Xenoblade Chronicles Recap - EVERYTHING You Need To Know Before XC3 (Timeline & Story Explained)

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 will be the latest entry in the Xenoblade timeline, but there's quite a bit of story to catch up on in its 10+ year history. If you're confused about the story so far, we put together a complete recap to get you caught up before the game's release on July 29, 2022 for Nintendo Switch!
00:00 Intro
1:57 Backstory
4:30 Torna ~ The Golden Country
8:32 Xenoblade Chronicles 2
19:05 Xenoblade Chronicles
32:17 Future Connected
35:00 Outro
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Video by: Mac "Macca" Campbell / jbomacca KZbin Mac's Channel: / maccasmt
Thumbnail by: Tom Arnold / ragintombo
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[@gabrieltodesco-bond]

Hello there, my name is Gabriel and I play the character of young Noah in Xenoblade 3. It's AWESOME to see my character, to actually hear my voice and, to see the finished product! It's been an absolute privilege to be involved in this and it's VERY exciting to see everything come together in this way.

[@goodmanpatryk7155]

You and other cast made a Great job

[@GameXplain]

Hey Gabriel, thanks so much for stopping by and for your wonderful performance in Xenoblade 3!

[@iwannaplayssbb6665]

hope to hear you in more roles man! great job!

[@jackpranger3743]

Young Noah is a bigger chad then old Noah

[@wasreallygoodnikka]

Dude, you've copy pasted this onto like every xenoblade video out there. Really cringe dude...And tbh noone cares. Majority of us use the Japanese audio.

[@Montra78]

At the end of the day, the only thing you truly need to know is: Let's begin the experiment

[@jellycore1316]

YESSS

[@Ray_SB]

It's a wild ride, this passage of fate

[@dantelawrence4676]

There's something about this planet

[@user-li8sr9zo9l]

No, the results have not been confirmed! It's too dangerous!

[@tonybanan2877]

Pyraaaaaaaaaa Fioraaaaaaaaa Mioooooooo

[@pokeness686]

You included the "That's Dumban over there!" meme, you absolute legends.

[@alex_albyne]

The only piece of in-game sound in the video is that line. Legendary.

[@tmkai607]

y-you mean duncan

[@MrJWTH]

To clear up a few potentially confusing points, Mumkhar was originally a ally of Dunban during the original Mechon invasion and abandoned his comrades in the middle of battle due to cowardice. He was apparently killed by the enemy not long after. Also, the reason that the Monado was unable to harm Face Mechons was due to them having sentient beings piloting them and until Zanza unlocked it’s full power it could harm sentient beings

[@Flipface4]

It's more implied that the reason Face Mechon cannot be harmed by the monado is because of the red lines. The Monado cannot harm the people of bionis... So having the blood of a homs flow through the armor, it counts the entire mech as a person of bionis

[@shanebovell6733]

Wow so you're both right just one with more specifics. I thank you both

[@rushpatriot2866]

I'm bout to buy a switch and play the third one any advice?

[@cheeseboy2251]

Man, seeing the recap of XC2 after not remembering much and not playing it for nearly 3 and a half years reminds me how much I loved that game when I played it

[@bigtpsychoboy]

Same. I hadn't played XC2 since it first came out, and XC1 even longer ago. Definitely needed this recap.

[@Xenokhaos]

@@bigtpsychoboy Its funny cause the last time I played XC2 was in 2017, but I still remember everything

[@SSVegeta937]

Agreed, my friend. Same with XC1.

[@badasstoad9419]

Same. Best game in the world ☺️✨

[@dugtrioramen]

That's a nice summary of everything. But this is probably better for people who have already played the games and want a recap, rather than someone new lol. Just a lot of information to take in, yet at the same time not enough to fully understand it all. But it's great as a refresher

[@Macca]

I definitely tried to find the right balance between detailed enough for newcomers to understand and including information that isn't relevant to the main plot. It comes out to a lot, but I personally feel I hit a good balance.

