The game was announced in January 2017 as part of Nintendo's detailed reveal of the Nintendo Switch, with a gameplay trailer being released on the same day. Similar to the original "Xenoblade", the title was announced as "Xenoblade 2" in Japan, but had "Chronicles" added to its name in English-speaking regions. The game was also a part of Nintendo's presentation at E3 2017, where it was reconfirmed for release by the end of 2017.