Operation Backlog Completion 2026

Tales of Symphonia: Perfect from Start to Finish

 Reviews, Video games  183 Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Apr 222015
 

Tales-of-SymphoniaAt last, I’ve completed my second-ever game from the Tales series, Tales of Symphonia. And if I considered Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright to be “almost perfect,” then Tales of Symphonia is perfect.

Friends recommended the JRPG Tales of Symphonia to me for years, but I never really acted on it. For one thing, the original Gamecube version is rare and expensive. So when the Chronicles collection came out for the PS3, I finally decided to give the game a chance. That just left me with my other reason for hesitating: it couldn’t possibly be as good as my friends say it was.

Yes it could.

I started playing Tales of Symphonia sometime in January, just finished it on Saturday, and loved every moment in between. The last game I felt that much love for as I played it was… well, Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright, and we know how THAT turned out, even if it was still a great game. Tales of Symphonia, I’m happy to say, did not betray my expectations. I loved everything about it.

Let’s start with its gameplay. A lot of people will tell you that Tales of Symphonia is “aged” or “outdated.” Well, maybe it is, in which case I adore aged, outdated mechanics. Sure, the combat wasn’t flashy, but it was easy to learn and oddly relaxing (save for the boss battles that got me so upset I forgot basic concepts like how to use menus). Some of its sidequests are kind of obscure and easy to miss, which on one hand annoyed me but on the other hand pleased me because I felt I really had to work to find everything the game had to offer. Best of all, it had a World Map!

I want World Maps back in RPGs. Classic overworld style, bonus points if I get to manually fly some sort of airship around. Really, when I started Symphonia, I was thrilled to death to have a World Map.

Next, let’s talk about its plot, which I loved. I knew next to nothing about Tales of Symphonia going into it, so I really didn’t know what it was about. I expected a lot of plot twists and had fun thinking up theories–some of which were spot-on accurate and others of which were dead wrong. I liked that. It had enough foreshadowing for me to pick up on some things, but enough surprises to keep me guessing.

Its plot twists were great, and they never felt forced. After a while, I started to dread plot events, because they always left me feeling drained… which takes us to the characters!

The character interactions endeared me to my first Tales game, Tales of Xillia, and they were even better here. Overall, I like the cast of Symphonia better than the cast of Xillia. Even those I started out disliking, I liked by the end.

Genis Sage

Genis Sage.
Anyone who messes with Genis will feel my wrath.

Sure, it had some characters that were just awesome (*cough*Kratos*cough*), but it also had characters I just became really attached to. I really cared about Symphonia’s characters. I grew to love them so much, Tales of Symphonia became the fourth addition to the ranks of video games that have made me cry.

…I’m STILL not over that scene!

And while Tales of Symphonia’s cast was working its way into my heart, I had to give serious credit to the villains. Villains can make or break a story for me, and Tales of Symphonia’s helped make it. Unlike in Tales of Xillia, where I had consistent trouble picking someone out as a true villain, Symphonia gave me villains it was easy to hate–and love, even at the same time!

Everything I want in my villains was there, even a mad scientist! Only one thing disappointed me…

Click for spoiler
I so wanted the main villain to be redeemed in the end…

On the other hand, if this is still upsetting me, I can’t say the game did a bad job with him, now can I?

Besides, there was subtle implied redemption, maybe, a little bit…

These characters, good and bad, have all taken up residence in my head for the time being. They’re up there with the best of the best!

I loved the music, too. I loved everything about this game!

If you haven’t played Tales of Symphonia… you really should. If you HAVE, there’s a good chance you played on the Gamecube, so did you know that Tales of Symphonia Chronicles (because it is based on Japan’s PS2 port), has some new stuff?

Here are two of the new additions I consider to be the most notable. …I didn’t actually find either of them in my own playthrough, because you have to go out of your way for one and beat an insane bonus dungeon for the other.

Note: both of these scenes contain major spoilers.

Important backstory clarification

Memories from the past
Make sure you watch the scene after the battle, too, for the maximum amount of heartbreak.

Genis, just be glad it wasn’t an even worse question like, “So what am I like these days?”

I haven’t talked about Tales of Symphonia nearly enough. Honestly, I could go on all day about it. Don’t even get me started talking about it in comparison with Ace Attorney (really), Silent Hill (seriously), or Professor Layton (more for laughs). I played it for over 90 hours, and I consistently loved it during that time. I can’t let go of it. As usual, when I enjoyed a story this much, I want to write fanfiction about it… but I don’t know where to start. I don’t want to disrupt something so wonderful. I’d feel bad turning to my old habit of forcing redemption through a psychological beatdown, because Symphonia as it stands was great!

Right now… I would name Tales of Symphonia as my favorite game of all time. I liked it that much. And that’s why I consider it to be “perfect.”