[@Diamoondust]

@@Macca I would say it's great, thank you for making it. We are talking about 2 massive rpgs, after all. :)

[@dugtrioramen]

@@Macca yeah all around it's probably the best summary of the 2 games out there. I really enjoyed it, I just wonder how a new person would see this

[@yeetstreetUSA]

If you are new you should be playing 1 and 2 first. Especially 1 is just a monumental game that should not be missed

[@scunny]

Most people who haven't played the other titles and want a recap are not going to sit there for hours to do so. This was good enough in my opinion.

[@NowWeAreAllGames]

The main thing you need to know is that that's dunban over there.

[@TeeTop_]

27:20

[@geneticjen9312]

This is great. A few minor things: at the end of XC1 Zanza isn’t floating in space. He’s in a memory world of sorts built with memories he holds from the world he originated from. When the party runs by our familiar Solar System planets, it’s because they’re part of Zanza’s memory. Also, Zanza is technically a demiurge character rather than a god. A few recaps like this suggest that the AI Ontos just wandered into the XC1 universe once all the adventuring had already started and people were living on Titans. Actually Klaus and Galea’s souls were just existing in that world until Ontos arrived and allowed both of them to access some of the power of the Conduit/Zohar through him. That’s the whole point of the Monados. Yes it’s all about Gnosticism but they’re also literally access keys to Ontos power. So in summary, conduit can access other universes and can provide extremely high energies and essentially shape the world. Ontos can tap into that power. Ontos gifts the two souls of the scientists with a Monado each, a key that lets them access power through Ontos. This allows them to create Titan bodies, create life in this world, and act as though they are gods. The recap suggests that Klaus became a god simply by finding himself (or half of himself) in that world. Ontos gifted them the power of gods. Ontos then lived alongside many characters as Alvis.

[@danielkemp143]

Thank you for making this video. I had planned to play XC1 and 2 again for a refresher before diving into 3 but never having the time to do so. But with you getting out of your way to make this video, you made it easier to dive into it and get myself reminded on all of the events thus far. Amazing video and thanks again.

[@ShurikanBlade]

Bro literally. I just recently finished 1 and future connected but I played 2 like 4 years ago so i wanted to replay it but I'll probably just watch through all the cutscenes. All 12 hours of cutscenes.

[@AuBos3197]

Exactly my situation, Ive played and replayed 1, 2, and X so many times and I just unfortunately didnt have time before 3, this vid was perfect

[@ItsYuhBoyyyy]

Playing all 3 back to back would've probably burned you out too tbh

[@BobTheBricoleur]

I already know absolutely everything about this incredible series but I'm gonna watch this anyways because these games mean so much to me

[@robwaters8848]

I aLrEaDy KnOw EvErYtHiNg AbOuT tHiS SeRiEs 🦸

[@BobTheBricoleur]

@@robwaters8848 2,000 hours in a series tells you a lot

[@robwaters8848]

@@BobTheBricoleur Oh I believe it man 😅. I was just pulling your leg brother 🤙🤙

[@Immortalfx1]

I already know every single detail about this series but I’m going to watch this anyways because I can’t get enough info!

[@Julio3324]

lol same!

[@anthonysteele6096]

Same here

[@brunovaleriomp4]

INDEED!!!

[@yaboy1414]

Same lol

[@calebwest1684]

Something interesting to note as I play through 3: The arts used by classes native to Keves have timed recharges and circular icons like arts from the first game, while the arts used by classes native to Agnus have triangular icons and recharges based on auto-attacks like in the second game. This leads me to believe early on that Kevesi are the descendants of the Homs, High Entia, and Machina (Noah looks like a Homs, Eunie a High Entia, and Lanz sort of like a Machina), while the Agnians are the descendants of humans, Gormotti, and Blades (Mio's cat ears, Sena's fiery hair i guess). I type all this out knowing full well the ending of the game might reveal the answer to me. But still this is my hunch so far

[@domotron3598]

From what I recall after playing the game and watching various videos, that sounds about right. I'd never noticed that bit about how the shape of the arts correlates to the different games.

