Many new details about Xenoblade Chronicles 3 have been revealed as part of a special Nintendo Direct. From the basic cast of six characters to their battle skills and the world in which they live, here’s everything we’ve learned today.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 – Main characters
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is set in a world ravaged by conflict between two nations; Agnus and Keves. The six main characters are initially two sides of opposing sides of this conflict, but soon realize that they share a common destiny and must work together to defeat the real enemy.
The first party consists of: Noah, a brave off-seer; the cheeky and forceful Eunie; and Lanz, a stout fight. His initial opponents are the kind and compassionate Mio; the tactical battle genius, Taion; and Sena, a tiny person with a lot of strength.
After uniting, the six fight as a group in their quest to reach Swordmarch, a land traversed by a huge stone sword.
Next to these main characters is a list of heroes, who act as the seventh member of your group. While you can recruit a large number of heroes, only one can be in your group at any one time. Many showed up at the Direct, such as Ashera, Valdi, Riku and Manana, Fiona, Alexandria and Gray. Few details were offered on what they bring, but the Heroes have their own specialties. Valdi, for example, is a war doctor, while Alexandria is a raider who can inflict more critical blows.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Battle System and Classes
All Xenoblade Chronicles 3 characters fit into a classic RPG-class trinity: attackers, defenders, and healers. But within these broad categories are more specific classes. Examples offered by Direct include the Wordfighter, which is a well-balanced attacker who leads the fight; the Zephyr, a defense specialist who can evade and counter enemy attacks; the Medic Gunner, who can restore allies and strengthen skills remotely; the Tactical, which disturbs enemies and supports allies with paper talismans; the Heavy Guard, which uses massive weapons to defend allies and draw aggression; and the Ogre, who can crush enemy defenses.
Each character can switch between classes and it is recommended that each character in the group learn several classes to allow for a complete team.
Classes allow characters to use Arts; special abilities that are assigned to the buttons on the face of the switch. Join Arts creates combos and adapts to a system in which you break and knock down enemies before throwing them into the air and then knocking them to the ground. Chaining attacks together is a surefire way to devastate enemies.
Fusion Arts takes this system to the next level, allowing you to combine two different arts in a single attack.
The Xenoblade Chronicles 3 battle system is real-time and you can switch freely between group members at any time. So far, at least from the Direct images, it looks like a pretty sleek and fun system.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 – Ouroboros Interlinking
By far, Direct’s most interesting revelation is Interlinking; a skill that allows two members of the group to merge into a mech / creature / Evangelion-like thing called Ouroboros. Character-specific pairs can do this, and depending on which character is chosen to be the dominant mind of the pair, the abilities of a Ouroboros can change. As such, you will want to choose the right “pilot” for the task. The link is only a temporary deal, so you’ll need to get the most out of your Ouroboros before the timer runs out, but they can be combined with chain attacks to create very damaging combos.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 – Expansion walk and collector’s edition
Direct also announced an Expansion Pass, which will cost $ 29.99 / £ 26.99. A new storyline is included, which will be released in late 2023. At launch, the pass will add “useful items” and dress color variants. By the end of 2022, a new battle of challenges, new heroes and missions and new costumes will also have been added. And by the end of April 2023, another new battle, hero, mission and costume challenge is also expected to arrive.
When Xenoblade Chronicles 3 launches on July 29, a collector’s edition will be available that includes an art book and a SteelBook case. It’s exclusive to the My Nintendo Store, so stay tuned to the website for pre-orders.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 was first announced earlier this year on Nintendo Direct in February 2022. It is the sequel to the beloved Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and, while set in the future of the world represented in previous games, includes a new cast and story.
Matt Purslow is the UK news and feature editor.