Operation Backlog Completion 2026

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Moved Up to July 29

 Video games  4 Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Apr 202022
 

Remember how thrilled we were back when Xenoblade Chronicles 3 was announced for a September 2022 release?

Yep, that’s not happening. It’s coming out July 29 instead.

An anticipated game actually having its release date moved sooner instead of being delayed is pretty rare. I know it’s happened before, but it’s still a shock.

So instead of having five months to get my backlog in order (hah!) so that I can play Xenoblade Chronicles 3, I have three months instead.

Alongside this release date change came and exciting new trailer, although I’ll admit I didn’t watch the trailer as attentively as I often would because trailers have spoiled me too often in the past.

I did watch enough to catch the major ideas, though, such as having more characters than ever in combat and a fusion system that is where the name Ouroboros comes into play.

They also announced a Special Edition, which includes a hardcover art book and a steelbook case. It will only be available from the My Nintendo Store, with details to come at a later date.

(I used the special edition’s art for this page image, although I took it from the Japanese site since the other images I found were all too small.)

Now, some people have taken this to be a bad sign, assuming that content must have been cut from the game or it’s been rushed, but I’m not worried. If they were trying to avoid a delay, then I could see it, but I find it hard to believe Monolith Soft would cut content or rush just to get the game out months ahead of the already-announced release window.

Everything shown of Xenoblade Chronicles 3 so far looks fantastic, so I’m confident this will be another excellent game.

Meanwhile, Digimon Survive’s worldwide release date was confirmed for… July 29. Xenoblade and Digimon Survive are now coming out on the same time. That’s just a few days after the Live A Live remake, as well. This year might not be as jam-packed with must-play games like the second half of the year was for me in 2021, but it’s starting to put forth a good effort.

What do you think about Xenoblade Chronicles 3’s sudden July 29 release date, trailer, and special edition? Will you be picking it up?

Everything We Know So Far About Xenoblade Chronicles 3

 Video games  3 Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Mar 092022
 

Ah, now those are words I’m delighted to be able to write!

In the middle of our romance celebration in February, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 was announced for the Nintendo Switch.

Not only that, but it already has a release window: September 2022.

That’s right, the next Xenoblade game is coming out this year!

I’m still hoping we get a Xenoblade Chronicles X sequel someday (with a Xenoblade Chronicles X port as a likely first step), but I’m thrilled to get any Xenoblade game.

(As excited as I am for Bayonetta 3, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 vaulted into the top spot as my most-anticipated game of the year as soon as it was revealed.)

And in what is very interesting news, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is a sequel that brings together the future of both Xenoblade Chronicles and Xenoblade Chronicles 2. In fact, the trailer actually shows that, with some familiar locations popping up in the gameplay segments.

So let’s start by watching the trailer.

The trailer is exciting and teases many intriguing details about this new game in the series, especially the glimpse of two masked characters near the end who are widely believed by fans to be Melia and Nia.

It also shows us a world filled with conflict, a reference to people being used as fuel, and a puzzling line in which a character asks, “What good’s filling up these flickering clocks in our eyes?” Some intriguing story elements are definitely being set up.

The protagonists, as detailed on Nintendo UK’s official Xenoblade Chronicles 3 page, are Noah and Mio, two “off-seers” who mourn for soldiers who lose their lives (which seems to have something to do with the flutes that they play).

Joining them in the main cast are Lanz, Eunie, Taion, and Sena. Curiously, character details translated from the official Japanese Xenoblade Twitter account revealed that all 6 main characters are age 18, except for Mio, who is 19. Yes, even the High Entia and Machina (?) characters, even though they shouldn’t age like Homs, are 18. What does this mean? I have no idea. A popular theory is that enough time has passed for the genetics to have diluted to the point of giving them Homs-like lifespans.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 deals with a war between two nations called Keves and Agnus. Noah, Lanz, and Eunie are from Keves, while Mio, Taion, and Sena are from Agnus, so it seems as though their groups will come together despite the conflict between their countries. Interestingly, “Keves” means “sheep” in Hebrew and “Agnus” means “lamb” in Latin. Is this significant? It can’t be a coincidence.

Eagle-eyed fans have also caught a lot of tiny details in the trailer that I would have missed on my own, such as a shape that might be the Conduit on the machine at 1:10, a symbol that appears on the bodies of the three Keves characters, and ouroboros symbols on the party’s weapons (which is especially interesting since the character who might be Melia says, “Ouroboros abhor this world”). Noah and Mio also appear to exchange flutes at some point in the story.

Finally, let’s talk about the art at the very end of the trailer, which shows the sword of the Mechonis from Xenoblade Chronicles alongside the Urayan Titan from Xenoblade Chronicles 2. This is a puzzling scene if this is the future of both worlds.

Click for Xenoblade Chronicles 1 & 2 spoilers
The Mechonis’s sword was destroyed during Xenoblade Chronicles, and Uraya merged into the landmass at the end of Xenoblade Chronicles 2. So why are both intact in the world of Xenoblade Chronicles 3?

What makes this even more interesting is that in a message from Executive Director Tetsuya Takahashi about Xenoblade Chronicles 3, he brings up this key visual as an important point and says that the image of the Mechonis sword alongside the wounded Urayan Titan was first thought up between the development of Xenoblade Chronicles and Xenoblade Chronicles 2.

So whatever this visual means, whatever this is all building up to, they actually had it in mind before they made Xenoblade Chronicles 2.

Knowing this has been planned for so long makes me even more excited for Xenoblade Chronicles 3. I’ve tried to cover everything we know about it at this point, but if I missed anything, let me know in the comments! Are you looking forward to Xenoblade Chronicles 3?

Mitsuda’s New Project Could Be Announced Next Month

 Video games  2 Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Jan 242022
 

Back in August, we talked about composer Yasunori Mitsuda’s work on an unknown project that felt consistent with rumors of an upcoming Xenoblade announcement.

Well, now the rumors have reason to fly once again.

In a recent tweet, Mitsuda said his new project could be revealed as early as next month.

Naturally, this has sparked new hopes of a Xenoblade Chronicles 3 announcement, especially since it’s common for a Nintendo Direct to be held in February.

Another popular possibility is the rumored Chrono Cross remaster, which I thought might be announced at the Game Awards due to how credible the rumors seemed at the time. Mitsuda was the composer for Chrono Cross, so it’s likely he’d be involved with a remaster.

That then ties into the rumors that there will be a State of Play in February.

So which will it be? A new Xenoblade game revealed at a Nintendo Direct, or a Chrono Cross remaster revealed at a State of Play? Of course, it could be neither, and since his tweet says it’s the earliest the project could be announced, it might not happen in February even if it is one of the two.

For that matter, it might not be a video game at all.

What do you think Mitsuda’s project is? Do you think we’ll get a Xenoblade announcement this year?

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