[@Posirep]

They say the Xenosaga games arent involved and they are in their own universe. Which makes sense. But the discovery of the conduit(Zohar) in Africa is literally the first scene in Xenosaga 1

[@Player-jh4ko]

Ehh I'd consider that scene more of a references..

[@dugtrioramen]

@@Player-jh4ko I'd say they're all connected just not confirmed because of copyright issues. Why else would they add extra lore to that model kit, and have it be identical to the origin of the Zohar. I highly doubt it's a random reference cuz it's not even in the actual game, it's an expansion of lore

[@Macca]

Again, similar imagery, concepts, and cameos can be found, but they are unrelated on a narrative level.

[@AzureRoxe]

@@dugtrioramen they are literally unrelated. The game was made a Xeno title as a TRIBUTE to the Xenosaga director and references exist, but it has nothing to do with the franchise. The original name of the first game was Monado: Beginning of the world.

[@Nelsito99]

@@AzureRoxe that was for xc1 but they knew that it was going to be related from xc2 onward so that detail was intentional

[@Tony-fp7cn]

That’s a good recap over there! :)

[@xdestiny]

This was a really good recap. I really enjoyed how informative it was because it's been so long since I last played XC and XC2. Thank you so much!

[@Jetbladewarrior]

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is suppose to be a lot more serious with a little laughter here and there but I'm to cry all the same especially if Mio Dies before/around the final battle 😢💔😭. Mio has already touched my heart even before the game releases.

[@Agendo.]

The main girl of both games survived so i assume the same will happen here aswell. They already gave her a deathflag saying shes dying in the trailer and such. Kinda tells us this is going to be fixed somehow.

[@Jetbladewarrior]

@@Agendo. I hope she lives. I adore Nia's blade form and Mio just reminds of Nia even if they're not the same character.

[@Yggdrasiel_]

Excellently done video! A great summary of everything that's happened in the series so far.

[@SugiDev]

This recap was seriously in depth with how much content was gone over, like 200 hours of gameplay. Amazing work !

[@Nimbus.T]

Truly impressed by this summary. 👏 amazing! Even though I'm caught up, I really enjoyed this video from a "previously on" perspective so very much. Thank you!

[@Julio3324]

Man, I love these stories. Great job with this recap, can't wait for 3!

[@Matthew6418]

Xenoblade 1 and Xenoblade 2 are probably my fav games of their respective generations so to say the least I'm looking forward to 3.

[@ToonLink1672]

27:20 YESSSSSSS THE MEME! “That’s Dunban over there!”

[@kakaoke4061]

Man, truly some of the finest storytelling out there. Currently playing through the third one and loving it. I'm so hyped to see, how it all connects

[@davishmayo1643]

THATS DUNBAN OVER THERE

[@JimLStone]

Rip Xenoblade X, your only problem was that you were on the Wii u

[@-mhayes86]

Great and very much appreciated recap in preparation for XC3! I replayed all of the games when Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition came out a couple years ago.

[@stormrunnercore]

Great video, this review was very well made and helped me refresh my memory. Wanted to have a recap of 1 and 2 since I just finished Xenoblade 3 and am now anxiously awaiting futures redeemed.

[@ncxcarnage]

Was waiting very patiently for this video

[@TyrantOfVirtue]

That sure was Dunban over there

[@agustinvera1651]

The Monado is red, Mythra has golden hair, 27:20

[@somethingofascientist7084]

This’ll be the first time I watch a series recapped video when I’ve already played the series. Hyped to finally be on this side of the comment section

[@sunnycideup4725]

PRO TIP: this is REALLY nice, but not a substitute for playing these AMAZING GAMES please, if you want to experience an incredible journey, do yourself a favor, and PLAY THEM. come back to this video when you have, we will all be waiting for you, with open arms. the xenoblade community loves new people, “and we’ll walk together, hand in hand, towards a new future:” xenoblade 3.

