of the 3DS, but when you're on an HD switch?

* ThatOneAttack: Attacks that hit the entire party, especially early in the game. Until you are halfway done with the game, there are not many ways to protect the party from them, as most defensive arts only affect one person at a time. The worst of the bunch is Titan Stamp, which is used by the Fortress-type Mechon units and can deal up to 5000 damage in a single hit, easily OHKOing Shulk, Sharla and Melia.

** [[EvilMentor Dickson]] starts the game off as a seemingly helpful mentor and father figure to the protagonists, before revealing himself in the climax to be the [[EvilAllAlong vilest of Zanza's disciples]] and a willing aide to the destruction and recreation of the universe, shooting Shulk to release Zanza into the physical world. Cheerfully asserting that he's NotBrainwashed when they propose he is, Dickson attempts to murder all of his former comrades while helping to lead to Telethia slay all life on Bionis. When the High Entia army shows up to save the heroes, he and fellow disciple Lorithia [[BalefulPolymorph convert them all into mindless Telethia]], including Melia's brother, Kallian. Dickson descends on Colony 6, now the residence of the surviving people of Bionis, with more Telethia, [[OmnicidalManiac hoping to exterminate them all]], taunting Melia and Kallian that he may be Meia's boyfriend in the next life.

* FriendlyFandoms: The game has managed to attract the attention of fans of the older ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' games, as well as fans of other [=JRPGs=] from that era, such as ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger'', ''VideoGame/ChronoCross'', and ''VideoGame/SecretOfMana''. Many of them who otherwise dislike the more recent installments in the ''Final Fantasy'' franchise have ended up liking the ''Xenoblade Chronicles'' games far more, with some claiming that they're what ''Final Fantasy XII'' and ''XIII'' should've been. This is strengthened by the fact that Creator/MonolithSoft was founded by former Square employees who started their careers working on said older games.

* SpiritualAdaptation: ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}'' fans were thrilled to see another epic fantasy where the world takes place on giant robots.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: Sharla's early-game arc leaves [[NeverFoundTheBody a dangling thread]] that is only resolved much later, but until then she's just tagging along with the rest of the cast, with her few relevant moments being playing ShipperOnDeck for the more fleshed-out Melia. Though the game hints at a romance between her and Reyn, such dynamic is not fleshed out either.