The Nintendo Wii was not exactly the hub of RPGs in the height of its power, though it had the Virtual Console - The NES and especially the SNES were considered to be two of the greatest RPG platforms of all time. That’s why the Virtual Console was such a big deal. That sentiment fell off with the dawn of the N64, GameCube, and Wii.RELATED: Every Nintendo Controller, Ranked From Worst To BestThe RPG support on all three of those systems was weaker compared to Nintendo’s predecessors and competitors. There were still some significant triple-A releases on the Wii such as Xenoblade Chronicles - but what other RPGs were there? There are more than you might think, even though they are a bit more obscure.

10 The Last Story

Promo art featuring characters from The Last Story

The Last Story was made by Mistwalker which was started by Hironobu Sakaguchi, the father of Final Fantasy. Prior to this, Mistwalker made some RPGs exclusive to Microsoft with some moderate success but nothing as big as that triple-A series.

The name of this game is clearly a nod to Final Fantasy, although it is significantly different, as a more action-based game. It has not escaped the Wii since it launched in Japan in 2011 and in North America in 2012.

9 Muramasa: The Demon Blade

Kisuke and Monohime from Muramasa: The Demon Blade

Muramasa: The Demon Blade launched in 2009 for the Wii. It had two intertwining campaigns, both starring ninjas of sorts: Kisuke and Momohime. It was later released with enhancements in 2013 for the PS Vita which is when it gathered a little more attention.

This is an action RPG with some Metroidvania elements, meaning it was perfect for on-the-go gaming. The game looked good even in standard definition on the Wii, but it looked better on the smaller OLED PS Vita screen.

8 Opoona

Fighting enemies in Opoona

Opoona might be the most forgotten Wii RPG on the list. It comes from Koei Tecmo and was released in 2007 in Japan and in 2008 in North America. It is a turn-based RPG starring little spacemen that look like they popped right out of Pikmin. It’s a bit of a grind early on even though it looks cutesy.

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The only legacy Opoona has seen since this launch, as the game never left the Wii, was being included as a playable character in Warriors All-Stars.

7 Fragile Dreams

Exploring the world in Fragile Dreams

Fragile Dreams is an action horror RPG set in an apocalyptic-like world of nightmares. Things start off slow with only a few weapons at hand to bash the nightmares away. There is a flashlight component to the game that has players point the Wii controller to motion light from said flashlight.

It was released in 2009 in Japan and in 2010 in North America. It’s not the most exciting RPG on the system but it deserves more recognition for trying something unique in the genre. It never left the Nintendo Wii, unfortunately.

6 Pandora’s Tower

Elena and Aeron from Pandora’s Tower

Pandora’s Tower has a significant tie to Xenoblade Chronicles. Both games were part of Project Rainfall which tried to bring some Wii RPGs to the West. It worked for both, although this game got a little less love. It was released first in 2011 in Japan and then in 2013 in North America.

It should also be noted that it hit Europe in 2012 with a proper English translation. The game itself revolves around a knight, Aeron, who is tasked with ascending a deadly tower in order to heal Elena who has been inflicted with a nasty disease. It’s a bit like Ico meets God of War.

5 Sakura Wars: So Long, My Love

Promo art featuring characters from Sakura Wars: So Long, My Love

Not many games have been released in this series that date back all the way to the 90s. Sakura Wars: So Long, My Love first hit the PS2 in 2005 in Japan. It then got an enhanced port five years later in 2010 for both the PS2 and Wii in North America.

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This is a strategy RPG involving mech-like eggs in a steampunk era at its core. However, it is also a dating sim where choices matter and will thus effect the story.

4 Shiren The Wanderer

Promo art featuring characters from Shiren The Wanderer

Shiren the Wanderer was released first in 2008 in Japan. Two years later it hit the West, and also got a port to the PSP. That version did not make it out of Japan, which is a shame because roguelikes akin to Shiren the Wanderer are perfect for portable gaming.

While this game is hard to play now, the most recent entry in the series, Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate, is on the Switch. It is also on the PS Vita, another great portable device.

3 Battalion Wars 2

Promo art featuring characters from Battalion Wars 2

Despite the name not sounding proper, this is part of what the West refers to as the Advance Wars series. In Japan, it is just known as the Wars series. Both Battalion Wars games took the series into a new perspective - 3D.

It turned the series into a more action-based strategy RPG with RTS elements rather than a tile-based strategy RPG. It had its fans but because it barely resembled the more portable versions, it didn’t get as much love. Battalion Wars 2 was released in 2007 on the Wii.

2 Dragon Quest Swords

Promo art featuring characters from Dragon Quest Swords

Dragon Quest Swords is a first-person on-rails RPG and a unique entry in the series because of that. It was released first in 2007 in Japan before making its way here in 2008. Players can go to town to buy items, but they don’t have much choice when it comes to movement in the actual game.

Unlike other on-rail experiences that tend to focus on shooting, this game still uses melee combat. Players would use the Wii remote to swing the sword around. It was good by most review standards, but more Western fans would have probably preferred to get Dragon Quest 10 which has still never left Japan.

1 Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers

Layle from Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers is a spinoff of a spinoff. The proper Crystal Chronicles games tend to focus on four-player co-op action. This too is an action RPG, but is instead modeled around a solo campaign. It’s also gets away from typical melee and magic skills from most Final Fantasy games.

It uses a telepathy-like system - players would use the Wii remote to hurl objects at enemies. It was released in 2009 and despite the weird combat, it played well for a motion game and looked great for a Wii game too.

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