It's obvious by now that Xenoblade Chronicles X is not a traditional sequel to Xenoblade
Chronicles.
Most expected that to be it for the original story of Shulk, the Monado, and everything
else.
Yet the Switch Presentation surprised us with Xenoblade Chronicles 2 featuring a brand new
cast in what seems to be a brand new world yet still connected to the original Xenoblade.
So it's time to break out the old Analysis Machine to see what secrets and hidden details
we can find!
But it's not working alone this time as we've reached out for some expert help.
I-I guess he's talking about me.
Um, ok, seriously!
Hey everybody, it's Chuggaaconroy!
I'm here to help Derrick out with this analysis.
Thank you so much for having me.
He reached out to me for some outside help because, well, the Analysis Machine is like
a helmet that hooks up to your brain.
Not directly because that sounds very painful, but it refuses to show its wielders spoilers
you see and Derrick has not finished the original Xenoblade Chronicles whereas I have.
So he reached out to me for some assistance and I am happy to provide it.
So thank you for having me and yes.
So what're we standing here like a bunch of jokers for?
Let's get started!
It all begins with a young man, likely our new protagonist stating that he's going
to Elysium for someone.
Elysium is not a location from the previous game.
This is something brand new.
However, it is a common term in classic literature, along with Elysian Fields, that refers to
a kind of paradise.
At face value, this is the only story we're really given from the trailer, but there are
moments where we can pull out something more.
But we'll dive into the story and characters proper a little later.
We next see the presumably new main character running toward a walled city that features
a vertical windmill.
There's a large building in the back next to some kind of tower with walls surrounding
all but the entrance.
We also see a few houses on the left which could denote it as the residential district
while the right side, near the entrance, seems relatively open meaning it might be a market
of some kind.
Also check out the building style.
It looks a lot like Colony 9, especially that big building on the left.
Looks a lot like the area around Dunban's house, the marketplace, that kind of thing.
You'll see what I mean if you compare that.
But what I find a lot more interesting is on this rock over to the right of the protagonist
outside of town is a Bunnit, a returning enemy that appeared, where else, but right outside
of Colony 9.
It's pretty likely that this is a Homs colony.
I was going to get that.
But you're right.
The city generally gives the vibe of Colony 9 and similar monsters drive that point home.
But let's look closer at the protagonist.
He's dressed mainly in blue and gold with mechanical components as part of his armor.
We can see a gauntlet on his arm, some kind of backpack, a tube at his waist, and metal
plates on his shoes.
Could all of this allow for exploration without fall damage and maybe tie in to how he fights?
That would make a lot of sense actually.
There was fall fall damage in the original Xenoblade Chronicles, but X got rid of it,
allowing you to jump a lot higher, allowing for better platforming, as well as fall greater
distances without having to worry about falling too far.
Just allowing for better exploration all the way around.
As for the backpack, I'm thinking it could be a helmet that he could easily flip onto
his head allowing him to explore underground or maybe even dive underwater, which would
be a series first.
Movement is definitely key here.
We actually get another look at the protagonist along with a short-haired girl, who we'll
get into later, in this piece of concept art.
Here, we can see an X-like symbol on his chest, near his neck.
It doesn't seem to be a scar and the red coloring of everything makes it hard to decipher
whether it's a tattoo or some other kind of marking.
But more important is the grappling hook on his arm.
Could this actually be used to climb to higher locations allowing for much easier upward
movement in the game?
As we'll see later, moving into the sky is a major visual motif of Xenoblade Chronicles
2.
I'm more shocked that they thought people would want to set this as their desktop background.
It's hurting my eyes just to look at it.
Let's just move on for now.
Right, we'll just return to this town which we get a slightly better view of as the camera
begins to pan.
It's covered by what seems to be a large tree, at least at first glance.
But this foliage covering the town isn't a tree.
We think they're actually roots.
We can see similar roots snaking down the rock wall on the left which are also covered
in leaves, just like the roots above the town.
