Nintendo reveals trailer for Xenoblade Chronicles 3 in latest Direct

Tuesday’s Nintendo Direct revealed that the newest game in the Xenoblade franchise, Xenoblade Chronicles 3, will be released in September of 2022. During the Nintendo Direct, fans were treated to a new two-minute trailer that showed the new characters and the world of Ionis.

With a brand-new story that ties together the futures of the worlds depicted in Xenoblade Chronicles and Xenoblade Chronicles 2, #XenobladeChronicles 3 will launch for #NintendoSwitch this September! pic.twitter.com/L819GIF9gI

— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) February 9, 2022

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 trailer revealed in latest Nintendo Direct

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 will be the third installment in the Xenoblade Chronicles franchise. The trailer makes several references to past games, inferring that it will take place in the same universe as Xenoblade Chronicles 1 and 2. The main character, Noah, is shown wielding a Monado-like sword that looks just like the one that Shulk wields in Xenoblade Chronicles 1. The second character revealed in the trailer, Mio, looks like Nia from Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and wields the same type of weapon.

The enemies in the game seem to be a call back to the Mechon from Xenoblade Chronicles 1, as large, towering mechanical beings that seek only to destroy.

As a final reference to the previous games in the trailer, the Mechonis Sword from Xenoblade Chronicles 1 is also seen in the background several times. In the final frame of the trailer, the Mechonis Sword lies next to the body of a decaying Titan from Xenoblade Chronicles 2. These two additions Imply that the story takes place after the events of Xenoblade Chronicles 1 and 2.

Following the Nintendo Direct, the publisher provided more information about the setting and confirmed the game will “connect the futures of both Xenoblade Chronicles and Xenoblade Chronicles 2.”

“Players will step into the roles of protagonists Noah and Mio amid turmoil between the hostile nations of Keves and Agnus,” Nintendo said in a statement. “Six characters hailing from those nations will take part in a grand tale with ‘life’ as its central theme.”

The third entry in the Xenoblade Chronicles franchise by MONOLITHSOFT will be the first installment by the studio since 2017.