Nintendo Introduces The Protagonists Of Xenoblade Chronicles 3

I can't wait for this game.

-Cat person
-Light color hair
-Ring weapon

Ni-...o?

It's also confirmed that Noah is 18 and Mio is 19, so the protagonists are around the age of the ones in the original game, which means the story will probably be as serious.

Not sold on the kemonomimi angle, it comes off a bit cheap for a first party Nintendo game.

My fav design is Eunie

@FishyS play them they are sooo good just be ready for a looong game for both games <3 I wish I could experience both games new all over again

It’s like they aren’t even trying, anymore.

@nessisonett I mean, every Xenoblade has had a race with animalistic qualities in it. Xenoblade 1 had High Entia, which were bird-like people with wings on their heads, and then 2 had Gormotti, which were supposed to be the High Entia of 2's world, being more cat-like.

@BloodNinja Howso?

"he wields a bright red blade in combat."

Color me surprised....

I can't wait for this game! I have played both Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition and Xenboblade Chronicles 2! I can't wait to "continue" the story - I absolutely adore the series!

Excited though I may be for a third game in the series, I remain cautiously optimistic. I want it to be as great as 1, but I confess a big part of why 1 was so special to me is because I went in expecting utter failure since it shared a name with the abysmal Xenogears and Xenosaga. And it turned out to be much, MUCH better than both of those.

So I will watch, and hope. I hope it does get a massive Special Edition box like 1 and 2, so I can have all three lined up on my shelf.

Meet Mio:

I'm doing it, this year is the year I plays at least one of the Xenoblade games, be it two or one, I'm playing one this year before this game comes out!

So I can then Enjoy the hype with all of you, TBH I'm hyped anyway.

Good stuff. Always like most of the characters in Xenoblade games(yes, even the Nopon). So stoked for this game.

Noah in the first image sorta reminds me of Flynn from SMT IV with that pose and hairstyle

MUCH better character designs than the protagonists in 2.
Well, Noah's design is at least a massive improvement over Rex's goofy ass.
Nia's first design is pretty solid so Mio here is more or less the same.

@kennykenny I would like to play this but sadly, I have to play XC 1 and 2

I miss big boobies

I'm (not) really feein' it!

XCX is still the best game in the series!

@horobita I wish I could play XC 3 without having to play XC 1 and 2. I really don't wanna spend $120 bucks on 2 games.

@anoyonmus Technically, you don't need to. The director said that Xenoblade 3 is for first-time fans as well as fans of 1 and 2. They'll probably make it to where the experience is better if you played the first and second, but it'll be good for those who play three on it's own.

I'm liking how the characters in this one look so far! I'm excited to learn more about them, Mio in particular has me curious given her very strong similarities to a certain other character in the series... Eunie's my favorite of the bunch so far, though. The High Entia is one of my favorite fantasy races ever (maybe my favorite period) and I think it's cool that she has some unique (Eunique?) features that make her stand out more as well.

@Snatcher If possible, I'd highly recommend starting with the first Xenoblade, then playing 2 (and Torna) after it. It's not essential, but you'd get the best experience that way. It looks like you should play both before 3 for the best experience there as well, though it's probably not necessary. The games are distinct enough that they stand on their own pretty well if you don't have the time to get through the others before 3's out, but playing them in release order adds a lot to the overall experience.

@VoidofLight where did they say the director of xenoblade 3 says it is good for first time fans.

@Spider-Kev Dang!

@ReaperMelia I'm probably going to get the first one first.

the only reason ether or is because sometimes 2 is on sale on the Eshop, and if I find that one of sale before I get the first one, I might play it first, or maybe just save it till I get the first one.

Im always sad everybody forgets about X in the comments. Remember this is the 4th entry 😭😭😭

I cannot wait for some details regarding the RPG system

Hey, I know that guy. Didn't he build an ark or something?

@fafonio it aint said..what is said that Monolith Soft forgets

@Snatcher That makes sense! If you're in North America, physical copies of the first game go on sale for $40 fairly often at a lot of stores as well. You can definitely play in either order if you get the second game first, there are just some things that stand out more if you've played the first game before it so most fans suggest playing in release order if possible.

