Tales of Vesperia

Tales of Vesperia
Xbox 360 American Boxart
Developer(s)	Namco Tales Studio (Team Symphonia)
Publisher(s)	Namco Bandai Atari (Europe Only)
Designer(s)	Kōsuke Fujishima (Character design) Yoshito Higuchi (Chief director, producer)
Composer(s)	Motoi Sakuraba Hibiki Aoyama
Series	Tales
Platform(s)	Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
Release date(s)	Xbox 360 JP August 7, 2008[1] NA August 26, 2008[2] EU June 26, 2009[3] PlayStation 3 JP September 17, 2009
Genre(s)	Role-playing video game
Mode(s)	Single Player, Multiplayer, Co-op
Distribution	DVD-DL, Blu-ray Disc, Download

Tales of Vesperia (テイルズ オブ ヴェスペリア, Teiruzu obu Vesuperia) is the tenth main title in the Tales series of video games. It was developed by Namco Tales Studio and published by Namco Bandai Games for the Xbox 360.^[4] Tales of Vesperia's characteristic genre name is RPG to Enforce "Justice" (「正義」を貫き通すRPG, "Seigi" o tsuranukitōsu RPG). The title was announced on December 22, 2007 at Jump Festa, and was released on August 7, 2008 in Asia, and on August 26, 2008 in North America. On June 26, 2009 Tales of Vesperia was released in Europe making it the fifth game in the Tales series to be released there. The game's character designer is Kōsuke Fujishima, the chief director and producer is Yoshito Higuchi (who previously worked on both Tales of Symphonia and Tales of the Abyss), and the animated movies were done by Production I.G. The game's theme song is "Ring a Bell" (鐘を鳴らして, Kane o Narashite) by Bonnie Pink.^[5] A special limited edition was released in North America, including a metal case with unique cover art and a 22-track soundtrack.^[6] In April 2009 it was announced that those who purchased the special edition would be mailed a second 10th anniversary soundtrack CD.^[7] A prequel to the game in the form of an animated film called Tales of Vesperia: The First Strike was released on October 3, 2009. The Xbox 360 Version was re-released through the Games on Demand service on April 6, 2011 in North America and Europe.

Gameplay

Battle system

Tales of Vesperia uses an improved and evolved version of Tales of the Abyss's battle system, called the "Evolved Flex-Range Linear Motion Battle System" (EFR-LMBS). As with previous Tales games, characters can move freely around the battlefield to combat their enemies in real-time.

An added aspect to the game's world is the "Encounter Linking" system. If multiple groups of roaming enemies are in close proximity when a battle starts, the ensuing battle will contain all the enemies. Also returning from previous Tales games are "surprise encounters." Like in Tales of the Abyss, a surprise encounter rearranges the active party when taken into battle. Tales of Vesperia also makes use of "Secret Missions," special tasks or challenges that can be completed during boss fights for certain rewards.

Returning from Tales of Symphonia and Tales of the Abyss is the "Over Limit". As in Tales of the Abyss, it is marked by a visible gauge, but it comes in the form of a single bar that can be used by up to four party members at once, or used by a single character up to four levels to give more powerful effects. "Burst Artes", another new feature, are powerful attacks performed while in Over Limit mode and after using an arcane arte or a spell change. Depending on the Over Limit level, its duration increases, allowing players to add in more combos. As with previous Tales games, characters are able to pull off powerful Mystic Artes. Characters can also perform "Fatal Strikes", attacks capable of defeating enemies with one strike after a certain gauge is depleted. These attacks can also be chained for a higher score.

Recurring features

As in previous entries, Tales of Vesperia features an arena where the player can battle a number of enemies for prizes. In the arena, one chosen character will have to challenge two hundred monsters. After enough monsters are defeated, the battle with the next contender is unlocked. The 4 contenders are: Dhaos, the final boss of Tales of Phantasia; Shizel, from Tales of Eternia; Barbatos, from Tales of Destiny 2; and Kratos Aurion, a playable character in Tales of Symphonia.

