Things We Wish We Knew Sooner – Tips & Tricks – Xenoblade Chronicles X Guide

Look for Yellow Squares

When exploring in XCX, look on your minimap in the top-right for yellow squares. These squares indicate treasure that you can loot.

When a yellow square looks dull, it means you’re not on the same floor level as the treasure. When it’s a bright yellow, you’re level with it. This makes it easier to find, as some loot is hidden in sneaky spots or is completely inaccessible until later on.

Sometimes, you’ll get BP alongside items, which you can spend upgrading characters’ Skills and Arts.

Running Jumps Are Your Best Friend

If you’re trying to jump onto something and can’t make it, do a running jump by pressing the left joystick to run and A to jump. You can get to higher and further places this way until you obtain your Skell, which you can’t unlock until you’ve completed Chapter 6 of the main story.

Target Enemy Appendages for Extra Loot

In combat, you can often target different appendages (press R + A) and destroy that body part before killing the enemy. If you’re lucky, you may get extra materials by doing so.

You Can Change the Time From Anywhere

This only works in Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition on the Nintendo Switch.

In Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition, you can change the time from the main menu whenever you’d like. To do this, open the main menu by pressing the Plus (+) button, then navigate to System > Change Time.

Here, you can set the time under Target Time. It also shows you what time of day your desired time will be, such as Morning, Afternoon, or Late Night.

It’s Easier to Hunt for Collectibles at Night

If you’re hunting for a collectible for a quest or for your Collectopedia (unlocked after Chapter 4), it’s easier to spot them at night. The blue crystals glow in the dark – though it can be more dangerous once the sun goes down!

The only exception to this is caves. We wouldn’t recommend going into a cave at night because, most of the time, usually-docile enemies will turn hostile and attack you on sight. We were in Rocky Cavern, and it turned to nighttime, and we suddenly had six high-level enemies chasing us. Terrifying!

You Can Reset Collectible Spawns

If you’re trying to find a collectible in a specific area, warping to the nearest fast travel point resets the spawns. So you can collect every collectible in the area,fast-travel, then rinse and repeat until you find what you need. This is especially useful for harder-to-find collectibles, such as Grosium Cores.

Use Quick Cooldown!

This only works in Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition on the Nintendo Switch.

Don’t forget to press Y to activate Quick Cooldown in battle. This allows you to bypass the cooldown period for certain moves, letting you attack more quickly. You’ll see the green Quick Cooldown bar under your moves hotbar during combat, which indicates how many times you can use Quick Cooldown. As you use it, the bar will deplete. Once empty, you’ll need to wait for it to fill up again before you can use Quick Cooldown.

You Can Adjust Your Party Lineup Anytime

This only works in Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition on the Nintendo Switch.

You can swap party members at will in the Active Members menu instead of having to find them around New LA and talking to them to add them to your party lineup. To do so, open the menu with the Plus (+) button and click on Active Members. Here, you’ll see all your unlocked party members and can switch them in and out at will.

You Can Auto-Set Your Equipment

If you don’t know what gear to equip onto your party, you can auto-set gear for all of your party members, which puts the most suitable equipment on automatically. To do this, open the menu with the Plus (+) button and click on Party > Ground Gear. Then click in the Left stick to auto-set. You can switch between party members with L and R. You can also do this with your Skell once you unlock it.

The Mini-Map is Adjustable

You can zoom the minimap in the top-right corner in and out by pressing R + Down on the D-Pad simultaneously. This helps if you’re trying to find something in a specific area or are lost and need to see the terrain better.

Aerial Cam Lets You Survey Your Surroundings

You can use the Aerial Cam to get a better view of your surroundings. To do so, press R + Up on the D-Pad simultaneously.

This is particularly useful if you’re in an area with higher-level enemies and you want to look around without being caught, or if you’re lost and can’t find the path.

You Can Hide Helmets

You can toggle Helmets on and off by pressing Y to open the menu and navigating to System > Settings > Visual and toggling the Show Headgear (Ground Gear) on/off.

This works for everyone in your party – no more annoying cutscenes where you can’t see characters’ faces!

You Don’t Take Fall Damage

Unlike other games in the Xenoblade Chronicles series, you don’t take fall damage in XCX. So don’t be scared to jump off high places to take shortcuts.

Prioritize Activating FN Sites

Activate every FN Site you see to unlock Segments on your map. Doing so will highlight objectives, such as treasure caches, Tyrants, and missions, that count toward your Survey Rate when completed. You’ll need a specific Survey Rate for certain areas to progress the main story.

Inactive FN Sites are highlighted on the overworld by a red beam of light so you know where to go to find them. Note that some FN Sites are only accessible via Skell, which you don’t unlock until you’ve completed Chapter 6.

You Can Change the Weather

Some quest objectives and enemies, such as certain Tyrants, won’t spawn unless it’s a certain weather condition. Teleport to the nearest fast travel point repeatedly to reset the weather until you get your desired weather condition.

Don’t Be Afraid to Run Away

Enemies can be tough in Xenoblade Chronicles X. If you find yourself getting overwhelmed in battle, you can press B to sheathe your weapon so you can run away as fast as you can. If you’re running from a high-level enemy, they may one-shot you even as you’re running, but it’s worth a try! The game has autosave so even if you do accidentally die, you’ll respawn with little consequence.