@fafonio If you happen to be referring to my comment, I didn't forget X, it's my favorite game of all time. I didn't mention it because it's a completely standalone game whereas 1-3 all share plot elements despite still working as standalone games. If someone asks what to play to get ready for 3, I'd suggest 1 and 2 as priorities so they'll be all caught up on the main entries.

That being said, Takahashi himself is the one who said this is the third entry in the series, so if anyone forgot about X, I think it's him.

I like the costume design this time around, it's so much better than what it used to be in xeno 1 & 2..

i can't get over how generic the designs in this one are looking. they feel like they overcorrected from 2's ridiculous overdesigns and are now making characters for whatever anime is popular for about two weeks

@ReaperMelia tbh all Xenoblade games share plot elements. I wasn’t referring to your comment. It’s just that I see everyone discussing about 1-2 & 3 but people always forget to mention X into the discussions.

It was a masterful game and it’s on par with 1 … and WAY better than 2.

I never played something quite like that game. In a way it’s one of a kind masterpiece that doesn’t get the love it deserves….. (despite that cliffhanger) 😔

@anoyonmus Press release after the announcement. It can be found on the Nintendo website.

@fafonio People don't usually mention X, since it's not canon to the others, and the creators of the series don't even consider it as one of the main xeno games.

@somebread I mean, these designs look on par with Xenoblade 1's character designs.

@VoidofLight I know but I really don’t understand why they don’t even consider it canon … just because it didn’t have a number in the name. I mean, it was the second one released… it’s not like the IP was well established to consider it out of canon. And each game is a stand alone game… Never understood why it wasn’t labeled 2. It’s an anthology IP, just like Final Fantasy.

@VoidofLight i dunno, shulk, reyn, fiora, and dunban at least all have a certain je ne sais quoi that's lost here, the XC1 designs reminded me more of FF12 than anything

sharla i'll totally give you but sharla kind of got the short end of the stick in every way

@Snatcher doing the same, ordered a Xenoblade 2 physical copy today from my local gamestop can’t wait to join the hype!

@fafonio I guess it's because the gameplay was different, and they already had a general idea for 2 and 3, due to the director's overplanning. Plus, without retconning some of the stuff in X, it wouldn't fit with the overarching story for 1, 2, and 3.

@somebread Eh, I guess. I feel like the issue is probably to do with how the clothing is more modern than the stuff in 1 and 2... but hopefully the more basic clothing means that we'll be able to change armor like the first game, and get some more interesting clothing as we go.

@VoidofLight I mean… I’m as much of a Xenoblade fan as any other… but the overarching story between 1 and 2 is pretty loose. And tbh is not even important to the overall story… I wouldn’t even consider them sequels between each other. Just because in 2 there was a section where Shulk visited your party from another dimension (like a cameo) doesn’t make them a sequel per se.

I mean… calling X non canon would be like calling FF Crystal Chronicles non canon to Final Fantasy…. canon to what? If they are not even sequels between each other. Not a Main entry I would understand…. But how could they call it “not a main entry” after just one game into the series? It boggles the mind as to why X is considered something apart, just because of the X instead of a 2.

Don’t know if I’m explaining myself like I should 😅

@fafonio I do agree with you on X being a fantastic game, I've never played anything like it and it definitely deserved better reception. That being said, its ties with the first game are more tongue-in-cheek gags than direct connections like the main numbered games have. X is pretty different from the others in terms of its setting, gameplay, plot, and structures, which is why it's not considered part of the main series. I don't say that as a negative thing-- like I said, it's my favorite game of all time. It's just too different from 1, 2, and presumably 3 to be grouped as part of that main series.

@ReaperMelia but tbh… what are the main connections between 1 and 2 aside from the Shulk cameo ala “multiverse portal” fan service? Maybe I’m missing something.

