The Wii may be on its way out in favor of the WiiU later this year, but XSEED Games is looking to give the Wii one more great experience by releasing The Last Story this summer. The Last Story is an RPG from Mistwalker, the same team who delivered Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey for the Xbox 360 earlier in this console generation. Hironobu Sakaguchi directed this RPG, which varies from what you might have come to expect from Japanese RPGs. There’s cover, strategy, and a set number of lives that players must manage sparingly in order to see the end of the game.

Encounters are not random, and once they’re initiated, the active member of the player’s team can take cover to survey the layout and plan attack strategy. If a magic user is trying to cast a spell and falls under attack, then the player may decide to pop out of cover and come to the mage’s aid. There are also battle zones that have dynamic environments; for example, an archer can be directed to topple a pillar that causes a chain reaction of falling debris, damaging an entire enemy party in certain areas. Active party members can also use the Gathering skill, which operates like a taunt, to attract enemy attention and free up other party members to attack or cast spells.

The Last Story offers a 25-30 hour experience. It’s not as epic a quest as we’ve seen in other RPGs, but it’s certainly a fair amount of time to invest. Expect a fair amount of challenge here; party members have five lives and there are purposely few healing items available. There aren’t any continues, so it’s going to be vital to monitor each party member’s health and status. There will be online play here as well, with co-op and versus play available, to keep player interest after (or during) the main quest.

I was impressed with what I saw. Yes, the standard-def visuals were a step back from most of what I’d seen at the show, but the new battle system drove my interest and the Mistwalker pedigree is hard to argue against when it comes to quality. The Last Story could very well end up being the last great game for the best-selling platform of this console generation. RPG fans already have plans to get this, and it may be worth a look for other players when it hits US stores in a few weeks.