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| >> Platforms and Release Dates |
- GameCube (JP) - August 23, 2003
- GameCube (US) - July 13, 2004
- GameCube (EURO) - November 19, 2004
- PlayStation 2 (JP) - November 19, 2004
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| >> About the Game |
>>Tales of Symphonia is considered to be the best Tales of game from the series. This game is also the fifth to be released for the series. It was first released for the GameCube, with the theme song Starry Heavens sung by Day After Tomorrow. A PS2 version was made available in Japan only, featuring a new theme song, Soshite Boku Ni Dekiru Koto, also sung by Day After Tomorrow.
The game was produced by Namco. It is the fifth main installment in the Tales RPG series, taking place long before Tales of Phantasia (hence a distant prequel), and was the third in the series to be officially released in the U.S. in many years. One notable characteristic of the game is its art direction by Kosuke Fujishima, a renowned Japanese manga-ka famous for his work on other Tales Series games and the anime Ah! My Goddess!.
The 4-episode OVA DVD releases finished in 2007, ending the Sylvarant Arc. There is news that more episodes are to be done for the Tethe'alla Arc. |
| >> Storyline |
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>>In the declining world of Sylvarant, the Chosen One, along with loyal guardians who protect her, must undergo a pilgrimage to pray for the Chosen One's ascension as an angel and awaken the summoning spirits from their seal. By doing so, the land will flourish with mana; the source of all life, at the end of the journey... for a great cost. Is there more to this 2000 year old tradition that meets the eye? Or will mankind be forever bound to this eternal cycle? Little do people know, there are two worlds that share the same fate, and for centuries, the source of mana goes back and forth between worlds, a seemingly unending chain of fate. In a tale that goes beyond worlds, our heroes strive to unite the people as one world without prejudice and save the world from the shackles of destiny. |
| >> Staff Review by a745 |
>>This game is definitely an improvement from Tales of Destiny 2. From the old 2D style, the Tales Studio went a step further and introduced 3D graphics to the Tales Series. This was happily accompanied by the introduction of the much loved Affection System, wherein you can decide who Lloyd is paired up with in the game, besides the main female protagonist Colette. This game really was the stepping stone of the Tales Series into the PS2 world (coughignoreToD2cough), with a lot of amazing skill effects, and not to mention a very interesting story plot.
In terms of game play, this game really takes the cake. There are a lot of sidequests involved, promising at least up to 70 hours of happy gameplay. Not to mention, a very fun way to spend most of your hours wherein you should just be doing homework^^ (oops).
Again, it's just another classic Tales Series game. The most annoying part of it is that the PS2 version never got released internationally. Meaning, the access of this awesome game was limited to GameCube owners, or to be more precise, Nintendo fan boys and girls. Can you believe that I had to invade my neighbor the whole summer of 2005 just to play and finish this game?!
But, that's another story...
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| >> Staff Rating by a745 |
A must play, a must see, a must have, a must... whatever. You guys get what I mean. This game is simply one of the best. Too bad about the whole GameCube users only though. |
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