I’ve come to the conclusion that if it has Nopons… it’s a Xenoblade main entry through and through 😛

@fafonio Eh, the main series overarching stuff is pretty important though, even if the two games only ever (massive spoilers for both the endings of 1 and 2) meet at the end, due to Klaus. These three games are effectively about Klaus and the aftermath of what he did to the world. 1 showing the pocket dimension which half of him became the god of, and 2 showing what truly happened the night the experiment went down, and showcasing what the man did to the world itself. X could've probably connected by the devs going "Klaus destroyed the world, with people fleeing to another one.", but they didn't go that route, and won't go that route. Instead, I just feel like the Conduit itself is probably the only thing that'd connect or even nod to X being remotely canon, given it connects other universes. So, X is mainly just like Gears and Saga.

@fafonio I don't know how to use spoiler tags here so I can't go into detail, but as @VoidofLight summed up, there are some pretty notable connections. X doesn't have those ties. Nopon are more like Xenoblade's Moogles in that they're the series' mascots, so it would be weird to have a game without them. Maybe they'll retroactively find a way to tie in X, but I doubt it personally. I think it'll just be its own standalone game, which is fine in my opinion.

@VoidofLight ohh “K”… ok ok… i forgot it was the same character. Must have been because I played those with years apart from each other. Now I get what you and @reapermelia mean.

I mean, it’s a pretty meh connection…. But they could do something with that in the 3rd entry.

I just wish they could focus on continuing the X story and make an X-2

I'm one of those people who wish Smash DLC would last forever, but for the sake of characters like these, thank god it's over. Let's be honest, these two would've made the cut as new fighters as a shameless way to market the game à la Corrin and Byleth. Plus, they're very samey to the many bipedal fighters in the game. Sorry, I know we're not talking about Smash here, but that's all I could think about upon a closer inspection of Noah and Mio's designs. Hope the game is great otherwise!

@Browny How was Xenogears abysmal? It’s one of the lost beloved JRPG’s of all time. I can get how it’s not your thing, but abysmal? Just really curious now

Game of the year for me ^^
Best jrpg series ever also for me ^^

His name is Noah?

(Insert hilarious joke about how the plot of the game is gonna revolve around an impending flood)

That trailer is so good. These games are so ambitious that they are really in their own league as far as what they achieve with world-building and storytelling. I can't wait to see what themes and ideas this third game will explore. If you ask me, the first game's ending is a little naive, and this seems poised to address that.

I prefer the character designs in 2 so far. Hope atleast some of the other characters are a bit ecchi.

@ReaperMelia As I am currently replaying XCX (at Chapter 10 atm), it brings me great joy to find your comments in these articles as you almost never fail to mention this gem of a game in some context! Looking forward to seeing your hype (as well as other people's) as we countdown to September

Did they change character designers or something? These characters look really generic and bland to be completely honest.

@fafonio I can't go into detail since I don't know how spoiler tags work, but 3 is definitely going to continue the connections between 1 and 2. The trailer was full of hints.

@UsurperKing Thank you! I'm glad to hear you appreciate it. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's excitement for this one as well! There's nothing quite like the wait for a new Xenoblade game in my opinion.

@Dingelhopper Nope, same character designer as Xenoblade 2. It just seems like he infused more elements from 1 and even a little bit of X into the designs this time around.

@ReaperMelia Yeah, they even confirmed that 3 takes place in a combined world with the continent at the end of 2 and the world Shulk makes at the end of the first. Not to mention symbols like the Zohar appearing on the face units, the fog beast fog seen in the scene of the characters swimming, and the symbols from Zanza upon the flute that both Mio and Noah have.

@VoidofLight Yeah, I was going to point all those out, I just don't know how to use spoiler tags, ha. There are definitely plenty of ties coming up, I can't wait to see how it all connects!

@ReaperMelia spoiler tags are just putting [spoiler] before the message, and then another [spoiler] but with a / in front of it at the end to close it out.

@VoidofLight Got it, thanks! There are also the masked characters who look and sound just like Melia and Nia for more overt connections. There's definitely a possibility those are meant to be misleading, but everything matches up pretty well, so I'm working with the assumption they're the same characters at the moment.

