Xenoblade 2 world map is terrible

[Cornbread78]

I mean, cool, I have to head back out to kill a quick monster to continue the story.. not too bad right? Welllll....

(I'm lvl 10 mind you)

Get down off the path walking towards the marker and whoosh. Killed in 1 shot by a lvl 18 bird.

Start back at the path again; take the long way and grab some mats then boom killed by lvl. 35 rat.

Back to hill. Boom, killed Lvl 85 bird.

Who the hell thought auto aggro on low level characters just to continue the story was a good idea.


I mean, I love the music, but the world map is such a cluster mess for players...

 

[Mezoly]

I'm pretty sure they added an option in the settings to turn off auto aggro.

 

[Deleted member 26156]

I mean, you can usually avoid the high level monsters without issue unless you try to enter high level secret areas early. There's a few bs parts later on, getting to the factory in Mor Ardain is one of the biggest, but running into enemies that vastly overlevel you usually isn't an issue.

 

[Wander_]

it's a pain just the first few hours. keep playing

 

[Giolon]

As an MMO player of going on 2 decades now, avoiding aggro by high level monsters is second nature by now. I think it's fine overall and keeps things dangerous and exciting. Sometimes the results were infuriating in XC2 but I just reformulated my plans and tried again.

I'm pretty sure they added an option in the settings to turn off auto aggro.

Click to shrink...

I think this option requires buying the DLC.

 

[psynergyadept]

Yeah it's a pain in the ass in the beginging......I remember this lvl 85 bird just chilling at the entrance of a cave I needed to go for the story; took like 5 tries to finally get pass it. It wasn't long but it was hella annoying.

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

First off, let me be clear - I empathize. Truly. The first ~5 hours or so are rough; especially once you get to the first true "open world" area. Auto-aggro is ridiculous - the game doesn't really give you any guidance, either - so you feel like you're "playing it wrong" since you actively avoid every enemy on the map. Mix that with the realization there's very little reason to ever come back once you can take them on, and the fact the actual map itself (finding your location/location of objective) is a pain, and yeah, I get the frustration.

But it really does get SO MUCH BETTER after that first open world area. And for a 75-100+ hour game (my total time was about 85), I promise you you'll forget this frustration if you forge ahead.

 

[SMD]

I thought this was going to be about the actual map, which is dogshit.

One of the best things about Xenoblade is the sense of danger no matter where you go, it means even post game there are parts of the map you can still go and explore.

 

[DecoReturns]

Just wait till Chapter 4.

 

[Kaitos]

I thought this was about the actual map lol

This is like one of the coolest things about the game!

 

[Mezoly]

I think this option requires buying the DLC.

Click to shrink...

Ohh, does it work just for Torna's content?

 

[Lord Azrael]

It's easy enough to avoid the high level enemies. You just gotta keep aware of your surroundings

 

[mindatlarge]

Yeah, they got me a few times as well. It's worth sticking with the game though. Plus, once you are high enough level, you can return to those mobs and sort of quickly get some vengeance. I think once you start to open up the battle system and see how deep it is, you'll really enjoy the game.

 

[DecoReturns]

Ohh, does it work just for Torna's content?

Click to shrink...

No.

 

[Giolon]

Ohh, does it work just for Torna's content?

Click to shrink...

I think it exists in the main game too, but the menu of cheats/accessibility options like that is DLC only and people were upset by that since it's a general improvement that should have been available to all game owners. Some were, but all of them weren't.

 

[Chaosblade]

I mean, you can usually avoid the high level monsters without issue unless you try to enter high level secret areas early. There's a few bs parts later on, getting to the factory in Mor Ardain is one of the biggest, but running into enemies that vastly overlevel you usually isn't an issue.

Click to shrink...

That's the only one I remember being a problem, but I think if you go the intended route it's not an issue there either. I couldn't figure out how to unlock one of the doors inside that building so I ended up going through the high level monsters. IIRC if you get that door open it takes you out by the cliff where some weaker enemies are, and you can follow that to the factory.

 

[Fat4all]

 

[Cornbread78]

I plan on keeping at it, but my word is it frustrating/annoying to get get from point a to point b. You would figure they would leave certain areas open enough to navigate through to continue the story..

 

[shadow2810]

super boss in beginning area is like the series trademark

 

[GranddadFreeman]

I've restarted this game several times and it just isn't fun to have to make a wide berth just to actually advance somewhere. I'll just go this way since it's the shortest pa-oh a level 55 gorilla just wiped my party.

Click to shrink...

HAHAHAHA

 

[UsoEwin]

Having high level enemies all over the maps is one of the neat things about Xenoblade. Just run around them.

