Giving 5 stars because I enjoyed a majority of this game but recognize the flaws in writing and plot. It feels like a disservice to the first two games rather than a true continuation. Something the marketing and build-up tried to enhance. On its own, it's better than the first two games in a lot of ways. The combat is much more refined, some quests are handled better, and gameplay feels more fluid. However everything takes a dip in the last ≈1/4 of the game where all sense of challenge and thought goes away. The story is confusing in the sense it's not explained to leave room for dlc, the combat turns into chain attack the video game, and I can't speak on how quests develop as I found myself rushing to the end by this point just to end the story. The first 5 chapters are immaculate though and save this game even if the last push is rather boring. Play XCDE for a good Xenoblade game.

Somewhat more of a real review now that I've completed the main story (no spoilers). In a lot of ways, this game struggled to separate itself from botw at first. The intro feels weaker, and the story beats came across as knock off versions of the botw stories told. However the new paths this game takes with its story later on, gameplay mechanics, and environment clear botw by a mile making it look like a tech demo in comparison. While managing to not devalue what made botw so special in the first place, coexisting alongside it as the definitive experience.