@ReaperMelia Yeah, I think those are them, given one has the same flesh eater core crystal, and it'd be harder to fake.

@VoidofLight Nia's core crystal is definitely the most telling sign, though Mio has a similar one. Those two definitely seem related in some way. Melia's less obvious given that she doesn't have a unique trait like Nia's crystal, but her wings match up and she has the same hair curls from the first game, so it seems like that's probably her as well. To tell the truth, as much as I love getting an opportunity to see my favorite video game character return, I'm kind of dreading seeing her in a much darker place than where she found herself in the first game. Not that I think it'll be bad, it's just going to hurt to watch.

@ReaperMelia I'm interested in how Melia ended up in this position... or how anyone really did. I know at the end of 2, the worlds ended up merging, but everything and everyone seemed hopeful/happy about it. Wonder what caused absolutely everything to go south, how Nia even got into power into the first place, and why the two seem to be more angered than they generally seemed to have been. As for Mio, I'm convinced she's probably Nia's daughter, or in some way blood related, given she has the same core. I'd say it isn't Nia though, since Mio's core is smaller than Nia in 2, and the masked person presumed to be Nia.

@Not_Soos I mean, Xeno games as a whole have lots of religious references, specifically biblical ones, that almost always have important meanings. I don't think it's a coincidence that the name Noah evokes a savior during a cataclysmic time.

Also, the two warring nations, Keves and Agnus, are just two different ways to say "lamb/sheep" (Hebrew and Greek respectively) and Noah brought most animals to the ark in pairs. Though I believe 7 lambs were brought in the biblical tale so although the parallel isn't foolproof, this shows that your joke may not be far off!

@VoidofLight Given that this seems pretty far after the events of the first two games, I'd imagine Melia probably didn't take losing her friends all that well. It also seems like there's something else pulling the strings here, presumably the Ouroboros Melia mentioned. The characters mention filling clocks, and Noah's first line in the trailer mentions they fight in order to live, so I think that everyone can see how much time they have left in their lives (presumably ether-related) and they can extend it by taking someone else's life. With the two nations being at war in 3, my guess is there's some sort of crisis going on that's related to both sides running out of ether and being desperate to keep their people alive at all costs. This led to Melia and Nia declaring war to protect their own people, it's the only explanation I can think of for both of them to take such dire measures. My guess is Ouroboros is some sort of new omnipotent being/group that's drawing ether from the world, hence the ether shortage. As for Nia and Mio, yeah, I think they're mother and daughter. They definitely aren't the same person, but the similarities are too striking for them to not be related. It makes me curious as to whether or not all Blades can reproduce or if it's just because Nia's a Flesh Eater; maybe we'll see descendants of some of the other Blades as well?

@UsurperKing

Huh, interesting! I've only played the first Xenoblade but never beat it--got stuck on the Gadoult fight and just kinda gave up. I like traversing the open environments, but the combat is too frustratingly complex for me, and if I'm being honest, the characters didn't really grab me.

But as a person of faith, I think that's pretty neat! I can't think of any specific biblical allusions from my time with the first game. Maybe I'll dip my toe back into the series someday; Xenoblade 2 has some really stunning environments I would like to traverse, but I hear the battle mechanics are even more complex, and I know it leans more heavily into anime tropes, which just isn't my cup of tea.

Edit: I will say, I had way too much fun being able to change costumes before replaying cutscenes, lol. Dunban wearing a pair of high heels as he solemnly looks over the balcony lamenting the death of his sister while Shulk comes out in a pair of flippers and a snorkeling mask in the middle of the night to console him is some of the hardest I've ever laughed. I couldn't breathe, haha.

@Not_Soos Yeah, these games are generally riddled in Biblical themes and they pull from Gnosticism a lot. It's pretty interesting.

The only game i care about this year. Can’t believe they will release it so soon after the announcement.