There's even a normal tree here as comparison thanks to the few pine trees in the distance.
However, it's hard to tell just how tall those are.
Even more intriguing is how this rock wall that the roots are coming from seems to be
shifting as well.
It Iooks to just be one continuous piece of rock so how is it undulating like this?
Well, I'm not entirely sure, but my immediate thought upon realizing this was that the rock
wall is a living thing.
Where you see it shifting, there seems to be two horns where its head be.
Could this rock wall be at least part of some creature?
Boy, could you even imagine an enemy even bigger than what we saw in X?
That's...kinda insane.
But not out of the realm of possibility in Xenoblade Chronicles.
Let's continue on though as the scene changes to show the protagonist running toward the
camera, sword in hand, through what appears to be flaming wreckage.
Before we get to the sword itself, we want to mention how there's no sign of the X-like
scar near his neck that we saw in the earlier concept art.
And it's not even in the other concept art that's shown directly afterward.
So was this changed since then, or could he receive the scar at some point during the
game?
It's impossible to say for sure yet, but it's a distinct possibility.
We've gotta talk about that sword though.
It looks remarkably like the Monado with its red coloring and the energy blade.
The dialog even hints at this boy's goals, and how they may be tied to Elysium.
But here's a crazy idea for you.
At the very end of the trailer, we get a better look at this sword.
It's color is a distinct red and we can see that in contracts when the energy is not
in use.
There's also a green gem on the sword that is extremely important.
Chugga's right.
I mean, take a look at this scene from the trailer that focuses on a red-haired girl
standing amongst the flames.
Her clothes and hair are the exact same color red that the sword is.
Not only that but the green gem at her chest is the precise same shape as the one on the
sword, but it's also the same shape as the lifepods from Xenoblade Chronicles X.
The shape is likely just a cute reference similar to Lin's Monado hairpin in that
game.
But the presence of it on both this new sword and on the red-haired girl has some major
implications.
It's no coincidence that they look the same.
We think this game's Monado will be its own character, and she's it.
And there's actually more evidence of this in the trailer itself.
Throughout it, credits are shown with background elements.
Facial expressions behind the character designer and music sheets behind the composers, both
of which we'll get into in due time.
But right now, the final one is the most important.
This shows that Tetsuya Takahashi is once again the Executive Director after both the
original and X.
But behind this credit are script pages.
And thanks to Gessenkou on GameFAQs, it's possible to read these and get a sense of
the story.
The first page he translated features a character named Vandham, very likely a reference to
the fan favorite Commander from X.
In it, he's discussing the relationship between a Blade and a Driver with a character
called Rex.
Vandham explains that the Blade is immortal and will recover from injuries quickly unless
the core on their chest is destroyed or if the Blades' Driver dies.
Rex responds that Drivers must protect the Blades and so he will protect a girl named
Homura.
And right there it is.
Rex has to be the boy we assume is the protagonist and the
red-haired girl we saw must be Homura.
Homura seems to be pretty much immortal but for some reason she's unable to get to Elysium
by herself.
She needs Rex, who is considered her Driver.
And together they must protect one another.
If he dies, so will she.
And he cannot let the core on her chest be destroyed.
Perhaps in Elysium they'll be safe.
But more importantly this suggests that Homura IS the blade we see Rex wielding.
Somehow, she's able to change back and forth.
And it's his duty to get her to Elysium.
Of course, we don't know why, but we can definitely see that he's desperate to do
so.
That is why he's screaming to someone that he won't let them stand in her way.
It also provides more meaning to some of the concept art.
In one, we see Rex and Homura standing together, looking out over the clouds at a giant air
whale.
This also provides a better look at her outfit, which consists of socks that go over her knees,
short shorts, and a halter top with bug-like wings draping down through they're likely
just simple cloth.
More importantly, they're holding hands, showing the connection.But the next piece
of concept art shows the exact same scene except the artwork is more defined and Homura
is gone.
