a good chunk of this dlc campaign for me was the xenoblade version of that short scene in dragon ball super where goku is reenacting his fight with grandpa gohan, and as a whole it is most easily described as the devil may cry 5 of xenoblade. whether that is a good thing or not is up to you, but i fucking loved it.
future redeemed is cheesy shonen bullshit fanservice in the absolute best way possible, at least for my tastes. it does a great job at wrapping up the trilogy established by xenoblade and i hardly have any issues with it. the fanservice is definitely laid on thick to a point i feel others might find grating, but the strengths of 3 carry over here and it's overall very enjoyable to me.
i think my favorite aspect of it, like with 3, is the character writing. matthew is a contender for my favorite main character in the franchise. everything about him appeals to me so laser pointedly, can't help but smile whenever he's on screen. A isn't exactly my thing on her own but they're pretty and i think their dynamic with matthew works really well. nikol and glimmer are also pretty good, although a bit shafted in the middle portions of the campaign but i think regardless they come together to form a cohesive group that i enjoy seeing.
finishing off that cohesive group are the protagonists of the first two games, shulk and rex. shulk is one of my favorite video game characters and the way he's portrayed here makes me super happy. applying 3's great character writing to a really good understanding of an older more mature shulk is done so fucking well. i think shulk's outing here has me more excited for whatever takahashi has cooking next than anything else. more impressively though, it made downright hype when rex of all characters showed up, who i couldn't stand to see in his own game. he's also a standout character throughout the dlc, which is half me just finding corny characters irritating when theyre also young and half rex being a lot better of a character without his wives around.
a bit of an issue i had with 3 that others seemed to have way more of an issue with is the environments, and i actually really like the environments that show up in future redeemed. like most of the dlc it's very fanservicey, but it works well and i like it quite a bit more than what we see in 3's world. there's some really interesting set pieces used later on too, which are genuinely kinda crazy to see in xenoblade of all games.
the finale in general i think is very strong and it feels like more of a finale for xenoblade than the final boss of 3 which was probably the point. despite taking place before the end of 3 everything about the way the dlc ends feels so much more final and satisfying. 3's ending (in isolation) is really great i think, but it just doesn't work the best as an ending to the trilogy for me the more i dwell on it.
xenoblade chronicles 3 future redeemed is a spectacular ending to one of the all time greats of jrpgs. even if you aren't a fan of 1, 2, or even 3 the game does a really good job to make the content tied to them endearing. i specifically am a massive hater of xenoblade 2 and even the fan service for that game made me smile like a bit of an idiot. the story is cheesy and honestly a little dumb but it's carried so hard by how endearing and genuine it all is. the dlc feels like a real love letter to all that came before it in a way that few series are confident enough to do, let alone do as well as is done here, and i'm really excited to see what takahashi does next.
future redeemed is cheesy shonen bullshit fanservice in the absolute best way possible, at least for my tastes. it does a great job at wrapping up the trilogy established by xenoblade and i hardly have any issues with it. the fanservice is definitely laid on thick to a point i feel others might find grating, but the strengths of 3 carry over here and it's overall very enjoyable to me.
i think my favorite aspect of it, like with 3, is the character writing. matthew is a contender for my favorite main character in the franchise. everything about him appeals to me so laser pointedly, can't help but smile whenever he's on screen. A isn't exactly my thing on her own but they're pretty and i think their dynamic with matthew works really well. nikol and glimmer are also pretty good, although a bit shafted in the middle portions of the campaign but i think regardless they come together to form a cohesive group that i enjoy seeing.
finishing off that cohesive group are the protagonists of the first two games, shulk and rex. shulk is one of my favorite video game characters and the way he's portrayed here makes me super happy. applying 3's great character writing to a really good understanding of an older more mature shulk is done so fucking well. i think shulk's outing here has me more excited for whatever takahashi has cooking next than anything else. more impressively though, it made downright hype when rex of all characters showed up, who i couldn't stand to see in his own game. he's also a standout character throughout the dlc, which is half me just finding corny characters irritating when theyre also young and half rex being a lot better of a character without his wives around.
a bit of an issue i had with 3 that others seemed to have way more of an issue with is the environments, and i actually really like the environments that show up in future redeemed. like most of the dlc it's very fanservicey, but it works well and i like it quite a bit more than what we see in 3's world. there's some really interesting set pieces used later on too, which are genuinely kinda crazy to see in xenoblade of all games.
