aesara 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 94

Here we shall continue to praise Tales partially because the series is awesome and partially because we need to free up the 2010 Cosplays thread!

Hebz 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 56

Tales is my life and I can't imagine a world without Tales. I still remember the day when my dad walked in the door with Tales of Symphonia and my friend goes "that game is ****". I popped it in the Gamecube and basked in the opening, dubbed by Cam Clark, and thought, "This will be a great game." 80 hours later, I finished my first play through, set down my controller, and knew I had just finished the best RPG of all time. Tales of Symphonia has always been, and may always be (depends on how epic Graces is) my favorite Tales game of all time, and one of my favorite RPGs of all time.

Then, several years later, I discovered Tales of the Abyss, which I was amazed by. Specifically, how well I could connect with Luke at the time. I found it amazing and discovered the Hi-Ougi. After I completed Abyss in 70 hours, I looked up other Tales games and one by one completed them via emulator. Phantasia, Destiny, Eternia, and finally, a translated version of Destiny 2. My grandfather found Tales of Legendia and I fell in love with the game, tying it with Symphonia upon completion in 80 hours.

Then, my dream came true. Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World was announced. I reserved it 5 months before it's release and waited in anticipation for the game to finally arrive in my Wii. I ended up beating the game in a week, 30 hours, and felt slightly disappointed. However, I still loved it so much, placing it in the 3rd place spot.

Then, I got a 360. I hunted Tales of Vesperia down for months before finding it. I breezed through the game in 70 hours and felt...disappointed. While the characters, music, and gameplay was amazing, everything else seemed...wrong. Needless to say, it landed low on my list.

Then, my dream came true. The first full-fledged Tales game for Wii, Tales of Graces. Waiting anxiously for it's release, I take every new still and add it to an album on Facebook. I only pray that it comes to American shores. And...maybe Tales of VS. But, I'm not as interested in that game. Though, the music is nice.

And that, my friends, is my story about Tales. I will be getting Tales of Tempest for Christmas, despite all warnings against it due to the fact that I am a whore for ANYTHING with werewolfs, and I will promptly relay my opinion on the game.

-This post has been edited by the webmaster.-

aesara 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 94

@ Hebz

I believe that we will get along.

Tales of Symphonia was the first video game (other than Pokemon games) that I ever played all the way through to the end. It will probably always be my favorite, partially thanks to that. I also like DotNW, but consider it more of a long sidequest than a full-fledged game (ALMOST-SPOILER: am I the only one who felt jipped by the length of Kratos's "appearance" - even on the next playthrough?/END ALMOST-SPOILER - glad to see someone else who knows who Cam Clarke is, by the way -). I've played Phantasia via emulator and, while it was sort of depressing (Tales never allow a completely happy ending, which is actually one of my favorite aspects of the series), I was impressed with its depth considering its age.

Tales of the Abyss was my second (after A LOT of searching) Tales game, and I like it about as much as Symphonia. I have not a thing to complain about except for the sometimes ridiculous loading times. There is only so long that you can stare at a line of white pulsating circles. This only happened, though, because of the SHEER AWESOMENESS of the game, meaning: there is simply too much data to fit on that one disk. The Tales of the Abyss anime (as well as the Tales of Symphonia OVA) is enjoyable, but has a good number of obvious inconsistencies (though not as many as the Symphonia OVA).

I have to admit that I am not crazy about Legendia. It is still a good game, but it was not made by Tales Studio and it shows. I can't stand the battle system and feel as though there is not enough holding the characters together as a group. Another aspect of Tales that I love is its character development. I feel that that was somewhat lacking in Legendia.

What I know about Destiny, Destiny 2, Eternia, Vesperia (of which I do not get the best impression, to be honest), and most of Radiant Mythology I know by reading scripts or manga versions. I've never owned an XBOX360 so I haven't been able to play Vesperia and the others are nearly impossible to find for less than $60-$100+ each. I have Radiant Mythology, but no PSP, so I've played very little.

I look forward to the release of Graces, Hearts, Vesperia for PS3, hopefully Vs., and any others that come to North America. While in Japan I purchased Symphonia for the PS2, Abyss, Destiny (Director's Cut), Fandom v.2, both the anime and CG versions of Hearts, and Innocence. I have Summoner's Lineage on an emulator. I was unable to find Destiny 2, Eternia, Rebirth, Tempest, Fandom v.1, Radiant Mythology 2 (supposed to have come out this January), or any of the Narikiri Dungeons. I've only been back since mid-July, so I haven't had the time to play any of those (especially since they are in Japanese, and I need some time to understand them).