[@rc9000000]

wow good job I've seen plenty of these recaps that are not as in-depth as this be over an hour

[@Macca]

Thank you!

[@TheNintendoWizrad]

Perfect vid for me. Just wanted a brief recap to remind me of these amazing games.

[@extrastorage8200]

Coming back after I'm done replaying this amazing series in its entirety almost done with 2 :D

[@extrastorage8200]

DONE IVE 100 PERCENTED ALL THE GAMES ONLY TOOK 190238746389201 YEARS :DDDD

[@vervth]

@@extrastorage8200 nobody cares

[@Rapiers-and-flowers]

@@extrastorage8200 congratulations

[@Rapiers-and-flowers]

​@@vervthrude

[@norad_clips]

Based on these summaries, I expect to be very confused when I play 3.

[@coffeecart7749]

27:20 its funny how he left *thats dunban over there* in the video

[@moomanchu608]

Was nice to hear all the beautiful music again

[@tdotran]

Much needed. Thank you! Torna is soooo good.

[@renatos6711]

Thanks, that was a much needed refresher on this series

[@kane99560]

So many great memories...I want to replay X2 but doubt I can spare 100 hrs before X3. This recap is perfect !

[@jaredkhan8743]

i really needed this refresher, specially for torna. its been a loong time

[@TheNearsightedGamer]

Got the game today and had to watch this first. Kept up for the most part. Got kinda weird with 1, but I'm good to go now. Thanks!

[@ZXApocrypha]

Riki, this year's heropon, somehow all-time best dad

[@ohyeahcentral]

Thanks Macca!

[@ftbl-pp6hq]

I dont know if Im the only one, but I have over 200 hours in each Xenoblade game and I still learned so much from this video! Thanks

[@bigtpsychoboy]

Awesome video! I never did beat XC1, but played and beat XC2 + DLC. So this recap was perfect for getting all the facts straight to play XC3!

[@Xenokhaos]

Im on the same spot as you, did you watch the XC1 recap? In my case I don't want to, Im expecting to play XC1 at one point so I don't want to ruin the game experience

[@bigtpsychoboy]

@@Xenokhaos I did, I'll probably go play it again at some point, but I wanted to make sure I had all the background for XC3. Apparently XC3's world is XC1 and 2 universes merged or something.

[@JoeHammerGaming]

I'll give this a listen before XC3 I'm looking forward to jumping in!

[@GamerFunOriginallyAarush]

Good idea!

[@OBE1plays]

This video is right on time!

[@SoloKazama]

thanks for fantastic recap. really awesome.

[@neoandroid8586]

Great video! I’m loving XB3

[@onslotx3219]

That’s Dunban over there!

[@geothegrimreaperlucarioshi6319]

Just a few days remain till we can play xenoblade 3 and I seriously can't wait! I'm excited to try out all the new technics and whatnot. I'm still not quite used to Lanz voice though ngl I thought it'd be alot deeper but I'll get used to it as I play through

[@Wiseguy1138]

Great summary and thank you! I wasn’t able to finish Xenoblade Chronicles 2 because I wound up in a place in the game I just couldn’t get out of. And then other games came out and I just couldn’t get back in to it. I didn’t even bother getting Torna: The Golden Country because of that so it’s great finally getting to see the endings to those and how everything fits together! Looking forward to XC3 coming out, was able to get the Special Edition after a lot of stress the second time around. Hopefully I won’t get stuck this time around.

[@Mr587098]

Amazing recap although you should had at least mention that Alvis is Ontos somewhere or connect him with Malos due to both of them having a Monado or explain how Ontos is basically the universe for Xenoblade Chronicles 1. Yet again it not that hard to connect the dots lol. Thanks for the beautiful recap.