the finale in general i think is very strong and it feels like more of a finale for xenoblade than the final boss of 3 which was probably the point. despite taking place before the end of 3 everything about the way the dlc ends feels so much more final and satisfying. 3's ending (in isolation) is really great i think, but it just doesn't work the best as an ending to the trilogy for me the more i dwell on it.
xenoblade chronicles 3 future redeemed is a spectacular ending to one of the all time greats of jrpgs. even if you aren't a fan of 1, 2, or even 3 the game does a really good job to make the content tied to them endearing. i specifically am a massive hater of xenoblade 2 and even the fan service for that game made me smile like a bit of an idiot. the story is cheesy and honestly a little dumb but it's carried so hard by how endearing and genuine it all is. the dlc feels like a real love letter to all that came before it in a way that few series are confident enough to do, let alone do as well as is done here, and i'm really excited to see what takahashi does next.
Monolith Soft has made the best DLC content ever in my opinion. This thing is so deep, I had a blast playing it and every aspect of it is pretty much perfect. I love Xenoblade man.
Just, wow.
Thank you, Takahashi. For everything.
An excellent addition to XB3's package, similar to how Torna compliments XB2 and an excellent wait to conclude the Xenoblade trilogy. Not gonna rate this since XB3 ranks as one of my favorites already and this just acts as more of that but in a more contained, succinct packaged. Although, it's a bit of a wilder and more complicated narrative this time around, especially if you've seen the trailers and promos regarding who's joined alongside our DLC protagonist Matthew. There's not too much I wanna say since it's just an expansion but it's made me really excited for whatever project Monolith has next.
There's a bunch of neat goodies that FR adds that might be a bit distracting from the usual Xenoblade fare but the collectathon-like nature of filling the enemypaedia , each of the collectibles and the community is pretty addictive. You needed to fill out the community portion of Torna to beat the game but here I just really felt like I needed to get that checked off. Main issue in this regard is just how monotonous talking to everyone in the colony gets but otherwise you get some good rewards out of the quests.
I am gonna need Monolith to make it so that you can keep your weapon sheathed out in the field
While I did enjoy the class changing aspect of XB3 it did need some ironing out with regards to balance/intrigue, especially as a lot of the cooler classes came much, much later- I am glad that doesn't show up whatsoever here. Each of the party members retains a clear role of <<<Fast DPS/ Crit DPS, Main Healer/AOE Support and Basic Tank/Dodge Tank>>>? making it pretty hard to worry about whether or not your party build is off, all you need to manage is equips, arts and some bonus customizables.
Also while I was fine with the final stretch of XB3 I'd be lying if I didn't say it lacked a certain punch that 2 did, climbing up the world tree. While a much shorter stretch obviously, I do think the ascent up the Black Mountains onto Prison Island is such a cooler final segment.
Overall there isn’t too much I wanna say, it's just a great culmination of the last 3 games on top of the Xeno series as a whole. I'm looking forward to seeing what Gears/Saga/(I dont even know how to start X) hold, as well as whatever comes after this.
Matthew is also really cool, man.
There's a bunch of neat goodies that FR adds that might be a bit distracting from the usual Xenoblade fare but the collectathon-like nature of filling the enemypaedia , each of the collectibles and the community is pretty addictive. You needed to fill out the community portion of Torna to beat the game but here I just really felt like I needed to get that checked off. Main issue in this regard is just how monotonous talking to everyone in the colony gets but otherwise you get some good rewards out of the quests.
I am gonna need Monolith to make it so that you can keep your weapon sheathed out in the field
While I did enjoy the class changing aspect of XB3 it did need some ironing out with regards to balance/intrigue, especially as a lot of the cooler classes came much, much later- I am glad that doesn't show up whatsoever here. Each of the party members retains a clear role of <<<Fast DPS/ Crit DPS, Main Healer/AOE Support and Basic Tank/Dodge Tank>>>? making it pretty hard to worry about whether or not your party build is off, all you need to manage is equips, arts and some bonus customizables.
Also while I was fine with the final stretch of XB3 I'd be lying if I didn't say it lacked a certain punch that 2 did, climbing up the world tree. While a much shorter stretch obviously, I do think the ascent up the Black Mountains onto Prison Island is such a cooler final segment.