One way you can tell that you have played for a long time is when EVEN YOUR HEALER can make the game lag. It's fun to strengthen your characters.

P.S. Sorry about that little bit of editing, but it's my job. ^_^;

Hebz 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 56

No prob on the editing.

Yeah. Destiny 2, Rebirth, Tempest, Innocence, Hearts, RM2, and all of the Narikiri Dungeons are NOT confirmed to coming our way. I heard Troy Baker telling people that he went in to record new lines, so I think the PS3 version will come out here, but I have strong feelings about the game that can be summed up in a sentance. "I think the game is going to be bad." They packed in WAY too much fan service, an extra character, and made Flynn playable. The already terrible story had Flynn's absence from the party as an EXTREMELY IMPORTANT part of the story. And, adding in Patty and making Flynn join will cause them to basically have to re-write the story. I am not pleased.

I actually got Abyss a month after it's release at Wal-Mart. I played through 4 times (which doesn't even compare to my Symphonia play throughs) and enjoyed it a lot. But, I went through this phase where if it's not on a Nintendo System, don't get it, and I sold it. We tracked it down this summer and played it again, but I felt...let down by this next play through. It wasn't the same great story I had once played. It may have been that I didn't identified with Luke anymore, which is why it had such an impact on me the first time around. I actually found myself using Guy religiously. But, my ONLY friend who liked the game enough to play it with me stopped being my friend, and I saw no reason to keep it. It's probably at Gamestop still...

Even though the several un-released games mentioned above never made it here, I still know a good deal about Destiny 2 (having played a translated version on an emulator), Rebirth, RM2, and Hearts. I know the gist of Innocence and I know too much about Tempest (which I'm getting cause I need a short DS Tales game and I have a guide).

And, I will have to disagree with you on Legendia. True, during the Main Scenario only Senel and Shirley got a lot of character development, but the Character Quests brought out everyone's back story and had them grow as characters. And, they were all brought together by Senel's will to save Shirley. Everyone's personalities are so different, it's actually more realistic, IMO. I mean, you say that by the end of Jay's CQ, he and Moses were buds, but still went on with the insult gags. I also didn't mind the battle system. It reminded me of a sped up version of Phantasia. Also, I felt as if the VA work fit perfectly. The back story and mythology for the game was also terrific. Legendia's forte is that it's about story, not game play. And, you'd have to agree that it's story was more interesting then other games out there.

Yes. I have a feeling we'll get along, too. Any fan of Tales is a friend of mine. ^^

aesara 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 94

I heard about all the additions and fan service for Vesperia PS3, but I'm not particularly likely to be getting an XBOX360 so I'll have to deal (unless I can convince a friend to let me borrow his XBOX360 for a week or two XD). I wish that they would confirm more for a North American release, but I'm hoping to go back to Japan next summer... That means I get another chance to try to complete my collection.

It's really too bad about Abyss for you. I always control the magic swordsman types (such as Kratos and Jade, both of whom ended up being my favorite characters) and never felt much of an attachment to Luke (though I do think that short-haired Luke is awesome as a character). I think that the plot does sort of have some deeper meanings to me though, so that may be part of my reason for loving it.

Don't get me wrong, I don't dislike Legendia. Senel is indeed pretty cool, and I think the music was impressive. It is definitely more interesting than most games I've played, but it sometimes doesn't feel like part of the Tales series to me. The system is similar to Phantasia, but I was constantly annoyed by characters getting stuck on each other. Hahaha... I also missed the multiplayer option dreadfully. I consider plot more important than gameplay, but I felt like there was often too much time between plot points. The system felt like a step down rather than up, since it was my third Tales after Symphonia and Abyss, and left a bad impression on me.

- Artes For Gald : Lorelei - 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 18

Abyss was my first and sad to say only Tales game I've actually techically played. I have Symphonia sitting here finally since I just got my self a Gamecube, but the problem lacks in having the systems to play any of the other games. I do hope to get a Wii soon (hopefully in '10 sometime) so I can play Symphonia 2 and I would like to get a PS3 just for Vesperia and a few other games. I know way too much about the games though just from running a few Tales panels and just because I don't play a whole lot of other rpgs because I'm just too picky with them.

