Tales of Xillia Remastered is great on PS5, but what about Nintendo Switch 2 and Switch?

After seeing how Tales of Graces f Remastered ran on Nintendo Switch, I was curious about Tales of Xillia Remastered. If you've not kept up with some of my articles following the Switch 2's launched, I have been doing backward compatibility tests for many RPG franchises like Dragon Quest, Ys, and more . The results for the Tales of series on Switch 2 ranged from good to disappointing as you can see. With Tales of Xillia Remastered, Bandai Namco Entertainment has not done a native Switch 2 version, so the Switch version runs via backward compatibility on Nintendo's new console. In this feature, I'm going to focus on how Tales of Xillia Remastered looks and runs on Switch, Switch 2, and PS5.

Tales of Xillia Remastered Switch port impressions

When Bandai Namco Entertainment revealed the Tales of Xillia Remastered resolution and frame rate targets for all platforms, I was once again disappointed that we were only seeing a Switch 1 version with no native Switch 2 release. Tales of Xillia Remastered was listed to run at a 30fps target in both docked and handheld modes with the resolution at 720p handheld and 1080p docked. After spending a day with the game on Switch after I bought it on the eShop, I'm even more disappointed with how it is on Switch 1.

While the UI looks crisp on the 720p display handheld, the gameplay looks a bit soft and the lack of proper texture filtering or anti-aliasing is really visible in the environment during movement. I could get used to the softer visuals, but even with soft image quality and the LOD reduction compared to every other platform in some areas, there are still frame rate dips below 30fps in towns and while exploring. Early on at the Fennmont - Central Plaza, moving the camera on Switch 1 sees dips below 30fps here and there with NPCs loading into view quite close to the player compared to other systems. 

I didn't run into major issues in combat in the few hours I tested on my Switch OLED handheld outside of some hitching before and after encounters, but the whole experience is sluggish right now. This is made worse thanks to the long load times for everything compared to other platforms.. 

Tales of Xillia Remastered Switch on Switch 2 gameplay

Tales of Xillia Remastered Nintendo Switch 2 impressions

When playing Tales of Xillia Remastered's Switch version on Switch 2 via backward compatibility, a lot of the major issues I had are addressed to some degree, but it still is lacking. While the load times are massively reduced, Tales of Xillia Remastered still looks soft on Switch 2. It is still capped to 30fps so you aren't getting 60fps combat on Switch 2 like many including myself had hoped. The frame drops below 30fps I ran into on Switch 1 in towns and while exploring are not present here in the opening hours. 

So while Tales of Xillia Remastered for Switch is improved when played on Switch 2, it feels more like the performance and other issues are just being addressed by brute forcing rather than getting what everyone was hoping for on Switch 2: 60fps battles and good visuals. The other issue right now is the image quality is not great, and it can look worse on the bigger 1080p screen since this is a game running in backward compatibility with a 720p target now. I will sound like a broken record, but Tales of Xillia Remastered would benefit a lot from a native Switch 2 version. Hopefully we see one for this and Tales of Graces f Remastered. Tales of Vesperia is already great on Switch 2, but these two deserve better. 

Note: The comparison above was done using a 4K capture card for the PS5 version, the Switch version running on Switch 2 docked, and the Switch version running on Switch OLED docked. It was then cropped to showcase the differences across versions.

Tales of Xillia Remastered PS5 impressions

Tales of Xillia Remastered on PS5 feels like a whole new game compared to the Switch release with its visual and performance benefits. Not only does it have massively better image quality, but it has a near perfect 60fps experience with only minor hitching during autosaving so far. I also want to note that with almost instant loading for some aspects, it feels super fast and snappy across the board.

The only real issue present on PS5 affects every version of the game including PC: poor to no texture filtering and lacking anti-aliasing which makes some distant floor textures look aliased or shimmer. 

Tales of Xillia Remastered PS5 gameplay

Tales of Xillia Remastered load times across PS5, Switch 2, Switch, and PC

To test load times, I had the PS5 version of Tales of Xillia Remastered installed to the console's internal storage, the digital Switch version installed to the Switch 2's internal storage, the digital Switch version installed on the SD Card on my Switch OLED, the Steam version installed on the internal storage on Steam Deck, and the Steam version installed to the internal storage on ROG Ally for PC testing. I want to stress that if you buy Tales of Xillia Remastered physically on Switch, the load time results below might not be the same for you and will likely be a lot longer. 

As with my other load time tests, I mashed the confirm and other relevant buttons to save as much time through any splash screens. The results below with a range are because I tested it all three times. For Tales of Xillia Remastered, I tested the usual dashboard to title screen, but I also wanted to showcase how the Switch version takes longer for everything including battles and traveling in between locations compared to other platforms. For save file testing, I did one load into the field and one into town while for battles I tested the time to load a battle and after the results are shown to give you character control back.

Note: All load times above are in seconds.

It is great to see the digital Switch version of Tales of Xillia Remastered improve on the load times by that much, but there's only so much that can be done via backward compatibility clearly. Beyond that, the PS5 is the fastest for most things and it makes for a better experience during gameplay. 

If there are any major updates or patches planned for Tales of Xillia Remastered, I hope to see texture filtering and anti-aliasing improvements for all platforms. What I really want is a 60fps toggle for the Switch 1 version so it can potentially run at 60fps on Switch 2 via backward compatibility brute forcing like we've seen with some other games. There might be issues like I saw with the PC version where if the game cannot hit the frame rate target you select, it slows down though. 

The silver lining for this release is that when Tales of Xillia Remastered is played on Switch 2, some of the major annoyances are addressed. You are unfortunately still stuck to 30fps even in battles, something even the PS3 version did not have. As for the PS5 version, Tales of Xillia Remastered is a smooth and snappy experience that looks great with some minor issues.

Note: The comparison above was done using the Steam capture functionality on Steam Deck and ROG Ally with the game running at 60fps on both. For the Switch on Switch 2, I had to use the system capture which isn't the best, but it is the only way to get any handheld capture right now. Ignore the enemies in the background as they move around so it was not possible to get them all in the same position for the comparison.

In its current state, I recommend getting Tales of Xillia Remastered on PS5 if you don't mind playing on TV or at home for the best possible experience alongside the PC version. As for portable play, I can't really recommend the Switch version even on Switch 2 unless you have no other option. It is a massively better experience on Steam Deck and ROG Ally right now. 

Tales of Xillia Remastered is now available for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC (Steam). If you are planning on buying it, details for the DLC included are here and you can read about the Grade Shop here.