 

[Deleted member 33533]

I thought this was about the level design which really is bad. If you're talking about a Gormott Field or whatever, that area is particularly bad with having high level birds flying above that spot you from afar.

Anyway, welcome to Xenoblade.

That's the only one I remember being a problem, but I think if you go the intended route it's not an issue there either. I couldn't figure out how to unlock one of the doors inside that building so I ended up going through the high level monsters. IIRC if you get that door open it takes you out by the cliff where some weaker enemies are, and you can follow that to the factory.

Click to shrink...

I remember going the intended way and while the enemies are weaker they all call for help so you end up fighting like 10 at a time and getting wrecked anyway.

 

[Draconian]

Yeah, I absolutely hate the way they peppered those higher level enemies in there. It's just ridiculously punitive.

The design of the map is pretty bad too, but it was worse at launch.

 

[LordOcidax]

Having high level enemies all over the maps is one of the neat things about Xenoblade. Just run around them.

Click to shrink...

This. Players wants everything easy now... I don't get it.

 

[Xavi]

You will hate chapter 4

 

[Blade24070]

Once I bought the expansion I turned off enemy aggro and exploring suddenly became really fun.

 

[Dark Cloud]

Having high level enemies all over the maps is one of the neat things about Xenoblade. Just run around them.

Click to shrink...

Yep. I had little troubles and I loved that they peppered high enemy levels in. The world layouts are great.

 

[Kilbane65]

Click to shrink...

Hah that's amazing. It's like a meta joke on the series.

 

[RagnarokX]

Avoiding high-level enemies is easy. Just pay attention to your surroundings. Monolith uses enemy levels as gatekeeping for exploration. If your good at sneaking you can even get loot early.

I mean, you can usually avoid the high level monsters without issue unless you try to enter high level secret areas early. There's a few bs parts later on, getting to the factory in Mor Ardain is one of the biggest, but running into enemies that vastly overlevel you usually isn't an issue.

Click to shrink...

Mor Ardain is great. It's baffling people will finish the barrel tracking quest that ends with the party discovering the barrels were delivered to an abandoned factory with stairs leading down and the factory you need to go to in the next quest related to those barrels is in the same direction as those stairs and people instead think "Oh, so they delivered the barrels to these stairs... then turned around, went back down the freight elevator, and returned to the port with the locked drawbridge where they started!" instead of... you know, going down those stairs... There's a minidungeon down there with enemies in your level range, high level mobs every other route.

 

[DXB-KNIGHT]

For me it's part of the fun of Xenoblade since the very first one. In your typical rpgs monster levels scale are either tied to the narrative or the hero's level.

Xenoblade and Zelda BOTW made exploration fun and exciting.

 

[Crayolan]

High level enemies sprinkled around low level areas is a Xenoblade staple, and imo it makes exploration more interesting. If you want to get to certain areas, you have to be sneaky or crafty about it.

 

[Hikari]

Chapter 4 with the spiders says hi.

 

[RagnarokX]

Chapter 4 with the spiders says hi.

Click to shrink...

You're not supposed to go through the spiders. But they are easy to slip past.

 

[Eros]

I love the part where you need a certain level of skill equipped to progress the story because you can't pass a part on the map.

 

[Mechaplum]

Holy shit yes, I died more than 10 times trying to reach the first bloody city in gormott.

At early stages I have yet to get party members and kept getting owned by flying fucking birds after spending effort and time to kill an even level mob.

The map for the most part don't work as a navigation aid, never thought I would see a map worst than Nier A but here we are.

As a consequence the first 10 hours were rough as hell. Luckily I persevered past that.

Edit: I'm turning the auto aggro off the next time I boot it up, thanks.

 

[HylianSeven]

I mean, you can usually avoid the high level monsters without issue unless you try to enter high level secret areas early. There's a few bs parts later on, getting to the factory in Mor Ardain is one of the biggest, but running into enemies that vastly overlevel you usually isn't an issue.

Click to shrink...

On Gormott it absolutely is with the level 75 bird thing that can aggro on you for pretty much anywhere. That one pissed me off back when I played it.

The other one that really annoyed me was in Uraya, there's a point where you see this little bird thing that's a reasonable level, then you get it's HP down a bit and it just takes off running and aggros everything on you including a unique boss that's sitting there. I actually put the game down for a couple of months because of this and the fact that I didn't understand a lot of stuff in the combat. I got some tips and found out you were supposed to sneak around the little bird thing and got a better understanding of the combat.

I did finish the game and played the Torna DLC. It took a bit for the game to grow on me.

 

[irishonion]

I started playing xenoblade series because of this very reason with Xenoblade X.

The map feels alive instead of same boring cookie cutter world map.

