much attention here as their Square- Enix developed rivals. Gamecube hit Tales of Symphonia was the first to really pick up some steam here, and since then we’ve seen a steady stream of games delivered to our rainy shores.
Tales Of Xillia is the latest in the franchise to reach Europe, although it came out in Japan two years ago. Better late than never though, eh. Xillia follows 15-year-old Jude Mathis, an esteemed medical student attending a prestigious school in the world of Rieze Maxia, and Milla Maxwell, a mysterious
woman with a shrouded past. Players choose one of the two at the start of the game, changing their initial experience. The pair quickly meet up, setting out on a journey to destroy a dangerous device and restore mana to the world. On their travels they meet a number of other characters like cool gunman Alvin (not a chipmunk) and dangerous old codger Rowen.
The thing that sets Tales games apart has always been their battle system. Known as the “Linear Motion Battle System”, or LiMBS (smart!) These fights tend to be real-time, speedy, and totally manic, a far cry from the considered turn-based battling of many JRPGs. Each Tales game has played around with the formula, and Xillia features the DR-LiMBS system – the DR stands for Dual Raid.
The basics will be similar to anyone who played last year’s Tales Of Graces f. Characters can use both regular attacks with X and magical “artes” with O, chaining the two together with a limited number of AC points that regenerate over time. Everything is done in real time, with balancing the rate you use AC points in relation to their speed of recharge the main thing to consider. Players can take control of any party member by setting them as the “leader”, but unlike some past games, can’t
actually change character during battles.
A new “Link” feature allows for two party members to be paired together, attacking simultaneously
and performing powerful “Link Artes.” Character pairings can be changed on the fly during fights with the D-pad, and from what we’ve played, the system seems simple to pick up but loaded with depth for the hardcore fans to master. For the first time in the main Tales series, the game is played
from a true thirdperson, behind-theback viewpoint, with a fully moveable camera. Past titles used an
isometric, top-down fixed camera most of the time. Some of the environment design is reathtakingly lovely, and the new camera massively helps you appreciate them.
Tales Of Xillia earned a great 39/40 score from Famitsu in Japan, becoming the highest-rated Tales game in the esteemed magazine. It sold loads and got other rave reviews from long-time series fans, so Tales aficionados over here can rest easy and get good and excited. Lovely anime cutscenes make
voice-over option may annoy the diehards. Let’s hope for the best, shall we? We don’t have a specific date for Tales Of Xillia yet, but it’s definitely coming this year, and we’d wager sooner rather than
later. Lapsed Final Fantasy fans looking for a traditional JRPG experience with some modern flare to boot could do far worse than taking a gander.
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