@VoidofLight I know from the Xenoblade 2 trailers there's a "divine father" and they're on a quest to get to the world tree at Elysium, which I guess is pretty obviously an analogy to God, Heaven, and the Tree of Life. Never thought too much about it though, since mystical trees that watch over the world are a common trope in RPG's. There's The Great Deku tree in Zelda (which also seems to have a lot of religious themes--the "trinity" of goddesses, the great flood in Wind Waker, Zelda being a human incarnation of the goddess), and even Dragon Quest 11 has a giant tree in the sky called Yggdrasil.

@clianvXAi You've gotta give Monolith props; I still remember when "X" kept getting delayed, and by the time Xenoblade 2 got announced for a 2017 release, everyone was certain it would get delayed. Now they're pumping these babies out faster than Octomom.

Xenogears working title was apparently 'project Noah' so could this be a nice nod to the classic game

@fafonio
Go read my comments...

@Tobiaku I love XC2 but the designs were probably too much for most people, I'm glad they toned them down so this game has a broader audience. This looks more in line with XC1. More people buying the games = more sales = XC4 will be even higher budget.

@fafonio I get the impression you never completed the games?

@Troll_Decimator Not wanting to disagree here on the design, but i have to say that Xenoblade 2 was the better selling game out of the two

People complain about XC2's designs being too weird, fantastical, impractical other whatever.
Then XC3's designs become more normal and people complain that they look too generic. You really and truly can't please everyone, can you?
And yes, the artist is the same as XC2's.
I want to remind you all that this is the series that started with sexy machine people, then sexy (yet hideous) alien people, then sexy almost-humans.
It looks like we'll get more outfits anyways considering Noah has his black attire too. I'd rather wait a bit more before complaining about character design, but I think it's pretty cool so far.

@Mr_Fox
If I had to put it into a single word, it was half-baked.

Most games I tend to go back to for a second look just to make sure my impressions were on the money, but I haven't touched the game since its PSN release (which was also my first time playing the game). This is just one game I do not ever want to go back to.

@Browny I will definitely agree that Xenosaga was a horrible mess but the Original Xenogears was amazing to me, what didn't you like about it?

@CromAstronomy
Gameplay was lacking, plot was boring for the most part, and of course by the end of the game the gameplay (what little of it was actually there) was practically stripped out.

Take my thoughts with a pinch of salt, as it's been a decade since I played the game.

@Dingelhopper xeno 2's character designs is one of the many factors that killed my interest and enjoyment of that particular game.(Let's not forget how absurdly goofy they all are.)
I MUCH prefer XC1 and XC3's design.

Yooo it’s shulk and Nia good to have them back. I plan on buying this day 1, so I’m working on beating 2 and then 1 before it comes out

@VoidofLight ah ok

@VoidofLight I really don't wanna spend my money on 2 XC games so I will probably watch the gameplay and read the plot of the story. Then I will maybe get XC 3.

I think these designs are an utterly massive improvement over XC2 - this looks like a game I could actually play in public.

Here's hoping the combat system is also improved. The fact that there doesn't seem to be XC2-style blades in this game is promising. Hopefully that means there won't be the absolutely stupid mobile game mechanics from that game (why does a 200+ hour RPG need gacha and idle systems????).

@VoidofLight so based on what we have seen. I think there are 2 story paths.

@Mince I 100%'d the 4 of them, their DLC and their expansion story. I played 1 & 2 with 9-10 years apart… there’s just one character that was a thin connection between 1 & 2 and at the last 10 minutes of the second game which I forgot. 😒 (which btw had a totally different look between the Wii game and the Switch game)

I still wouldn’t call them real sequels… but anthology games united by a common event at the end of both games.

Looks like they took most of the game elements from XC2 and put them into a world very similar to XC1. I guess that would make sense if they are trying to tie them together.

I hope its not just a rehash of those games scrambled together though. I for one would love to see a lot of QoL enhancements, less time in menus and more meaningful side quests.

I will never understand why people overreact to XC2's designs being "embarrassing" or "hard to play in public" like it's even remotely close to a Senran Kagura or Gal Gun game, lol.

