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[Coverly]

At first I tried really hard to like it. BUT IT WAS SO BLAND(storywise)!
Yuri/battle system/thought that I might miss something because some rpgs takes a while to ramp up is what kept me going for the first 20-something hours.

And it payed off in spades. The game took off with me when

Spoiler

Yuri killed Ragou

. After that point it was surprise after surprise and I totally agree with Himuro
in all the points he mentioned after this point.

I'm not fond of those first 20 hrs though, and I hate it when the story tells you to come back later to this person or place to stretch/delay the story because it's done so often. Otherwise I have no complaints.

I'm close to 50 hours of play and loving it. Best surprise of the year.

 

[BudokaiMR2]

20 for a jrpg maybe cutting it a bit too short, you end up with a rush job like IU when this happens.

Yeah I dunno if I would even call IU rushed, more like lazy. The game length was not even a problem, it was the fact that it could have been cut down to 10 and not lost anything, lol.

 

[akenatone]

the battle system was fun, the skill system was fun. however, the main character was wasted on another bland storyline. They should have stuck to the tone of the first half instead of turning it into let's save the world #7895 plot.

 

[crowphoenix]

the battle system was fun, the skill system was fun. however, the main character was wasted on another bland storyline. They should have stuck to the tone of the first half instead of turning it into let's save the world #7895 plot.

There can be no understating how much I agree with this.

 

[djtiesto]

I still haven't picked this one up. I love the Tales series, so hearing from everybody (whether they be hardcore Tales fans or haters) that this game is awesome makes me really excited. Gonna purchase the limited edition online and play once the weather starts getting colder and more depressing. Or, rather, once I beat IU and PDS.

 

[Darkman M]

Mass Effect, Jade Empire.

Not that I agree.

I think if you do it well, I prefer a great, well paced 20-30 hour rpg to an 80 hour one.

Yeah, it works better with western rpg's being most of the time you don't have a party so threes not alot of character development.

 

[Red Blaster]

Buh? How could you have hated Abyss and liked Vesperia?

 

[Darkman M]

Buh? How could you have hated Abyss and liked Vesperia?

Abyss was average at best, vesperia beats it in just about every category, not to mention how awesome the main character is in vesperia.

 

[Princess Skittles]

Buh? How could you have hated Abyss and liked Vesperia?

They are almost the same game but I guess everybody is getting huge rods over the fact that the main character

Spoiler

kills somebody outside of the law.

 

[PseudoKirby]

They are almost the same game but I guess everybody is getting huge rods over the fact that the main character

Spoiler

kills somebody outside of the law.

lmfao what a way with words

 

[Darkman M]

Huh? I'm talking about more examples of 20 hours games that feel like rush jobs.

Plus, a lot of western rpgs have tons of character development. That's one of the things they do better than jrpgs since you can talk to your party any time you want.



They're hardly the same game.

Abyss had awful pacing, awful load times, annoying characters and cast all around, and I thought the combat was boring.

Vesperia kept my attention throughout.

Im talking about games like Oblivion & Fable were you the player are the protagonist and pretty much solo, Mass Effect is the only western rpg i played that had a party system : (


Aside from the shitty sidequest & texture loading i thought mass effect was an excellent game.

 

[Firestorm]

The game is too long/poorly paced. The story doesn't pick up till about 15-20 hours in, now I'm at the 35 hour mark and I don't think I can finish it because it feels like it's dragging on. If the first story arc was 5 hours instead it would've been a much better game.

I wouldn't say it's too long at all. 40:33 was my ending time. I usually find games that are 20 hours too long but this game makes me want to start another playthrough. It is a lot of fun.

Most of my complaints are story and music related. There was so much potential wasted on the characters. They really could have been fleshed out more like in Abyss. Yuri > anyone in Abyss. Abyss supporting cast > Vesperia supporting cast.

 

[Linkhero1]

I'm not a real rpg fan, as a matter of fact I hate most rpgs. After reading some of your points I'm interested. I haven't played any previous Tales games before, should I?

 

[Firestorm]

I'm not a real rpg fan, as a matter of fact I hate most rpgs. After reading some of your points I'm interested. I haven't played any previous Tales games before, should I?

Yes.

 

[jeremy1456]

I'm not a real rpg fan, as a matter of fact I hate most rpgs. After reading some of your points I'm interested. I haven't played any previous Tales games before, should I?

You don't need to, but if you have some extra money I would recommend seeking out Tales of Destiny and Eternia for the PSX, along with Symphonia for Gamecube and Abyss for PS2.

They are all very high quality.

 

[Blimblim]

Reading this makes me want to import the Asian version, but I *hated*, as in FUCKING HATED, the fight system in the demo. any chance I might still like the full game?