Overall there isn’t too much I wanna say, it's just a great culmination of the last 3 games on top of the Xeno series as a whole. I'm looking forward to seeing what Gears/Saga/(I dont even know how to start X) hold, as well as whatever comes after this.
Matthew is also really cool, man.
Every time I have to remind someone what my pronouns are, I want Rex to walk in and explain what being Non-Binary means.
100% Clear - Story Clear, All Locations and Landmarks, Community Entries, Side Quests, Field Crafts, Survivors Rescued, Containers, Enemypaedia, Collectipaedia, Superbosses, Gem Upgrades, Weapon Upgrades, Upgrade Kits, Manuals, Recipies, LVL 99
I thought the series couldn't get any better after the ending of Xenoblade Chronicles 3 but here we are with MonolithSoft proving me wrong again. This story is the perfect amount of fanservice, with amazing new systems that enhance the Xenoblade experience. If this is really the end of this erea of Xeno, then it is the perfect way to end it
PLAY THIS WHOLE SERIES IF YOU HAVEN'T
I thought the series couldn't get any better after the ending of Xenoblade Chronicles 3 but here we are with MonolithSoft proving me wrong again. This story is the perfect amount of fanservice, with amazing new systems that enhance the Xenoblade experience. If this is really the end of this erea of Xeno, then it is the perfect way to end it
PLAY THIS WHOLE SERIES IF YOU HAVEN'T
tetsuya takahashi ruined my life
There is so much to say about this game, I honestly don't know how to properly start.
So firstly, let's talk about the battle system, it is pretty much the same as in Xenoblade 3, there are some slight changes but at the end it is just as good as in Xenoblade 3, you are a bit more restricted in what you can do, but that is completely fine for the shorter length of the game.
Next I'd like to talk about the exploration, just like in the other Xenoblade games the world design is excellent, and you can't stop looking at these wonderful areas. I really enjoyed exploring every little place and collecting all the items for the collectopedia. Tho, it can be a bit annoying finding certain items, like those with that you can unlock a new gem slot.
The music is again perfect, for example I totally couldn't stop listening to Aurora Shelf, its so good, like how is it possible to always make such good music for these games? Not to forget the ending theme, which really brought tears to my eyes.
Oh, by the way, they fixed Tornas major problem, the Community System! Now, it won't lock you out to progress the story if you don't do all the side quests. I had way more fun to complete this Community System, than in Torna. The side content is in general smaller than in Torna, both games have pretty much the same amount of content, but Future Redeemed has more content and focus with the Main Story.
Furthermore, I have to talk about the characters, just like in Xenoblade 2, Xenoblade 2: Torna - The Golden Country and Xenoblade 3, this game has awesome and likeable characters. My favorites were probably Matthew, Glimmer and of course Rex and Shulk, but honestly all characters are great. Because of the shorter length of the game, they don't have the time to flesh the characters out like in the Main Game, but they did a very good job here, just like in Torna. If you played the other Xenoblade games, there are great moments with the characters.
You also should play at least all the other numbered Xenoblade games before this, you definitely will get the most out of this, if you play this as the last one.
Talking about the story, it was very good and everything I wished for, but also there were things I would've never expected to be in this game. I'm not going to spoil anything, you really should experience it yourself. I at least wasn't at all disappointed with this story.
Lastly, let's talk about the future of the Xeno games, and there is honsetly a lot to talk about. But I still don't want to spoil anything so, let's just say that this game opened a lot of questions concerning the series, while answering pretty much most of the questions there were left for the trilogy. The Future will be very interesting, and fans of the old Xeno games should have a pretty good guess about the next Saga.
I love this game and together with Xenoblade 3 it is one of my favorite games, I can't recommend this series enough, if you love amazing characters, mind blowing stories and games made with passion and love, then Xenogears, Xenosaga and Xenoblade is for you!
Thank you Tetsuya Takahashi and every person from the team of Monolithsoft for making these wonderful games.
(And thanks to Soraya Saga for creating Xenogears and Xenosaga together with Takahashi, sadly she isn't there anymore with Xenoblade and the last Xeno game she worked on was Xenosaga Pied Piper, but she is for sure one of my favorite story and characters writer. Hope she will return for the series in the future!)