Outside of some of the (optional) unique Blades, the only real offending character is Pyra/Mythra, and it's hardly the first time a JRPG has had a busty/sexy female party member (Lulu, Tifa, Tear, Violet, heck even Sharla from the first game, etc). Granted, I can completely understand if such characters aren't exactly your thing (and I agree that I'd like the option to put characters in different armor sets like the first game), but let's not pretend XC2 is some kind of deviant from the norms of the genre that makes it a special kind of "embarrassing".

That said, I'm not too sold on XC3's designs yet (a little too basic black/white for me), but I imagine we'll be able to get new armor sets for them that might liven things up a bit.

Currently on chapter 9 of XC2. I should have both that and Torna finished before this rolls around! I've already played both XC:DE and Future Connected.

Noah?
Really nintendo?
Another biblical reference, and with all the big "floating" things. JFC
This Christian takeover of nintendo is driving me insane.

@Not_Soos Wanted to elaborate a bit on the Gnosticism of Xenoblade 1 and just throw out a few names from that belief. In that belief God as shown in the bible is a false one called Yaldaboth (Egils face Mechon) while the true God is called Monad (pretty obvious what this refers to). Without elaborating, there is also someone called Achamoth (High Entia are in Alchamoth).

I will agree that when I originally played XC1, it was the uniqueness of the world and the core plot that initially moved me through the game, not the characters. Though on repeat playthrough a I've fully fallen in love with the cast! XC2 does deal with anime tropes, but the characters are bigger than their tropes. They start off tropey, but grow into interesting and complex characters.

As for the battle system...yea XC2 not only has a more complex system, but it also explains it super poorly unfortunately.

Gotta say though, I quite love messing with clothing for cutscenes where that's available! Did a lot of that in Age of Calamity as well, it's so fun to have a naked Link with a ladle fighting the champion of the Rito haha

@Arkay Really? I wasn't aware that was a problem people had with the character designs in 2. What drew me in WAS all the unique looking characters. Rex, Mythra and Pyra have a very iconic look to them but that's just my subjective opinion of course.

I can agree though that some of the blades clashed with the established art style in XC2. I thought it was a fun idea to bring in a bunch of guest artists to design them but it wasn't the best method for having a coherent look.

The character names were revealed a while ago actually.
Along with the other party members.
Via Nintendo uk:
https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Games/Nintendo-Switch-games/Xenoblade-Chronicles-3-2168340.html

@RR529
What's embarrassing is knowing some people here can't imagine playing a video game in public because breasts exist.
Sounds shallow to me. But then I prefer playing docked anyways.

@AzzyC Guess you've never been exposed to any of the Xeno games. These games are full of religious undertones and Gnostic/Biblical themes. It's not a "Christian takeover", it's just how the director of the series likes to roll with his story telling. Heck, most of the ways that these games distort religious themes would be seen as "Sacrilegious" in some regard.

@iLikeUrAttitude They were, but the Japanese Xenoblade twitter account revealed some new details, like the character's ages and personalities. It's weird how this article is based off the English version, given that it's old news in comparison to the Japanese tweets which hold new info.

@Mr_Fox it would have been great of it was finished. The problem is disc two is awful because they ran out of time an money. Most of the disc is Ellie in a chair describing what happened. Xenosaga was more Christ-y but at least it was finished.

@VoidofLight Xenoblade isn't nearly as bad on that front as gears and especially saga. I can only think of vague allegory in xb compared to a character is directly responsible for Jesus' miracles and a robot is literally Mary Magdalene in Saga.

@Xansies I mean, I don't see the problem in these games having religious allegories or religious themes. Most JRPGs do. SMT, for example, is one of those JRPGs that pull heavily from the bible.

@AzzyC Yeah, you definitely haven't played the xeno games. A robot was Mary Magdalene in Saga. Literally was Mary Magdalene. Xenogears was a gnostic allegory. Blade 1 was also a gnostic allegory but more veiled. These games are actually pretty antigod because the main godlike entity I'm gnosticism mistakenly believes he's an almighty god when he is actually under a greater power. That mistaken god is the Abrahmic God. You kill it in all the games.