 

[soldat7]

Perhaps this is the best JRPG of this generation but I have a hard time believing that it's a better RPG than Mass Effect.

 

[dark steve]

That's like saying if you've played a Mario game you've played them all. All Mario games involve jumping on shit.

This is a comparison that could only come from a devoted JRPG player.

 

[nelsonroyale]

I might actually pick this up if it hits ps3...and Ive never been interested in the tales series before

 

[Ledsen]

hey I enjoy it, how could you complain about getting MORE gameplay out of your $60 game?

Time > money for most people with jobs, so this can be a huge factor. I really want to play this but I may skip it because it's too long. 20-30 hours is perfect.

 

[Linkhero1]

You don't need to, but if you have some extra money I would recommend seeking out Tales of Destiny and Eternia for the PSX, along with Symphonia for Gamecube and Abyss for PS2.

They are all very high quality.

My brother has ToS for GC. I'll play it when I'm free. How long does it take to finish it on average?

 

[Error]

Time > money for most people with jobs, so this can be a huge factor. I really want to play this but I may skip it because it's too long. 20-30 hours is perfect.

I don't get that logic, it's not like you have a deadline to meet to beat a game.

 

[Ronin]

I'm a little over the 30 hour mark and I feel that I'll probably finish this one. While I enjoyed Abyss, I just kinda gave up around the very last leg of the game and don't feel the need to go back.

 

[JaMarco]

Time > money for most people with jobs, so this can be a huge factor. I really want to play this but I may skip it because it's too long.

I never quite understood this. What? is there a hidden time bomb on the disk that blows up if you dont beat the game in a certain time frame? Why not just take a few months or whatever it takes to beat it? I mean I can definitely understand if the game overstayed its welcome from being too long, but if the game is great throughout you can just take your time and beat it.

 

[Takuhi]

Reading this makes me want to import the Asian version, but I *hated*, as in FUCKING HATED, the fight system in the demo. any chance I might still like the full game?

It depends what you hated about it. The final game adds more layers of complexity that make other play styles viable, and the characters ultimately differentiate themselves with exclusive moves and skills, and the most fun character (Judith) wasn't in that demo at all. But the fundamentals are basically the same.

 

[MoogPaul]

I don't know, I guess I'm in love with turn-based too much because LO > all as far as next gen RPGs go for me. Prob than IU. I guess I'm weird?

 

[Princess Skittles]

The time factor has more to do with a game overstaying its welcome to me. I can replay a good 20 hour RPG a dozen times but I can barely get through an 80 hour RPG once, regardless of how good it is. RPGs are particularly nasty in this regard because if you leave one and come back a few weeks later it's hard to get your bearings back on where you are, where you're going, what side quests you're doing, etc.

 

[Error]

Does Vesperia has a skip scene feature? I don't know why tales studios is so against a simple feature like that.

 

[Princess Skittles]

Does Vesperia has a skip scene feature? I don't know why tales studios is so against a simple feature like that.

No and it sucks that it doesn't.

 

[Man God]

My brother has ToS for GC. I'll play it when I'm free. How long does it take to finish it on average?

About as long as this game. 40-60 hours to go through it the first time.

 

[Papercuts]

I agree with pretty much every point there. I'm at 75 hours and beat the game once(around 60 hours), but I'm not even close to being done with this gem, just waiting to get my 360 back so I can get addicted to it again.

I really want to express how well done the VA is in here. Aside from a few(Alexei, Yeager), the voicing is all extremely solid and fits the characters. At the same time, it makes me wonder what the hell Namco was thinking when they put the demo up. I cringed at the scene there, and it led me to start thinking the game was going to be disappointing, or atleast have a TERRIBLE dub. But after beating the game that remains to be the only cringe scene I can recall...it was the worst possible place they could have picked.

 

[Ledsen]

I don't get that logic, it's not like you have a deadline to meet to beat a game.

Well if you enjoy playing lots of different types of games it makes sense, for me at least. If I can choose between playing four 10 hour games or one 40 hour game, I'll choose the former, always (of course assuming they're all good games). Mainly because there's almost no chance that I'll enjoy that one game more than the other four put together, but also because I don't want a huge backlog of games I want to play, but can't because some long ass game is keeping me from it. I can't think of one game that fills 60+ hours with meaningful content that could not have been cut down to maybe half that length, and that's my main complaint against many rpgs (western as well as japanese).

Of course this is how I think, and I realize you won't agree with me. Not everyone cares about playing lots of different games, and some people have more time than others. Also there are people that get MORE enjoyment from a game the longer they play it.

edit:

also this

At least for me, if I get distracted for a week or two, I have problems picking up a game again. I usually end up feeling lost, not really as to where to go next, but more in trying to get back into the story/characters. RPGs are games I find that I need to be "in the zone", so to say, or else they just end up getting shelved.

