Nuvendil on 11 April 2015
One thing to keep in mind is that in many JRPGs, Xenoblade included, all progression is linear and tied to the story. What he may (and I am pretty sure is) be referring to is that the progression through the world etc will not be tied to the linear progression of the story. So yes, similar to Skyrim: linear story, open world from the start. I have zero problems with this because unless there is a plot reason to gate off a region, having all open isn't a huge deal.