Abyss will always rule my life. And malkuth_defect can vouch for this as well. It's just such a wonderful game with a great plot that you just don't see in games much now a days. Though, I am hoping that Tales of Graces will be good, but until I get a PS3; I won't know. I just wish they made more games for the PS2, since it's so hard for us poor artists to get every system out there.

As far as favorite character goes - (longhair) Luke. Yes, I like the bratty, spoiled assholes. (Yes, I'm a strange one.) I have many strange pairings for the series too that involves Luke x Guy x Asch, Nephry x Peony x Jade, Luke x Tear, Frings x Cecille, just to name a few. What is horrible is - I was even tempted to name my cat after a Tales of character, but she just didn't fit the personality.

aesara 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 94

@ Artes for Gald

I have a cat named Tear...

Hebz 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 56

I like to go all out swordsman. Or fighter (in the case of Senel). And, Abyss was just a game I enjoyed playing with a friend. I picked it up again (since it WAS just sitting there at Gamestop) and think I'll go through it again. I love having Brilliant Overlord early in the game. Whoosh, Whoosh!!!

With that thought process, I'll probably pick up Vesperia again once my 360 is fixed. Then, I'll have all the games for collection purposes. I mean, Vesperia is fun, but only if you ignore the terrible story line. My only word to those who want to get it, EVERYONE has a strange fighting style except Estelle. Speaking of Estelle, once Raven get's Love Shot, TAKE HER OUT OF THE PARTY! Her AI is stupid and casts whatever his her highest level healing spell at the time and she just spams it. Wither you need it or not. Love Shot is useful and after so many uses he can heal everyone about 1500 HP with one shot. All I have to say about that.

- Artes For Gald : Lorelei - 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 18

Finally have the time to start Symphonia today. Thus far, I do like Abyss better but then again I may just be biased too. I'm also not use to a Gamecube, so I'm learning all the functions and methods of playing with a Gamecube as I play along. I do admit, I like most of the characters thus far - but I absolutely, absolutely can not stand Colette. I don't know how anyone can like her. I am very happy that I finally am able to play the game considering I know way too much about the plot and story throughout. I can't wait to finish it.

Hebz 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 56

The game starts off slow, but it gets better as time progresses. And, yeah. I think all of us are with you when I say that Colette is the worst heroine to ever grace RPG history. Abyss may also seem better cause it came out after Symphonia, so it's a step up in terms of gameplay.

Going through Abyss again now. I'm finding it enjoyable again. You must have all revitalized my interest in it. Still not feelin' the love with Luke, but I got Guy. My team is Guy, Jade, Anise (who is AMAZING. I never had her in the party cause she annoyed me. Big mistake, I see), and Natalia. I don't care for Luke anymore and, to be honest, I get distracted when Tear is in the party. Same thing happened in Vesperia with Judith and Sheena in Symphonia. Must be cause I'm a guy...

ANYWAYS!!! Point being, I'm enjoying Abyss again and I blame all of you. XD

ccoates-PRESIDENT 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 102

I love both Symphonia and Abyss, though those are the only two I have fully played through...aesara has been the first person to really introduce me to video games (beyond pokemon which doesn't count) so I started late on the video game scene. And I tried to play Vesperia...but ten minutes in to the game and I was wanted to kill something, so aesara made me stop, personally I think she just thought I was going to kill her game system....

I think the only character I truly hate from either Symphonia or Abyss is Genius. The bigoted racist 12 year old (I know he's not 12 but he looks like it) needs to simply disappear from the game! Every time aesara and I play we do our best to keep him out of the party, heck we even put Zelos in the party over him and we pick Kratos every time.

Yeah Colette is a ditz but when it comes to female characters I can stand her more then Anise, though if Anise wasn't always trying to marry guys for money and didn't basically *SPOILER* kill Ion I don't think I would mind her as much.

And as for Sheena distracting you Hebz, I think that is just because your a guy...though aesara and I spend so much time supping up Rain and Kratos they make the game lag. But aesara and I are playing a new game of Symphonia where we are making Llyod fall in love with Sheena instead of Colette which is fun. Yey for otherwise unseen Z skits.

But I will stop babbling now and maybe go do some of my homework...

