Publishers: Namco & Bandai
Developers: Namco
Release Date: Europe (February 10, 2006)
Japan (March 3, 2005)
Platform: PSP and PSXWelcome to the realm of Eternia. Eternia is the place where the sister planets Infernia and Celestia are located. The game revolves around three main characters: Reid, Farah and Meredy. As these characters, you will try prevent the Grand Fall, where both planets collide into each other, consequently causing an apocalypse.Tales of the Eternia is a game that set the trend for future RPG’s on the PSP. The graphics are very nice, the battle system is simple and the customizations of characters are almost limitless. The game is separated into three parts: map, towns and dungeons.
Main character ReidAs the main character Reid, you and your friends, Farah and Meredy, set out to find a way to speak the language of the Celestians (Melnics), of which Meredy is one. Throughout your travels, you will gain many items, face many bosses, and make several friends, not to mention enemies. As you play through the game, you will level up your characters, most of the time, earning a new skill in the process.The battle system is free roaming in a 2D environment, so it’s only horizontal movement and jumping. The standard attack is done with X button, and special moves that use TP (MP in other games) are done with more complicated combinations, such as L+X+O to perform Daemon Lightning Blade for Reid. Also, you can set which moves are to which button combinations, so its makes spamming those awesome moves easier for you.
An impressive addition to the game is the party assist system. Well it’s just that, the party actually helps you. In the menu, there is an option to set how aggressive which character should be, or what type of attacks to use, or link certain special attacks with yours.
These are especially helpful when you want to perform that elite combo against a really tough boss.Also customizable is the distance of your party. By this I mean you could: place your mages/spell casters in the back while have your sword masters and melee attackers as close to the enemy as possible. A requirement of every RPG game is to customize weapons, and Tales of Eternia does not fail here. You can choose from a vast array of swords, staves, spears, knuckles, axes and whistles. ‘Whistles’ are only applicable to Meredy, as she uses it to control her cat, Quickie (what an odd name…). Each weapon has its own thrust value and equipment bonuses.This game really reminds me of the best RPG for the GBA, Golden Sun. I just love that game. Taken from GS is the map exploration, only it’s in 3D. An awesome feel is there looking at trees and mountains and buildings in 3D. Plus on the map, after you exit a dungeon or town, you can camp out with your party to regain all health, but not TP.
Mmmm, nothing like a sword to the faceSince this game revolves around Reid, Farah and Meredy, your objective in saving the worlds is to collect the Greater Craymels. These are powerful magic using beings, neither humans nor Gods, just powerful. When you collect all of them, you can confront the final boss, of whom I will not reveal for the sake of spoiler issues.
Once collected by Meredy, they are placed in the Craymel Cage; a housing place for them. Here, they give you immense power in battle and unlock special moves that devastate the enemy.Don’t think this game is a pushover and you’ll just breeze on through. Heck no, it’s pretty hard, even on the normal mode. Enemies will put up a pretty good fight, so plan to have items that replenish the health and TP of your characters. Also available as items is food. Using food and recipes, you cook, hence you can replenish health and TP like regular items do. Unfortunately, once food is gone, it’s gone, and you can only use one recipe every minute. Don’t worry; they are pretty cheap as they come along in the game.What was frustrating to me was the constant level-up mashing. I had an obsession to level up. For example, at one stage, I could not beat the first real boss of the game, (one of the Craymels) and so I leveled up from about level 13 to 19. It took about an hour, and was really challenging as I almost constantly ran low on health and had no items. Fortunately, there was a camp site (in the dungeon) where I could replenish the lost HP and embarked to beat the crap out of the AI.Graphics wise, Tales of Eternia delivers, and it delivers well. Battle wise, every movement is clearly seen and the 3D background combined with the 2D movements is just plain awesome. Spell casting effects are superb, with the spell name being displayed above in the middle of the screen. Map wise, as I said before, boasts a great 3D view with a convenient mini-map option. Town and dungeon wise, is a little less appealing, in my opinion. If you notice in the top right-hand corner, is the battery information, always monitor this as most gamers usually lose track of time and battery lifewhile playing.
And now for dessert, Icicles!Scores:
Presentation: Converting a game from the PSX to a PSP takes a lot of determination on the part of the developers, and their hard work paid off. TOE delivers in every possible way; it’s an RPG to challenge all others. 8/10
Graphics: Lovely view from the map, crisp movements and great colors intertwined to present an awesome sight. On the PSP, its one of the few graphically superior games, and its gets my vote. 9/10
Sound: A great mix of music implemented to the game. The sounds really do match the actions, and voice-overs are nicely done. 8/10
Gameplay: The battle system is elite for a 2D style of fighting. Nicely done with the free-roaming on the battle screen and outside of battle, lots of exploration and movement. Easy controls, and reaction times are nice, only problem, very challenging AI. 8/10Lasting Appeal: Honestly, I liked this game. Many fun and appealing mini-games, hard-mode and even collecting the items and running through the game again is going to be fun. 7/10.
Total: Tales of Eternia receives 40 out of 50 on the PSP.
Closing Comments: Since this is the first ‘Request-a-Review’, I feel the need to address this to insnaecrazy07. This game is worth playing, it has a great storyline, awesome graphics and gameplay that will keep you occupied for a while, about 60 hours is a good time. It’s truly a revolutionary RPG and foreshadows the future genre of games on the system. Finally, I really liked it, it deserves your attention, and if it’s deprived, well, you are in for a rough time against enemies.
Looks like he's lost...Request Fulfilled (1 of 3). Happy gaming – dmac154