 

[Genio88]

100% agree, everybody says that game is great but I couldn't stand it, it has a lot of flaws and the map and level design overall is pretty bad, they rushed that game in my opinion in order to have it ready for 2017, I love my Switch and most of the first party games, but Xenoblade 2 was a big disappointment to me

 

[FiXalaS]

Aggro is generally anyway a Xenoblade thing, in all 3 games you're getting aggro'd anyway a couple of times. Maybe Xenoblade 2 a bit more but that is it. At least you can turn it off!

Some QoL enhancements are behind paywall.

but the paywall itself is worth imo if you enjoy everything else get the expansion! will ease alot of things

100% agree, everybody says that game is great but I couldn't stand it, it has a lot of flaws and the map and level design overall is pretty bad, they rushed that game in my opinion in order to have it ready for 2017, I love my Switch and most of the first party games, but Xenoblade 2 was a big disappointment to me

Click to shrink...

We're all wrong

 

[Calamari41]

One of the best parts of the Xenoblade games is the fact that certain areas are off limits not because of an invisible wall or a locked door, but because some gigantic maned ape is prowling around looking for someone to crush.

I personally haven't had much of an issue with these guys blocking me on the path through the main story, but I can imagine that would be frustrating indeed.

 

[Dec]

I died a couple times to high level monsters in early areas, but I didn't really care because there is no penalty for dying.

Seemed like the game expected it to happen.

 

[AFI-kun]

I understand why people can not like it, especially if you're strapped for time, but I thought it really added to the sense of exploration in the game. You had to take a mental note of the patrol routes of high level monsters and it encourages you to explore the map rather than go in a straight line. Going back to an area and just casually defeating enemies that gave you a lot of trouble is also really rewarding. I could also describe portions of the map based on the enemies, particularly the named ones, even months after playing it, something I can't say for most RPGs I've played!

I've also spent hours grinding to take down high level monsters way earlier just because they're so accessible, which I think was pretty fun.

 

[Dark_Castle]

I don't know, I kinda like that giant ape just chilling in low level area not giving a fuck about human lives.

 

[Timppis]

The complaint you make is one of the very few positive things about the game in my opinion.

Sense of actual danger in the world and a good fighting mechanism made me plow through the shitbag of a story and most boring quest tree ever known to man.

If there was something else to do except collecting then... yeah. But there isn't. The world is dead except for combat.

 

[Cryptosporidium]

I do not like XC2 but finding high powerful enemies everywhere is something I love

It really helps my immersion, its why im annoyed at pokemon games for having areas only having lv 5 pidgeys

 

[texhnolyze]

Yeah, it's like a pseudo stealth RPG in a sense. I still remember that giant bird around the cliff in the first (2nd?) island that keep catching my because it's patrolling all day. And oh, that part where you have to reach the factory later.

 

[Barn]

The map is not the reason that I absolutely detest Xenoblade Chronicles 2, but in my 25 or 30 hours with the game, I did find it significantly more poorly designed and less engaging than the maps in Xenoblade Chronicles and (especially) Xenoblade Chronicles X. The world design didn't seem as intentional, exploration wasn't as rewarding, and I found myself disoriented much more often in comparison.

 

[Soul Lab]

Actually, I love this part of the game / Xenoblade series and I was never blocked throughout the story, dunno.
A wide variety of different enemy lvls in every location is so cool imo.

 

[thefro]

Yeah, I absolutely hate the way they peppered those higher level enemies in there. It's just ridiculously punitive.

Click to shrink...

When you die, you keep all your items/experience/money, and instantly load back at the last landmark which might be losing 60 seconds of progress.

Compared to even something like Breath of the Wild it's pretty forgiving.

Not to mention all the higher level enemies are either there to gate off the map or are ones you can run around and avoid. You're not going to encounter them for the most part during the main quest if you stay on the actual path.

 

[.exe]

This sucked so much, and it was one of my main issues with the game. It only becomes a non-issue when you've outleveled an area and all that's left are the boss monsters, rendering exploration pointless until then. It's not those unique enemies that are the issue. It's the regular mobs that just way higher level and are dotted around the critical path.

I don't hate this design on principle, but it's that in XB2 you're regularly funneled through areas that are surrounded by higher level mobs. Like, why even present this open area to me when when you want me to walk a super specific path to progress. Gormott was the worst offender. The other areas segmented it better. Checkpoints were awful throughout though. You could get sent back so far.

A lot of my frustrations with the game dissipated the further I got into it, but it's mad that it was designed like that in the first place, and it's such an obscene time commitment that I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. People always say XB2 gets better the more you play. That's true, the game gets better, but contextualize that. It only gets better because it hits rock bottom in the first 20-30 hours and the only way is up.