Okay, so, I'm roughly twenty hours in and I'll post kind of a little review of what I understand.

Spoiler (Click to View)

So, story-wise, from what I understand of Japanese, after stumbling upon an evil secret base belonging to the big-tough-scarred-faced-dude (Whose name is apparently Nachtigal. Aren't hoping for your son to become a villain, when you give him a name like that?) in charge of Il Fan, the city Jude was studying in at the beginning of the game, we become politically involved in sort of a war going on between Il Fan and a snowy city. The leader of the snowy city is an exremely cool dude named Gaius (Although, when they say his name, in Japanese, I always hear Garias, but whatever) and he's well on his way on becoming my favourite Tales character ever (Which is saying something, considering I absoluely love both Kratos from Symphonia and Duke from Vesperia) Gaius kicks butts really easily, especially during the all-out war, using his super long Sephiroth-like katana and, in a fight against him, you're actually supposed to lose. That's how strong he is. However, you can actually beat him, if you try really hard, and the benefits are awesome (Tons on EXP and an accessory that you want to have equipped at all times) but, after you beat Gaius or Gaius beats you, the real nemesis is revealed! It's actually the big-scarred ruler of Il Fan's assistant, or something. He's not really cool, certainly not as much as Gaius, but this is where things get interesting. The assistant guy gets into the battle too with his own army which has super-advanced technology and weapons (Where the most tech you have is Alvin's gun) and Gaius and his men start fighting on your side and even defend you. But the group gets seperated and Jude comes accross some kind of flying goddess (No joke) that's been tagging along since then. Her presence actually allows you to use a really powerful arte. After reuniting with the rest of your party, you join up with Gaius' party to take back his snowy city, which has been overrun by the assistant dude's army. That's where I am, right now.

That's just awesome! Of course, there's a lot that happens between Jude meeting Milla and reconquering the snowy city with Gaius, like Milla getting utterly defeated after a confrontation with Nachtigal and losing the use of her legs, but the introduction of Gaius and the war is really where things start picking up, because it forces two groups of people that were fighting each other to work together and I always love those kind of situations. The floating goddess chick clearly has a huge relevance to the story, but I fail to see which, since...y'know, it's in Japanese.

A problem of the game, though, and something that seems to be happening a lot, in Tales games, is that many, many, MANY ennemies are just recolours or retextures of other ennemies of the Tales franchise, many of them coming from either Tales of Vesperia and Tales of Symphonia 2. I don't know if it's because they're lazy or because they think the fans like that, but the ennemies are very repetitive. Even some bosses are just recolors of some Giganto monsters from Tales of Vesperia. Tales of Graces F had the same problem, really.

Anyway, still a great game, so far, and I really hope it's localized. I can already see great casting choices to be made.

Oh, also, y'know how, in every single Tales game, there's a traitor character that eventually joins your party again? (i.e Zelos and Kratos from Symphonia, Raven in Vesperia, Richard in Graces) well, there's one here too, in the form of Alvin, but he joins us back like right away, so I dunno.

So yeah, if it gets dubbed well, it could become my new second favourite game, replacing Tales of Vesperia or, at least, matching it.

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This forum has a Tales thread? Awesome! Now I know I'm not going back to those jerks at the official forums.

Of course, if the boss battles are the problem, the solution if level farming.

The solution to boss problems in KoR is not level farming, it's spamming free run and heavenly tempest. Mystic Artes too in the end game.

tales of symphonia is my fav game of all time i'm not sure on the exact amount of times, but i think i beat it 5+ times. wish they'd make a tales game for ps3

I beat ToS even more than that.

Even at five times, wow. How many hours does it take you to beat it?

40-70 for me, depending on the number of side quests I do. I've heard it's possible in 20 hours though. How he can do it in 12-15 I've no idea.

I'm sure Tales fans already know, but NamcoBandai announced the North American port for Tales of Graces f for the PS3...
...if you have a PS3, are you excited for this new addition to the "Tales of" series in North America?

I don't have a PS3 so I'm kind of pissed off I can't play this game as it was originally released on the Wii, which I do have.

But Johnny Yong Bosche was used as Guy in Abyss and Emil in Symphonia: Ratatosk Knights/Dawn of the New World.

They don't reuse them as main characters in general but KoR wasn't a main series game so I doubt it counts.

Tales of Phantasia is so hard to beat...I got lost.

Lol, so true. It's kinda frustrating but still well worth it.

TBH, I think it'd be cool if some of the old games got ported. Like Destiny. I've always wanted to play Destiny Directors Cut and play as Leon Magnus (dreamy boy, isn't he?). It's mostly him that makes it my most favorite series.

