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[Dark Schala]

Phantasia SFC and Destiny PSX were my first Tales games. I wasn't too hot on them. I like Phantasia from a technical standpoint because of how the theme song was implemented in the game, though. Destiny PSX is absolutely crushed by Tales of Destiny R Director's Cut. Can't play the PSX version at all.

Symphonia was the first game that made me really like Tales. I borrowed a copy of the game from my bf. I wasn't hot on it for the first few days, but as usual with any other Tales game, once you get more moves and unlock more of the battle system, the game gets more fun. And after the halfway point of the game, the story becomes a little more interesting. I'm very fond of Symphonia's music as well; it's probably the Tales soundtrack I'm the most fond of next to Xillia's, Legendia's, and RM2's. Symphonia multiplayer was also fun.

I like Symphonia more than Abyss (meh, I like a lot of games more than Abyss, but I think Abyss's theme and genre are stronger over Vesperia and Symphonia), but I like Vesperia's plot over both of those games' plot. Um. Xillia has a better cast outside of one or two characters (well, moreso one character for me; two characters, it seems, for other people). I try to not refer to Symphonia when talking about Tales because it was the first Tales game that I really liked and got me into exploring the other games in the series like Rebirth, Destiny R DX, Destiny 2, etc. So... whatever I say might have a tinge of bias associated with it.

From a battle standpoint, though, Rebirth, Destiny R DX, and Graces are much better, imo. Xillia has the most developed Symphonia/Hearts-esque battle system, but I prefer the Udo/TD systems.

 

[IdreamofHIME]

Luke is better than Lloyd.

Nope.

Lloyd is a naive idiot, while Luke is just a straight up dickhead and borderline racist. The way he speaks to people is enough to just put the game down and walk away.
Awful, Awful, Awful character.

 

[Ultimadrago]

Nope.

Lloyd is a naive idiot, while Luke is just a straight up dickhead and borderline racist. The way he speaks to people is enough to just put the game down and walk away.
Awful, Awful, Awful character.

The gospel truth right here.

 

[Nocturnowl]

Luke in dickery mode was much preferable to *Abyss plot spoilers*

Spoiler

his almost overnight character shift that turns him into an overly nice chap who would never dream of offending anyone, now everyone love him for being such a swell fellow!

But regardless i'd take Lloyd over him.

 

[systemfehler]

For me it was Rain Sage, the Abyssion and I got the game for christmas. Reminds me of better days.

 

[Dark Schala]

Luke in dickery mode was much preferable to *Abyss plot spoilers*

Spoiler

his almost overnight character shift that turns him into an overly nice chap who would never dream of offending anyone, now everyone love him for being such a swell fellow!

But regardless i'd take Lloyd over him.

I absolutely agree with you. I really dislike Mieu, so Asshole Luke is welcome.

Worst Tales mascot next to Mormo.

 

[spindashing]

Nope.

Lloyd is a naive idiot, while Luke is just a straight up dickhead and borderline racist. The way he speaks to people is enough to just put the game down and walk away.
Awful, Awful, Awful character.

Dickhead + Racist > Naive Idiot, imo

 

[Nocturnowl]

I absolutely agree with you. I really dislike Mieu, so Asshole Luke is welcome.

Worst Tales mascot next to Mormo.

This reminds me how one of my friends picked up Abyss recently as his first tales game, he loves Mieu which caused me bewildering levels of confusion.

 

[IrishNinja]

damn, i am so not looking forward to abyss 3D now cause of this thread.

oh well, back to Fire Emblem, then Radiant Historia!

 

[Kaizer]

Dickhead + Racist > Naive Idiot, imo

Nah, Luke was absolutely insufferable during Abyss, I hated him the whole time.

 

[Seda]

damn, i am so not looking forward to abyss 3D now cause of this thread.

oh well, back to Fire Emblem, then Radiant Historia!

Abyss has decent music (mostly the non-Sakuraba stuff) still not as good as Symphonia.

Otherwise, yeah, Abyss was just 'okay'.

Nah, Luke was absolutely insufferable during Abyss, I hated him the whole time.

Asbel is surprisingly worse, and he's not even a jerk.

 

[Snakeyes]

I liked the battle system and the locations like Flanoir, etc... Zelos was a pretty cool character too.

 

[Kaizer]

Asbel is surprisingly worse, and he's not even a jerk.

I'm currently playing through Graces f at this exact moment. The combat system is awesome, but yeah, Asbel is definitely becoming grating. Haven't gotten too far in yet.

 

[Dark Schala]

This reminds me how one of my friends picked up Abyss recently as his first tales game, he loves Mieu which caused me bewildering levels of confusion.

How is this possible? How can you not want to throw this thing across the room?!

DESU NO.

 

[Ultimadrago]

How is this possible? How can you not want to throw this thing across the room?!

Because it just comes back...I tried many times.
T_T

I'm currently playing through Graces f at this exact moment. The combat system is awesome, but yeah, Asbel is definitely becoming grating. Haven't gotten too far in yet.

