“Should I ever meet…someone so hopelessly mired in darkness… Then I’ll make it my business to drag them…back into the light.”
This entire episode is a playable flashback, just like August’s Episode 2. We learn about one particular job Alexandra had when she graduated from Knight’s Academy. This was six years ago, so Alexandra was 15 at the time. Don’t ask how; just do the math. I think Alexandra’s outfit from the past is much cuter than her current outfit.
To be honest, it was a generic episode, but there were a few things I liked about the episode. First off, I did like how this was pretty much an Alexandra solo run. The best gameplay character deserves her time to shine. Second, I loved the cameo appearances made by Falk and Ana-Maria who were both much younger than their current age. I think that’s the highlight.
However, I did notice the theme of the episode being “the path you take depends on the choices you make”. Alexandra is a noblewoman, but her parents give her a lot of freedom. Her noble upbringing has led her to become the just knight she is today. Olba, Willie and Ludwig were all raised on the streets but only the former two were adopted. Ludwig went on a dark path, which definitely shows that the choices someone makes can result in an unexpected future. This also applies to Falk and Ana-Maria. Falk was also a kid who grew up in the streets, but later grew up to become a mercenary and then a knight. Ana-Maria was someone who got kidnapped as a kid, but later walked a path that caused her to be free from her noble life.
The gameplay for this episode was super fun. Alexandra is always fun to play as and it’s still the same in this episode. However, I really liked the scenery used in this episode, especially towards the end where she goes into a cave to stop Ludwig. The branching paths were super fun to explore. I really liked seeing what each path had contained. It was like a roulette of sorts. One path contains a chest; another contains monsters; another is the correct path. I couldn’t help but to walk all the paths I saw because I was that curious.
The fact that Olba and Willie died a few years after the events of this flashback shows how cruel war can be. It makes me wonder how the war would end if the game had a longer run. Would the Empire win? The Federation? The fact that Ludwig’s last words were actually foreshadowing August’s entire motives makes you wonder if it really would be possible for Alexandra to drag someone back into the light.
Tales of Luminaria is an upcoming Tales of Series original title for iOS and Android released November 2021. The game was first announced during Gamescom Opening Night Live. Unlike the recent Tales mobile games, Luminaria has been reported to have its own original world with only original characters and no previous Tales characters, as well as an English dub. Unfortunately, the game has announced termination of service worldwide on July 19, 2022.
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