Again, this was really blatant in gears and oh my god was it blatant in Saga. If anything you'd actually have to know about this beforehand to really pick it up in the xenoblade games with 2 putting the religious angle on the back burner. Rex is more Jesus than the others though and there's still crucifixion because there always is.

@VoidofLight I don't have a problem with games taking a bit from gnosticism. It does limit the possible plots for these games. Like SMT and the xeno games both crib from the same source and both are kinda identical in the track they follow. 2 didn't follow the same religious angle as much besides Rex being Jesus and I think because of that there's a lot less focused plot going on. I actually hope 3 leans on gnosticism again because that seems to be the plot these guys can write.

@AzzyC would you be as opposed to it if it had islamic references? Or is this a case of "christianity bad"?
I'm not religious nor an athiest and I really don't mind.
I actually quite like it.

@Dingelhopper yeah I look at Rex and I just want to tear my eyes out. Really didn't like him as a main character.

@Solaine Of course, but the marketing behind XC2 was on a different level than the original XC that we had to beg to get in the west. The Definitive Edition is a rerelease and those don't sell as much. XC3 would be a much better comparison.

@Troll_Decimator I guess we will see, i am hyped anyways and positive that it will outdo Xenoblade 2

@ReaperMelia @fafonio

I think the sword best know as "Monado" is the clearest connection that tells us this is, at the least, a shared multi-verse. It's in Xenosaga as the Zohar, Xenoblade chronicles II as the Aegis blade, and it's in X as the "Nopon Sword of Legendariness"

The biggest hint it's the same weapon in X is the symbol in the middle. In Xenoblades, the symbol cycles though "machine", "person" and "God" corresponding to what its capable of killing. The symbol in the middle of the Nopon sword, while not exact (obviously) is Kanji that is extremely similar to "Nopon"

Given this trailer seems to have sound bites of people not able to believe someone is who they say they are, I actually think X and in particular Mimeosomes are going to play a big part. Even more so now ... the first big twist could be that "off seers" are actually uploading the consciousness of people as they are killed in battle before it's completely lost.

But at the end of the day, it could be literally anything. There is an in cannon entity that has complete control over time and space, can move people from one reality to another, and create and destroy realities at his whim in the Nopon sage. The set up for 3 and how it incorporates other games could be completely new and involve things we've never heard of before, and all they need to say is "A wizard (sage) did it"

@Solaine Very confident that it will be the best Xenoblade yet, and also the best selling.

Am I the only one that actually likes that the character designs are subdued? They feel more in line with the first game.

Very much looking forward to it. It took me awhile to develop a taste for 2 but eventually really grew to love it, even if it does definitely have its fair share of problems. Probably finally get around to playing through the first game before it comes out, dabbled with it but never entirely sunken my teeth in.

The art style is very refined at this point!

@fafonio yeah I know what you mean, you don’t even get the full idea of a connection until basically near the ending. For me though I’m very fond of this style of sequel.

For example horizon forbidden west is out in Friday and I just feel like I have to recap so much because it’s set 6 months later, I’ve not played the first game for over 4 years. So between returning cast and a story focus I feel like I should have replayed the first.

Once Xenoblade 3 is out I have not feeling like I have to recap because it’s so well done.

Wait, the cat-girl's name is "Mio"? How's that pronounced, like, "meow"...? 🤔

This is definitely one of the best looking Switch games. Impressive mix of realism and anime.

My hype levels are 9,000 x12! Just hook it to my veins!

Not bad. Noah looks like he's from Fire Emblem but to fit him in Xenoblade, they gave him Elma's jacket. As for Mio, nice to see the gormatti again. I'm more curious about the rest of the cast. The high entia girl, the maquina guy, the Homs guy, and the blade girl. Also I could've sworn I heard Al Weaver and Catrin Hue. Rex and Nia's voice actors.

@RubyCarbuncle It took me 1 year to beat part 2. Not that it was that long (still pretty long though), but I took my time on it and would tap in and out once a week at my leisure. It can get a little exhausting so it was nice to play when I felt like it.