Tales of the Abyss
by Namco
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Category: Video Games
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Product Summary
Brand: NamcoRelease Date: 2006-10-10
Platform: PlayStation2
Publisher: Namco
Product features:
- Characters come to life like never before, with the most realistic character models ever used in the series
- More detailed expressions allow players to connect with the characters even more with stunning character designs
- Roam free in a Flexible Motion Battle System -- a groundbreaking twist to the Tales series allows the character to run freely around the battlefield
- A fully 3D setting and beautiful anime cutscenes immerse the player in one of the most stunning Tales games ever produced
- New Town Link System - The actions of the story and characters reflect the world around them, giving the player the feeling that his or her actions truly affect the world of the game
Video Game Reviews of Tales of the Abyss
Customer Review: Probably the Best Tales Game on the PS2
Summary: 5 Stars
Gameplay: 9/10
Tales of the Abyss has a similar battle system to Tales of Symphonia, but with the addition of Free Run. Free Run allows players to move their characters completely in 3D, so they can circle around enemies and run all over the battlefield to evade attacks or reach an enemy's unguarded area. This new ability actually makes the game much easier, however, and many enemies, even difficult bosses, can be easily defeated by having a character lure an enemy around and another character spamming magic attacks at the enemy. However, players can choose a higher difficulty mode if they deem the game too easy. An annoying thing to note about the battles is that there are invisible walls that prevent the player from wandering too far from the enemies which may feel unnatural. There are only six playable characters with one other temporary playable character. Each character has their own move set and plays quite differently from each other. Unlike Tales of Symphonia, however, each character, even the healer and mage, have a good balance of melee and magical attacks so that they are all plausible choices for the player to control. As with Tales of Symphonia, players can use a normal attack or special attack (called artes). Special attacks can be assigned to different combinations of the analog stick and the special attack button in the menus. Overlimit mode can now be activated with a press of a button so players can strategically use it to their advantage--build it up during normal, easy battles and saving them for harder bosses. Hi-ougis, now called Mystic Artes, are also much easier to perform than in Tales of Symphonia. The Unison Attacks feature is now gone, but there is a new feature--the Field of Fonons. Certain attacks, usually magic spells, leave behind little circles on the ground called Field of Fonons. If the same element (color) of attacks is used frequently in an area, the circle will grow larger and allow for players to deliver stronger element-based attacks by performing artes within the circle. Fields of Fonons are quite unreliable because the circles do not stay on the field for long and are difficult to build up to a high level. They are kind of fun to exploit when possible, though. Another gameplay enhancement would be the inclusion of capacity cores that characters can equip which changes the stats that character will gain upon leveling up. One thing to note is that there are some really annoying glitches in the game such as prolonged load times (the load times are pretty long normally) and the disappearance of the music on the World Map after a certain event in the game. These problems disappear after another event, though. Another problem with the game is that there is a whole lot of backtracking and revisiting old dungeons and towns rather than seeing new ones.
Graphics: 8/10
The graphics in Tales of the Abyss actually look like a downgrade from Tales of Symphonia. Instead of sporting a cel-shaded look, the character models have little detail and a bland look. Only the first three fingers of the main characters are articulate and the players can easily see the last two fingers melded together during cutscenes. Instead of being completely chibi, the character models actually sport a more proportionate look, but their heads are still a bit big. This is not without its benefits, however, because there is much wider range of character facial expressions this time around. Instead of completely relying on emotion bubbles, characters can show different emotions such as happiness, sadness, anger, etc. through facial expressions. In addition, the character's animation appears to be much more fluid compared to Tales of Symphonia. There are actually a few action scenes in Tales of the Abyss and they do not seem stiff at all. The backgrounds are just as good as Tales of Symphonia, however, the locales don't seem to be as memorable. Like in Tales of Symphonia, there are character costumes that change their look in and outside of battles as well weapon appearance changes based on the currently equipped weapon.
Story/Characters: 9/10
The story and characters are very good for Tales of the Abyss. Characters have a lot of development, one even completely changes in personality, for a good reason. The characters also seem to form a bond amongst themselves and there is much more character interaction within the group as a whole this time around, probably because there are less characters in the party, so more development and interaction can be spread amongst them. Each character interacts with all the other members at least a few times. Most of this occurs through skits again. Each character has their own unique little quirk that makes them memorable such as Tear's love of cute things, Guy's fear of women, Jade's sarcasm, etc. Characters also all have their own background story that gets unveiled a little at a time during the course of the game. Of course, it does get annoying how the characters are so secretive amongst each other, though, and communicate with each other with facades. Many times the player will hear such things as "Could this be... Nevermind" shortly being followed by "I knew it!". Many of the unfortunate events in the game could actually be circumvented had the party members been more open with one another. The story is actually quite interesting with a well-developed world. Almost every imaginary part of the world such as the technology and scientific laws are well explained and quite believable rather than simply explaining things with RPG magic. Of course, some players may find all the techno-babble confusing and/or uninteresting. The story also provides events and situations that some people may consider to be very emotional yet at the same time provide other events that are playful and funny.
Sound/Music: 8/10
The music in Tales of the Abyss feels a bit generic without too many memorable tunes. There are a good variety of themes, however and a few of them are exceptionally good such as Tear's Fonic Hymns and musical variations of the theme song, Karma, by Bump of Chicken. This time around, the opening theme song is actually kind of preserved. A musical version of the Japanese song is played during the anime introduction. The voice acting is excellent as well with popular voice actors such as Yuri Lowenthal, Johnny Yong Bosch, Kirk Thornton, and Liam O'Brien. All of the voices of the main cast fit very well with the characters and emotional scenes are further enhanced by good voice acting.
Overall: 9/10
Tales of the Abyss is probably one of the best of the few recently localized Tales games. With a great story, well-developed and memorable characters, and a fun fast-paced battle system, Tales of the Abyss gets an almost perfect score. The only thing that hinders the score would be a couple of terrible glitches. The main quest is lengthy and there are several sidequests and mini-games.
Description of Tales of the Abyss
In Tales Of The Abyss, you'll enter the life of Luke fon Fabre, sole heir to a family of aristocrats. He was kidnapped seven years ago, and the shock left him with no memories of his life before. For his own protection since his return, he has been confined to a quiet, boring life within the family's residence, learning little of the world beyond the palace walls. Luke is suddenly thrust into the outside world, caught in the workings of the Order of Lorelei, keepers of the prophecy known as the Score. No longer in the shelter of the palace, Luke must get along in the confusing and often hostile world. He knows nothing about those who might be his friends, or those who already are his enemies.All Games
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