Tales of Symphonia!

[trickssi]

You know you wanna. Who's played it? What do you like/dislike about it? Have you seen the OVA's?

Oh, man. I freaking love this video game. (But mostly, Zelos Wilder.)

Discuss!

[rexdart]

Was ToS your first classic JRPG? If not, what was it about it that made you like it so much more?

Also, are you at all interested in Tales of Vesparia? I've been thinking about getting that one at some point...

[trickssi]

Oo, yeah, I'm planning on getting Vesperia as soon as I'm home for summer. My brother has a 360, so I figure, why not use it while I can? I hear Vesperia might be the best Tales game yet, so I'm excited to see if that rumor is true.

While ToS was far from my first classic rpg (Super Mario RPG being my ever-favorite), it just continues to remain one of my favorites. I remember that I was reading Nintendo Power one day and came across the illustrated advertisement, and said to my mom, "I *need* to get this game." I don't recall doing that for many games, because in my opinion, the prettier the art, the higher my expectations are and the likelier it is that the game won't live up to them. However, I was desperate for ToS. I kept following the articles leading up to the release, getting more and more excited.

I know it's a long, tedious game with so many twists and turns you can't keep all the information straight in the first play-through. But when you first learn about Cruxis's true plans? Holy crap, I was so intrigued. Plus, though the plot at the beginning (and throughout; I'm not counting individual character quests as standard plot) is somewhat standard for a Tales hero, I found it comforting and familiar. I hated Lloyd, Colette, and Genis at first, but the game somehow made me fond of them by the end.

... Doesn't help, either, that I was waiting for about twelve hours to meet Zelos, who I'd already preordained in my head to be my favorite before I knew anything about the guy. It made his entrance all the more epic. Of course, I was appalled that he'd be such a womanizer at first, but as things go, he ended up being quite insightful, intelligent, and indispensable. In my opinion, his character alone makes up for the trite points of plot, the typical characterization of Lloyd, and the somewhat shaky graphics.

Ne?

[myusollo]

Ah, Tales of Symphonia. I remember playing that. I kept thinking, "Okay, is this the real ending, or another fake-out?" over and over again. Heh, good times.

[rexdart]

Actually, I thought the graphics for the game were awesome.

But yeah, the characterization for Lloyd, Collette and Genis was pretty weak for most of the game. For me, being able to like the main characters is a big factor for weather or not I can say I love the game. The supporting cast definitely carried the game for me.

[myusollo]

The chef dude did it for me. Man, so cool.

[rexdart]

Spoiler!

In the secret ending on the Japan-exclusive third disk, you find out that the Wonder Chef is God.

[myusollo]

Double Spoiler!

Is that before or after Collette dies in a fire?

[rexdart]

It actually happens in the same cutscene. Right after you find out who the real bad guys are for the twelfth times, and right before you find out that they were really working as double agents for the good guys.

[trickssi]

You see, I'd laugh, but then, they screwed up the sequel so bad that there are no more similar plot twists. Although Lloyd does kill some people in a fire... Also in Dawn of the New World, the antagonist turns out not to be that evil. I was so disappointed--they could have done so much more with Richter. But then again, I guess they didn't want to make more gay/incestuous half-elven villains (oh ho HO! Spoiler alert *and* I went there!).