This article will contain ending spoilers for Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition and Xenoblade Chronicles 2. There will be no mentions of Xenoblade Chronicles X as it has only a loose connection to the series.
Though it was merely about two minutes long, the announcement trailer for Xenoblade Chronicles 3 was a lot to take in, especially for longtime fans of the series. The previous numbered titles in the Xenoblade series have been mostly self-contained stories with loose connections to each other, but the content of the trailer and a message from Tetsuya Takahashi, the executive director of the Xenoblade series, both make it very clear that the worlds of Xenoblade have collided. This is exemplified by the final image of the trailer: a large sword standing beside the corpse of a gargantuan whale. This is especially significant because the first Xenoblade and its sequel take place in parallel worlds. The two worlds coming together in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is foreshadowed by previous games in the series, and it has some huge implications for the future of Xenoblade.
The World of Aionios
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 takes place in the world of Aionios, home to two warring nations, Keves and Agnus. Keves seems to be made up of people from the first Xenoblade’s world, and Agnus is compromised of those from Xenoblade 2’s world. It is not yet clear why these two nations fight, but their conflict seems to have been neverending. The main cast is made up of six soldiers from both of these nations. From Keves, there is the protagonist Noah, accompanied by Lanz and Eunie. From Agnus, there the other protagonist Mio, aided by Taion and Sena. It appears that, under circumstances that have yet to be revealed, the six have come together to work toward a common goal.
The main cast of Xenoblade Chronicles 3. From left to right: Lanz, Noah, Eunie, Sena, Mio, and Taion.
Throughout the trailer, there are hints of landmarks from both of the original Xenoblade worlds, but none as significant the those at the end of the trailer, which is remarked upon by Takahashi in his Xenoblade Chronicles 3 introduction:
The key visual features a broken great sword of Mechonis and the body of the Urayan Titan with a gaping wound. I imagine everyone who saw the trailer was quite surprised by the final scene. What is this visual hinting at? I can’t reveal that just yet. What I can tell you is that this visual was conceived quite some time ago. More precisely speaking, we came up with it sometime between the end of development of Xenoblade Chronicles and the beginning of development of Xenoblade Chronicles 2. So, it’s not something we recently added to the series.
The key visuals for Xenoblade Chronicles and its sequel feature the Mechonis Titan and the Urayan Titan.
From this, it seems that, at least from a development standpoint, the merging of the two worlds was planned all along. It is important to note that the Mechonis and the Urayan Titans are heavily featured on the cover art for Xenoblade Chronicles and Xenoblade Chronicles 2, so to see these two specific elements come together as well as symbolic.
The Future that Alvis saw
The events of Xenoblade Chronicles 3 may have been hinted at as far back as the ending f the first game, probably as a way to set up any future stories. Shulk, the protagonist of the first Xenoblade, comes to wield a legendary weapon called the Monado, and with it, he is given the power to see the future. At the end of Xenoblade, it is revealed that Alvis, a mysterious figure who can see the future as well, turns out to be a personification of the Monado itself, an AI that played a part in creating Shulk’s world. Given a choice, Shulk uses the power of the Monado to create a new world, one without a need for gods. With his parting words, Alvis says,
Shulk. This new world is boundless. It is home to not only you, but many forms of life. I can see it. In this world, all life will walk towards the future hand in hand.
Alvis as tells Shulk of the future.
People of various races and cultures, coming together is a recurring theme in every title in the Xenoblade franchise. While they may even start as mortal enemies, most put their differences aside and work toward a common goal. This theme seems to continue into Xenoblade Chronicles 3. At the beginning of the new trailer, the protagonists Noah and Mio, as well as other members of the main party, are seen clashing with each other but eventually becoming allies for whatever reason. Though it is never explicitly stated in the trailer, one could guess that the goal of their party is to put an end to the ceaseless conflict so that the people of both Keves and Agnus can find peace with each other.
It is also worth noting that name for the world of Xenoblade 3, Aionios, is a Greek word meaning “without beginning or end” or in other words “boundless”. A boundless world resonates with Alvis’ message to Shulk, and even if the parallels are coincidental, it is definitely interesting.
Zanza, the Architect, and the Conduit
In the climax of Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Rex, the protagonist, meets Klaus, also known as the Architect, the supposed creator of the world of Alrest. However, Klaus is only half of a person; his left side is a black rift connecting him to his other personality, Zanza, the main antagonist of the first Xenoblade Chronicles. Klaus seems to be aware of Zanza’s existence and actions, though it is not known if the reverse is true. The story of how he ended up in this state is also the origin of the Xenoblade multiverse.
Half of Klaus exists as Zanza in another universe.
Before he became the Architect, Klaus was a scientist experimenting with something known as the Conduit, which can be simplified as a gateway to other dimensions. To monitor the Conduit, three AI were created, collectively named the Trinity Processor. In order to create a new universe, Klaus used the Trinity Processor to activate the Conduit, and while the experiment was technically a success, as it resulted in the creation of the first Xenoblade world, it split Klaus in two and caused the destruction of the old world, which would eventually become Alrest. Over time, the survivors of this world transformed into the Guldo, zombified monsters.
