Tales of Symphonia

[Ippy]

Was Tales of Symphonia just recently released for gamecube or something?

Because I am really lost...

I played that game I while back on an emulator for SNES

Are they re-releasing the same game or is there anything new they added?

Sorry to ask a stupid question -_-

My subscription to a gaming magazine ended so I have not kept up with any new releases for a while :bmage:

[Kenryoku_Maxis]

The SNES game is Tales of Phantasia. This is Tales of Symphonia, the fourth game in the 'Tales' series. I know, I mix up the two names all the time so don't worry 'bout it. -_-

[Novasol]

Well, I just finished it.... I can safely say it's a long and satisfying game... but the voices... I can't say I was especially fond of some of them. I wanted to stab Colette throughout the whole game (it's rare that I feel that way towards a character in an RPG... only Aeris managed to evoke a similar response in me, needless to say I was pleasantly surprised when my wish was granted). I wasn't too fond of the character anyway, and it just seems to me like the actor who played Colette didn't seem to understand her role well at all, and as such the pacing of her lines was rather off in a lot of places it shouldn't have been. Then Lloyd... Lloyd is really hit or miss to me... sometimes I can let myself be absorbed by his conversations, especially with Genis, but then, something like "Why are you in such a hurry to die?" will come along in battle, with the most god-awful delivery ever, and it makes me wonder about the actor's credentials.

On the other end of that though, I'd have to say Zelos probably has my favorite voice. Zelos is a rather hormonal, seemingly empty-headed prettyboy, and the delivery of his lines comes out very well-suited for that. I DEFY you not to burst out laughing when you hear such things as "What, are you guys stalking me or something?" (getting into repeated fights with normal enemies), "DAMN, I'm a GENIUS!" (when discovering a new Tech), "Not the face!!" (I think you can guess...), or these little bits that are burned into my memory now:

(Upon running into a GIANT enemy)
Presea: Big.
Lloyd: Holy cow!
Zelos: Well, well, aren't WE a big boy?

(After a quickly-won fight)
Lloyd: Victory...
Colette: Belongs to...
Sheena: The Most...
Zelos: Sexy! Dead Sexy!

The lines are just delivered with a hilarious pinache that really grabs your attention. As for the other characters, Kratos and Raine's VAs both seem to have a sort of resigned dignity that really suits the characters well, as does Presea's and her cold, emotionless delivery. Regal's voice is... well, suitably regal, which will make sense as you progress in the game, and Genis has the kind of youthful exuberance you would hope for in a child voice.

As for the story... yes, it does use old RPG conventions, like the giant mana tree (though if you're going to credit Square for coming up with that as an original idea before others, I'm going to laugh at you), but it's the manner in which things unfold that grab you, and with the fact that your decisions do have some affect on the storyline itself (and, most notably, what your final 8 members will be), it's a game wherein the story details intertwine in such a way that they keep you interested even if some individual bits are contrived.

As for the battle system, I don't think I can say I've had more fun fighting with any other RPG. I was actually cackling evilly as I somehow managed to score a monstrous 116-hit combo the other day, which would have continued even longer had the boss that was on the receiving end not died. It's fun to tweak your characters' techs (especially with the T/S skill variations), and figure out how best to wreak havoc. It's also nice to not have party members that aren't useless... you'll probably find a use for everyone. Lloyd is nice for all around offense and defense, and is the perfect anchor for the team, Kratos and Zelos are effectively the red mages of the group (but unlike red mages, their magic and techs are actually useful throughout the whole game), Colette is a balance between offensive white magic and melee, Genis is your black mage type, Raine is your supportive white mage type (with a few white offense spells so she can hold her own), and Presea and Regal... well, simply put, you use Presea and/or Regal when you want the crap beaten out of something. It's fun seeing which group combinations work best for you, and just about any will work out. Personally, I opted for Lloyd, Presea, Genis, and Raine for most of the game so that I had all my bases covered, but I was pleasantly surprised by how the game will throw different boss setups at you to force you to rethink your party strategies (i.e., using the same party all the time is only going to get your ass kicked by something sometime down the road). You can even play with up to four people, one person controlling each character, and due to how techs are handled (mapped to B button + direction, and the C-stick), there's not any slowdown midfight to select things from menus (aside from items), so the battles are really fun to play with friends, especially when you work together to form massive combo chains.

And for those of you who are obsessive-compulsive about finding things.... there's absolutely tons of things to find... this game has one of the widest collections of sidequests and whatnot that I've seen, and if you opt to take them, you'll fight some incredibly hard bosses, and discover even deeper depths to the game, making it that much more enjoyable. Plus, you can get a pirate outfit for Lloyd. What's not to love about that?

