Video: Namco Bandai Salutes the Tales Series and its 15th Anniversary

Sadly,I haven't played any games in the Tales Series

Tales of Vesperia! I just got it a little while ago, and I absolutely fell in love the series whenever I first played it!

I've only played Tales of Phantasia on the GBA, but I'll probably be starting Tales of the Abyss 3D pretty soon

I've only played Abyss for a very short time, need to get back onto that. What I really want is Tales of Symphonia though, too bad its so expensive for such an old game.

Okay... and what now? I mean, is that all? Oh, well...
Played all of these (and finished the good ones), but Hearts and Innocence are irritatingly absent.

Tales of Phantasia was also on a Nintendo system

..."Tales of Tales" than.

I think Tales of Vesperia is still the best. This is a great franchise, I wish it got more recognition...

Only played the symphonia ones, the gamecube one became one of my favorite games ever.

Would be nice if Nintendo would take care for more RPG's like these on the Wii U. Why only a lot of RPG's for 3DS?

If anything, that video only shows how barren Western release of Tales games have been.

By the way, the author forgot to mention the (really crappy) GBA version of Tales of Phantasia.

"Wha? Oh."

http://fc00.deviantart.net/fs51/f/2009/310/b/8/Tails_is_sad___GMod_by_SPArtist98.jpg

"Sniff I never get any support for my series"

@Netto-kun It was also released on Super Nintendo

Really wanted a Tales of Symphonia remake for tue Wii U and a New Tales of 2D for the Wii U too

I've played all of them and Symphonia is still my favorite. Vasperia and Abyss were really good too.

@BraveBold5 Yeah, but the Super Famicom version was Japan only. Which is probably beside the point since that video is highlighting EU releases (Edit: Or rather Western releases).

I liked it. Could've been longer and more montage-y, though.

@Kohaku Because people in Japan don't buy consoles nearly as much as portables.

@Netto-kun First off: I can assure you, with the sole exception of a good version of Tales of Phantasia, we are not missing a damn thing. The ones we missed range from okay, to so-bad-they-make-Legendia-look-good-in-comparison.

Secondly, The author said "such as", as in "here are some of the ones that came out on Nintendo consoles", not "here are all of the ones that came out on Nintendo consoles".

@CaptainSquid Where's my Thumbs-up button?

@CanisWolfred

As long as Nintendo sells the Wii U outside Japan also they have to make games for those people also. I can spend my money only once and when Sony brings JRPG to the PS3/4 then that money will not be spend for Wii U games.

@Netto-kun you are right
i tought that it was also realased on usa, but it wasnt
nevertheless, as you said too, the gba version was realesed on usa and europe...

It would be really cool if we could get all of the older games localised and released on the eShop/PSN/Xbox Live/Steam. Probably won't happen, but I'd be really happy if it did.

I absolutely love Tales of Phantasia. But it has to be played in SNES, just compare:

SNES intro:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3SA9LuqQgA

GBA intro:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6J1WRoZ1Za8

Edit: How could I foget? PSX intro (amazing):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHR6wdUBSgc

Tales of Symphonia, no contest. While it may not have had some of the great features of later installments (Free Run comes to mind), it has what is probably the best story I've ever experienced in a RPG, with engaging characters and a great world, which really made you care about what was happening, and so many twists and turns that I could never anticipate what would happen next. I also think that the Unison Attack was an amazing feature, and way better than the manual Overlimits of later games. I just hope that someday we'll get an updated remake of Tales of Symphonia, especially if it includes Free Run. (Updating Phantasia would be nice too, but less important.)

@CanisWolfred Different strokes. I quite enjoyed Destiny Remake DC, Hearts Anime Edition, Narakiri Dungeon X, Xillia 1/2 and Rebirth (aside from the plot) over most of the Western releases (Eternia and Legendia are still in the backlog). Innocence DS and VS. are different stories though.

And whoops, reading comprehensions. I stand corrected.

Vesperia was my first game into the tales series and then I got Abyss. Too bad I don't have a PS3 because I would love to play the new ones and Symphonia is too expensive and I don't want to get the squeal on the Wii without playing through the first one. :<

I've only played Tales of the Abyss on 3DS, but it was a great title! (probably still my favorite 3DS game)

I'd probably like Tales again if they stopped making the series exclusive to Sony platforms. Tales of the Abyss 3D doesn't count since it was a poorly done port of a great PS2 game. Nintendo probably asked Bamco to give them one last Tales game, but even then Bamco decided not to give their all for Nintendo. Makes me worry for the next Smash Bros. game, especially with the former Tales Studio working on the story mode.
Then again, the last few Tales games may have been a result of money...Tales of Symphonia 2 had a tiny budget and was rushed, Tales of the Abyss 3D may have been in the same situation...or maybe worse. Graces Wii may have been rushed near the end as well even though it was a mothership title; all the bugs and the recall of the game are evidence of that. Guess Bamco doesn't care for the Nintendo crowd and the Tales fanbase contained within it. Most fans probably moved on to Sony by now, so it makes no sense to develop Tales for Nintendo anymore..........(though I thought ToS2 sold pretty well considering what it is)

Great series, wish the new one was coming to a Nintendo console but thankfully I do have a PS3.