- Artes For Gald : Lorelei - 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 18

Thus far, I really don't favor too many pairings in Symphonia. I absolutely adore Yuan, Mithos and Genis. I do know alot about Symphonia, so I kind of spoiled my self with learning the storyline years ago since I never had access to a Gamecube. I hope to play more later tonight or tomorrow.

I've began another playthrough of Abyss when I moved two months ago. I'm nearly finished with it, but it's not unheard of that it's about my 6th playthrough. I wasn't really concerned about sidequests with it though in this playthrough so hopefully my next one I will pay attention more to em. Especially since I love the Peony/rappig ones.

Hebz 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 56

The rappig side quest was fun. And worth it, IMO. Getting a silly suits for everyone. I love the cut scenes after you do a battle in each costume. My favorite side quest was definitely the Replicanist battle. That was insane and long and fun. I ran out of items during the fight, so I had to wing the last half of the battle. XD

I liked Genis. He was cute and I enjoyed his huge amount of spells. INDIGNATION JUDGMENT, F.T.W.!!! And, I've gotten used to Colette. At least she's better then Alice from DotNW. -reaches for sword to impale her for the thousandth time-

So, I'm assuming you didn't like Vesperia ccoates? The first 3rd is good. The second third is okay. The last third makes me want to go into Tales studio and shoot everyone who works there. It was rushed, it was incoherent, and the game itself had a *spoiler* HAPPY ENDING. Something that aesara mentioned doesn't often happen in the Tales games. Plus, the character of Zagi, who is one of the best villains of the Tales series SERVES NO PURPOSE IN THE GAME except to extend it's play time. The only good part of the last third was the Yuri vs Flynn fight (the game's 1-on-1 fight). Basically, any dialogue between Yuri and Flynn is some of the best in the game.

ccoates-PRESIDENT 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 102

My problem with Genis is that except for Llyod and Colette he hates humans...and doesn't really hide it. He gets mad at the Desians for hurting humans and then goes and says something racist against humans.

It just bugs me that he does that and then is never forced to acknowledge that he does those things. Llyod forced to see that there isn't just a good and evil but instead everything is pretty grey, Colette has to learn that doing what your told doesn't always mean it will lead to happiness, and pretty much every other character learns some life lesson, even Rain learns that knowledge doesn't mean anything if you can't use it to help people. And yet Genis never learns that racism is bad. So yeah he frustrates me some times.

But on a happier note, since I hate to sound mad, lols. Llyod and Kratos are my two favorite characters from Symphonia!! ^-^ Though aesara can recite all of the Judgment incantation and most of Indignation, I'm not to that level yet. lols.

Finally when it comes to Vesperia, truthfully I was spoiled because Symphonia and Abyss were my first ever RPG and video games ever, and Vesperia just doesn't compare at all. And actually if I remember correctly wasn't even made by the Tales group, a completely different group made it and pretty much stole the Tales name. For awhile it wasn't even listed on the Tales website, they pretty much disowned it, lols. But I just couldn't get into the fighting style at all and the graphics just aren't as good as Symphonia or Abyss. So I stopped after ten minutes or so.

But I love Tales and I am learning more from aesara, I'm just bad at playing video games. I get bored when I end up talking to myself, because the day Kratos starts replying to my ranting is the day I check myself into the mental ward.

By the way you should join the Church of Jade that does Nothing. Where Kratos is god and Jade is the pope. Yes aesara and I are both members, though aesara is one of the founders. lols

Hebz 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 56

"I who stand in the land of the living, call upon thee in the land of the dead, to unleash thy fury of thunder!!! INDIGNATION!!!!"

Or, if you want to get fancy

"I, who stand in the full light of the heavens, command thee, who open the gates of hell. Come forth divine lightning! This ends now, INDIGNATION!!!!"

Or, if you want to be literal (since every version of Indignation in Japan as the same chant).

"To the light that shines like the heavens, hear my call, to the gates of the underworld, open up and hear thy call, come forth, Lightning of God! INDIGNATION!!!!"

Ahhhhh, fun times.

ANYWHO, My favorites from Symphonia were Lloyd, Presea, and Regal. Mainly cause I liked Lloyd's and Presea's character development, and Regal is just epic.

Vesperia was SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO made by Tales studio. The only ones that weren't were Legendia and Innocence. And I rather enjoyed Vesperia's graphics. It's for the 360. I almost think you're talking about a different game all together....

