Ever since I first played Tales of Destiny way back in 1999 I have been
in love with the Tales franchise. While not as immediately recognizable
in the mainstream gaming community as the Final Fantasy or Dragon
Quest/Warrior RPG juggernauts, the "Tales of" series of games have
always had a loyal fan base due to the great stories and combat that is
the hallmark of the games. The question of whether or not to purchase
the latest game in the franchise was a no-brainer for me, and I can say
with 100% certainty that I am so happy that I indulged myself.
Controls, Music, & Animation
Every
Tales game is painstaking in its delivery of beautiful graphics and
music, and Tales of Xillia (henceforth referred to as "ToX") continues
in that tradition. Simply put, this game is gorgeous and takes every
advantage of the PS3 hardware to simply amaze me. The world of Xillia is
bright, colorful, and varied. Environments are dynamic; each
exploration area is divided by little "breaks"; while this may seem
annoying, the lack of lag when going through a doorway into the next
room is practically non-existent. The screen flashes black for one
moment and then you are free to control your character.
In
addition to the beautiful backgrounds, the characters are 3D mirrors of
their anime-inspired sprites used in the cut scenes. While you do notice
the difference between the 2D drawing of Milla (the female protagonist)
and her 3D avatar, the seamless transition negates any of the very
minor aesthetic details. Finally, each character in the game is unique,
sporting their own look, and enemies are just as varied and detailed as
the "good guys".
Musically speaking, Tales of Xillia boasts an
amazing orchestral arrangement with songs to suit every zone in the
game. It is truly beautiful and lends itself well to the atmosphere of
the story. When you are in an ominous, dark dungeon the music is creepy,
with violins and woodwinds playing higher and slightly off-key,
creating the ambiance of a thriller movie. Sound effects cover every
aspect of movement, helping to bring the world of Xillia to life. If
your character is moving through shallow water, swishing noises will
occur with each step. The crackle of fire whispers through a zone,
subtlety lighting a path. Birds chirp. When the graphics and sound come
together, you will find yourself immersed in a world of magic,
mysteries, and more than a few baddies to kill.
The controls in
ToX are spot-on. Combat is real-time, so players need to be aware of
their characters and the baddies on the screen. At the beginning of the
game you can alter whether you want harder enemies, a longer input time
for combos, and your X- and Y-axis movement [meaning whether pressing
upward with the control stick will move the camera up (normal) or down
(inverted)]. I chose the hardest setting and kept the input time as
"Normal". In the beginning enemies attack slower, which is good as it
gives you time to acquaint yourself with the mechanics of combat. While
pressing the "X" button will make your character charge forward and
attack a target, you also have different magic/elemental-based attacks
that can be access from the menu (the "▲" button) which vary based upon
who you chose as your protagonist to control. Thus, combat sometimes
needs a good strategy; just jumping in and whacking enemies with your
weapon does not always work. In this way ToX enhances the gameplay by
adding a level of strategy. Once you form a party, coming up with a plan
of attack becomes critical; you will be able to combine attacks and
setup AI strategies to maximize your combat proficiency (your cohorts
will be controlled by AI; from the party menu you can adjust their
combat focus, for instance: should that character conserve TP (mana) or
go all out and cast the most powerful spells each battle? Do you want a
character to heal exclusively or to heal AND attack?)..
Finally,
in regard to the map and character control, Xillia has everything
nailed. The camera rests comfortably in a 3rd person perspective of your
character. The camera rotates freely, enabling you to see a complete
map and minimizing the risk of an enemy sneaking up from behind. Since
enemies are seen on the map and battles are not random encounters, this
is a very important function.
Story
ToX has an
over-arching plot of determining why the elements are out of harmony and
how to restore mana to the world. When one of the kingdoms in the world
of Xillia experimented with powerful magic, they unwittingly caused
widespread devastation by draining the world's mana. It is your job to
figure out what happened and how to fix it before the other kingdoms
start an all-out war.
While the story itself is your basic
good-vs-evil RPG fare, the depth of the storyline, the complexity of the
characters (their personalities and motives) and presented in a manner
to both intrigue the player and to soldier onward to learn more. In
addition, ToX gives you TWO games in one; at the beginning you choose
either the male (Jude Mathis) or female (Milla Maxwell). In either case,
the story will unfold from the perspective of THAT character. Thus,
while you will travel with the other person regardless, you will only
interpret events through the eyes and mind of your protagonist. This, of
course, means that you will want to play through the game AGAIN to see
another side to the story!
As the story progresses, you will find
yourself watching numerous cut scenes and work to cultivate not only
new abilities for combat but also the friendships of others in your
party. Using a robust crafting system, ToX adds another level of depth
by encouraging the player to explore and find items. All of this
combined will suck you into the game and make you want to press onward
(maybe to the detriment of your job... make sure that you don't miss
work in your zeal to beat the game!).
Overall
To simplify this review, let's recap:
Pros:
1) Beautiful combat system that keeps enemy encounters fun and challenging,
2) No random encounters! Enemies are seen on the map and can be avoided, if desired,
3) Beautiful environment, unique characters, and an amazing soundtrack,
4) Game controls are easy to pick up and play,
5) LOTS of replay value: play through the character-specific storyline depending upon the hero,
6) Wonderful and often-humorous storytelling, encouraging dialogue with others,
7) Lots to explore and many items to find; exploring the world is visually rewarding!
Cons:
1) It costs money; but I guarantee that you will find this to be the best $60 spent on a game this year!
2) The cut scenes can be a little long at times, but this is a minor irritation at best,
3) That Tales of Xillia 2 won't be available in the U.S. for a while!
Thus,
simply put, ToX is one of the best games that I have acquired and
played in 2013. The story is entertaining, the gameplay is fun, combat
isn't random and does require strategy (you can't just button-mash and
expect to win), and you can replay the game a second time to see the
story from another viewpoint. Oh, and did I forget to mention that the
graphics are gorgeous and the soundtrack is amazing?
If you
haven't already clicked that "Buy" button, you should really do so. This
game is a must-have for PS3 owners, Tales franchise fans, or the
RPG-lover in your life.
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