
It’s all relatively simple but fun, and after dealing a certain amount of damage you can spring “Unison Attacks,” which involve the entire party. Thankfully, you can set up parameters for said AI to act before combat, and they actually stick to the plan more often than not.

The battle system is in real time, and in Tales fashion, operates similarly to an action-JRPG hybrid. From a party of four, one member is controlled by the player, and the other by the game’s AI component. Characters interact with each other by way of skits and numerous dialog sessions, and genuinely feel interconnected with one another, rather than an isolated collection of fighters.
TALES OF SYMPHONIA CHRONICLES PSN SERIES
From there the story takes off with a series of twists and turns (and interesting player choices) I won’t spoil here, but suffice to say it’s worth the ride. Lloyd and his party must assist Colette Brunel, a savior of sorts, in regenerating the world and unsealing its five temples. The narrative is very reminiscent of the “Crystal” Final Fantasy games (or most recently, Bravely Default), and just as charming. Lloyd Irving is also one of my personal favorite genre protagonists, and he’s a general fan favorite for a reason: he is likable, fun to watch, and most of all - he has flaws, and feels human.

Symphonia offers up essentially everything you could want from an RPG experience, from a colorful cast, to an overworld you actually want to explore, to an engaging battle system. It’s not going to look as good as the recently released Tales of Xillia or most of the recent JRPGs currently on the market, but fans of the genre should be able to cope just fine. This isn’t just an upscale, as most assets were overhauled and there are some all-new illustrations in tow. Here in the Chronicles package on the PS3, you’ll get remastered visuals, dual audio, and a few minor content extras (like new Mystic Artes, costumes, attacks, and a few extra skits, so nothing major). Symphonia is one of the most critically acclaimed games in the Tales franchise for a reason - it’s a damn good RPG. Thankfully they’ve wised up for Tales of Symphonia Chronicles, which delivers one of the best games in the entire series on PS3. Whereas Square releases port after port of Final Fantasy, making it easier to acquire older games, Namco doesn’t tend to re-release Tales games often in the West, leaving them a little harder to track down on older consoles. It’s a consistently quality franchise that has been delivering year after year, but one of the problems with it is that some of the titles are a bit harder to find. Players have complete control over their roster of party members and monster allies, allowing for limitless combinations to take out to the battlefield.The Tales series often doesn’t get the same recognition as big-name JRPGs like Final Fantasy, and that’s a shame. Dawn of the New World advances the series’ battle system by introducing a new monster recruitment feature that lets players capture more than 200 unique monsters and train them to participate in battles. Take on the role of Emil Castagnier as he seeks to uncover the mysteries that have befallen his world. Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World continues the story from the previous installment by delving into the consequences set into motion by Lloyd and his friends at the end of the first game.

How will Lloyd and his friends find a way to ensure the survival of both worlds? Tales of Symphonia takes the signature real-time battle system of the Tales of role-playing games allowing for direct control of their character through fast-paced tactical battles.

Along the way they learn of the parallel world of Tethe’alla, whose survival rests on the same source of mana Sylvarant needs to sustain life. In Tales of Symphonia, follow Lloyd Irving through as he embarks on a grand adventure with his friends to restore mana back to the world of Sylvarant, a source of energy necessary for the survival of their world.
