Aionios Moments Key Points Translation

Pages from Aionios Moments, the artbook for Xenoblade 3, have begun to appear online. I will break down some of the main points of what’s been leaked here, but please note that this will not be a comprehensive translation of the book. I plan to do that sometime in the future, hopefully not too far after, and through a collaboration with other translators. Here are the key points (Sorry for such a massive wall of text with no images!):

Edit #1, 3/30/2024: Added clarification on what I specifically meant by the “grandiose origins” of Lucky Seven. This was done more out of laziness, as I could not immediately find the exact Riku line that was being referenced, but I later realized it’s too broad a characterization and can be misinterpreted. I also changed “wielder/wielded” to “possessor” in the context of Monado; I originally thought the sentence that begins after “To put it bluntly:” would be more easily understood if it was written as “wielder”, but upon reflection, I feel that in doing so I was introducing room for misinterpretation where there was none originally. Apologies for that.

Edit #2, 3/31/2024: With the full artbook out, I’ve added some details I noticed from reading over the entire book, as well as some things I missed or omitted in the interview (highlighted in blue), and added 2 footnotes to clarify some of the translations here. I won’t make any further edits from hereon, I’ll leave that for the full version of the interviews!

• A is referred to as a woman in the character introduction section for Future Redeemed.
• A caption (credited to an unnamed Monolith Soft employee) for the infamous radio in Future Redeemed states (extracting the relevant portion): In addition, the design for the radio uses a certain something for it’s motif.
• Takahashi has some words about contextualizing the trilogy that I missed on my initial read. This is what he has to say: Xenoblade 3, it’s what has continued in the Xenoblade series, from ‘1’ to ‘2’, and then to ‘3’. The story of Xenoblade (1-2-3) is, at the end of the day, really a story about a man named Klaus, who became the catalyst [for the story]. That was one story that had always been there, and so in that sense, the end of that can be said to be a “culmination.” However, er… how do I say this? During the creation [of games], I’m personally already thinking about what comes next, so it’s more of a passing point, not a culmination. When you phrase it as a “culmination,” it gives an impression of giving it your all, etc., but in that sense, it’s slightly different. Because I’ve personally already moved on to the next step. Looking at it from a different vantage point, considering the know-how that Monolith Soft has gained, the growth of each individual person, and including how it’s (Note: the games) being created, and how we worked hard on it, in that sense I suppose it is a “culmination.”
• After the above quote, he goes on to say the original idea was for there to be an entire town on each of the Ferronis’, but this was changed out of consideration for time, budget, and manpower.
• Takahashi thanks his staff for working on the game remotely, implying at least some of the work for XB3 was done from home during the pandemic.
• Regarding the black fog, here is Takahashi’s quote: Looking at the survey, the first thing that can be answered, I believe, is regarding the black fog. Basically, it’s a sign that the worlds of ‘1’ and ‘2’ are approaching [each other]. Those signs are appearing in another world… the opposite world. For example, in Xenoblade Definitive Edition, the Fog King appeared on Shulk’s side. Looking at it from a different perspective, a similar phenomenon was occurring on Rex’s side. Just that this wasn’t portrayed. In Xenoblade 2, I believe there was a monster called “The Infernal Guldo.” As the worlds approach each other, a Guldo that is in the Land of Morytha from ‘2’ is being projected to the opposite world; that’s the kind of phenomenon [occurring]. The Fog King, the black fog monsters, that’s what that’s all about. To put it simply, the two world have attached together partially, and the effect of that is a phenomenon in which you see the materialization of particles as a black fog. And when that is heightened, annihilation occurs. Quite a few of my staff might not know about this, either (laughs). And by the way, the woman on the ID card that the Guldo drops is from an ordinary woman. It’s not Galea.
• Regarding if Lanz is a Machina, Takahashi responds: “So, if the question is whether or not Lanz is a Machina, yes, he is one…”
• Takahashi says about the survey: Regarding most questions that were written in this survey, almost all of them have proper answers. However, I’m just not answering them now, since I don’t think it’s necessary at this point. So for those sorts of things, well, if Monolith Soft is fortunate enough to continue creating things in the future, then I think we will be able to answer it at a certain point. For example, I understand that there are many requests to see what happens after the ending. However, if we were to do that, we would have to make [what lies] further beyond from Xenoblade 3. So, uh… I understand the sentiment, but please hold for a bit. If you can look forward to it and wait, that would be appreciated.”
• Regarding the admin of Origin: Regarding the world of Aionios, or rather the way Origin works, there is a proper [reason] for it. “In actuality, there’s this and that reason, and that’s why this world is constructed as such.” That kind of thing. Now that, I can’t say it yet. Yeah… Yeah, now is not the timing for that. So for now, it’s fine to think of it as basically a virtual world^*1. That wouldn’t be wrong. To put it simply, the administrator of that [world] could do anything. And in the main story of Xenoblade 3, that was Z. That’s the story, yes.
• For the villains of Xenoblade 3, Takahashi says (skipping over some parts): I wanted to change a bit how the villains were portrayed. For example, in Xenoblade and Xenoblade 2, the villains had their own pride or their own principles; it could be a philosophy or even faith, but the villains had their own [sense of] justice… But for Xenoblade 3, I had a bit of, “what if I brought the enemies closer to reality?” In terms of, “What is reality?” let’s say for example, those in positions of power. Saying people in positions of power are villains is, well, a bit of a dangerous way to put it, but let’s just say as an example. In real-life society, they are the “system,” as Z says; they can decide on a system, and they can run it. Even for those people in positions of power, I’m sure they have a life story, social ties and such, but what we can see at the surface, what we can feel is their roots, most of that is, how should I say this, a desire; a desire for control, money, fame, and maybe very rarely, lust? That’s where it tends to be rooted in, and occasionally some unsavory people show themselves. What if those people were the villains? So, the villains this time around are the Moebius, and for them, I wanted to make them villains you couldn’t sympathize with, by exaggerating the unsavoriness and patheticness that real-life humans have… Towards the end of the story, I believe there’s a scene where Z says, “It’s because it amuses me,” but that [line], it could be, “It’s because three-star restaurants taste delectable,” or “It’s because I love to make money;” The line can be whatever. We placed the Moebius in that position as a representation of that unsavory aspect of reality.