So firstly, let's talk about the battle system, it is pretty much the same as in Xenoblade 3, there are some slight changes but at the end it is just as good as in Xenoblade 3, you are a bit more restricted in what you can do, but that is completely fine for the shorter length of the game.
Next I'd like to talk about the exploration, just like in the other Xenoblade games the world design is excellent, and you can't stop looking at these wonderful areas. I really enjoyed exploring every little place and collecting all the items for the collectopedia. Tho, it can be a bit annoying finding certain items, like those with that you can unlock a new gem slot.
The music is again perfect, for example I totally couldn't stop listening to Aurora Shelf, its so good, like how is it possible to always make such good music for these games? Not to forget the ending theme, which really brought tears to my eyes.
Oh, by the way, they fixed Tornas major problem, the Community System! Now, it won't lock you out to progress the story if you don't do all the side quests. I had way more fun to complete this Community System, than in Torna. The side content is in general smaller than in Torna, both games have pretty much the same amount of content, but Future Redeemed has more content and focus with the Main Story.
Furthermore, I have to talk about the characters, just like in Xenoblade 2, Xenoblade 2: Torna - The Golden Country and Xenoblade 3, this game has awesome and likeable characters. My favorites were probably Matthew, Glimmer and of course Rex and Shulk, but honestly all characters are great. Because of the shorter length of the game, they don't have the time to flesh the characters out like in the Main Game, but they did a very good job here, just like in Torna. If you played the other Xenoblade games, there are great moments with the characters.
You also should play at least all the other numbered Xenoblade games before this, you definitely will get the most out of this, if you play this as the last one.
Talking about the story, it was very good and everything I wished for, but also there were things I would've never expected to be in this game. I'm not going to spoil anything, you really should experience it yourself. I at least wasn't at all disappointed with this story.
Lastly, let's talk about the future of the Xeno games, and there is honsetly a lot to talk about. But I still don't want to spoil anything so, let's just say that this game opened a lot of questions concerning the series, while answering pretty much most of the questions there were left for the trilogy. The Future will be very interesting, and fans of the old Xeno games should have a pretty good guess about the next Saga.
I love this game and together with Xenoblade 3 it is one of my favorite games, I can't recommend this series enough, if you love amazing characters, mind blowing stories and games made with passion and love, then Xenogears, Xenosaga and Xenoblade is for you!
Thank you Tetsuya Takahashi and every person from the team of Monolithsoft for making these wonderful games.
(And thanks to Soraya Saga for creating Xenogears and Xenosaga together with Takahashi, sadly she isn't there anymore with Xenoblade and the last Xeno game she worked on was Xenosaga Pied Piper, but she is for sure one of my favorite story and characters writer. Hope she will return for the series in the future!)
Made me feel full of beans.
At this point I know I'm not objective, but this dlc was everything I hoped for and even more. It's the perfect way to end this story Arc, with a little tear at the edge of the eye.
It's hard to be objective when a game feels like it was tailor-made specifically for you, so I won't even try. This is probably the most fun I'll have with any game this year, and I enjoyed every minute from start to end. It's pure fanservice for any Xenoblade fan, which also means I can't recommend playing it if you haven't played the others, but that's just fine, as this is pretty much the epilogue of the series. All of the characters were likable and had a fun dynamic with each other, and seeing Shulk and Rex as middle-aged adults who act like proud fathers all the time plastered a permanent smile on my face.
I especially want to highlight the gameplay, as it really improved upon what Xenoblade 3 had established (which was already very good). Upgrading your character's abilities is now directly tied to completing Affinity Missions, which are a variety of tasks that encourage the player to engage with the world; such as completing the collectopedia (yes, it's back for real this time!) by picking up the items on the ground, or the enemypedia, which is a similar concept but for defeating 1-3 members of each enemy in the world, building ladders, ziplines, and other infrastructure, finding landmarks and secret areas, etc. I would love to see this feature in other open world or exploration-based games, just because it keeps the game engaging long after the main campaign has been finished. The Community is back from Torna, but no longer locks story progress behind itself, and lets the player complete it at their leisure. While I don't think it adds as much charm to the world as the NPC relationship chart (pretty much a staple of the series a this point), it's definitely more akin to the Bombers' Notebook from Majora's Mask, and it's very satisfying to complete as you make people happier.
Saying I feel like I've fallen in love with Xenoblade all over again basically sums everything up.