I need to get a PS3 sometime this year. I'm in the mood for more 3D Tales.

 

[Nocturnowl]

How is this possible? How can you not want to throw this thing across the room?!

DESU NO.

That skit reminds that there's one character I want to throw across a room even more, Ion, I want to slap that smirk off his face.

 

[Winnie the Pimp]

I liked Symphonia.. only Tales game i ever got to play so far....

Loved Sheen as well, oh and Raine was alright too

 

[IdreamofHIME]

Really? I need to check some youtube videos after work to see if she sounds like female Shepard. :lol

She doesn't, but Cam Clarke as Kratos sounds exactly like Liquid Snake <3

 

[sixteen-bit]

people love comboz

 

[bluemax]

Symphonia dragged on and on and had like 3 fake endings. Totally soured me on whatever goodwill it started with.

 

[Spieler Eins]

lol, what's with the obsession with this scene?

I rather lol at the one in which Lloyds dwarf father tries to beat him up, haha.

 

[Seda]

Symphonia dragged on and on and had like 3 fake endings. Totally soured me on whatever goodwill it started with.

...it did? Yeah it's long, but I thought Vesperia

Spoiler

(Alexei fight)

and clearly Abyss

Spoiler

(Van fight)

were worse in this regard.

Both Abyss and Vesperia feel like they have more stuff 'tacked' onto the end, and Symphonia didn't for me, one of the reasons I like it better that those two.

It is long, I'll give you that.

 

[Patryn]

...it did? Yeah it's long, but I thought Vesperia

Spoiler

(Alexei fight)

and clearly Abyss

Spoiler

(Van fight)

were worse in this regard.

Both Abyss and Vesperia feel like they have more stuff 'tacked' onto the end, and Symphonia didn't for me, one of the reasons I like it better that those two.

It is long, I'll give you that.

I definitely felt like ToS dragged. But I didn't finish it (moved while I was playing it, and now I have no idea where either my copy or my memory card is), so I'm not sure I can talk.

 

[hyduK]

I only played the demo of Vesperia, the combat seemed absolutely shitty compared to Symphonia.

Not the best indication. Tales combat generally picks up when you have a decent amount of skills. You're pretty limited early on and it ends up feeling slow. Symphonia was a bit faster paced regardless, but Vesperia was still very good.

I personally thought Symphonia was great. Bearable plot, great presentation, soundtrack, and addictive combat. Probably the best jRPG on the GameCube...with BK being a runner up.

I also preferred the locales of ToS.

 

[ROBOKITTYZILLA]

Kratos. That is all.

 

[Sadist]

Symphonia >>> Abyss

Didn't play Vesperia. Still, I like Symphonia better because it didn't take itself serious. Genis and Lloyd had several scenes in the game where Genis would comment about the cliché lines Lloyd would use. "Shut up Genis". And I thought the cast is more likeable. Sure, Lloyd is pretty naive, but thats why he's a cool character. And come on, we all love Zelos. He is the chosen afterall.

And the big bad in Symphonia wasn't a huge letdown compared to Abyss. The latter gets pretty stale and predictable towards the end.

 

[bluemax]

...it did? Yeah it's long, but I thought Vesperia

Spoiler

(Alexei fight)

and clearly Abyss

Spoiler

(Van fight)

were worse in this regard.

Both Abyss and Vesperia feel like they have more stuff 'tacked' onto the end, and Symphonia didn't for me, one of the reasons I like it better that those two.

It is long, I'll give you that.

I only played like 10 hours of Vesperia and only about 20 hours so far of Abyss. Tales of Symphonia was like a 30 hour game that went on for 50 some odd hours.

 

[Littlegator]

lol, what's with the obsession with this scene?

I rather lol at the one in which Lloyds dwarf father tries to beat him up, haha.

Out of context, it really is hilarious.

 

[ponpo]

I really didn't like Symphonia or Vesperia. I think it has something to do with the aesthetic of the games. The battles are so great but something about the games looks, I think, really puts me off from playing them. The character models or something, ahhh!

That said, Tales of Phantasia and Destiny 1 are two of my favourite RPGs ever. Bring back painted backgrounds please!

 

[ZombiePlatypus]

ToS didn't do anything spectacularly well. Everything was merely adequate or good enough. But it all came together to make for a solid, and fun package. The world and characters were also really likable.

Spoiler

It feels like a masterpiece when pitted against the Final Fantasies that have come after FFX though.

 

[vixlar]

Why Symphonia is a great game?

-Tears you drop in the scene of the monster attacking the town or that scene with Presea

-Joke weapons

-Love relation between Ifrit and Shiva

-Collete saving the world by falling everywhere

-Zelos must make all the girls in the world fall in love to him

-Collete must name every dog in the world

-Sheena Fujibayashi

-An ending for every character

-Two-character superpowers

-Raine doesn't cook very well

-Regal fight with his feet because he is too strong with his hands

Spoiler

and he is rich

My only gripe is that PS2 version has a lot of new things and didn't come to America. The same with Vesperia on PS3

My comparison with Vesperia is:

Vesperia has a bland story, but the relationship between characters is superb.