 

[Llyranor]

I've only played 5 hrs before my 360 died, but it was easily - EASILY - the best JRPG next-gen experience I've had. The only 360 JRPGs simply can't compare. Love the game from first impressions.

I don't really care if an RPG is 20 or 60-100 hrs long. As long as its pacing is well-executed. If the 20hr game feels rushed, without any real conclusion, meh. If the 100hr game is filled with fluff or boring tedium, simply for the sake of artificial inflation, double meh.

 

[Chris R]

I've yet to play a RPG from this "next gen" that wasn't plagued by one of these problems

a) Horrible Combat
b) Horrible Story
c) Horrible Load Times

Bought a 360 mostly for RPGs and I'm actually kinda angry that all of the demos I've played all basically sucked in one or more ways.

 

[Zophar]

I've yet to play a RPG from this "next gen" that wasn't plagued by one of these problems

a) Horrible Combat
b) Horrible Story
c) Horrible Load Times

Bought a 360 mostly for RPGs and I'm actually kinda angry that all of the demos I've played all basically sucked in one or more ways.

Vesperia escapes all these trappings. It's very good.

 

[discoalucard]

I never quite understood this. What? is there a hidden time bomb on the disk that blows up if you dont beat the game in a certain time frame? Why not just take a few months or whatever it takes to beat it? I mean I can definitely understand if the game overstayed its welcome from being too long, but if the game is great throughout you can just take your time and beat it.

At least for me, if I get distracted for a week or two, I have problems picking up a game again. I usually end up feeling lost, not really as to where to go next, but more in trying to get back into the story/characters. RPGs are games I find that I need to be "in the zone", so to say, or else they just end up getting shelved.

Also, I do like to beat games and get the whole experience, but if someone says it takes 60 hours to get there, I'm not sure I want to devote that amount of time to it. As someone said above, time > money.

I'm not very far in Vesperia, but I agree with the OP so far - I've never really been able to get into the Tales games, usually because I've found the battle systems kinda obnoxious. This one still isn't quite ideal, but it's definitely a step up, and a bit less button mashy.

 

[cress2000]

I took this game very slowly and loved nearly every minute of it. Finished it the other day. I'm really itching to have another run through it since I farmed enough grade to buy out the grade shop, but I have some other things I need to attend to. Story gets bumpy late in the game and turns into a pretty generic overall Tales plot, but the great gameplay, awesome characters, and earlier parts of the story more than make up for it.

Only serious issue I have is the incredibly rushed menu localization. Non-voiced dialogue also obviously didn't get as much editing and testing time as the voiced dialogue. I hope it gets fixed with a patch sometime.

 

[Firestorm]

I'm like you Leden. This game is still definitely a play though. Like I mentioned previously, I find 20 hour games too long and shelve games just after finishing, but I finished this one at 40 hours and now I'm over 50. Not only that, I still want to play more.

I've yet to play a RPG from this "next gen" that wasn't plagued by one of these problems

a) Horrible Combat
b) Horrible Story
c) Horrible Load Times

Bought a 360 mostly for RPGs and I'm actually kinda angry that all of the demos I've played all basically sucked in one or more ways.

The demo sucks. The full game is amazing.

Reading this makes me want to import the Asian version, but I *hated*, as in FUCKING HATED, the fight system in the demo. any chance I might still like the full game?

What did you hate about it? The demo's combat was very clunky. Most of the skills that make it fun (defensive options, combo options) were not present, you were chucked headfirst without learning about fatal strikes, and it was overall too complicated with no explanation. The full game is much more fun. I didn't like the demo, but I knew what the series battle system is supposed to be like so I still bought the game and got what I expected.

Does Vesperia has a skip scene feature? I don't know why tales studios is so against a simple feature like that.

Closest thing we get is holding A+X to make dialog scroll quick.

 

[Ledsen]

I'm like you Leden. This game is still definitely a play though. Like I mentioned previously, I find 20 hour games too long and shelve games just after finishing, but I finished this one at 40 hours and now I'm over 50. Not only that, I still want to play more.

Well yeah, I'm probably going to buy it The scenario in my previous post (choosing between four games or one game of comparable quality) doesn't happen that often, so I do play quite a few longer games (GTA4 and Persona 3 for example).

 

[My Arms Your Hearse]

I would agree it is the best RPG this generation. Unfortunately, that is roughly equivalent to winning the Special Olympics.

When a game like this gets the praise it is getting... wow. It's kinda sad really. SO4, FFXIII, and SMT must save us from this hell.

This is a good TALES game. That's about it.

 

[Chris R]

Vesperia escapes all these trappings. It's very good.