Destiny came out in america but it was the rubbish PS1 version. I don't like Leon, he's obnoxious and his japanese voice hurts my ears. Plus the one person I'd like to see voice him in english (Rick May) is apparently dead...
I do like how Leon, who has one of the most normal hair colours in the series, is the only one who dyes it though.

Ah, finally beat Tales of Phantasia. Time to get another "Tales" game, preferably one for the PSP.

ToP was great IMO. If you're still searching for another, ToE PSP should be cheap, though you'll have to import from europe and RM's not bad either, though it's not got quite the same level of replay value as the rest of the series.

Well a few months ago I beat Tales of The Abyss. LONGEST. GAME. EVER. But I thoroughly enjoyed. I found it nearly flawless.

Loading times. Random freezes while loading.
Great game but those seriously put me off. I'll be getting it on the 3DS as the cartridge format solves those issues.

But to stay on topic, anyone in the WBO ever took a crack at these games? Besides the guy who just beat Phantasia? Like, played Symphonia, Abyss, Vesperia, or even...sigh...Legendia?

I've played every tales game released in english besides Vesperia and as soon as I can find that cheap I'll be playing it on an associate's Xbox.

Well, this one is obviously Tales related, so it can't be THAT bad.

KoR says "hi"...

Tales of the Heroes: Twin Brave Action announced for PSP.

Is this the mythical "Sword of Legendia" atlast or is that still "in development" and "not a tales series game"?

Tales of Innocence R Trailer

Well that's clearly too good to make it oversees. Plus, I'd have to by a new PSP with awkward touchscreen controls on the back (seriously, wtf?!) to play it...
Also, is it just me or is that trailer a rip off of the ToS opening?

Tales of Heroes PV

That looks downright amazing! I now feel like a complete and utter idiot for buying SCL (until now I atleast had the excuse of beating up friends as Lloyd). The best part is, I prefer the tech names in japanese and there'll be practically no story so I shouldn't lose out by importing. What's this on anyway?

ToX sounds fun but I doubt I'll ever get it (I don't own the console, even if it does make it over here).

Actually, earlier this year Scamco's US divisions registered trademarks relating to Tales of Innocence, and I doubt it's for the DS release.

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Project Rising Beetle→
I Miss Bionix→

The solution to boss problems in KoR is not level farming, it's spamming free run and heavenly tempest. Mystic Artes too in the end game.

KoR is... its own catergory (Yeah, that's a good excuse...)

Also, you sure had a lot to say, didn't you?

EDIT: Also, I'm near the end of ToX (Last boss, pretty much) and it's losing a few points for absolutely-goddamn-carp-annoying status effect. Those are common, in RPGs, but when a boss can inflict Confusion on you (Which basically makes you directly attack your allies, instead of something logical like making you act drunk) with every single attack it has, there's something wrong, here.

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Urgh, now I'm torn. Another Tales game, or Persona 3? Such a dillema, such a dillema. HALP!

Persona 3 is far inferior to Persona 4, by the way. If you've already played Persona 4 and want to play the third installement, get ready to be disappointed. If you haven't played Persona 4 yet, for some reason, get that one. Well worth your money.

I'm finally able to use Jude's Mystic Arte, in ToX. The guy basically punches and kicks the living carp out of the ennemy, making him that much more awesome. I had a lot of trouble getting it to work, though. You have to first be in Overlimit (Which can be activated through Link Artes, I believe) and then you have to do use a 30 TP Artes, hold the attack button and then, you'll do the Mystic Arte. It's worth the trouble, though.

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Also, you sure had a lot to say, didn't you?

I'd missed an entire 4 pages of tales discussion. I had a lot of catching up to do.
And no, you really can't count KoR as a tales game. Even the other spinoff games are closer to what the series should be IMO.

Urgh, now I'm torn. Another Tales game, or Persona 3? Such a dillema, such a dillema. HALP!

Tales or anything is an easy choice IMO. You always choose Tales.

EDIT: I want to beyblade with Nightmare Anubis but nobody would get the joke .

So, I just finished beating Tales of Xillia's last boss.

Spoiler (Click to View)

Unsurprisingly, the last boss (or rather bosses) are Gaius, the black-haired cool dude that dresses up in bloody red and has a huge katana, and Myuze, the angel-like being that's kinda insane that can create enormous voids of existence to engluph her enemies into nothingness. What a shock.

