That actually wont even help as the compiler has no reason to use x/y in list_unused variables, they are not volatile. So this version would need a few volatile's too, and would cause unnecessary code to be generated so its not the right thing to do anyway.
I would still propose to list the variables to be used. As alternative, the manual also specifies how to use ENTRIES with elf object file names and not just with individual objects. Details: In the linker manual part of
Help\PDF\Build_Tools_Utilities.pdf.
Daniel