Xenoblade Chronicles 2 New Game Plus Guide: Carryovers, Blades, and Settings
Unlock exclusive Torna Blades, level-down settings, and unique rewards in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 New Game Plus (Advanced New Game).
Quick answer
- Complete the final chapter, save your clear data, and select 'Advanced New Game' from the title screen.
- Most level progress, gold, equipment, and awakened Blades carry over once their Drivers rejoin the story.
- Unlock seven exclusive Torna Blades, including Akhos, Patroka, and Mikhail, during your New Game Plus run.
- Level down Drivers at inns to earn Bonus EXP, then trade it with Traveling Bards for accessory expansions.
All Features in New Game Plus! Everything to Know! (Xenoblade Chronicles 2)
Watch this comprehensive breakdown of all the exclusive features, carryover mechanics, and new systems introduced in Advanced New Game.
How to Start Advanced New Game
To begin your second playthrough, follow these steps:
Once you begin, you will start the story from Chapter 1 with your carried-over assets.
What Carries Over and What Resets
While most of your hard work from the first playthrough remains intact, certain story-related abilities and progression milestones are reset to preserve the game's narrative flow.
| Category | Carries Over | Resets / Lost |
|---|---|---|
| Drivers & Blades | Driver levels, equipment, gold, play time, and most awakened Blades. | Rex loses his Master Driver ability to equip any Blade until it is unlocked again via story progression. Awakened Blades are only accessible once their respective Drivers rejoin your party. |
| Progression & World | Town development status, Merc Group level, and the baby Arduran in Torigoth (which respawns in New Game Plus if you killed it previously). | Quests (including completed side quests), Heart-to-Hearts, Skip Travel points, and cleared Merc Missions. |
| Poppi | Poppi's progression, ether crystals, and parts. All five stages of Tiger! Tiger! are unlocked immediately. | Poppi's technical manuals do not carry over; you must collect them again in the world to craft high-level parts. |
| Specific Quests | None. | Ursula's "looks so loved" vocal stamp side quest progress is completely lost and reset if it was not fully completed before starting New Game Plus. |
Once the Merc Group feature is unlocked at the end of Chapter 3, all Blades—including story-locked Blades like Pyra and Mythra—can be sent on Merc Missions.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 New Game Plus Blades
One of the primary reasons to play Advanced New Game is the ability to recruit members of Torna as Blades. There are seven exclusive Xenoblade Chronicles 2 new game plus blades available in this mode.
Six of these Blades are obtained randomly by bonding with Core Crystals:
- Akhos
- Patroka
- Obrona
- Sever
- Perdido
- Cressidus
The seventh Blade, Mikhail, is recruited through a specific in-game interaction rather than Core Crystals. To recruit him:
- Reach Chapter 9 in the story.
- Travel to the Megafloat Base in the Land of Morytha.
- Speak directly to Mikhail with the Driver you wish to bond him with.
New Game Plus Settings and Mechanics
Advanced New Game introduces several unique Xenoblade Chronicles 2 new game plus settings and gameplay mechanics that alter how you manage your party's progression.
Inn Level-Down System and Bonus EXP
Drivers can now decrease their levels at inns. Lowering your level converts the lost levels into Bonus EXP.
You can trade this accumulated Bonus EXP with Traveling Bards, who are marked with green shop icons on your mini-map. Traveling Bards offer rare and valuable upgrades in exchange for your Bonus EXP, including:
- Accessory expansion kits (to unlock a third accessory slot for Drivers)
- Overdrive Protocols
Zeke's Hidden Affinity Tree
Zeke receives a special hidden affinity tree in New Game Plus. Unlocking this tree grants him access to the Eye of Shining Justice skill. When activated, this skill provides Zeke with extremely fast skill cooldowns, increased damage output, and complete status immunity.
Note: While the Torna ~ The Golden Country expansion features New Game Plus difficulty settings like "Bringer of Chaos" or "Custom," these specific difficulty settings do not apply to the base Xenoblade Chronicles 2 game.