To be perfectly honest, it was a very anti-climactic ending. Myuze and Gaius are very easy, once you kill Myuze (She essentially just healed Gaius and, once she's gone, he becomes such a punching-bag) I was even playing on Hard and it was a breeze. Maybe I was just over-leveled... Not understanding Japanese at all, I couldn't really make out what happened after you beat them but, basically, you talk Gaius and Myuze out of fighting you, somehow, and Milla has to stay behind, for some reason. It doesn't have the same epic feel other Tales had, like in Vesperia, where you saved the world from the ominous Adephagos, but lost the power of the Blastia, forcing people into a harder life while saving said lives. Gaius, while a cool character, sadly never reached the amount of awesome Duke has, which is a shame, because he was pretty cool. It just felt like a way too convenient ending to me. Everything's well 'n happy, except for Milla's sacrifice (But we see that she's still with Jude, in "spirit") In Vesperia, we lost the Blastia, in Abyss, we lost the Fons (If I recall?) but here, nothing's lost. Kind of boring

I still haven't completed the EX Dungeon, which is said to be pretty damn big.

Anyway, I'd say it's my second favourite Tales game, the number 1 still being Vesperia, and Xillia is probably in my top ten favourite games. I recommend it, especially if it gets an American release.

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So, besides the main character of every Tales game, who was your favorite non-main character to use in battle?

Leaving aside Phantasia, I'd vote on Sheena and Regal (Symphonia), Jake (Legendia), Guy (Abyss), and Repede and Judith (Vesperia, though Judith was more recently). I'm curious to try fighting with Rita, Melee style.

Guy, Chloe, Farah or Marta, depending on the game.

Currently amassing Grade in Tales of Xillia for my Milla play. Having seen Milla's opening on Youtube, I think it's even better than Jude's, if only because we see both her and Jude fighting Gaius and that Milla pulls off a very cool roar (Which we don't hear but rather see) when sword-fighting Gaius. Plus, for having played with her in the Arena (and having won a weapon that was soooooo not worth the trouble) I can tell she plays pretty nice. Giotta love those sword-users. I wonder what'll happen to the Jude opening, though. I hope my game with him isn't like...destroyed or anything. That would suck...

Anyway, for my favorite characters, I'd say

-Tear in Abyss (She's serious and professionnal but still compassionate and caring)
-Rita in Vesperia (She's just hilarious all the time and a good example of how a strong female protagonist can be done)
-Colette in Symphonia (She just wants everyone to be happy! What a kind girl x3)
-Sophie in Graces (Despite the fact she suffers from amnesia (Of course) she remains very kind and helpful throughout the game)
-Elise in Xillia (Sooooooooooo cute x3 She's a really nice and polite girl and the fact that she's pretty shy just makes her even cuter! Though everybody hates her because she can summon horrible darkness tentacles from the ground, but she's glad Jude likes her ... Oh, and I hate Tippo, but he's a different character)

Is Legendia worth playing, by the way? I never touched it...

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Is Legendia worth playing, by the way? I never touched it...

The general opinion is that character interaction and music are its main selling points but, being a fan of classic video game soundtracks, I've got to say that I preferred the OSTs of just about every other game in the series.
On a positive note though, the story was good fun, the environments were beautiful, the cast were all great (though Jay isn't exactly my favourite) and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know them and their world. I also found the monsters to be more comical than most and there was more inspiration behind them IMO.
Finally, while most people will tell you that the battle system pales in comparison to the other games, I found it to be the best 2D system in the entire series, with a fair amount of hidden depth (for example, the knockback of attacks is semi-cumulative, making infinite combos a fair bit harder).

My one real disappointment with Legendia was that the lack of multiplayer and interesting sidequests killed most of the replay value.

lol Stupid me. I meant Jay. And I was referring to favorite characters you use in battle other than the main protagonist.

IMO, I found Legendia to be annoying. I wasn't at all a fan with its story at all, and Senel as a character (not fighter) really ticked me off. Even Luke was better than him. I also wasn't a fan of how the models looks in general. When I see Pokemon Rumble for the 3DS, I think of Legendia.

Story is a matter of opinion I guess, as is the Senel/Luke preference. Senel, like most of the ToL characters, starts out pretty annoying but they do (with the possible exception of Jay) become much more likable as the story progresses. Luke, on the other hand, was just a more obnoxious version of me so I didn't like him in the slightest.

The map models were fine IMO but the plasticy, in -battle ones took some getting used to I'll admit.

The thing I didn't like about Senel was that he was one-track minded. He was all for Shirley and all, but he was either clueless of or ignoring her feelings. It's even clouded his judgement many times, and he was constantly fawning over Stella, who died prior to the story. And even at the end, after the final (not final final) boss, he's still oblivious of her feelings.

At least Tear and Luke were honest with each other. At least Luke realized his mistakes and wanted to make it better. That's just me though, because I see myself in Luke than I do Senel.

But Yuri beats all main characters in the Tales of series, hands down. The vigilante part of him makes him so cool.

I see myself in Luke. That's the problem.

As for the whole relationship issue with Shirley, there's been a lot of debate on that elsewhere, mostly focusing on the idea that She doesn't really know what love is herself. Your view is a new one but then again, there didn't seem to be much of a pro-Shirley side on the tales forums so...