Tales of Vesperia also includes character costumes, which are dependent on the various titles that characters have obtained throughout the game. Equipping various accessories also affects the wearer's outfit. Tales of Vesperia also includes skits, short optional conversations that further character or plot development. Unlike the English releases of Tales of Symphonia and Tales of the Abyss, skits in the English release of Tales of Vesperia are fully voiced by the English voice actors, which is also the case in Tales of Legendia and Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World.

Skill system

Tales of Vesperia introduces a new skill system to the series. They are found and used through equipment. Through fighting battles, characters gain Learning Points, which are assigned to all currently unlearned skills. When enough Learning Points are acquired, that character learns the skills. Learned skills can be equipped on a character without having the associated weapon equipped, but then they use up a certain number of Skill Points (SP), which are gained through leveling up. Through skills, characters are also capable of "Altered Artes," artes or spells that are created when a certain skill is equipped and a certain arte is used. Through using an Altered Arte enough times, the character learns that arte or spell and is capable of using it without having the skill equipped.

Online component

The game does not contain online multiplayer or competitive battles, but it does contain online leaderboards for things such as highest combo and minigame scores. The game also has downloadable content for items that are difficult to acquire in-game.^[8]

Story

Setting

Vesperia takes place on the planet Terca Lumireis. The people of Terca Lumireis have come to rely on "blastia", an ancient civilization's technology with a wide array of capabilities, such as providing water, powering ships, or creating barriers around major cities and towns to protect them from monsters. The Imperial Knights and Guild members also use "bodhi blastia" to enhance their abilities in combat. The blastia, created by the elf-like Krityans, are fueled by a substance called "aer" that lends its power to the blastia's ability, but can be fatal to humans in large concentrations.

Plot

When the aque blastia core is stolen from Zaphias' lower quarter, flooding the lower class, Yuri attempts to chase down the thief, but is arrested and jailed in the castle. During his escape, he meets a young girl named Estelle who is searching for Yuri's close friend and rival Flynn. Along with Yuri's faithful dog Repede, the three leave the safety of Zaphias' barrier to chase after both Flynn and the thief. On their way they encounter Karol, a young boy who joins them to catch up with his guild, the Hunting Blades, and Rita, an eccentric blastia researcher who takes great interest in Estelle's healing magic. On their journey, Yuri learns about the state of the world and the philosophy of the guilds, who gave up their citizenship in order to live free from the rule of the Empire.

Along with Raven, a high-ranking guild member, and Judith, a mysterious Krityan woman who is hunting and destroying blastia, the group stop the machinations of an evil guild leader named Barbos and recover the aque blastia core. Yuri turns the core over to Flynn and announces his intention to form a guild with Karol, later named Brave Vesperia.

Shortly afterward, Estelle is attacked by Phaeroh, a sentient monster, who calls her "the poison of the world". Following the attack, the new guild sets out to discover the truth behind his words. Estelle discovers that she is known as the Child of the Full Moon, an omen of the end of the world. Unlike the rest of the world, who require a blastia in order to reconstitute aer into magic, Estelle can reconstruct aer on her own: this is how she uses her healing arts. Unfortunately, this method of conversion is so efficient that it puts a great strain on the aer resources of the world, threatening to bring forth a disaster known as the Adephagos, a being that feeds off aer and would convert all life on the planet back to pure aer. The party also learns that the excessive blastia culture of the world is also threatening to strain the aer resources to breaking point, and that Judith's mission was to destroy the blastia that were causing the most damage to the environment.

Meanwhile, Yuri, seeing how the laws of the Empire are powerless against the corruption within its officials, takes matters into his own hands and murders two corrupt officials: Ragou, a conspirator in Barbos' plot, and Captain Cumore, a high-born knight who was using his power to commit atrocities. This brings him into conflict with Flynn, while the former is rebelling against the Empire, the latter vowed to change the Empire from within. Several times, their differences nearly come to blows.

