The Xenoblade Chronicles 3 news isn't dying down anytime soon! And, at the time of writing this, we're only 23 days away from the release of the upcoming JRPG.
The official Japanese Twitter account has been sharing more tidbits from the game, both new and returning from previous entries. And, as always, Perfectly Nintendo has been compiling them and translating them for us all to enjoy, so thank you once again Perfectly Nintendo!
This time, we have a handful of different things to cover. First up is something called Colonies, which are multiple "bases" or places throughout both Agnus and Keves. These Colonies are all assigned different ranks — either Gold, Silver, or Dirt (clod). That last one seems a bit harsh!
Next is a bit more info on the game's Combo system, a key feature in both Xenoblade Chronicles and Xenoblade Chronicles 2. These are key to weakening and defeating your enemy quickly and are what help to bring the big numbers.
This time, there are two ways you can Chain enemies into a Combo this time, both inspired by the previous games. Both combos start with a Break and a Topple but then branch off in two different directions. You can either Daze the enemy after toppling them, and then use a skill with 'Burst' to cause a lot of damage and also make enemies drop items. Alternatively, you might want to Launch your toppled enemy off the ground and then Smash them back down to earth. You can also instruct your team to focus on a particular type of combo!
Another new aspect in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is the Fusion Arts system, and we've now got a bit more clarity — and a bit more control over what we can fuse together. You can only fuse arts from classes that are from different countries. So, for instance, the Swordfighter class arts can't fuse with the Heavy Guard class arts, but it can with the Zephyr class.
And just in case you need even more bells and whistles with your combat, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 also introduces Ouroboros. Two characters can Interlink in battle to create their Ouroboros, which can also be powered up with Fusion Arts.
While your characters are Interlinked, you can use more powerful Ouroboros Arts. But the key is when you decide to use your Interlink. Don't forget, only certain pairs of characters can Interlink with each other — Noah and Mio, Lanz and Sena, and Eunie and Taion.
The most recent update we've had from Monolith Soft is around the returning Unique Monsters, everyone's favourite challenge! These more-powerful monsters roam the wilderness and are much stronger than your standard encounters.
If you decide to take them on, you'll notice a little line on their HP gauge — this is called a "Rage Line", and if the UM's health goes below it, then they'll go into enrage, which means you're in for a lot of hurt unless you can get some big-damaging chains in.
One last returning feature covered is rested EXP. While you'll still accumulate experience in battle as normal, just like in Xenoblade Chronicles 2, you'll get bonus EXP from finding landmarks and completing quests.
You can spend this at any of the game's rest spots, and also choose whether to get immensely over-levelled or store some for a more challenging experience. You'll also now get Class Points which will allow you to raise your Class' level and gain more Master Arts.
As we creep ever closer to 29th July, we're sure we'll be hearing more about the complexities and beauties that Xenoblade Chronicles 3 has to offer. For now, we're just basking in the excitement after last month's Xenoblade-focused Direct, where we found out we'll be getting an Expansion Pass with brand new story content!
What do you think about these updates coming to Xenoblade Chronicles 3? Let us know how you're really feeling in the comments!
[source perfectly-nintendo.com]
Comments 12
Where's the UK Collector's Edition orders?
They should change the Olympic medals to Gold, SIlver, and Dirt.
Just looking at the first screenshot is enough to put me off, just look at all the different options, sorry but that looks so stupidly over complicated.
@Bunkerneath Yep I hate this too! The whole friggin' screen is filled up with an overcomplicated combat / UI mess.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 was just borderline acceptable with all the different combat button challenges, etc (which some could luckily be turned off).
But sadly they seem to be going completely overboard with XC3. Hope to be proven wrong.
Have this game bought and payed for but holy moly that screenshot though. I really hope there's an option to turn off the U.I because I'm not sure I'd be able to stick that for an entire playthrough.
Jesus :/
...honestly, this HUD looks much easier to parse than the mess we got with XC2. Based on what we've seen so far, there doesn't seem to be anything as obtuse and impossible to track without a spreadsheet as Fusion Combos. There is a lot going on in XC3's HUD, but pretty much everything I've seen so far at least serves a clear purpose.
Everytime I hear about characters combining to form an Ouroboros I imagine them forming a human wheel by holding each other's ankle and rolling around not unlike Kirby Star Allies' Friend Circle
Finished Xenoblade 2 and Xenoblade X with only a basic understanding of the mechanics.
Monolithsoft, the masters of awful UI and none existent tutorials. I still have no clue what any of the skell stats mean in XenoX, and I might as well have been picking acessories at random in Xeno2. The layers of blade arts, accessories and combo effects are just mind boggling.
I fully recommend playing the games for the anime spectacle of it all, by the way.
As chaotic as the UI seems in that image, it doesn't seem like all that will be dumped on the player all within an hour or two of playing, which softens the blow a bit.
@Wargoose Yeah they obfuscated the mechanics a lot, while XC2's actual combat can be simplified a lot when you understand it. I recommend watching Chuggaconroy's XC2 explaination video. Though once I understood it (like a few weeks after launch due to researching a lot), it wasn't that complicated to me at least. I quickly exploited it and the game was too easy as a result.
XCX made you read the manual to understand the combat and even then it could be pretty dense. Torna at least had a full tutorial that you could review in the notes at any point after a mechanic was introduced.
@Jeronan Oh my goodness. It looks clean and simple. They are making it easier to understand. I hate Kotaku. No one said anything until they opened their mouth.
@Bunkerneath It's basically the arts bar from the first game, where you'd cycle through a menu of symbols to select your character's attack/skill. Now they're all mapped to the Joycon buttons so you don't have to take your finger off the left stick to select your move, which is why the UI looks like that. Maybe I'm stating the obvious idk.
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