I especially want to highlight the gameplay, as it really improved upon what Xenoblade 3 had established (which was already very good). Upgrading your character's abilities is now directly tied to completing Affinity Missions, which are a variety of tasks that encourage the player to engage with the world; such as completing the collectopedia (yes, it's back for real this time!) by picking up the items on the ground, or the enemypedia, which is a similar concept but for defeating 1-3 members of each enemy in the world, building ladders, ziplines, and other infrastructure, finding landmarks and secret areas, etc. I would love to see this feature in other open world or exploration-based games, just because it keeps the game engaging long after the main campaign has been finished. The Community is back from Torna, but no longer locks story progress behind itself, and lets the player complete it at their leisure. While I don't think it adds as much charm to the world as the NPC relationship chart (pretty much a staple of the series a this point), it's definitely more akin to the Bombers' Notebook from Majora's Mask, and it's very satisfying to complete as you make people happier.
Saying I feel like I've fallen in love with Xenoblade all over again basically sums everything up.
LET TAKAHASHI COOK. If this wasn't a DLC it would be my GOTY, but because it technically isn't a full game I'm not calling it that. Amazing conclusion to the story started with XC1, and an amazing expansion of the lore for Xenoblade 3, and Xenoblade as a whole, plus banger OSTs and a great take on 3's combat. I love the aged up old characters, along with the new ones! A will have my heart forever.
I gotta admit, I was a little burnt out on XBC3 when I went into this, so I was a little worried once I started it. Imagine my surprise when not even 20 minutes in, I was already incredibly invested, and by the end, I didn't want it to be over. Future Redeemed takes every system that works from XBC3 and builds upon them in such a fun and satisfying way that it makes the gameplay loop maybe the most enjoyable in the entire series. Playing as Rex is quite possibly the most fun I've had in a JRPG, Double Spinning Edge is one hell of a drug. In terms of story, I gotta hand it to FR for being able to weave bits and pieces from all 3 XBC games, alongside nods to Xenosaga and Xenogears, and do it all so coheasively, its an enjoyable tale all the way through. FR doesn't add too much new music, but the pieces it does have all stand out extremely well, with the Final Boss theme in particular being absolutely insane. My last big praise for FR is its length, because it genuinely feels like the perfect length, its not too long nor too short, I never felt like my interest was fading, it really nailed that sweet spot. In conclusion, I'm feeling full of beans and I need XBC4 stat.
This review contains spoilers
I've been a massive fan of Xenoblade since about 2012, playing the first one on the Wii, getting the New 3DS just to play it again to completion, and then getting through 1, 2 and 3 on the Switch and sinking hundreds and hundreds of hours in the different worlds, and for reference, my ranking of the three games goes XC1 being the top, XC2 close behind, and XC3, while quite good, was a fair bit disappointing. Nonetheless, I was ready for Future Redeemed to be a satisfying ending to the saga... And it kind of was?
The gameplay was great and held up extremely well in that regard. The world was fun to explore, the combat was good 'ol Xenoblade combat, mostly built off of 3, as expected. There was a lot to do in the world, keeping up again, in XC3 fashion, taking a lot of locations from 1 and 2 and splicing it together, and it was a great trip of fanservice. Seeing Colony 9 again was the highlight of the game, being able to walk around it once more was something that felt extremely nostalgic. The gameplay was so good that I planned on 100% completing the game. But then I saw the monsters that were level 90 and 100, and considering I finished the game at level 59, I figured I'd just... not do that. I'm content with my 95-100% across-the-board.
The new and most of the old characters in Future Redeemed were all great, and seeing these worlds collide in a greater way than we did in base 3 is something I've been waiting for for a long time. And it may be selfish of me, but I felt it wasn't enough in that regard. I wanted to see more than Rex and Shulk, but that realistically has little bearing overall. (Besides Poppi. We saw her in the end of XC3, and we should have seen her here.) Matthew was a great protag, and A was a lovely addition, their dynamic is peak. Seeing Shulk and Rex interact with Glimmer and Nikol was also a great highlight of the game. Thus far, I've really only got positive things to say. Future Redeemed feels near perfect. But there is one last aspect, that to me, was quite disappointing.