Estelle is suddenly kidnapped by Raven, who is revealed to be Imperial Knight Schwann Oltorain. Commandant Alexei, leader of the Knights, is revealed as the mastermind who funded Barbos' schemes in order to create a replica of the legendary sword Dein Nomos, an aer-manipulating treasure of the royal family that can open the way to a powerful weapon known as the Enduring Shrine of Zaude. Duke, a veteran of the Great War, reluctantly aids Brave Vesperia by giving them the real Dein Nomos. Chasing after Estelle, Yuri and the party are forced to fight Schwann, who has been blackmailed with his life by Alexei for ten years. Taking back control of his life, Schwann sacrifices himself to allow Brave Vesperia to escape a trap set by Alexei, and they pursue the Commandant. However, Schwann is rescued by his loyal subordinates and rejoins the party, shedding his previous life as Schwann to pledge his new life to Brave Vesperia as Raven.

Alexei takes control of Estelle's aer-manipulation powers and, along with his False Dein Nomos, succeeds in reviving Zaude. Yuri rescues Estelle and they pursue Alexei to Zaude, where the Commandant—tasked with saving a world that he knew was killing itself through excessive blastia use—intends to use Zaude to rewrite the natural laws of the world, destroying and recreating it. Despite the best efforts of Brave Vesperia, Alexei succeeds in activating Zaude. But to everyone's surprise, it is revealed that Zaude is not a weapon but a giant barrier blastia that Alexei has inadvertently shut down, allowing the Adephagos to seep through into the world. Realizing that his fatal mistake has doomed the world, Alexei then dies.

Rita researches a way to stop the Adephagos, and discovers a method to transform apatheia—crystallized aer, which make up the cores of blastia—into spirits, which can convert aer into a safe substitute called mana. By converting every blastia core in the world into a spirit and using it to power a massive weapon, she theorises that it would have enough strength to destroy the Adephagos. Realising that such an action would irreversibly change the entire world, Brave Vesperia meet with the leaders of the Empire and Guilds in order to ask permission to carry out such an act, and to discuss ways to prepare the world to survive without blastia: most notably, without the barrier blastia that have been protecting the major centres of population from rampaging monsters.

During this time, Flynn, who has been promoted to Acting Commandant, confronts Yuri in order to settle the outstanding issue of Yuri's double homicide and his willingness to let Flynn take credit for all of his accomplishments (such as retrieving the aque blastia). Their swords and beliefs clash in a fight to resolve these issues. Yuri tells Flynn that he is the leader that the world needs right now, and that Yuri is happy to be a criminal in the shadows to achieve that end. Flynn accepts this, but warns that if Yuri continues to break the law then Flynn will have no choice but to stop him; an ultimatum that Yuri gladly accepts.

Brave Vesperia receive the blessing of the worlds' leaders to carry out their plan. Unfortunately, Duke—who has lost all faith in humanity—has revived an ancient weapon called Tarqaron with the intention of sacrificing the lives of every human in the world, himself included, in order to power the weapon and destroy the Adephagos. Brave Vesperia confronts him at the peak of the hovering city, but neither can stand down due to their shared desire to save the world in their own ways. Duke and Brave Vesperia fight to resolve this, and Yuri manages to convince Duke that humanity is willing to give up their blastia to save the world. With the aid of Duke and the power of every blastia-core-turned-spirit in the world, Yuri forms a giant sword that allows him to completely destroy the Adephagos, converting it into a multitude of spirits itself and revitalizing the world. Duke simply leaves as the guild celebrates their victory.

A scene during and after the credits shows Brave Vesperia continuing their adventures in the ever-changing world.

Characters

Protagonists

Yuri Lowell (ユーリ・ローウェル, Yuuri Rouweru)

Age: 21

Weapon: Swords and Axes

Sub-Weapon: Gloves

Voiced by: Kosuke Toriumi (Japanese) Troy Baker (English)

The main protagonist of the story, Yuri was born and raised in the Lower Quarter of the Imperial Capital, Zaphias. He was formerly a member of the Imperial Knights, but left after only three months of service due to his contempt for the Empire's treatment of its lower citizens. He is willing to help those in need, even if he has to take extreme measures to do so, adopting a vigilante-like attitude in many situations. He is an expert fighter, capable of wielding swords and axes. Together with Karol, he forms Brave Vesperia, a guild of which Judith also becomes a part.

