Nintendo suddenly launched a Switch 2 version of Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition this Thursday. Players who have already purchased the Switch version can upgrade for $4.99.
However, the graphics of the Switch 2 version of Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition fell far short of expectations, resulting in widespread negative reviews from players. Even more surprisingly, Nintendo has tacitly agreed to refunds for these players—a highly unusual practice for Nintendo.
Nintendo stated that Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition supports 4K resolution and 60fps in TV mode, and 1080p and 60fps in handheld mode. However, users who purchased the game found that it did not live up to the advertised promises and felt cheated.
Players reported issues including: blurry distant textures, UI elements still running at 30 frames per second (officially advertised as 60 frames per second), and noticeable screen flickering.
Some players have stated that the graphics of the Switch 2 version are even inferior to the original Wii U. Some fans believe that developer Monolith Soft may not be responsible, suspecting that Nintendo may have outsourced the development of the Switch 2 upgrade, leading to the quality issues.
Reddit user tamodolo posted that the upgraded version actually looks worse than the original: distant textures appear to have been filtered with some kind of convolution filter, resulting in a blurry image; the so-called FHD quality may simply be a simple stretching followed by strong anti-aliasing, rather than a true native 1080p resolution texture.
“Even when I play the 4K version of the Wii U using the Cemu emulator, the effect is much better than this. I originally expected Nintendo to make an effect like this (emulator), but the Switch 2 paid upgrade is worse than all their previous free updates.”
Tamodolo then applied for a refund directly from Nintendo and was successful. He revealed that Nintendo customer service initially stated that they do not usually refund digital games, but approved the request after analyzing the problem (the whole process took about a minute and a half).
“I want to tell Nintendo through this incident: This is not the quality of Nintendo that I have been expecting and experiencing all along. I cannot pay for something that is worse than a free update.”
This news triggered a chain reaction in the community. Several players subsequently attempted to request refunds and were successful. One user commented, “I also talked to customer service for about five minutes and got a refund. I said almost the same thing to them—this upgrade makes the game look worse. There was no argument; I provided the amount they requested, and the refund is being processed.” Another user responded, “If we keep asking for refunds, they might actually start working on fixing it.”
Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition, originally slated for release on the Switch in March 2025, is a fully enhanced port of the 2015 Wii U title. It received critical acclaim for its improved graphics, revamped system, and expanded story content, earning a high score of 87 on Metacritic. However, the recent fiasco with the Switch 2 paid upgrade has cast a shadow over the remake of this classic game. As of press time, Nintendo has not released an official statement regarding this incident.