• Commenting on N’s sword: What’s inside the Sword of the End that N holds, that would be Logos. I mean, it’s Malos, but Malos, for the time being, is dead, or has disappeared. As to why Malos is there, I’m sorry about this, but I can’t answer that at this point. But what N is holding there, that is Malos himself.
• Regarding Matthew’s gauntlets: Next, Matthew’s gauntlets. The Fists of the End. Pneuma is inside there, and therefore both Pyra and Mythra. You can think of it as both of their wills being present [within the gauntlet].
• Regarding Lucky Seven: And Lucky Seven, which Noah came to wield. This is actually, uhhh, this is not mentioned within the story, but Fiora is inside of it.
• In regards to the above statement about Lucky Seven, nobody that was present for the interview seemed to be aware of this information, and this statement caused a bit of a stir, with all of them simply asking in response, “Fiora?”
• Elaborating on it, he states: While some people like Shulk and Rex appear in this world in the flesh, some people appear as an object, and that is an expression or reflection of their traits, or thoughts, things like “How can I change this world? I think this is the best [way to do so];” think of it as something like that.
• Kojima asks Takahashi, “Noah threw it (Lucky Seven) into the ocean at the end [of the game], was that okay?” And Takahashi responds as follows: This conversation, how do I put this, it deals with the fundamental aspect of Origin. Origin and Aionios, you can think of it broadly as a virtual world. Think of it like a server in a virtual world. It actually isn’t the case, but this will be fine [for demonstration purposes] (laughs). And, within that, there’s source code that’s running, and as a way to express that, it can take the form of a sword, but also not. And, Alvis was responsible for the general management of Origin’s systems. As the administrator, [Alvis] was quietly watching for awhile, after Origin started up. As this was happening, Z, a partial administrator and collective conscious-like^*2 entity, starts doing things on it’s own. The story of Future Redeemed starts when Alvis deems this unacceptable.
• Continuing, he states: Many things happen after that, but [Alvis] (Note: Who he’s talking about specifically is not named, but I assume Alvis, or more specifically A) ends up siding with Shulk and co., so there was no longer a general admin. And so Z replaced that position, and that’s why Z can mess with the source code. Making the human lifespan 10 years and observing it because it’s amusing, and things like that, although the whole 10-year lifespan thing was a change made to the code prior to Future Redeemed. Basically, you can do a lot of things. He can be brazen about it. When thinking about what can be done to break that source code, this is where you use external powers. I believe this was stated in the story, but a kind of power that exists outside the flow will be necessary. In regards to what that [power] would be, it can be the power of the will of young people living in this world, and regardless of Pneuma or Logos, it’s the same kind of entity as Alvis, and thus an external factor from Z’s point of view. Therefore, combining these powers, and retaking the world [for ourselves]. That would be the broad explanation of Origin-related things.
• Since there is great interest in it, I will also translate what follows the quote above: You had to collect ‘Origin Shards’ at the end of the main story, right? There’s nothing concretely decided in terms of who is what shard, but you never know, maybe those shards could be Reyn. In broad strokes, if you think about it in this way, it shouldn’t be wrong.
• He adds by saying: To put it bluntly: Alvis, who was one person that was the Core Processor, as well as the possessor of [the?] Monado, Shulk, and similarly, the possessor… no, partner of the same processor, Rex. These 3 sustain the world, and the main characters outside of those are lending their strength to the characters (in Aionios). That’s the structure. So when Noah throws Lucky Seven into the ocean at the end, he was, like this, he was pondering like this, before throwing it. That was like saying thanks to the sword. “Thanks for everything,” that kind of thing. Something like, “The battle is over, and a new world is starting. Thank you.” And thus it’s liberated. Returned to the world. It was returned, returned to Origin.