The Story. Future Redeemed takes place before the events of 3, and it's quite apparent from the start. And from the start, the story is quite good, and is character driven for a good majority of it, and a majority of the characters are quite good. Buuuuuuuuuuuuut the area that the story fails to me, is regarding the antagonists (and a couple other small bits but we'll get there.). Alpha and N both feel like super weak antagonists, with very little keeping them compelling, something I felt regarding N and Z in XC3. I don't feel like I have much to even say about them N is N, and Alpha is just kind of an entity that is there. The story gets quite rushed in the end and it doesn't feel like they took proper time to develop more on Alpha and N in this current time period. The story feels quite rushed overall, and though being filled with a lot of incredible references, with many I didn't catch, I felt like it didn't spend enough time developing characters, Glimmer and Nikol feeling like they needed something more for their story. (And as an aside, I wasn't a fan of Glimmer and Nikol just beating Rex and Shulk despite their heavy lack of experience. It does help that they've been fighting a war for most of their lives, but it still doesn't sit right with me.). Despite Future Redeemed seeming to be the end of the Xenoblade Saga, or at least the Klaus Saga, I felt like it left me wanting more answers, feeling like there was more I should have been able to do and see, and overall left me fairly dissatisfied. Onto the next Saga. ;)
The gameplay was great and held up extremely well in that regard. The world was fun to explore, the combat was good 'ol Xenoblade combat, mostly built off of 3, as expected. There was a lot to do in the world, keeping up again, in XC3 fashion, taking a lot of locations from 1 and 2 and splicing it together, and it was a great trip of fanservice. Seeing Colony 9 again was the highlight of the game, being able to walk around it once more was something that felt extremely nostalgic. The gameplay was so good that I planned on 100% completing the game. But then I saw the monsters that were level 90 and 100, and considering I finished the game at level 59, I figured I'd just... not do that. I'm content with my 95-100% across-the-board.
The new and most of the old characters in Future Redeemed were all great, and seeing these worlds collide in a greater way than we did in base 3 is something I've been waiting for for a long time. And it may be selfish of me, but I felt it wasn't enough in that regard. I wanted to see more than Rex and Shulk, but that realistically has little bearing overall. (Besides Poppi. We saw her in the end of XC3, and we should have seen her here.) Matthew was a great protag, and A was a lovely addition, their dynamic is peak. Seeing Shulk and Rex interact with Glimmer and Nikol was also a great highlight of the game. Thus far, I've really only got positive things to say. Future Redeemed feels near perfect. But there is one last aspect, that to me, was quite disappointing.
The Story. Future Redeemed takes place before the events of 3, and it's quite apparent from the start. And from the start, the story is quite good, and is character driven for a good majority of it, and a majority of the characters are quite good. Buuuuuuuuuuuuut the area that the story fails to me, is regarding the antagonists (and a couple other small bits but we'll get there.). Alpha and N both feel like super weak antagonists, with very little keeping them compelling, something I felt regarding N and Z in XC3. I don't feel like I have much to even say about them N is N, and Alpha is just kind of an entity that is there. The story gets quite rushed in the end and it doesn't feel like they took proper time to develop more on Alpha and N in this current time period. The story feels quite rushed overall, and though being filled with a lot of incredible references, with many I didn't catch, I felt like it didn't spend enough time developing characters, Glimmer and Nikol feeling like they needed something more for their story. (And as an aside, I wasn't a fan of Glimmer and Nikol just beating Rex and Shulk despite their heavy lack of experience. It does help that they've been fighting a war for most of their lives, but it still doesn't sit right with me.). Despite Future Redeemed seeming to be the end of the Xenoblade Saga, or at least the Klaus Saga, I felt like it left me wanting more answers, feeling like there was more I should have been able to do and see, and overall left me fairly dissatisfied. Onto the next Saga. ;)
I was a mess leading up to this and after I beat it, I cannot believe the story is over am in shambles
godlike
godlike
If you look like A please ruin my life.
What a load of shit, if I could give 0 stars I would. I only liked some of the character interactions, the story was stupid and had no substance. I don't see how it can be the ending to a trilogy when its a prequel to a game that leaves the player with more questions than answers. Xenoblade 1 didn't even leave you with questions that really needed to be answered, it was a complete story that didn't need a franchise tacked onto it. Games like this are what ruin the image of Xenoblade. Additionally, nothing was explained outside of lore dump monologues that were hard to keep up with, and the characters are shallow husks with little emotion. The only redeeming factor regarding characters were Shulk and Rex.