The Tales of Series started on a Nintendo console (Super NES/Super Famicom) and it should remain or at least had one in the near future. Tales of Phantasia, Tales of Phantasia: The Narikiri Dungeons 1-3, Tales of Hearts, Tales of the Tempest, Tales of Innocence, Tales of Symphonia, Tales of the World, Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World, Tales of Graces and finally Tales of the Abyss. If 3DS and Wii U went through this gen without an original Tales of game than screw Namco Bandai.

I've got Xillia pre-ordered for PS3 and I'm really looking forward to seeing what this series is all about. I guess I was blinded by my love for Final Fantasy in the past, but those games have gone downhill recently in my opinion.

Dawn of a New World was one of my favorite RPG's of all time great game

Lloyd Irving for SSB4!

Fantastic series, can't wait for Xillia on PS3, too bad Nintendo hasn't gotten a Tales of game on the console lately., Symphonia was actually the first game I played in the series

Vesperia > Symphonia > Abyss > Symphonia 2 > Legendia
and those are the ones I've played

Easily one of my favorite JRPG franchises, I've enjoyed every one I've played so far including Dawn of the New World despite all the hate that game seems to have gotten.

@Koto
I woouldn't worry too much about Namco screwing up the next Smash Bros. after all its one of Nintendo's biggest franchises so I doubt they'd sit by and let them mess that up.

i agree with you on the way they treat their fans on Nintendo consoles though. Dawn of the New World was supposed to be mostly for fan service so that might be why the budget was small.

The thing that bugs me about Tales of the Abyss 3D is that Namco claimed they were using it to gauge interest in the series (can't remember if it was just for Nintendo consoles or not). I can understand not wanting to go all out, but basing the future sales of the series on the port of a PS2 game is something else.

I love this series. It's where I've looked to for quality JRPGs since my faith in Final Fantasy died.. I have a soft spot for Tales of Symphonia but it's just not my favorite since so many aspects of the series have been improved upon in later entries, including character progression. That said, picking a favorite is pretty hard but I'd have to say it's a toss up between Vesperia and Abyss. I'm playing Tales of Graces F now and it's fun. Can't wait for Xillia!

I've not beaten any Tales game (I've only devoted a few short hours to one of the lesser known ones & just sorta got over it I can't remember its name though). I think I'll buy Tales of Abyss 3D since I found a good price for it & go from there.

I adore the entirety of the Tales of series. -Yes even the black sheep title.-
Heck I even buy games that I don't even have the console for sometimes. I just wish they bring over Tales of the world RM 2/3, and Hearts over to NA. Granted, I prefer it if they bring all the titles over, but... I highly doubt that would happen. T-T

I got a copy of Tales of Symphonia at Hastings for only 5 bucks. Pretty awesome deal. I've been meaning to give it a play pretty soon.

@Koto, what about the 3DS TotA port was worse than the original PS2 version?

All of the reviews I've read/watched, have said that the only notable differences between the two versions are that the 3DS version has faster loading times, and the added 3D effect (admittedly not that great, but it wasn't there in the first place). Regarding controls, every review I've read/watched said that they transitioned seamlessly to 3DS with no problems (one even claimed that the 3DS control scheme actually felt more natural & fun than the original).

It would be nice if Nintendo could get a new exclusive Tales game on the Wii U at some point. I read recently that the PS3 was getting a HD port of Tales of Symphonia. I hope that's true, as I've been watching out for the Cube version for ages but it's so expensive.

This is great series, but Bamco have abandoned Nintendo system in this days..So i don't care anymore for you games.

I don't care about this series. They released three for the DS and two for Wii and only one of them came over and just because it was the sequel to a succesful entry in the series.

If they want us to care they should bring them all to the west, even if they are only in english.

I've lost interest in the series for the most part. I really wanted to see Graces localized, and then when they finally get around to it they ignore the system it was designed for and release it for a system I don't have. They didn't even bother with the DS games... That's a lot of money I would have been happy to part with.

I have played most Tales games that were localized in EU. My favorite one is one on PSP, port of a PSone title Tales of Eternia. Apart that Tales of Symphonia was also an rpg I enjoyed a lot. Dawn of the new world began with an interesting twist but become sort of boring and broken when certain characters join. Generally there was sort of lack of rpgs on Cube and Wii which was sort of bad to us jrpg fans. It is bad that various Tales for DS and PSP were never localized.

I recently got Graces on PS3 and look forward to Xillia. Too bad the collectors edition is sort of expensive.

Not a fan of the series. I found symphonia, Dawn of the New World and Graces F all pretty average. I'm playing Abyss (3DS) now and it's been a better experience than all of the other games, but it's still only 7/10 game at most.