So again, give this game a chance if you haven’t. Chime in with all your Symphonia thoughts in the comments and let me know if you loved it and its characters as much as I did!

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to figuring out my Symphonia cosplay…

Buy Tales of Symphonia Chronicles from Amazon
Buy Tales of Symphonia (original) from Amazon
Buy Tales of Symphonia Chronicles from Play-Asia

Baptism of Fire: The Start of a Journey

 Books, Reviews  2 Responses »  Tagged with:
Apr 202015
 

Baptism-of-FireOur journey through the Witcher saga meets a journey in the Witcher saga, in the third full novel (and currently the last one with an official English translation), Baptism of Fire.

If you’re mainly interested in reading the Witcher series for Geralt of Rivia, this might be the novel (excluding the short story collection) you enjoy the most. Where Blood of Elves focused on Ciri and Time of Contempt balanced its story between the major characters, the third Witcher novel centers around Geralt’s search for Ciri, with only a few deviations.

The Time of Contempt left Ciri in a bad situation, and Geralt knows he has to find her before it’s too late. Despite his initial attempts to go alone, he is joined by the ever-amusing bard Dandelion and the fierce archer Milva, along with other companions the pick up along the way.

Character interactions are the strongest part of this book, and that alone is reason enough to recommend it. They’re a weird, dysfunctional band of heroes, almost like a party you’d see in an RPG. Their differences, conflicts, and loyalties are what make the journey so interesting–more so than the plot itself.

To my dismay, Baptism of Fire is more like Blood of Elves in the sense that its plot feels too much like a part of something larger. The journey is the core of the story, and while subplots are resolved, the main plot is left for the next book to complete. While the novel ended with quite a striking scene, it didn’t feel as conclusive as it should have.

It also features some major mood whiplash, as the fairly dark story about war, corrupted innocence, and other grim topics transitions from a serious moral discussion on vampires’ right to exist to… a story that sounded more like it belonged in Discworld than The Witcher. Lines like “I finally began to do absolutely unacceptable things, the kind of things no vampire does. I flew under the influence” left me unsure if it was a parody of vampires, anti-alcohol PSAs, or both.

I mean, what was that scene? Why was it here?! Dandelion’s comic relief fits the universe, but this took the weird fairy tale retellings of The Last Wish and dove even further into the surreal.

With that said, as long as you don’t mind the sense that this is just part of the overarching story (and try not to think too hard about the vampire story), Baptism of Fire is a great dark fantasy book with entertaining characters and some intriguing developments.

So, as a quick recap, we have:

The final two novels are The Swallow’s Tower and Lady of the Lake (as well as a newer book in the universe unconnected to the main saga), currently available in English only as fan translations. I’ll take a look, but the next time I talk to you about the Witcher, it should be about the first video game!

And speaking of video games, stay tuned for my upcoming review of Tales of Symphonia…

Tales of Zestiria Set for Fall 2015

 Video games  No Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Apr 172015
 

As if there hasn’t been enough exciting video game news lately (Fatal Frame V localization, Yo-kai Watch localization, Star Ocean 5, etc.), Bandai Namco has released new information about Tales of Zestiria.

Tales-of-Zestiria-screenshot

Tales of Zestiria is one of my most anticipated games this year, and that hasn’t changed despite some controversy over the Japanese release of the game.

In addition to a handful of screenshots, Gematsu has a list of details about the game, including a quick description of the plot premise:

Two nations fight for supremacy and the fate of the realm lies in the hands of Sorey, an inquisitive young adventurer who takes on the burden of becoming the Shepherd, the one the legends foretold would become the savior of all. Together with Lailah, the Lady of the Lake, who guards the Sacred Blade, and his best friend Mikleo, Sorey soon discovers a powerful force rising in the shadows.”

Tales of Zestiria has a medieval fantasy setting, seamless battle transitions, and dual-audio, which should please fans who prefer to play their games with the original Japanese voice acting. The story/setting is also said to take cues from classic literature–so maybe that Lady of the Lake/Sacred Blade bit is a shout-out to Arthurian legend? If so, I can’t wait to see what else it draws on for inspiration!

Finally, here is the first English trailer for Tales of Zestiria.

It’s set for Fall 2015, unlike the summer release originally expected, but I’m fine with that. It’ll give me time to catch up on the Tales series and my backlog in general, so I’ll be ready to play it when it comes out!

Tales of Zestiria can already be pre-ordered, although it doesn’t have a definite release date yet. A Collector’s Edition for the West has yet to be revealed, but since the past few Tales games have had one (that was quickly sold out), Zestiria probably will as well.

Now… back to waiting in anticipation for the “massive surprises” promised to us. *crosses fingers for a Symphonia prequel*

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