When a fucking 10 hour story DLC has a better exploration system and a more satisfying story and conclusion than the full price base game 💀
Welcome back KOS-MOS.
The single best piece of DLC I have ever experienced in my life which elevates the base game and even the entire series to insane heights, easily makes XC3 the best piece of media I have ever consumed. No review for this one you need to EXPERIENCE it. A love letter to everything the entire Xeno- series stands for from start to finish, an absolute masterpiece in every way.
I am sorry for ever once doubting you, Mr. Takahashi
best xenoblade game
The ultimate celebration and culmination of not just Xenoblade, but the entire Xeno series as a whole.
I've never been more excited to see where a series goes next in my life
I've never been more excited to see where a series goes next in my life
It's kind of poetic that this came out in April, since it was April 2022 when I first started my Xenoblade journey. It's been just one year since I played through Xenoblade Definitive Edition and, after playing 2, Torna, 3, and now this, I can call this series one of my favorites of all time. Honestly, after Future Redeemed I have to genuinely consider the possibility of Xenoblade Chronicles 3 being my favorite game of all time, a prospect that I haven't had to think about since, what, 2010? That's insane.
Everything about this is beautiful. It not only gives fans an endless supply of tasteful nods to past characters and events, but it also pays respect to the characters in a way I could only dream of. Seriously, every character - even the ones we don't see on screen - are given the closure that they needed given the writing of previous games. The magnitude of this is unbelievable to me; few directors are able to pull something like this off.
This might be the end of the "Klaus Saga," but I'm okay with that. If there's anything I learned from Xenoblade 3, it's that we must move forward to new horizons, lest we trap ourselves in the Endless Now. Thank you, Takahashi-san, for this wonderful gift.
Everything about this is beautiful. It not only gives fans an endless supply of tasteful nods to past characters and events, but it also pays respect to the characters in a way I could only dream of. Seriously, every character - even the ones we don't see on screen - are given the closure that they needed given the writing of previous games. The magnitude of this is unbelievable to me; few directors are able to pull something like this off.
This might be the end of the "Klaus Saga," but I'm okay with that. If there's anything I learned from Xenoblade 3, it's that we must move forward to new horizons, lest we trap ourselves in the Endless Now. Thank you, Takahashi-san, for this wonderful gift.
Its not only the best expansion in the franchise, by virtue of being a complete game and enhancing the mechanics without betraying what made the base game so good (unlike FC and Torna TGC), but it also stads toe to toe with the base game, with its own strengths to make it more than just more xenoblade 3.
Video games need to be viewed as a form of art, whether it is with their stories they tell, the characters that flesh out the story, or even just their worlds and environments being so rich. Now what does this have to do with Future Redeemed? Well, this DLC campaign was the perfect way to end off the Xenoblade trilogy of games.
Future Redeemed is a prequel story to Xenoblade Chronicles 3 as we follow Matthew and A, who are looking for survivors from the City. Along the way, they meet up with two soldiers of Aionios from the warring nations; Nikol and Glimmer, and the Liberators with their leaders Shulk and Rex from Xenoblade 1 and 2 respectively, to find out where his sister has gone and to take down the real threat of Aionios much higher than Moebius.
This plot was rather short but that was expected being a DLC campaign and all, but my god the story beats spread throughout this game were magnificent. The characters were all really great to see develop throughout the plot. Matthew being the main protag and despite being a goof, he is willing to do good in this world. A being a mysterious character as she has Alvis's conscience as her personality, Nikol being a shy, timid soldier who slowly opens up to the party, and Glimmer being very selfish and sassy; both mirroring Shulk and Mythra in personalities. And then Shulk and Rex, the dad chads. Shulk becoming more of a wise mentor like Dunban and having one arm to boot, with Rex being more mature than he ever was before and also being dandy was marvelous to me...still gotta get used to the voice though.
The world revolves in one unexplored area of Aionios that is not there in the base game, the Cent-Omnia region and this is filled with the grandest areas by far and with bangers all across the board too. A forest area akin to how Torna started off, a grassy plains area, a mossy and older version of Colony 9, and even snowy mountains. This region of Aionios was absolutely breathtaking in my opinion and I'm sad that it gets removed in the base game.