I didn't think so, but I'm just guessing that the combat in the game isn't for me. I even downloaded the demo twice to make sure that I wasn't giving it an unfair treatment, but I just think I could never enjoy the combat

Might try renting the full game and see if that makes a difference but I doubt it will.

Still haven't tried the other 360 games that don't have a demo on Live, but I've looked at game play on youtube and they didn't really interest me.

 

[KingJ2002]

I wholeheartedly agree with your points about the gameplay and art direction but 'd like to add something that I think is the reason why games (specifically rpg's and adventure games) seem to always be lacking.

The problem that i'm seeing is that many games are trying to rival movies... in story, direction, and even in gameplay... you see that more games are throwing in QTE events because they don't know how to convert those "cool scenes" into actual gameplay.

I understand why, especially since graphics have approached the level of near cg quality and the presentation is like none other.

but the problem is that like most movies when you buy them... you only want to pop it in once or twice when you get it. There's not much extra when it comes to delivering games like this, there's no worthwhile extras (if there is any), and usually they're pretty pointless... mass effect suffered from this... many of the side quests weren't worth the trouble of going through. there was no decent rewards because so much focus went into making the main story as cinematic as possible.

but tales feels like like a real game that isn't trying to be a movie, or a anime... just a game. the story is spread out... the side quests compliment the main story (it blends in so well many people that dont have a guide probably dont even know they're playing through a sidequest) and the rewards are worthwhile, in game scripts along the way, lots of laughter... all of this compliments the already solid gameplay that doesnt have a bunch of corny QTE's.

tales of vesperia feels like a real rpg... i dont play them much... in fact the first rpg i've ever owned and completed was FFX... but i've know a great game when i play one... and i havent had a game absorb me like for almost a decade.

 

[RpgN]

Great, now I want to play it too! Please namco be nice and bring this game to the ps3 as well

 

[JaMarco]

I didn't think so, but I'm just guessing that the combat in the game isn't for me. I even downloaded the demo twice to make sure that I wasn't giving it an unfair treatment, but I just think I could never enjoy the combat

I think most people agreed that the demo doesnt represent the full game at all. At least just rent it.

 

[Chris R]

I think most people agreed that the demo doesnt represent the full game at all. At least just rent it.

Guess I will when I get a chance.

 

[Scottlarock]

Guess I will when I get a chance.

demos of RPGs is useless, btw great thread Himuro. I always planned on picking this up, but this still helps.

 

[Auron_Kale]

This game was/is my system seller for the 360 (still don't own one because I'm waiting until Jasper boards are out and Christmas) when I first heard about it a while back. I'm really glad that this game has gotten so much positive feedback and I really can't wait to play this game.

 

[My Arms Your Hearse]

It's not that demos for rpgs are useless, it's just that no company outside of Square knows how to make a good rpg demo.

FFVII, VIII, X, DQVIII and others had GREAT demos.



So you are saying that we are praising this game this much because this gen has sucked for rpgs? Because that's not the case. I think many of us in this thread actively have played other rpgs in the past few years, whether they be Persona 3, Etrian Odyssey and more. I think plenty of us are quite capable of knowing what a quality game is when we see it.

But yes, I agree that the fact that this game is the best rpg this generation shows how much generation sucks for rpgs, but that DOESN'T mean that it's merely just a good Tales game either. That's just being unfair, really.

Meh, we just disagree. I've had fun with the game, and I'm still actually playing it some, but I do find it somewhat embarrassing that it is getting the attention it is. It just doesn't deserve it. Abyss is a much better game, even with the loading and and pacing issues.

Comments to the effect of "this is the only 3d action RPG that I like!" (not directed at you specifically, even though you're guilty!) REALLY annoy me. Maybe this is the real root of the problem. It's such an insult to so many amazing games.

 

[BudokaiMR2]

It's not that demos for rpgs are useless, it's just that no company outside of Square knows how to make a good rpg demo.

FFVII, VIII, X, DQVIII and others had GREAT demos.

I don't think that is something that Square should get credit for really as it was more that the game just lent itself to a very easy transition to demo, except maybe DQVIII. I mean FFVII and FFVIII both started with extremely awesome action scenes so they just loaded those onto a disc. It's just a fact that most RPGs have slower starts so its not so easy.

But yeah, here is hoping this game's release will be a turn for the better as far as next gen RPGs are concerned. If I could get another game of this quality with real next gen quality sound design I would be extremely happy. I was actually really annoyed at vesperia at first because of this. RPGs have so much potential for immersion with good sound design.

 

[gregor7777]

Perhaps this is the best JRPG of this generation but I have a hard time believing that it's a better RPG than Mass Effect.

I'm about as big of a ME fan as there is, and I have to say this is the first game that's giving it a run for my money.

It's truly a great RPG.

What it attempts to do it does to damn near perfection.

I can't comment on the endgame yet though.