It was revealed during the February 2022 Nintendo Direct that Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is coming to the Nintendo Switch in September. Xenoblade Chronicles 3 was leaked in 2021, when Jenna Coleman (Melia from Xenoblade Chronicles) mentioned during an interview that she was working on a new game in the series.
There have been three Xenoblade Chronicles games to date already (not counting remasters and ports). The series still has an entry that's locked to the Wii U, in the form of Xenoblade Chronicles X, which many fans believe will be ported to the Nintendo Switch at some point in the future. The series has a few connecting elements, and the latest entry in the series will tie everything together. The original game in the series was remastered as Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition on the Nintendo Switch, so it's easy to experience the story of the numbered entries in the series.
The February 2022 Nintendo Direct (which can be seen on the official Nintendo YouTube channel) ended with a trailer for Xenoblade Chronicles 3. It has been revealed that this game will tie the story of Xenoblade Chronicles and Xenoblade Chronicles 2 together, which possibly means crossing over characters from throughout the series into one story.
The page for Xenoblade Chronicles 3 on the official Nintendo website has revealed more information about the game. The two protagonists are named Noah and Mio and the overall story involves a conflict between the nations of Keves and Angus. The overall theme of the game is "life" and it will follow six different characters from Keves and Angus. The stories of the Xenoblade Chronicles games are connected in different ways, and it will be interesting to see how these new characters are related to the stories of Shulk and Rex.
The September release date for Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is also raising some eyebrows. This suggests that it won't be one of the big 2022 holiday season titles for the Nintendo Switch, as those games are usually released in late October or November. If Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is launching in September, then that leaves a gap in the holiday season schedule, which many people believe will be filled by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild sequel. The distance between the games will also ensure that the new Xenoblade Chronicles game isn't overshadowed.
The Xenoblade Chronicles series has produced some amazing games and Xenoblade Chronicles 3 looks just as epic as its predecessors. Nintendo will hopefully also release Xenoblade Chronicles X for Nintendo Switch, in order to bring the entire series to a single platform.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 will be released for Nintendo Switch in September 2022.
Source: Nintendo/YouTube, Nintendo