AND I'LL JOIN THE CHURCH OF JADE THAT DOES NOTHING!!!!! If I wasn't already part of Cruxis...Curses.

ccoates-PRESIDENT 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 102

...If I am then I am actually very sorry T-T Like I said I am still really new to video games and since I've only played four Tales games, three of the them being Abyss, Symphonia and Symphoina 2 I sometimes get some of the others mixed up (unless they are for the DS and that's only because they are new and I watched aesara buy them while we were in Japan). Sorry if I accidentally offended you I didn't mean to, and not being a big gamer isn't a good excuse but it's the only one I have...so sorry about the mix up. And hey I will own up to my mistakes when I make them so please don't hold them against me? ^-^ Please?

But I'm also glad that someone else loves Regal too! He is another one of my favorites who just never seems to get enough love from the fans....

As for being a part of Cruxis that doesn't matter, we don't do anything so it won't interfere with any of your other activities. lols ^-^

Hebz 6 months ago
ActivityRank: 56

I'm not made. I'm just correcting and slightly confused. No big. ^^

Yeah, Regal is epic and the definition of Man. I mean, he get's a title called Testosterone!!! How freaking manly is that? Plus, well...I won't go into details cause of spoilers, but Regal is amazing.

Alright, then. I'll join the Church of Jade that does nothing. Cruxis will just have to deal. XD

aesara 5 months ago
ActivityRank: 94

Yes, another member for the Church of Jade that Does Nothing. Awesome. We have members all the way over in New Zealand, you know. XD Don't worry about Cruxis... Last I heard, we're on good terms.

Hey Carrie, the issue here is that you mixed up Vesperia with Legendia. Legendia was created by NAMCO, but not Tales Studio. Vesperia was made by Tales Studio and is one of the most popular in North America. I don't have it because I don't have an XBOX360.

That should clear up everyone's confusion here.

Hebz 5 months ago
ActivityRank: 56

I actually know just as many people who dislike Vesperia as those who like it. However, it's NOTHING compared to Symphonia and Abyss. It's one of the worse. Don't bother picking it up. Or you'll want to stab your brain with bullets.

ccoates-PRESIDENT 5 months ago
ActivityRank: 102

I still apologize about making the mistake about the two games, but since aesara doesn't have a XBOX I don't see myself playing the game any time soon, lols. ^-^ Though when I stop and try to think about how you can stab yourself with bullets it makes my brain hurt...lols

Hebz 5 months ago
ActivityRank: 56

Yeah. Well, my brain hurt a lot while playing Vesperia, so it all works out. I beat the game twice and STILL had no idea what was going on. I heard that the PS3 version is better and the the 360 version was actually an incomplete game (Patty and Flynn had data stored up for use, and the second Hi-Ougi had unused ENGLISH voice clips...) The PS3 version is also twice as long, I guess. Which makes me kinda repulsed. However, I got my Tales games (and a slew of DS RPGs plus TMNT: Smash Up) to keep my sanity. Hooray for things that don't make me want to hurt stuff cause the game sucks!

That was a bad sentence. I'm either tired or dumb right now...

Hebz 5 months ago
ActivityRank: 56

Soooooooo, a crazy 5:30 long video game out of a Tales of Graces demo. Looks FANTASTIC!!! Either go to Abyssal Chronicles to see it, or check out Abyssal Chronicles' youtube account. It's fantastic and makes me want the game even more. Hooray for Blast Calibers!!! ^^

- Artes For Gald : Lorelei - 5 months ago
ActivityRank: 18

Hebz: Already seen the Graces trailer a while ago. But yes, it looks absolutely beautiful. I absolutely am trying to save up for a Wii for when it is brought over here *crosses fingers* well, if it does. It has a few elements in the story line and character designs/history that hasn't been seen yet before in other Tales games. Plus it has an amazing voice cast in the Japanese version. I hope the Wii gives you options of playing with it in dub or in Japanese with subtitles.

Hebz 5 months ago
ActivityRank: 56

I hoped for the Japanese voices and subs for DotNW. That didn't happen, but the voices grew on me.

Yeah, the TGS trailers made it look even more amazing. Especially the end of the second one with the Giant Monster crushing the party. I can't wait to fight that thing. ^^

I also showed one of my friends (who never liked the Tales series) the trailer for the game and he wants the game REALLY bad now. I do hope that they have more then 1 Blast Caliber, though. I mean, ToD C had 3-4 each, right?