Xenoblade Chronicles has become one of Nintendo's most beloved franchises over the course of the past decade, especially with the inclusion of Shulk and Pyra/Mythra in the Super Smash Bros. series. This has also been helped by Nintendo's dedication to making the original Wii game more accessible after it was originally released as a GameStop exclusive title back in 2012. With the success of Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition and Xenoblade Chronicles 2 on Switch, it appears that Monolith Soft is currently developing a new title in the series.
Xenoblade Chronicles first released in Japan in 2010 and was not planned for release in North America whatsoever until Nintendo of Europe released an English-language version in 2011, which caused fans to start a campaign to see the game released in the US. In 2012, Nintendo released the Wii version in North America as a very limited GameStop exclusive release, which has become rare in recent years. In 2015 the game was re-released for New Nintendo 3DS to coincide with the release of Xenoblade Chronicles X for Wii U. A direct sequel titled Xenoblade Chronicles 2 was released for Nintendo Switch in December 2017.
Now, less than a year after the release of Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition and after Xenoblade Chronicles 2's Pyra and Mythra joined Super Smash Bros. Ultimate earlier this month, it appears Monolith Soft might be gearing up for the announcement of the next game in the series. As highlighted by Reddit user u/Xenomorph555, Xenoblade composers Yasunori Mitsuda and ACE+ have started work on a big new project after months of preparation. These composers have previously only worked together on the Xenoblade series.
Yasunori Mitsuda and ACE+ (Xenoblade OST Band) working together on a new project fromGamingLeaksAndRumours
If the development of Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is any indication, Monolith Soft usually handles music recording for its games near the end of development, with Xenoblade 2, Mitsuda announced that the soundtrack recording had finished in April 2017, with the full game shipping only eight months later in December. This could imply that Monolith Soft's next Xenoblade game could be revealed very soon, possibly in a Nintendo Direct during this summer.
While it's entirely possible that the project these composers are working on is unrelated to the Xenoblade series or Monolith Soft entirely, those holding out hope for this project being an expanded Xenoblade Chronicles X port or sequel should not get their hopes up given that Xenoblade X was composed by Attack on Titan and Kill la Kill composer Hiroyuki Sawano. Hopefully Monolith Soft does plan on bringing its ambitious sci-fi RPG to the Switch soon.
Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition is available now, exclusively for Nintendo Switch.