Xenoblade Chronicles is a series of action role-playing games developed by Monolith Soft and published by Nintendo. The series began with the original Xenoblade Chronicles game, published for the Nintendo Wii in 2010. Though initially only released in Japan, it was localized into other regions as a result of Operation Rainfall, a large grass-roots fan campaign to pressure Nintendo to localize several Japan-exclusive games. The original game became a critical and commercial success, spawning multiple sequels. The series has since sold more than 8.74 million copies worldwide. Xenoblade Chronicles has been well-received for its world design, music, stories, and themes. The series has been represented in other gaming franchises, including the Super Smash Bros. and Project X Zone series. It is loosely a part of the Xeno metaseries, for which it receives its namesake, co-created and directed by Tetsuya Takahashi.