[@Macca]

Alvis = Ontos was something I decided to just make really really obvious without saying.

[@gormottigrebel9978]

Macca good call since despite it being obvious it isn’t technically confirmed

[@AzureRoxe]

@@gormottigrebel9978 They literally gave Alvis the Aegis core crystal as a necklace in the Definitive Edition when he had a key in the original, it's beyond confirmed at this point.

[@dantemustdie00]

@@gormottigrebel9978 Yep, it was never officially confirmed by neither the games themselves nor the developers, it's just a fan theory right now despite some obvious implications (the Conduit necklace in the Definitive Edition)

[@alexkoch5543]

Can you explain exactly what Alvis is? I know he told Shulk what he is in the end of Xenoblade 1 but what exactly does that mean? Does that just mean he’s the 3rd Aegis or is it something else?

[@robertwilliamson2856]

Great summary!

[@joshualevy5736]

Thank you!

[@whysoserious4464]

I need chronicles X on the switch asap

[@pheonixgaming7800]

This is the youtuber macca! Discussing this video 😱

[@Hephaestus_God]

The most shocking part in all these games is seeing Tyrea fly away using her high entia head wings in an end game side quest. I swear I was like 95% done with the game when that happened and it blew my mind. I still haven't recovered from the fact they can actually fly.

[@MasterOfNintendo99]

IKR the fact that such an important piece of info is at the end of such an endgame side-quest (albeit, the best one in the game I believe), is a crime.

[@CaptainAstronaut]

Thanks for making this! This was a great refresher!!

[@ThaDocta0623]

Thank you for this refresher. I finally finished XC1 but needed to be refreshed on XC2 because that’s the one I finished first.

[@kuks0453]

27:20 I can't believe you guys did it

[@mrgideon666]

A small point, Xenoblade Chronicles X makes very specific references to the Heropon, the Monado and Frontier Village. It’s also said that the Nopon in X are the only true natives to Mira. With Xenoblade 3’s smashing together of worlds (and what’s, for all intents and purposes, a Lifehold) I wouldn’t rule out that X is a lot more connected to 1, 2 and 3 than we assumed.

[@Msbubu]

Perfect video for me;never finished the 2nd one,and got 3rd preorder 🤣

[@shiningskies47]

Frickin Garbulio

[@jpedrovianna]

That's Dunban over there lol

[@ZsH85]

26 hours in and now i started to slow down a bit and take a closer look on everything. grass land armus and frogs blow me away. this game is fking beutiful

[@ptldomofficial5074]

0:25 man i can relate cause whew it’s such a gem

[@redmoon4916]

I need the Aegis in Xenoblade Chronicles 3, it would be incredible to see Pyra, Mythra and Alvis again.

[@Max-rz8br]

Pyra's sword is on the banner of the expansion pass, so they're probably there.

[@markos50100]

@@Max-rz8br as a hero maybe.

[@FoxMcLox]

What About Pneuma?

[@markos50100]

@@FoxMcLox pneuma might be a special ouroboros fusion available only to them. Which would be amazing.

[@sushi287]

Well, we know that pyra/mythra are immortal, so they’re probably still around. It’s basically confirmed we’ll see Alvis though, considering he’s basically the strongest being in xenoblade lore now.

[@oongchai1329]

thx man!

[@christopherIF]

Perfect recap tbh

[@dantemustdie00]

I wasn't expecting a KZbinr mostly known for Megaten to do this, but good job nothingless

[@PaulRockey]

I played through XbC1 on Wii back in 2012, then played XbC2 in 2022, Torna right after, and then just finished XbC3 this month of June 2023. Now i am starting Future Redeemed, and this video is the perfect refresh of the whole storyline.

[@aeonarcadia]

27:21 THAT'S DUNBAN OVER THERE

[@lostvarius]

Thanks, I never finished 2 so that’s great for me !

