Ajinryu
CAG Veteran
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Title: Tales of Symphonia
Developer: Namco Tales Studio
Genre: RPG
Platform: Gamecube
Players: 1-4
A tale of Epic proportions? Or just a mini adventure?
When it comes to RPG's, I'm not exactly the biggest fan, the only game I've recently enjoyed is Phantasy Star Online, and I really don't find any appeal in any of the FF series (Culture shock, orgasm), it's really not the type of game I can really get into, too much complexity with each and every RPG, different systems, blah blah, etc. So I bought Tales of Symphonia on a whim. And a pretty large one at that. I remember hearing about the game getting some really good feedback from various people on TXB (Slim Jilm being an obvious one) and from people on other sites too. So I decided to pick it up after applying for my second year of college. The boxart and screens would lead most RPG fans to think that this game is just another standard RPG fare but it's really much more than that.
Journey of World Regeneration
The game certainly gives a good first impression with an anime opening cutscene showing some parts of the many cutscenes in the game. The art is very well done; I wouldn't except anything else from Kosuke Fujishima, known for his work of Oh! My Goddess, Sakura Wars, and You're Under Arrest, Various Japanime's that have quite a following. In game graphics are done in a cell shaded style, akin to the likes of Zelda: The Wind Waker, and Jet Set Radio, except with large doses of anime character design added into the fray. It's a brilliant look that suits the game perfectly and makes a great change from JRPG's that go for a more realistic and cosmetic look. It's all bold and colourful stuff, that really captures the atmosphere perfectly.
Sound is also another shining element in this game, a lot of RPG's use mainly text to show characters communicating with each other but Tales of Symphonia uses voice acting when it comes to critical points in the game, and the voices are actually really well done for a game of this type, clean and crisp, although sometimes the odd forced line rears it's ugly head but for the most part it's good and the characters personality doesn't feel forced or cheesy. The music is a mix or everything, calm and gentle music to spooky and frantic music it's all very suiting, Namco always had a good record when it comes to audio and they haven't tainted their record with this game. Technical pros and cons aside, we can now move on to the story and background....
The story starts off with the games protagonist Lloyd Irving who is sleeping during a class lecture. During the lesson, the story of an ancient goddess called Martel is told. Martel was sealed away to help protect the world and the people in it. One of the students, Collete, holds a status, she is "The Chosen". The chosen is a certain person that is chosen by the gods to try save and regenerate the world by releasing the goddess Martel from her sleep. Numerous seals around the world lay dormant which only the chosen can open and release the power inside each one. She is soon set to go on "The Journey of Regeneration", a journey to unleash those seals and unleash the Goddess. After a numerous series of events involving you, Collete, a good friend of yours called Genis, and a mercenary called Kratos, disaster strikes, as a gang who call themselves "Superior Beings" attack your home village after you break a non aggression treaty while trying to save a prisoner from a "Human Ranch" were they keep lesser beings for slavery. These superior beings are actually called the "Desians" who value themselves over other people. After beating the Desians you are banished for the lives taken and destruction your actions had caused. Genis comes along with you too feeling partially responsible for the series of events and the game really begins.
Swords Blazing
What really sets this game, and the whole series apart from other RPG's, is the combat system. I just can't stand turn based battle systems, they just drag on too much, Tales of Symphonia does an almost alien concept and mixes the strategy of Turn based games and the furious sword fighting action of games such as Zelda and Phantasy Star Online. You don't control all four characters manually. Instead the character that's in the top position of your party remains in your control while the others attack using their AI and the sets of commands on which you give them before or during the battle, their movements and footing is controlled automatically by the computer and is never repeated in a pattern or in a predictable way. The AI is really good, as they can really dish out the pain and are more than capable of supporting you and helping you out of some really sticky situations. The usual levelling up and weapon assigning goes on with various items and upgrades available to the player. If your familiar with the concept of the RPG then you'll feel right at home here. The battle interface is both easy and intuitive with all your equipping and strategising down off the battle screen so preparing before going into a boss battle or a scenario with plenty of high level enemies is a must.
Another really awesome addition Namco has added is the ability for you to actually avoid battles with ease, small creatures walk across the world map and various other battle heavy areas, walk into these and you'll trigger a battle, it's about time that stuff like this was done more in RPG's, as travelling across a map only to run into a battle every few seconds can be frustrating. Tales of Symphonia addresses this problem and makes exploring the map an enjoyable experience. The only downside is that the map isn't exactly the nicest looking map in a game, in fact it's rather bland, but it's functional and major landscapes and monuments are easily distinguishable. The dungeons are really well done, they don't drag on like many other RPG's with meaningless banter or over complex puzzles, they're well balanced with puzzles that provide a good challenge but don't border on the insane or just plain illogical. They're not too long or not too short either, they're just right, and with no random battles makes for easy travelling from one end of a dungeon to the other end.
