The day and night cycle has been a staple of the Xenoblade saga in the way it's implemented as a gameplay mechanic, and it returns once again in Xenoblade Chronicles 3. Not only does having a day and night cycle add even more immersion to a massive open-world game that's packed with secrets, wonderful characters, and lore to discover, but the world changes based on what time it is too.
Certain NPCs, special monsters, vendors, and quests in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 are only accessible during a night cycle. As a result, it's always useful to know how and when one can change the time in Xenoblade Chronicles 3, so they don't miss anything.
Changing Time In Xenoblade Chronicles 3
The day-night cycle mechanic in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 will take some time to access as it unlocks gradually during the opening ten hours of the game, right after a flashback cutscene and some backstory on Noah's sword. When the time skip mechanic becomes available, one needs to access the menu to change it at will.
Skipping Time In Xenoblade Chronicles 3
To change time in Xenoblade 3, players can follow these instructions:
- Press X in the game to pause the action and access the menu.
- Scroll to the System tab
- Then click on the Change Time tab
- Then use the L and R buttons to modify the time.
Using Skip Travel To Change Time
In addition to manually changing the time in Xenoblade Chronicles 3, players can also change the time of day using the Fast Travel feature once this version of time skip is unlocked by playing the story. It's one of the best and fastest ways to find and fight some of Xenoblade 3's more difficult fights. Fast Travel is known as Skip Travel in Xenoblade Chronicles 3, and it is accessed via the following instructions:
- Press X to access the game's menu.
- Then select Map
- Select the required region
- To Skip Travel, one can select a Landmark that's unlocked on the map to fast travel there.
- From here, the player selects the required time of day or night by pressing the L and R buttons.
In-Game Time Meaning
The day and night cycles in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 can pass by very quickly in-game. For example, a full day lasts 24 minutes in real-time. Below is a simplified breakdown of how the seconds, minutes, and hours function in the game:
Game Time | Real-Time |
|---|---|
1 minute | 1 second |
1 hour | 1 minute |
24 hours | 24 minutes |
Players can access the full range of the clock from the morning, noon and night. The ranges of the day and night add to Xenoblade 3's scope and immersion. As mentioned, there are important events that only occur depending on the time of day.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is available now for the Nintendo Switch.