• Speaking about the people of the City, he has this to say: After that, it’s time to say farewell. It’s split between the Kevesi, the people of Bionis, and the Agnians, the people of Alrest. And in another corner, there’s the people of the City, and those three make up the structure. But I saw quite a number of comments in the survey asking about what happened to the people in the City, so to answer that, and, this is something that I believe you can also understand from the information [given] in the story, but the people of the City, they’re life that doesn’t exist in the original two worlds. And yet, they still exist, despite the Origin being something like a memory machine that collected data from both of the worlds. This is, in fact, a suggestion that the two worlds will become one, and that these people will absolutely be born in that future. That’s the structure. So, yes, Ghondor, Monica, they will be born in the new world.”
• He goes on to say that Noah and his friends are fighting for a world in which they (City people) can be properly born, but I will leave this part as a paraphrase for now.
• Takahashi says that, through the lense of Nietzsche, Noah as a character can be understood to be an ubermensch that rejects nihilism.
• On the subject of Riku, he says: Riku, he’s sly. He’s doing all these things, while completely understanding everything that’s going on. When he says in the City, “Meh meh, there’s something tiny and cute over there!” He’s saying that on purpose. To bring attention to it. Saying, “Hey, look here, there’s a really tiny person, and look, it’s different from you guys,” and getting an emotional response out them, I suppose. He’s a bit two-faced, isn’t he? His masterpon is Melia. So Melia has entrusted him with what is basically Fiora. And, of course, he is also one of Riki’s sons, yes.
• Speaking about Riku’s explanations about the Lucky Seven and its grandiose origins (specifically, about the line “Seven legendary swordsmithpon, over course of seven years, forged from seven types of steel”), Takahashi says those were “convenient lies” that Riku made up.

• On the Nopon, he has this to say: In this world, the world of Aionios, Nopon are external entities, residing outside of the flow, so they don’t have a lifespan. They live forever.
• Speaking on that subject, Kojima notes that some survey responders asked about why Shulk and Rex have lived for such a long time, to which Takahashi responds: Shulk and Rex haven’t lived long, have they? Origin is only a recreation of the worlds that used to exist, and if you think of them as being emulated, they should only be able to live what their lifespan is. Shulk and Rex, they defeat Alpha some years after arriving to Aionios, and they shift to sustaining [the world] after that, but how should I say this, their “rank?” Their rank is the same as Alvis and the rest of the Trinity Processor. And this is also true for Melia, Nia, and Fiora, who possessed Meyneth’s Monado. In other words, if the admin handles it, anything can be done. If the source code of that world is written as a recreation of reality, then, if for example the lifespan was set as 80 years old, when they say they can give their lifespans to Glimmer and Nikol, they can, if they rewrite the code. But you normally shouldn’t do that. Because you don’t know what kind of glitches will occur. In response, A says, “This is against the rules,” and that’s sort of the idea there.
• About golden motes, he has this to say: Golden motes, that’s ascension (Note: in the context of death). Yeah, dissipation. And it turns into a form that is difficult, no, impossible, for Z and the Moebius to use. Disappearing to the outside of their systems, without being used by the Moebius.
• Takahashi says the hooded boy at the start of chapter 6 is a part of N that resides deep within Noah’s psyche.
• Takahashi’s final comment to wrap the interview up: Xenoblade was released in 2010, and some of our customers have been with us all throughout those 14 years, continuing to follow us, and that makes me deeply emotional; the only thing I have to say to that is: thank you. We would like to continue to meet the expectations of those who have supported us in that way. With up to Xenoblade 3 finished, I’m sure there’s plenty of customers who feel that this isn’t enough; they want to know this or that, and that this book isn’t enough [to cover that], but we have heard those voices from our customers loud and clear. Gradually, I suppose, or in the future, during the creation process, we would like to respond to those voices. So please, look forward to that… that would be it. Yes.

*1 As some have pointed out, the phrase here doesn’t necessarily have to mean ‘virtual world.’ A more literal translation of this phrase would be “imaginary/imagined world”; I translated it as virtual world due to the context, and because this phrase is very commonly used to refer to computer-generated worlds. It’s still noteworthy to point out, and it honestly didn’t even cross my mind on the first read that he could have meant something more general.

*2 To be completely honest, I misread the word ‘意思’ (will, mind, intention) as ‘意識’ (conscious, conscience) on my first read. After much deliberation, I decided that leaving it as ‘collective conscious-like’ will be fine for now, as it’s not wrong in getting across the meaning, but something like ‘collective will-like entity/being’ or even “an entity that is (represents) the collective will” would have been more accurate. I don’t want to downplay the fact that the way it’s written in Japanese kind of looks like ‘collective unconscious,’ but I don’t want to play it up either.