04. Xenoblade Chronicles (Monolith Soft, Nintendo)
A second unconfirmed game on a list of games to look forward to?
Yeah, that’s right. Deal with it. Frankly, the Wii doesn’t have many worthwhile new releases left, so the localization of old Japanese games seems much more likely.
And even that doesn’t seem very likely.
Should our tireless optimism prevail, however, the Wii will have a fantastic late-life release in Xenoblade Chronicles. From Baten Kaitos and Xenosaga developer Monolith Soft, Xenoblade is an ambitious RPG that looks phenomenal on the aging Wii hardware. The game released to rave reviews in Japan last year thanks to its spectacular graphics, expansive scope and interesting gameplay concepts, a time-winding mechanic and a combat system similar to Final Fantasy XII among them.
Fortunately for those across the pond, Xenoblade Chronicles has been given a release date in Europe, where Wii owners will get Monolith Soft’s epic RPG later this year.
As for American gamers? As we’ve been doing, we can always hope.