Symphonia has a better and more interesting cooking system.

The Skill system in Vesperia is better

Symphonia has those fancy combined attacks, although Vesperia has a better Overdrive system.

 

[Littlegator]

-Collete saving the world by falling everywhere

grape soda went up my nose

 

[Cygnus X-1]

The story. Some pretty great turnarounds.

Was blown away when at the very end it was discovered that Mithos the hero was actually still alive and that the infamous Yggdrasill was the same person.

 

[ZombiePlatypus]

Reading this thread is making me wish the game would get an enhanced-port. Either an HD PSN download or 3D-ed out on the 3DS.

 

[mooreupp]

As a Nintendo only console owner, are there any other games like this for Gamecube or Wii? I don't play games nearly as often as I did, but I really enjoyed this one.

 

[Verelios]

I liked the fact that you could either choose to keep Zelos or Kratos (both are fuckers though), but mostly, I was just really immersed in the skits and character interactions. Genis/Presea/Regal and the realization that 'damn, she's old, hey, does he- oh fuck' and Sheena (best girl)/Lloyd/Zelos/Collete.

Raine was more or less just a healer that was there to add in some details and insight. But it made you love the characters, and as you wanted to learn more about those characters (side stories, etc) and traveled the world, it made you love those worlds. Although I guess that's true in every Tales, I felt no desire to explore in Abyss or Legendia. Or even Eternia to some extent.

Also, Luin. God, seeing how everytime you interacted with it something changed, god damn. Also, fucking statues man. I was a god not only in combat, but in name.

 

[creid]

Symphonia had great, puzzley dungeons. As a result Abyss was a big disappointment for me.

 

[Alrus]

The story. Some pretty great turnarounds.

Spoilers much?

 

[Vire]

Tales of Symphonia is a lot like Adam Sandler movies for me.

I don't know if they are actually funny or if I was just 13.

 

[Seda]

The story. Some pretty great turnarounds.

Was blown away when at the very end it was discovered that

Spoiler

Mithos the hero was actually still alive and that the infamous Yggdrasill was the same person.

It's an older game but still you should use spoiler tags

 

[TheFLYINGManga_Ka]

Honestly, it's awesome mostly because it was the only good JRPG on the system at the time.

That's why it's engraved in my mind as something memorable.

It was a good game though. I really enjoyed it. But it stood out more because it was on a console that lacked JRPGs.

 

[Boogiepop]

It's still on top of the Tales series... but saying that, I really need to get around to playing another Tales game that isn't the GBA port of Phantasia or Legendia. (Aside, but Senel Coolidge has to be the hands down worst RPG protagonist name ever. Just... soooo bad.)

 

[RELAYER]

Because playing as Presea was hilarious.

 

[Jim E. Rossler]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6HgGxxjyrU
This is why
Flanoir was my favorite city

 

[RELAYER]

I think this one was just overrated. After playing it and then experiencing Eternia, Abyss, and Graces F, Symphonia really felt lacking in all departments.

However the

Is one of the best moments in it.

Damn I forgot about this.
When I saw that scene that's when it really dawned on me that I was playing the best game of all time.

 

[kewlmyc]

It's funny. I'm a Tales fan, yet only played Abyss and Graces f, which are considered the 2 worst mainstream titles to come to America. I have a Wii, but finding a copy of Tales of Symphonia is such a hard feat. Plus emulating it on Dolphin always causes the music to have certain instruments cut out of it. Also, I'll also be damned if I'm going to buy a 360 for just one game (Vesperia), especially since PS3/PC/Wii is such a good combination.

 

[mooreupp]

I know I'm probably in a big minority, but I rank the 2nd one in the series just as high as the first (shorter, but liked the story a lot).

 

[Seda]

I know I'm probably in a big minority, but I rank the 2nd one in the series just as high as the first (shorter, but liked the story a lot).

Dawn of the New World really does improve a lot after that terrible terrible utterly terrible opening chapter. I still wouldn't put it even close to Symphonia or Vesperia, but maybe above Graces or Abyss (maybe).

The main antagonist of the game is probably my favorite in the series.

 

[Rahxephon91]

Never liked Symphonia. Hated the cast, especially Collete. Really dislike the look as well with all the black lines and big heads.

Not a big fan of Vesperia outside of Yuri either.

Not a big Tales fan, but I did really like Abyss for its great cast and Graces for the combat.

 

[Thoraxes]

I think out of the North American bunch, I probably liked ToS dungeons the best out of all of them. For me they were the most enjoyable and the right mix of everything.

For me anyways, I liked the scope of the story, and it didn't really need much time to rev up. It just kind of took off, and was fun. I enjoyed all the plot twists too, and for me, just the concepts and sheer scope of the game was great.

And dat Sheena. None of the other games have Sheena (well, you know). Also Presea. And REGAL!

Actually you know what... I just really liked the cast. Regal's whole story to me was cool, and the reason why he fights the way he does is just awesome.