#”Tales of Arise” in the test: how good is the game?

“#”Tales of Arise” in the test: how good is the game?
”
“Tales of Arise” marks the 25th anniversary of the “Tales of” series. Can the new offshoot convince? We’ll reveal it in our test.

Tales of Arise

Release: Already available

Genre: JRPG

Plattform: Playstation 4 + 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC

Development studio: Bandai Namco Studios

Publisher: Bandai Namco

“Tales of Arise” marks the 25th anniversary of the series

On December 15, 1995, a JRPG appeared with “Tales of Phantasia” that enjoyed great popularity. The game laid the foundation for many more successful offshoots in the series. For the 25th anniversary, Bandai Namco has now brought out “Tales of Arise”. The game made a very good impression in our preview. Can the finished game convince with something new and at the same time remain true to the game series?

The story of “Tales of Arise”

“Tales of Arise” is about the story of Alphen and Shionne. Both are residents of the planets Rena and Dahna, who are at war with each other. Players slip into the role of Alphen, who has lost his memories due to a special event and spends his life as a slave. Together with Shionne he tries to escape from slave life and joins resistance fighters. These have made it their task to overthrow the five ruling lords and to end slavery for all for good.

Although the setting is basically a classic fight between rebels and evil rulers, the story of “Tales of Arise” captivates right from the start. Dark at first, it develops more and more into an excellently told hero story with emotionally moving moments. The characters are written terrific and the Japanese voice output we tested brings this to life very well. There are some interesting plot twists throughout the story that we don’t want to reveal at this point. Before that happens, you have to have invested a few hours in the game – but trust us, it’s worth it!

A wonderful game world and great music

“Tales of Arise” convinces with a nice cell-shading look that fans of anime will definitely like. The cell shading graphics bring out the colorful game world very well. The level of detail is very high and the impressive view invites you to just stop, enjoy the beautiful view and listen to the great music. The musical sounds underline the entire game world and contribute very well to the atmosphere. Even in combat, the game offers the right background music that is in no way inferior to the wonderful pieces of music in a “Final Fantasy”.

The game world of “Tales of Arise” is very large and offers a lot to discover. The open world only shows itself in full splendor after many hours of play. But if you expect a real open world, you should lower your expectations a bit. The open world consists of several large areas that are connected to one another. However, due to their size, they invite you to explore – and you should do that too. Because all over the game world there are interesting places, characters, opponents and treasures. In addition to the main story, you also have a lot to do and discover. However, if you just want to get from A to B quickly for the main story, you can do that too. The game features a fast travel system.

No fight without munching: The game’s crafting system

In the game world you will find numerous consumables such as plants, crystals and the like, which you can consume for character bonuses or process into equipment. The crafting system is kept pretty simple, so that if you are not used to crafting, you can get in quickly. There is also the possibility to rest in certain places (campfires). There you can cook different dishes. By eating, the characters get temporary boosts to certain character values ​​such as strength, resistances and Co. This can be particularly advantageous in difficult fights, which are enough in “Tales of Arise”. What effect the dishes have and how strong they are, however, depends on who is preparing them.

The player’s troops can be equipped with various armor, weapons and accessories. They upgrade various character values, so that it is worthwhile to keep an eye out for hidden chests in the game world. In addition, you can personalize your troop visually. These are only used for optics and can be put on over the armor if you don’t like the look of the current equipment.

Tactics meet chaos

Numerous opponents cavort on the game world. As soon as you touch it, you will be thrown into a fighting area and the fight starts. The combat system of “Tales of Arise” is quite different compared to its predecessors. It’s gotten more tactical compared to the older parts.

In addition to normal attacks, so-called arts are available. These are special attacks that can be carried out in addition to normal attacks by pressing a button. Every Arts attack tugs the Arts bar. This fills up automatically in combat – even faster if you don’t attack at all. There are both ground and air arts. You can specify which arts you want to use in the character menu. They can also be exchanged “on the fly” in combat. You can chain several Arts attacks and, in combination with normal attacks, carry out a long chain of attacks. It is not easy how to combine which arts with each other in order to create the longest and most effective attack chain possible. There is therefore a tendency towards button mashing, especially at the beginning. With the advancement in history and the emergence of stronger opponents, button mashing doesn’t really bring much, so you have to think carefully about how to use which arts and when to perform an evasive maneuver.

Each character also has special talents that can be used in combat. Shionne, for example, can fire special ammunition at the push of a button, which triggers a larger explosion during bombing and accordingly does more area damage.

There is also a co-op attack, the so-called boost attack, which can be activated with a full boost bar. This attack can directly wipe out normal enemies and cause devastating damage to bosses. Used at the right moment, this attack can make the difference between victory and defeat with boss opponents.

You can also change the group formation and behavior of the NPC characters in combat. For example, they can be instructed to act either more defensively or aggressively. You can also set how the team should be controlled. You can choose between: manual, semi-automatic and automatic. This allows you to be much more strategic in combat. Those who prefer to concentrate on one character can simply choose the automatic mode.

In combat you can press the appropriate arrow key to attack the characters that are not actively controlled with arts attacks. In addition, you can actively switch back and forth between characters and carry out manual attacks, but you cannot control every character in battle. Two characters always serve as support and can only help passively with their skills. For example, a character can block enemy attacks.

The fights are very fast and action packed. Unfortunately, especially as a beginner, you can quickly lose track of things here. Because there can be a lot going on on the screen. The mass of effects in particular can mean that you no longer know what is going on. Therefore, despite the tactical components, many fights degenerate into chaos and button mashing. Until you have developed an eye for the battle, it stays that way. Due to the chaos on the battlefield, we often overlooked the fact that our team still had few health points available, so that the result was defeat. Nevertheless, the fights are a lot of fun and motivate to get even better.

Many opponents can also be flattened too easily, which is due to the unfortunately somewhat stupid AI. But there are pretty tricky fights. We played “Tales of Arise” on the medium level of difficulty and had to switch to a lower level a few times because it was too strenuous for us. So the opponent’s strength could be a little more balanced.

“Tales of Arise”: A must-have for anime and JRPG fans

“Tales of Arise” scores top marks in many areas. The story is captivating and provides good entertainment with emotional moments and plot twists. The associated cutscenes are very well animated and delight our anime hearts. Due to the beautiful cell shading look, a lot of the game looks like hand-drawn. Often we just stopped and enjoyed the beautiful view. Despite the weaknesses, the combat system of “Tales of Arise” is very well thought out. The game’s biggest flaw is the beginning. For the game to develop to its full potential, you have to play roughly ten to 15 hours. Until then, the areas are designed to be quite tubular and linear. Still, “Tales of Arise” is one of the best JRPGs in recent years. Anime and JRPG fans will love the game.

CONCLUSION: 9.5 / 10

We would like to thank Bandai Namco for providing the review copy!

The article “Tales of Arise” in the test: How good is the game? first appeared on BuradaBiliyorum.Com.

If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on Google News too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.

For forums sites go to Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com

If you want to read more anime-manga articles, you can visit our anime-manga category.

Source