Namco Bandai bringing Ni no Kuni to US next year

Ni no Kuni is coming to North America next year, courtesy of Namco Bandai. The publisher today confirmed it would be localizing the PlayStation 3 exclusive and releasing it domestically as Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch.

Ni no Kuni comes from Professor Layton developer Level-5 in collaboration with Studio Ghibli, the production house behind decorated Hayao Miyazaki films, such as Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, and Howl's Moving Castle. The animation studio's part in this project includes character designs and animation, with music from composer Joe Hisashi.

Level-5 is known for its work on the Dragon Quest series, and Ni no Kuni will stick close to the studio's specialty of role-playing games. The story follows Oliver, a young boy on a quest to become a master magician in an effort to return his dead mother from a parallel world called "Ni no Kuni."

For more on the game, check out GameSpot's previous coverage.