You'll meet various other characters along the way with their own unique abilities and specialized fields of combat. The usual stereotypes are in there. The mages who have weak defence but really good magic and support, the hero who has a really good knowledge of everything, and the tough guy who excels in strength and defence but has a slow attacking speed. Each character is really well presented and have their own unique background and attitude. Good characters and story have always been key factors in RPG's and Tales of Symphonia delivers both of them in buckets. It's a really charming game that boasts lovely design and a varied, and forever-changing story.
The gamecube needed a really good RPG, and Namco have delivered with Tales of Symphonia. If your a true RPG fan then you will buy a Gamecube (Cheap enough) and a copy of this game. It's a lovingly crafted, accessible, charming, and a thoroughly enjoyable adventure, through a world bristling with life and colour. It's not as long as the likes of Final Fantasy but it's certainly more enjoyable and playable, well that's my opinion anyway. Some people may want the game to be a tad longer but I think it's just right as it doesn't bore the player or put them off playing it because it doesn't take too long to play through the main story once. So if your an RPG fan, a first timer, or not even a fan of the genre then gives Tales of Symphonia a purchase, you won't regret it.
Title: Tales of Symphonia
Developer: Namco Tales Studio
Genre: RPG
Platform: Gamecube
Players: 1-4
A tale of Epic proportions? Or just a mini adventure?
When it comes to RPG's, I'm not exactly the biggest fan, the only game I've recently enjoyed is Phantasy Star Online, and I really don't find any appeal in any of the FF series (Culture shock, orgasm), it's really not the type of game I can really get into, too much complexity with each and every RPG, different systems, blah blah, etc. So I bought Tales of Symphonia on a whim. And a pretty large one at that. I remember hearing about the game getting some really good feedback from various people on TXB (Slim Jilm being an obvious one) and from people on other sites too. So I decided to pick it up after applying for my second year of college. The boxart and screens would lead most RPG fans to think that this game is just another standard RPG fare but it's really much more than that.
Journey of World Regeneration
The game certainly gives a good first impression with an anime opening cutscene showing some parts of the many cutscenes in the game. The art is very well done; I wouldn't except anything else from Kosuke Fujishima, known for his work of Oh! My Goddess, Sakura Wars, and You're Under Arrest, Various Japanime's that have quite a following. In game graphics are done in a cell shaded style, akin to the likes of Zelda: The Wind Waker, and Jet Set Radio, except with large doses of anime character design added into the fray. It's a brilliant look that suits the game perfectly and makes a great change from JRPG's that go for a more realistic and cosmetic look. It's all bold and colourful stuff, that really captures the atmosphere perfectly.
Sound is also another shining element in this game, a lot of RPG's use mainly text to show characters communicating with each other but Tales of Symphonia uses voice acting when it comes to critical points in the game, and the voices are actually really well done for a game of this type, clean and crisp, although sometimes the odd forced line rears it's ugly head but for the most part it's good and the characters personality doesn't feel forced or cheesy. The music is a mix or everything, calm and gentle music to spooky and frantic music it's all very suiting, Namco always had a good record when it comes to audio and they haven't tainted their record with this game. Technical pros and cons aside, we can now move on to the story and background....
The story starts off with the games protagonist Lloyd Irving who is sleeping during a class lecture. During the lesson, the story of an ancient goddess called Martel is told. Martel was sealed away to help protect the world and the people in it. One of the students, Collete, holds a status, she is "The Chosen". The chosen is a certain person that is chosen by the gods to try save and regenerate the world by releasing the goddess Martel from her sleep. Numerous seals around the world lay dormant which only the chosen can open and release the power inside each one. She is soon set to go on "The Journey of Regeneration", a journey to unleash those seals and unleash the Goddess. After a numerous series of events involving you, Collete, a good friend of yours called Genis, and a mercenary called Kratos, disaster strikes, as a gang who call themselves "Superior Beings" attack your home village after you break a non aggression treaty while trying to save a prisoner from a "Human Ranch" were they keep lesser beings for slavery. These superior beings are actually called the "Desians" who value themselves over other people. After beating the Desians you are banished for the lives taken and destruction your actions had caused. Genis comes along with you too feeling partially responsible for the series of events and the game really begins.