The music... I can only think of one or two scores from the game I can say I really loved. It's not bad music by any means, it just doesn't stand out for me.

Overall... it's probably one of my favorite RPGs to come out in a long time, right up there with Skies of Arcadia for me, and I'll be replaying the game fairly regularly, as it's one of those games where you're always noticing new stuff and being compelled to try new things.

[popularnerd]

REal fun game but it was only dampened but my fits of homicidal rage against collete...god i wish i could strangle her with her own intestines but beyond that, the human ranch music was pretty cool.

[Novasol]

Originally Posted by SPARTAN-000

REal fun game but it was only dampened but my fits of homicidal rage against collete...god i wish i could strangle her with her own intestines but beyond that, the human ranch music was pretty cool.

It's been my experience that Colette is probably the least-liked character, and I can't say I blame anyone for that.... like I said, I really, really wanted to stab her. Repeatedly.

Still... she has her moments though, like the optional scene you can trigger where she works as a maid... she keeps falling down over, and over, and over....

[EVILNess]

The tales series is one of my favorite series. My favorite must be TOD though. The talking swords pwned. I have never played any TOD2 or TOR due to a severe lack of PS2. However I have played Tales of Phantasia: Narikiri Dungeon.

Regarding TOS I think that they are in the same world as the crew from TOP. I mean come on if you don't see the similarities then you are an idiot.

Oh and one more thing there are 5 tales games: Tales of Phantasia;Tales of Destiny;Tales of Destiny 2; Tales of Rebirth; and finally Tales of Phantasia: Narikiri Dungeon

[Kenryoku_Maxis]

The character you are all saying you don't like probably would have been better with the Japanese voice. I know tons of characters I thought were god as 'characters' but I thought were ruined by their voices. One reason I'm not fond of 'voices' in RPGs...cuz it always happens. Even in games where I think voices are good, there's bound to be some that didn't like that perticular voice and so they don't like the character.

Haven't played Symphonia yet to see this character but I hope the character will at least be a good 'character' and I'll try to forgive them for their voice.

[Novasol]

Originally Posted by Kenryoku_Maxis

The character you are all saying you don't like probably would have been better with the Japanese voice. I know tons of characters I thought were god as 'characters' but I thought were ruined by their voices. One reason I'm not fond of 'voices' in RPGs...cuz it always happens. Even in games where I think voices are good, there's bound to be some that didn't like that perticular voice and so they don't like the character.

Haven't played Symphonia yet to see this character but I hope the character will at least be a good 'character' and I'll try to forgive them for their voice.

A lot of people don't like Colette simply because of her character. She's an emotionally weak, overapologetic ditz (she apologizes for EVERYTHING, it gets rather grating), and is hardly ever honest with you, which are qualities I'm not particularly fond of in a character. I didn't like her VA, but quite frankly, I'd have disliked the character herself pretty much no matter who voiced her. Maybe you'll think differently though, her voice isn't going to ruin the game for you, most likely.

Edit: And yes, like Fabricated noted, she's also overly cheerful about it all. She uses it to mask her more annoying personality traits, and it doesn't work.

[Fabricated]

Originally Posted by Kenryoku_Maxis

The character you are all saying you don't like probably would have been better with the Japanese voice. I know tons of characters I thought were god as 'characters' but I thought were ruined by their voices. One reason I'm not fond of 'voices' in RPGs...cuz it always happens. Even in games where I think voices are good, there's bound to be some that didn't like that perticular voice and so they don't like the character.

Haven't played Symphonia yet to see this character but I hope the character will at least be a good 'character' and I'll try to forgive them for their voice.

Heard her Japanese voice. No, it makes no difference. She's an overly cheerful noisy bubblehead in Japanese too. I dislike her personality more than I dislike her voice. Everyone else's VA's are pretty good.

Originally Posted by EVILNess

Oh and one more thing there are 5 tales games: Tales of Phantasia;Tales of Destiny;Tales of Destiny 2; Tales of Rebirth; and finally Tales of Phantasia: Narikiri Dungeon

Close... Phantasia, Destiny, Eternia (Destiny 2 in the US), Destiny 2 (JP-PS2 only), Narikiri, Symphonia, and then the upcoming Rebirth coming out in Japan for the PS2. Six if you count currently available games, seven counting Rebirth which releases very soon, and nine if you count the PSX and GBA ports of Phantasia.