This is made all the stranger because Rex still appears to be holding her hand, almost
as if she was still there.
And with the new Monado in his other hand, she may still be.
Before we look at the other script pages though, let's return to the trailer itself, specifically
the scene revealing the Character Designer.
These are being done by Masatsugu Saito, who previously did character design work for Cyborg
009: Call of Justice and Expelled from Paradise.
As a strange connection, he also redesigned Celica for her inclusion in Fire Emblem Awakening's
DLC although the new Celica design for Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia is being
handled by Japanese illustrator Hidari.
In the background we see examples of his designs with three of the characters, including Rex
and Homura, displaying a range of emotions, whether it's happy, sad, or embarrassed.
But there's also a separate piece of concept art that better shows them off.
While it doesn't show anything new, we do get a better look at this new character, who
is quite obviously a catgirl.
This seems to be our main party so far though the catgirl is obviously not a Blade based
on her design.
So could she be another Driver?
Or is that exclusive to Rex?
We obviously don't know that yet, but we do see one thing that the
catgirl can do, ride a bigger cat!
It's definitely meant for this purpose thanks to the harness around it so there may be more
options for how characters can get around.
Or there's another, somewhat crazier idea.
We don't see Rex at all in this scene.
So that makes us think that either there will be sections where different characters are
featured, or the method of transportation changes depending on who leads the party.
Rex has his mechanical contraptions to get around.
Maybe this catgirl uses this large cat?
Either one seems pretty plausible, but let's look at the forest that she's in as well.
There's a fog in the distance making it relatively dark, but the path is lit up thanks
to special fruit that seem to naturally grow.
Could this be farther up the rock wall that we saw near the town?
The rocks, the grass, and the roots all seem pretty similar.
So we think this is at least somewhat nearby.
There's still one more character that we see that seems rather important though.
A blonde girl is standing next to a solitary tree looking out over the sky.
We're given a closer look to see that she's dressed just like Homura.
The same tiara is in her hair and the same green core is at her chest.
She is another Blade.
The question is, does she a Driver?
Could the catgirl be her Driver?
Or does she have another purpose.
We honestly don't know, but this, along with many other scenes clearly show that the
character designs are much more obviously anime-inspired than the previous Xenoblade
games.
Thankfully, the second page of the script translated by Gessenkou may shed a little
light on these new characters.
It seems to be more comedic in nature as three female characters, which includes Homura as
well girls named Nia and Hikari, are sharing a bath.
It's quite likely that this is the common hot springs trope seen in many animes.
The dialog even has Nia telling Hikari that she has a nice body.
It's nothing too major except we see that Nia has a bit of a mischievous streak.
But there are key points here.
Mischievous catgirls is another common trope in anime.
Plus the name Nia is much more Anglican, kind of like Rex.
So we think that Nia is the name of the catgirl.
Continuing on Hikari is a more traditional Japanese name, translating to light, just
like Homura, which translates to flame.
Fitting since we see Homura surrounded by fire while the blonde-haired Blade, who we
think is Hikari, is standing in light.
So this scene seems to imply that Hikari will be a member of your party.
The question remains though as to who her Driver may be and if she can become a sword,
what will it look like?
Questions for the future I suppose.
The final script page is the one Gessenkou had the most trouble reading.
It features a leader of something guiding people toward some kind of ancient ship entrance.
Nia is among those people along with characters named Shin and Metsu.
Unfortunately, there's more context to this scene except maybe implying a possible villain.
But it's so piecemeal that we can't say for certain.
Before we look at the rest of the trailer, we should look at the final credits image.
This shows that Yatsunori Mitsuda will be working on the music.
Some of his previous credits include Chrono Trigger, Xenogears, and the ending theme of
the original Xenoblade Chronicles.
We can also see that he composed the main theme of this game, which is a remixed version
of Yoko Shimomura's theme for the original.
Joining him are Tomori Kudo and ACE who previously worked as the composer for Xenoblade Chronicles
and Super Mario 3D World.