Swords Blazing
What really sets this game, and the whole series apart from other RPG's, is the combat system. I just can't stand turn based battle systems, they just drag on too much, Tales of Symphonia does an almost alien concept and mixes the strategy of Turn based games and the furious sword fighting action of games such as Zelda and Phantasy Star Online. You don't control all four characters manually. Instead the character that's in the top position of your party remains in your control while the others attack using their AI and the sets of commands on which you give them before or during the battle, their movements and footing is controlled automatically by the computer and is never repeated in a pattern or in a predictable way. The AI is really good, as they can really dish out the pain and are more than capable of supporting you and helping you out of some really sticky situations. The usual levelling up and weapon assigning goes on with various items and upgrades available to the player. If your familiar with the concept of the RPG then you'll feel right at home here. The battle interface is both easy and intuitive with all your equipping and strategising down off the battle screen so preparing before going into a boss battle or a scenario with plenty of high level enemies is a must.
Another really awesome addition Namco has added is the ability for you to actually avoid battles with ease, small creatures walk across the world map and various other battle heavy areas, walk into these and you'll trigger a battle, it's about time that stuff like this was done more in RPG's, as travelling across a map only to run into a battle every few seconds can be frustrating. Tales of Symphonia addresses this problem and makes exploring the map an enjoyable experience. The only downside is that the map isn't exactly the nicest looking map in a game, in fact it's rather bland, but it's functional and major landscapes and monuments are easily distinguishable. The dungeons are really well done, they don't drag on like many other RPG's with meaningless banter or over complex puzzles, they're well balanced with puzzles that provide a good challenge but don't border on the insane or just plain illogical. They're not too long or not too short either, they're just right, and with no random battles makes for easy travelling from one end of a dungeon to the other end.
You'll meet various other characters along the way with their own unique abilities and specialized fields of combat. The usual stereotypes are in there. The mages who have weak defence but really good magic and support, the hero who has a really good knowledge of everything, and the tough guy who excels in strength and defence but has a slow attacking speed. Each character is really well presented and have their own unique background and attitude. Good characters and story have always been key factors in RPG's and Tales of Symphonia delivers both of them in buckets. It's a really charming game that boasts lovely design and a varied, and forever-changing story.
The gamecube needed a really good RPG, and Namco have delivered with Tales of Symphonia. If your a true RPG fan then you will buy a Gamecube (Cheap enough) and a copy of this game. It's a lovingly crafted, accessible, charming, and a thoroughly enjoyable adventure, through a world bristling with life and colour. It's not as long as the likes of Final Fantasy but it's certainly more enjoyable and playable, well that's my opinion anyway. Some people may want the game to be a tad longer but I think it's just right as it doesn't bore the player or put them off playing it because it doesn't take too long to play through the main story once. So if your an RPG fan, a first timer, or not even a fan of the genre then gives Tales of Symphonia a purchase, you won't regret it.
Graphics: 9.0
The cell shaded graphics really suit the atmosphere and design of the game, nice, bold and colourful, it melds in well with the Anime influence of the game. Good stuff.
Sound: 9.2
It has a great soundtrack, solid SFX and voice acting that doesn't feel like it was added on at the last moment, good performance by all the actors with rarely a hiccup
Gameplay: 9.3
The crowning achievement of the game, it manages to create an interface that is easy to use, and has it's own depths, but doesn't deter your average Joe or non RPG aficionado’s.
Lifespan: 9.0
Extra things to find, sub plots, sub missions, and a really enjoyable and charming experience may ensure that you play it more than once, although some people may wish that the main story was a tad longer.
Overall Score: 9.2
The people who moan about a good RPG not being on the gamecube can stop complaining and pick this up. An essential addition to you collection if you like RPG's or want to try and get into an RPG without being deterred by any of the usual annoyances found in this genre.
[/font]The cell shaded graphics really suit the atmosphere and design of the game, nice, bold and colourful, it melds in well with the Anime influence of the game. Good stuff.
Sound: 9.2
It has a great soundtrack, solid SFX and voice acting that doesn't feel like it was added on at the last moment, good performance by all the actors with rarely a hiccup
Gameplay: 9.3
The crowning achievement of the game, it manages to create an interface that is easy to use, and has it's own depths, but doesn't deter your average Joe or non RPG aficionado’s.
Lifespan: 9.0
Extra things to find, sub plots, sub missions, and a really enjoyable and charming experience may ensure that you play it more than once, although some people may wish that the main story was a tad longer.
Overall Score: 9.2
The people who moan about a good RPG not being on the gamecube can stop complaining and pick this up. An essential addition to you collection if you like RPG's or want to try and get into an RPG without being deterred by any of the usual annoyances found in this genre.
k , I'll concur it's a great game but shouldn't this be a Fire Emblem review or Battalion Wars ?