[@cameronsmith1229]

I couldn't stay interested in XC1, thank you for this.

[@Newoaf]

Hey, the guy who did this video is a friend of mine! So cool!

[@alex_albyne]

One Last You still makes me cry like the first day I listened to in the ending...

[@solonepeon5805]

The 29th is making this month LLOONNGG 😂. I need it NNNOOOWWW!

[@jhasonchan5786]

added to Watch Later

[@itsmeazzy4488]

I love how, throughout the video, there was no game audio whatsoever... except Shulk saying, "That's Dunban over there!"😂😂😂

[@Snowcart]

I've watched about four of these in an effort to understand what the hell I just played, and this is by far the best one.

[@TonyTyga90]

Played XBC1 and this video has me thinking that XBC2 (and games) are incredibly more complex than the first.

[@imeautomation]

It's sad that this video has so few views. It deserves Millions of views

[@Bowcaster26]

I've put about 800 hours into XC1 and 2 and their addons but that was a very nice summary

[@zfang16]

i just want to say thanks for this I just beat xenoblade 1 today the day 3 comes out and for someone who doesn't remember much about 2 and never got around to playing the golden age this has been extremely helpful to get me prepared for 3 without having to play through 2 again and I didn't even know about the other part of xenoblade 1 definitive edition but the thing that I really want answered is how do the 2 worlds merge as u say will 3 answer this question WWE shall see

[@dangyang6813]

One day, Xeno series recap, one day.

[@dugtrioramen]

Xenogears alone is probably longer than this video

[@AzureRoxe]

@@dugtrioramen Plus Xenosaga has an ungodly amount of information and lore.

[@nebbynetwork2089]

The date is getting closer and closer and my hype is at an all time high I need to know what's up with thoes characters that look like melia and nia

[@deusvlad2.083]

Actually there is a connection between xenoblade chronicles X and xenoblade 1 and 2 one of the main characters from X is in 2 and so is character from 1, 1 and 2 are connected and seeing as how there are mini storyline and affinity with that X character in xenoblade chronicles 2 the connection lies in simply where they warped from her world to xenoblade chronicles 2 world, if your friends comrades or aquaintance there's your connection. Kind of like if i appeared as a cameo on a tv show and became friends with the main character of that show there is my connection, even in the main storyline your there in xenoblade chronicles 2 but as a nakama comrade like all the other rare blades that weren't exactly in the main storyline but had mini storyline of their own.

[@zacharyw213]

Watched this mainly because I could not get into the gameplay of 2 but wanted to try 3. Holy crap this world is amazing.

[@someshikamaru]

Jesus, that's alot of names to remember.

[@galewindx]

Wow That's Amazing! Information just coded into my brain 😂 so XBlade2 is before the first game?!

[@philipp5756]

Xenoblade 3 is hitting HARD after playing the other titles. I highly suggest to everyone to finish 1 and 2 before playing 3

[@jpak8]

I never really thought about the fact that the telethia were triggered by the very thing they were created to make (ether). Seems like there had to have been a more efficient power source 😂

[@Northbirdy]

After the XB2 part concluded I was like ah yeah now I got the jist of it all and then XB1 hit with all these new terms and names and now I´m super lost lol. As seen from the trailers so far what are the most important bits of info I need to know before jumping into XB3?

[@brandonhiggs88]

I went into gamestop to get my physical copy of live a live when I first saw Xenoblade 3 trailer on their tv, I got such final fantasy 7 mixed with 10 vibes with using 12 combat down to how you control other characters in your party during combat. The trailer sold me I preordered 3 and bought a physical copy of 1 and 2

[@beetogarcia9983]

I’m here on Wednesday bb, can’t wait

[@Solbankai66]

When Jin turned into his true form he remind me of Sephiroth when he's not holding back and and in godlike form sort of.