The promise was attractive: rediscover Xenoblade Chronicles Nintendo has reportedly started granting refunds on a case-by-case basis.
Originally released on Wii U in 2015, then returned ten years later with Xenoblade Chronicles
A Switch 2 update supposed to offer 4K and 60 FPS
As with other titles optimized for the Nintendo Switch 2, such as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild or Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, this new version should significantly improve performance. In TV mode, the game is supposed to run at 4K and 60 frames per second. In portable mode, the announced objective is 1080p at 60 frames per second. On paper, the improvement seems clear.
In fact, several players have reported graphic issues. Discussions quickly appeared on Reddit, with screenshots showing blurred images and scaling artifacts visible on certain elements of the scenery. Some even claim that the rendering would be less clean than on the original Nintendo Switch, which fueled frustration around an upgrade that was nevertheless paid for.
Players get refund after contacting support
Faced with these criticisms, a user explained on Reddit that they had contacted Nintendo support directly to report the graphic defects observed. “I just asked mine that the picture quality of the enhanced version is worse than the original game (which is true)”
According to his testimony, the response was quick: “They said that they don’t usually refund digital games, but that they can do so in this case after analyzing the problem (which they did in about a minute and a half).” This feedback suggests that Nintendo was already informed of the problems encountered, since the analysis would have been carried out in less than two minutes before validation of the refund.
The same user goes on to say: “This is not the Nintendo quality I expected and have received so far, so I won’t pay for something that offers lower quality than a free patch.”
Who can request a refund for the £4.19 upgrade?
At this stage, Nintendo has not published official communication generalizing these refunds. The cases reported concern individual requests made to customer service. The Xenoblade Chronicles X Switch 2 upgrade currently retails for £4.19 in the UK. Players who have purchased this digital improvement and believe that the graphics quality does not correspond to the advertised performance can try to contact support.
Several Internet users, in the Reddit comments, also encourage other buyers to report problems. According to them, a greater number of requests could push Nintendo to quickly correct the visual defects and prevent the situation from recurring during future Switch 2 updates. For the moment, refunds seem to be studied on a case-by-case basis, after analysis of the account and the report made to support.