Am I one of the only few who felt sorry for Shirley? I saw it as Senel totally focusing on one girl over another, even after that one girl is dead.

Wait, didn't he fall over another girl that wasn't Stella (or Chloe, but he was more oblivious to Chloe than Shirley...poor Chloe...), the one that Shirley met in her prison or something? I mean, it was like Shirley existed in Senel's life, but not the way she wanted it to. Her life mattered, but it felt like her love didn't.

Also, I meant that I saw myself in Luke in terms of finding yourself and realizing who you are and what you can do that nobody else can't. I was obnoxious like him too, but I also had that extreme change of heart he had.

No, he never fell for Fenimore. He in theory ended the main story married to Shirley but come the CQs they were as distant as ever. Yes, I do kind of feel sorry for Chloe but in a way I also like how it didn't really work out for the pair of them. It's hard to say how that works though.

As for me being Luke, I meant that I was literally saying his exact lines before he did on my first playthrough.
It seriously pissed me off because I didn't want to associate with someone who was that much of a jerk.
I've not had my moment of realisation yet, though I am expecting it soonish.

Finally got past where I left off last year. Who am I fighting? Yeager. Guess what? THE SECRET MISSION SOUNDS COMPLICATED AS carp.

I mean, c'mon, Schwee-who-must-not-be-named was hard because I had to suffer from his Mystic Art for it. This guy is a b-n-duh-half because I have to break his guard doing so, then switch to Raven for arrow-firing goodness. And his guard isn't easily broken. Man...I hate these Secret Missions....

The items you got from the Secret Missions are rarely worth it, really XD The last boss' secret mission is worth it, though. Very much so.

Also, just discovered that there is a maximum amount of Grade to be had, in Xillia. I've read that it's around 10 000 Grade. You gain grade by doing certain things that I think the game basically lists in one of the menus... I have like 3700 Grade, right now, and I want to do a Milla Playthrough, but I can't understand the Japanese Grade Shop, so I can't understand carp XD

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Aaaaaand got 'im. God, I haven't had to go through a boss this annoying since Schwee-who-must-not-be-named.

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Project Rising Beetle→
I Miss Bionix→

Three things:

A: The fact that, like Vesperia, they kept the English version of the theme makes me happy. I wonder if the theme for Xilia has an English version, too.
B: I am much more excited than I was before. Though I'll have to wait a bit longer since I have to put off getting a PS3 a bit longer.
C: I forgot the third thing, actually. I was being harassed as I was typing this on the bus. I'll figure it out at some point.

Finally...YEEEEEEAAAAAAAAH!!!

I have like 3700 Grade, right now, and I want to do a Milla Playthrough, but I can't understand the Japanese Grade Shop, so I can't understand carp XD

If it's in katakana or hiragana english I can try my hand at translating but I have my suspicions that, if it were, you'd've worked it out already and I don't speak much real japanese.

T-That...That...that t-trailer... I-I... I just... Oo *Faints*

Okay, a few things in rapid succession. First of all, AWESOME!!!! Second are the few voice actors we heard. As kid Asbel, we have Kate Higgins, whom some might remember as Sakura from Naruto or C.C from Code Geass. She has a nice range and usually turns in a good performance, so I'm not worried here. The problem is with grown-up Asbel... He's voiced by Bryce Papenbrook and I hate his voice. It's kinda unfair from me, because I've only heard him like three times in anything and two of those were actually okay, but I think I was traumatized by his horrible performance as Aoto in Ar Tonelico Qoga, the only game I have ever immediatly brought back to the store to get a refund. Other than that, you might know him as Masaomi Kida from Durarara!! or maybe Hanabusa Aido from Vampire Knight. He sounded okay in the trailer, though, so I guess we'll see. Sophie is voiced by a completely unknown woman to me called Cassandra Morris and I can't tell you much about her. The only thing I've heard her in was Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's as Leo and Luna, though she was replaced by some other woman starting season 3. She sounded decent in the trailer, so I'm not too worried. As for kid Richard, whom I believe to be the only one left that actually had a spoken line of dialogue in the trailer, he's voiced by Wendee Lee. An odd choice, considering how high-pitched her voice usually is, but she's a great voice actor, so I'm not worried there. She doesn't need any introduction, since there's around a 50% chance you've heard her in something.

I like that they bring in voice actors that never did anything for the franchise 'til now, instead of recycling the usual, it gives this game a fresh taste. Despite my hate of Bryce Papenbrook's voice, I think this trailer looks damn fine. It's also cool that they have the english version of ~White Whises~ instead of putting some stupid instrumental, or something.

Thanks for posting the trailer To

Since I've already pre-ordered and fully pre-paid my copy of this already awesome game, I'll just have to go to my game store on March 13, the confirmed release date, and get my copy

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