Earlier today, Monolith Soft tweeted a job posting for an Effects Designer, accompanied by a video of Xenoblade Chronicles 2. That might sound dull, but the footage appears to show off a revamped lighting system, sparking theories that the clip was taken from an unannounced Switch 2 port.
This was first spotted by ResetEra user --R, who took a screenshot of the same cutscene running on the original Switch for a side-by-side comparison. You can see it below, with the Twitter clip on the left, and the in-game footage on the right. As --R puts it, "It's a pretty noticeable change"
Fans have been calling for a Xenoblade Chronicles 2 upgrade since the Switch 2 launched in June (and my colleague Quinton O'Connor long before then). While a hugely popular entry in the series, the game has been mired by significant performance issues since 2017, with poor visual quality to boot. The Switch 2 has improved the experience somewhat, with faster load times and a more reliable 30fps, but only as a byproduct of running on better hardware. It's still plagued with problems.
A dedicated Switch 2 upgrade could iron out the kinks and see Xenoblade...