And finally there's returning composers Kenji Hiramatsu and Manami Kiyota.
Guess you can say the band's the back together!
There's still plenty more to see in the trailer though.
At one point, we see a massive airship above the clouds, and it almost looks to be a full-fledged
town based on its design.
It's kind of like a port with various small air whales docked along the edges and grips
holding them in place.
On top of the whales are compartments which is likely where the people who somehow pilot
them ride.
These whales look awfully similar to the whale that we see at the end of the trailer as well
as the concept art.
Could they actually be its offspring?
We're not sure, but it's a minor point nonetheless.
We can also see that people are walking along the bridge and other pathways on this airship.
And considering how small they appear, this thing is absolutely massive.
It's very likely a fully functioning city in the sky and we'll see more evidence of
this later on.
But for an even more impressive example of scale, we can see a tree in the background.
It stretches from below the clouds all the way to the top of the screen.
This is very likely the tree whose roots we saw near that other town.
Just as the original Xenoblade was focused around the Mechonis and Bionis, Xenoblade
Chronicles 2 seems primarily set around this massive tree and the sky surrounding it.
Perhaps Elysium is found at the very top.
Switching it up, we get a look at the market presumably inside this airship.
We can see pots, barrels, rugs, sacks, lights strung up with other decorations, and a wooden
floor.
But more importantly, we see that the Nopon are once again back.
This really isn't all that surprising and they're filling the typical role of shopkeepers.
Two more Nopon can be seen here, one near the stack of crates and rugs, and another
just before the scene cuts away.
On the other side of the pink Nopon seems to be a human shopkeeper although there's
no indication of what be sold here.
It's just more of a general bazaar.
However, there is a large door in the background on the catwalk.
Does this lead somewhere special like a kind of mini-game or is the decorated because this
is the entrance to the market?
There's much more to the airship of course.
Another scene takes place in some kind of factory or maybe the engine room.
We can see pipes all over and what may be power cells.
What's intriguing is that they're the same color as the cores on Homura and Hikari's
chest.
Is it possible that Blades are being used to power certain technology?
Or is it simply a coincidence?
Stranger still, the figures we see down below are not human.
They're more bird-like in nature.
Those are called Tirkins, which are another returning enemy from the original.
Why they're found on this airship, we're not sure.
Maybe it's so big that monsters got in as well, kind of like a rat infestation on old
sailing ships.
Either way, their presence could hint at a returning combat element.
Before, the Tirkin's gimmick was that they could perform Chain Attacks.
And considering that we can see them in a circle in the background, that ability has
likely returned.
However, that also means that Rex and the rest of his party can also use Chain Attacks
once again.
The final scene shows the tree once again.
We don't know what's below the clouds, and it stretches beyond what we can see.
Yet there are branches and leaves on the side which, given the scale, might be perfectly
fine to walk on and explore.
However there's more land than just this tree as the camera pulls back to show Rex
looking out over it with his sword.
Is he standing on a tall mountain or could there be patches of floating islands?
There's just so much potential.
And the world is going to be big.
We see the air whale rise up through the clouds again simply showing the sheer scale of it
all.
For as big as it is, this tree is higher.
With how much of a focus it has, we do believe it has to be climbed to reach Elysium.
But what is Elysium?
What are Rex, Homura, and others trying to find there?
Who could possibly be trying to stop them?
Could this tie into Xenoblade Chronicles' ending?
Will Adam Howden return to voice a character?
And how will the combat change and evolve since the original and X?
We obviously have a lot of questions, but we're both super excited to see more of
Xenoblade Chronicles 2.
For now though, that's everything we could find in its reveal trailer.
Will it actually come out in 2017?
We'd be surprised.
Until then, we'll be there to cover it all.
But if we missed anything, make sure to let us know in the comments.
And thank you Chugga for helping us out!
Where can they find you at?
Of course, thanks for watching and be sure to subscribe to GameXplain for more on Xenoblade
Chronicles and other things gaming.
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