This game absolutely rips. The first thing that I think of when talking about this game is that Battle Theme. It's definitely a series best and never fails to make me smile. This game is as good as it is solely due to these characters. Seeing adult Rex be an absolute dawg is worth 4 starts in itself. But the great characters don't stop there with Matthew and A quickly cementing theirselves as a great duo.

The story is very good, definitely leans into all 3 games nostalgia but that is not a bad thing at all. Every time N is on screen in this game is just so peak, especially that Prison Island fight. I can never not love this game for giving me another 20 hours to play and control as Rex and having some set pieces where the squad absolutely rips.

It took me a long time to get around to this, and I'm so mad at myself for waiting. This is everything I could have wanted as a send off to the story that's built up over the Xenoblade trilogy. The party dynamics in this one are just as good as base 3's and the gameplay really refines what I liked about 3's combat system; even if it never quite reaches the heights 2's combat reached for me personally.

I am thoroughly amazed at how well a prequel story manages to work as the end to this era of Xenoblade. I don't want to get into spoilers because I think any Xeno fan should experience it for themselves but god it really honed in on the themes of the meta series as a whole up to this point and managed to make something beautiful both reflecting on everything that has come before.

Please play Future Redeemed if you have finished XB3, you won't be disappointed.

10/10

Why is this what I wanted the base game to be?
The world feels like an actual mixture of Bionis, Mechonis and Alrest, that is fun to explore. Not only because there is a lot to find, but because every kind of progression feeds into each other, making exploration and building field crafting just as important as fighting enemies. Besides there are often really neeatly hidden places, that will give you a reward. and be it just another accessory slot or something.
The aspects of the previous lore actually matter and play a significant part in the plot and characters from the first game actually make a meaningful appearance. A and Alha were an interesting choice for the finale, but they actually paid of and rounded out the themes of every Xenoblade game into a single cohesive narrative.
On top of that is the battle syste which is just way quicker and snappier and didn't even make me miss the customization options from the class system at all. The cutscenes don't drag as much and just have a proper pace to them.
It almost feels like the main game shot itself in the foot by being approachable for newcomers to the series instead of actually tying everything together. The meaning of life being precious and living with hope into the future hits in Future Redeemed just as well and shows what the main game could have been.
The only blemish this expansion holds is how little time it has to actually tell us about its story. There is just no space and time to have us experience the city before it gets destroyed for example (meaning to say Future Redeemed would have deserved the run-time of Xenoblade 3).
I could even imagine the two being a single game. making feel Xenoblade 3 less empty and giving Future Redeemed's plotline more space to breathe. This way, this might have become my favourite Xenoblade game but it's a very fulfilling finale to the series nevertheless

Monolithsoft are complete masters of their craft. Having played through all 3 Xenoblade campaigns and their DLC allowed me to fully watch the growth of Monolith as developers. Which all culminated in Xenoblade Chronicles 3, one of the greatest games ever made. Now, it's DLC, Future Redeemed, wasn't as perfect as Xenoblade Chronicles 3 was, namely some of the incursions were just flat-out annoying to go through. But overall, despite it's shorter playtime by JRPG standards, Future Redeemed stands as a fitting conclusion to the 'Klaus Saga'. Most of what I adored about the main game remains, and some of my nitpicks were even fixed, namely the collectopedia now shows which region of the map items are in. And the combat system is still as great as ever, the exploration is so much fun, and the world is beautiful as always. I can't wait to see what Monolith will do for the next saga of Xenoblade games, as this saga has been some of the greatest fiction I have ever seen.

There is so much positive I could say about this in regard to the music, new characters and their dynamics, extra layers to pre-existing characters and insane plot revelations but that would take forever. I did like the new, simplified combat system and the incentive to explore being linked to combat upgrades was a smart game design decision that I hope the series adopts for future entries. Fantastic DLC but I do wish it clarified on the ambiguous timeline in regard to N's deal, M being reborn, Nia going into hiding and how things went down upon Aionios' creation. It all seems rather vague and this only further adds to the confusion.