The combat is akin to how it works in base game; different art recharges, fusion arts (now called Ouroboros Powers), and chain attacks. But there are some new oddities that are unique to the combat. First off, the way you level up arts and skills are based around affinity growth and require you killing enemies, completing the collectopaedia, the many sidequests, or exploring.
Secondly, the characters can be paired up together to form a Unity, replacing Ouroboros forms which when performed during a combo, will do a unity attack that does a reaction, whilst doing a skill. These were really fun and sometimes busted! Looking at you Rex + Glimmer. And finally, the chain attacks now have equipment stuff, where equiping manuals change the completion bonus, or add a hero effect to the character. This was cool too, but I never really utilised it as much.
Overall, this DLC is a must buy for anyone looking to get anymore out of Xenoblade 3, but I'd obviously say don't jump into this game if you've never played a Xenoblade game - this DLC was served as a finale and spoils both games anyway plus the base game. But I'm glad I got to see this game finally and beat everything, including the superboss, and I'm really looking forward to the future of the series.
Xenoblade is something special to me as a whole, and I cried with what they did at the very end of the story and even with the most touching credits sequence I've ever seen. This series has changed my life, and I'm glad to be one of its many fans. Thank you Takahashi and Monolith Soft.
Future Redeemed is a prequel story to Xenoblade Chronicles 3 as we follow Matthew and A, who are looking for survivors from the City. Along the way, they meet up with two soldiers of Aionios from the warring nations; Nikol and Glimmer, and the Liberators with their leaders Shulk and Rex from Xenoblade 1 and 2 respectively, to find out where his sister has gone and to take down the real threat of Aionios much higher than Moebius.
This plot was rather short but that was expected being a DLC campaign and all, but my god the story beats spread throughout this game were magnificent. The characters were all really great to see develop throughout the plot. Matthew being the main protag and despite being a goof, he is willing to do good in this world. A being a mysterious character as she has Alvis's conscience as her personality, Nikol being a shy, timid soldier who slowly opens up to the party, and Glimmer being very selfish and sassy; both mirroring Shulk and Mythra in personalities. And then Shulk and Rex, the dad chads. Shulk becoming more of a wise mentor like Dunban and having one arm to boot, with Rex being more mature than he ever was before and also being dandy was marvelous to me...still gotta get used to the voice though.
The world revolves in one unexplored area of Aionios that is not there in the base game, the Cent-Omnia region and this is filled with the grandest areas by far and with bangers all across the board too. A forest area akin to how Torna started off, a grassy plains area, a mossy and older version of Colony 9, and even snowy mountains. This region of Aionios was absolutely breathtaking in my opinion and I'm sad that it gets removed in the base game.
The combat is akin to how it works in base game; different art recharges, fusion arts (now called Ouroboros Powers), and chain attacks. But there are some new oddities that are unique to the combat. First off, the way you level up arts and skills are based around affinity growth and require you killing enemies, completing the collectopaedia, the many sidequests, or exploring.
Secondly, the characters can be paired up together to form a Unity, replacing Ouroboros forms which when performed during a combo, will do a unity attack that does a reaction, whilst doing a skill. These were really fun and sometimes busted! Looking at you Rex + Glimmer. And finally, the chain attacks now have equipment stuff, where equiping manuals change the completion bonus, or add a hero effect to the character. This was cool too, but I never really utilised it as much.
Overall, this DLC is a must buy for anyone looking to get anymore out of Xenoblade 3, but I'd obviously say don't jump into this game if you've never played a Xenoblade game - this DLC was served as a finale and spoils both games anyway plus the base game. But I'm glad I got to see this game finally and beat everything, including the superboss, and I'm really looking forward to the future of the series.
Xenoblade is something special to me as a whole, and I cried with what they did at the very end of the story and even with the most touching credits sequence I've ever seen. This series has changed my life, and I'm glad to be one of its many fans. Thank you Takahashi and Monolith Soft.
Honestly, you can't enjoy this expansion to give it 5 stars unless you've completed the franchise up to this point. I don't want to gatekeep, but I have to express that it is necessary to play this. All I will say to avoid spoilers, it was a nice bow to end the trilogy. I couldnt play any games for like 2-3 months after realizing I was done with the trilogy lol.
First few hours in the game already started stroking me. The whole playthrough I was like jeez monolith can you relax. Then both the game and I hit the climax... Takahashi you mad man thank you for gifting me my favourite game series.
IT'S PEAK