Xenoblade Chronicles 3 special edition delay means it misses out on series' most lucrative physical launch
Though boxed sales numbers still beat rest of the series.
Nintendo Switch exclusive Xenoblade Chronicles 3 has earned the biggest UK launch yet for the series, in terms of boxed sales figures.
But the critically-acclaimed RPG missed out on becoming the franchise's most lucrative launch to date - largely because it launched without its more-expensive Definitive Edition, GamesIndustry.biz reported.
As you may recall, the extra contents of Xenoblade Chronicles 3's Definitive Edition are now slated for launch later this year, due to "unforeseen logistical challenges".
Fans looking to get their hands on the Definitive Edition extras, which will now be sold without the game itself, will be able to place a pre-order via the My Nintendo Store in September.
This version will include a Steelbook case and artbook.
In case you thought Xenoblade was ready to wrap things up, developer Genki Yokota has now promised the franchise will continue, despite previously referring to the game as "the culmination of the series".
Eurogamer highly-recommended Xenoblade Chronicles 3, which our editor-in-chief Martin branded as the series' "most adaptable, malleable and high-spirited adventure yet".
"Perhaps more than any game in the series before, it gets the balance between systems and story down perfectly - even better, it manages to entwine the two in an adventure that infuses each of your footsteps with a sense of purpose," Martin wrote in Eurogamer's Xenoblade Chronicles 3 review.
"It might not quite be the revelation the original was back in 2010, but Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is most definitely another JRPG masterpiece from Monolith Soft."