They should release Tales of Destiny 1 and 2 on the PSN and Tales of Phantasia on the eshop as part of the anniversary. People are paying $100+ just to get a copy of their older games that may or may not even work -_-

@RR529 Just so you know, they 3D effects are really badly done (which isn't an issue if you don't use 3D), the volume leveling is really messed up and often is impossible to hear what characters are saying especially in cutscenes, and the game can experience some extreme slow down on the world map. I own both versions and the PS2 version is a much better experience.

I love this series and would consider it my favourite game series but I wish more of them would be released on Nintendo consoles and localised. I've played Tales of Symphonia and its sequel as well as Tales of the Abyss and I love all three of them so much with Symphonia and Abyss even being my favourite and second favourite games ever respectively.

@Caniswolfred I don't know why you're saying that. I've seen Tales of Rebirth and Hearts get loads of praise with many saying that they are two of the best in the series. The PS2 remake of Tales of Destiny and Tales of Phantasia:Narikiri Dungeon X seem to be very well received by the fanbase too. Also, Legendia is surprisingly popular among some parts of the fanbase with some saying that although the battle system and dungeon design could be a lot better, its storyline, characters and soundtrack are some of the best in the series. But almost any Tales of game seems worth playing to me and I look forward to getting Tales of the Tempest and Tales of Innocence with their fan translations at some point.

@Jayvir That's the first I've heard of those problems. I never encountered any problems with hearing the character's voices or slowdown on the world map in Tales of the Abyss 3DS and I haven't heard anyone else mention those problems before.

@FonistofCruxis
I haven't played the PS2 release, but I can definetly say that the 3DS version has lots of slowdown in world map, especially in foresty areas. I haven't noticed anything wrong about the voices though. Wouldn't the lack of load times also be a plus for the 3ds version? I hear they're pretty terrible on the ps2 version.

@RR529
It's mostly just a visual issue. The 3D was implemented terribly. Even if the game wasn't made for 3D, to be added this badly is a joke. You can convert any PC game to 3D using certain drivers and even if the effect isn't as great as for a game built with 3D in mind, it's still much better than what you get here.
The animation quality in the 3DS version is also slightly weaker than the PS2 version during battle. Perhaps not a big problem.
But other than that, my issues with the 3DS version (released in NA about a year after EU with absolutely no improvements whatsoever even though the EU version of Tales of Symphonia 2 DID gets some extra content from being a later release for them, and didn't like that the game was released as a full $40 retail-priced game when it's more or less a rushed port job of something from two generations ago, and also the aliasing in this version) and Nintendo Bamco titles are personal .

Symphonia and Vesperia. I can't seem to play Abyss for more than a few hours before I put my 3DS down, unfortunately. I still plan to finish it eventually though!

@Zombie_Barioth

My problem with ToS2 was the fact that only Europe got the finished version. For a game that's supposed to be mainly fan service, only Europe got the Gallery mode and the chance to play around with hats for Emil and Marta. There were some amusing skits in the game (mostly when it comes to Tenebrae), so I would've like to rewatch them whenever I wanted.
Also I find it strange that Bamco felt the need to "gauge interest" in the series on a Nintendo portable, or a Nintendo console at all. It makes me wonder why they didn't "gauge interest" for the series on Vita. If Tales of Innocence R was supposed to fill that role, why put so much more work into making a remake for Vita when all they had to do was release a rushed port job just like they did for 3DS?
I wonder if sales of Tales games released on Nintendo consoles were that bad that they had to start treating their Nintendo fans worse.

@expa0 The load times are much better in the 3DS version. I haven't played the PS2 version either but I've seen this comparison.

@Koto The American branch of Bamco stated that they released Tales of the Abyss 3DS later than the EU release was because they were worried about sales which is understandable as it came out in Europe in November 2011 and there were far more big releases in that month than any other month of the year.

Bamco do seem to have an annoyingly strong preference to Sony consoles over Nintendo consoles. There have been 14 mothership titles (main series) in the series and after all the ports and remakes, there is at least one version of each of these mothership titles on a Sony console compared to there being at least one version of 6 of them on a Nintendo console. I've also heard that the 15th mothership title will be another PS3 game.

I agree with your point on the 3DS and Vita Tales of games. Also, after remaking Tales of Innocence for PSV, they made Tales of Hearts R for the Vita even thought I've heard that they might not have made a profit on ToIR if they hadn't released so many DLC costumes for it. Despite this, fans were expecting a remake of Tales of Hearts as there were images in a new bonus dungeon of ToIR that reference Tales of Hearts as well as a message in that dungeon saying something like "To be continues in the next re-imagining". There were also similar images that reference Tales of the Tempest in that dungeon so the Vita might end up having remakes of all three DS Tales of games.

Unfortunately, they do seem to sell better on Sony consoles in Japan even though the best selling Tales of games in the west are on Nintendo consoles.