The Conduit is described as a metaverse manifold, whatever that means.
Klaus spends millennia watching over the Conduit and trying to make amends by recreating life in the world. Just after Rex and his party finally meet him, however, the Architect’s life had reached its end. We then learn that the stories of the first and second Xenoblade are unfolding concurrently. As Rex approaches his final confrontation, in the parallel universe, Shulk and company strike down Klaus’ other half, Zanza, and the Conduit vanishes along with Klaus. It is hard to say what the consequences of the Conduit’s sudden disappearance will have on the Xenoblade worlds in the future, but despite its absence, given the background of Xenoblade Chronicles 3, the link between the worlds seems to remain.
The Conduit disappears along with Klaus.
The Meaning of Future Connected
The idea that the Xenoblade universes were joining was incepted in Future Connected, an epilogue added to Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition. This expansion takes place one year after the ending of the original game and serves as closure for his ally Melia’s arc. It also set the stage for things to come. In Future Connected, a black rift has begun to open, and a creature made of black fog emerges. The creature, referred to as the Fog King, bears a vague resemblance to the Infernal Guldo, one of the zombified enemies from Xenoblade 2.
Infernal Guldo (left) shares some similarities with the Fog King (right) in both their appearance and their attacks.
In one of the “quiet moments” of the game, Shulk even says that the Fog King is completely “alien” to his world and there is too little that he knows about the rift. Melia responds by saying this:
Disaster… Complete ruin, inescapably looming over our future. I know not why… but that is the vague dread that I feel… when I consider the rift.
When a Xenoblade character begins talking about a terrible future, it usually means something.
Shulk reassures Melia that the future is uncertain, and they can try to change things for the better. Sure enough, by the end of Future Connected, they defeat the Fog King, close the rift, and loose ends are tied up. The story ends with Melia on her way to being coronated as the empress of the High Entia, but it also seems as if she become a leader for all people to turn to. However, if it was that simple, there would be no need for Future Connected. Melia was likely right to fear the rift, and it probably returned at some point in the future to lead to the events of Xenoblade Chronicles 3.
The rift floating above the city of Alcamoth was eventually closed, but no one knows why it appeared in the first place.
The Union of the Worlds
While it is still unknown what exactly caused the Xenoblade Blade universes to become one, whatever was is likely the source of conflict in Aionios. Still, all the fighting aside, it is a chance for many aspects of the Xenoblade franchise to integrate in ways that they could not have before now.
Nothing has been said about how much time has passed between the endings of the first two Xenoblade games and Xenoblade 3, but some characters are likely to make a comeback. Two masked individuals shown in the trailer bear striking resemblances to Melia and Nia from Xenoblade Chronicles and Xenoblade Chronicles 2, respectively. The thing is that both of these characters have the capacity to live several centuries longer than most of their allies, so there is a chance that they have outlived everyone Xenoblade fans are familiar with. Even if they are no longer around, there are likely to be references to Shulk, Rex, and others and the influence they had on their worlds.
The masked characters on the left are most likely Melia and Nia, who are shown on the right as they appear in Future Connected and Xenoblade Chronicles 2.
Then there is the world of Aionios itself. Based on the trailer, it seems that the geography of this new world is formed from the remnants of the previous Xenoblade worlds. The most obvious holdovers are the Mechonis Sword and what is left of the Uraya, but it also seems that there are pieces of Leftheria, the Mechonis’ Fallen Arm, and the Eryth Sea shaping the landscape. More exciting than returning to familiar locations is the prospect of exploring new places that would have been unreachable in the previous Xenoblade games.
This location in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 was called the Distant Fingertip in the original Xenoblade. The scenery in the background was once an empty ocean.
Finally, there is the Trinity Processor which utilized the Conduit. The Trinity was compromised of three AI: Pneuma, Logos, and Ontos. Pneuma is known to be Mythra and Pyra, the Aegis weapons of Rex, and Logos is Malos, the main antagonist of Xenoblade 2. Ontos disappeared when Klaus activated the Conduit, but it is widely believed to be Alvis, the Monado. Malos is long gone, but Pyra and Mythra, who were once one, now exist as separate entities. If these two and Alvis have survived by the time of Xenoblade 3, it would be interesting to see the Trinity united once again. Considering the crucial role that the Trinity plays in the stories of Xenoblade, it would be hard to picture Xenoblade 3 without them.
The Trinity Processor was originally part of a machine that used the Conduit’s power, but each of its three AIs became personified as Mythra/Pyra, Malos, and likely Alvis.
In the end, there seem to be several factors at play for why the separate universes have converged in Xenoblade Chronicles 3, with no simple or definite answer as to why just yet. At the very least, it will definitely make things more interesting. The two worlds of Xenoblade are individually massive, so to have their stories intertwine will elevate them to a grander scale than most could have ever imagined.
