Saturday 26 May 2012

Physics in the Xenoblade Chronicles Universe

An odd concept, as most role playing games assume that the world is some kind of spherical form.  Some game designers pat themselves on the back for making their worlds cubes or other odd designs.  Xenoblade risks falling into that category, as the world is definitely unusual.  The concept retains it merits though, as the universe depends on a unique set of physics that play believably and predictably, but imbue truly alien beauty to the landscapes.

First the Bionis: this mammoth machine looks from the outside to be made of rock, and from the inside to be made of living breathing tissue.  How does all of this work as a giant robot?  The short answer is that it doesn’t – when it moves it moves by Zansa’s will, and for the last umpteen thousand years it has rested, leaning, against the Mechonis’ sword.  Forget that it ever moved, the scene is intended to be shocking anyway.

The Bionis stands ankle deep in the endless ocean, at least until the Age of the Fall when it begins “floating” face down.  The ocean is a mystery; in game we encounter no one with any clue as to its extent, or its depth, or even with any means to traversing it farther than the nearby Mechonis.  It is believed by some that there is something beyond the Bionis and the Mechonis way out there, but Arglas and Egil never explained how they came to that conclusion.

Standing on the Bionis, one experiences gravity pulling towards the ground, ground that ultimately is the Bionis.  The center of this gravity must be the bones of the Bionis, as it pulls down pretty universally around the Bionis, where ever one finds himself.  The Mechonis, by contrast, is very different.  Built in layers that are ascended by lifts and platforms, the Mechonis takes the form of a massive factory floor; gravity universally seems to pull “down” to the ocean, even outside and while clinging to the Mechonis’ external armor.  Almost all of the Bionis’ regions are outside, and there looking up always means looking away from the Bionis under your feet.

Each region of the Bionis is massive, from temperate Gaur Plain, to frosty Valak Mountain, to sweltering Makna Forest, each region offers a range of directions to travel in and lots of hidden locations to find.  It is possible to see past the illusion of nearness to the Bionis and Mechonis beyond, but only in certain places, such as at the top of the Bionis’ knee (Kneecap Rock, just beyond Tephra Cave), or the cliffs below Colony 6.  The Mechonis is visible on a clear day staring across the gap, lifelessly.  There are few such places on the Mechonis, but Distant Fingertip on the Fallen Arm and the Machina Refuge on the Mechonis Field do allow some ability to see across and all around.  If you can get high enough on Sword Valley, you can see the entirety of the world pretty clearly, weather permitting.

There isn’t much weather on the Mechonis, but on the Bionis the swirling currents of ether create any number of weather phenomena, from rain (it rains constantly near Colony 6), shooting starts across the Eryth Sea (on the Head of the Bionis), and the rainbow swamp gasses emerging from Satorl Marsh.  It can be hard to keep up with what it is doing and when, which becomes a pain when it is necessary to learn for a sidequest.  I’ll detail ether, and specifically ether magic, later, but for now, know that the ether on the Bionis is largely uncontrolled, permitting a wide variety of life forms, while on the Mechonis the ether is piped, tubed, and tightly controlled, leaving a sterile and lifeless feeling, even as it is overrun with Mechon.
Falling off the Bionis or the Mechonis isn’t easy, but certain places make it very easy to do.  It’s a rather large plot event that Shulk and company fall off the Mechonis’ Sword (Sword Valley) to wash up on the Fallen Arm.  Falling off of the Mechonis at any point would largely result in the same, assuming that you lived.  Taking a running jump off of the Bionis would cause you to arc back towards the Bionis’ nearest surface (note: it is very easy to fall off the Bionis in game, but some of those drops strain credibility, so I’m editing them here).  Falling onto the Bionis from any height inflicts injury like any fall into hard rock, and air pressure exerts terminal velocity normally.

It is possible to swim away from the Fallen Arm, but it’s only a short distance out before waves and storms and wild ether currents would make such a swim deadly.  No one is known able to swim from the Bionis’ ankle to Fallen Arm; no locations on the Bionis next to the ocean were detailed in Xenoblade, and most people have simply forgotten about the Fallen Arm, a perfect place then for the Machina to hide out.

No comments:

Post a Comment