Repede (ラピード, Rapiido)

Age: 4 1/2

Weapon: Daggers

Sub-Weapon: Collars

Voiced by: Makoto Ishii (Japanese)

Repede is Yuri's loyal companion. He is an intelligent dog distinguished by a scar and a pipe, which he carries as a memento of his former master. He is friendly around people he trusts, but dislikes being approached by strangers.

Estellise Sidos Heurassein (エステリーゼ・シデス・ヒュラッセイン, Esuteriize Shidesu Hyurassein)

Age: 18

Weapon: Swords and Rods

Sub-Weapon: Shields

Voiced by: Mai Nakahara (Japanese) Danielle Judovits^[9] (English)

Estelle (エステル, Esuteru) for short, she is the princess and candidate to the imperial throne. Before meeting Yuri, she had not set foot outside the capital. As a result, she is very naive of the outside world. Because of her strong compassion, she never hesitates to help and heal anyone in need. During her time in the castle, she was trained by Imperial Knights, allowing her to wield a sword and shield efficiently in battle, along with healing magic. She also spent much of her time reading books, allowing her to become knowledgeable in a wide range of fields. After traveling with Yuri for some time, she decides that she wants to continue her journey with him and the group in order to learn more about the world.

Karol Capel (カロル・カペル, Karoru Kaperu)

Age: 12

Weapon: Swords, Axes and Hammers

Sub-Weapon: Bags

Voiced by Kumiko Watanabe (Japanese) Julie Ann Taylor (English)

Karol is a young, eager, worldly yet naive member of the Hunting Blades guild, which hunts down monsters all over the world and believes that all monsters are evil. He was born and raised in Dahngrest, a city run entirely by members of guilds. Karol has a history of joining many guilds, only to be thrown out of them due to his cowardly tendencies. He later becomes the leader of the guild Brave Vesperia, which he started with Yuri and Judith.

Rita Mordio (リタ・モルディオ, Rita Morudio)

Age: 15

Weapon: Cloths and Whips

Sub-Weapon: Books

Voiced by: Rika Morinaga (Japanese) Michelle Ruff (English)

Rita is a young, ingenious, and eccentric but apparently infamous blastia researcher. She was born and raised in Aspio, a city of scholars. She has a quick temper and poor social disposition; without hesitation, she will execute her magic on any offender if provoked. She becomes best friends with Estelle and eventually bonds with Judith as the story progresses.

Raven (レイヴン, Reivun)

Age: 35

Weapon: Bows

Sub-Weapon: Short Swords

Voiced by: Eiji Takemoto (Japanese) Joe J. Thomas (English)

Raven is a shady, laid-back member of the group who seems to know more than he lets on. He first encounters Yuri in the castle prison and allows Yuri to escape by slyly sneaking him a jail key between the bars of his cell. Raven frequently causes the group to run into trouble early on, harboring feelings of unease from the rest of the party. He often complains about his age and work load, causing the group to refer to him as "old man." He is apparently a veteran of the Great War, which took place ten years before the story; however, he does not like to talk much about his experiences.

Judith (ジュディス, Judisu)

Age: 19

Weapon: Spears and Staves

Sub-Weapon: Boots

Voiced by: Aya Hisakawa (Japanese) Megan Hollingshead (English)

Judith is a mysterious, mature and rational member of the group. She is a member of the Kritya (クリティア, Kuritia) tribe, which possesses expert knowledge of the blastia and has attempted to stop them in the past due to their dangers. She is decisive, persistent, witty, impulsive, bold, flirtatious, and seemingly carefree. She initially appeared as a nameless dragon rider who went about destroying blastia, prompting contempt from Rita; however, the two eventually become good friends after Judith explains the reasons for her actions.

Flynn Scifo (フレン・シーフォ, Furen Shīfo)

Age: 21

Weapon: Swords

Sub-Weapon: Shields

Voiced by: Mamoru Miyano (Japanese) Sam Riegel (English)

Flynn is a childhood friend of Yuri's, as well as a friend to Estelle. He joined the Imperial Knights at the same time as Yuri when they were younger for the purpose of "making a difference" in the world. But unlike Yuri, he stuck with it and has since continued to climb higher in rank, becoming the youngest to receive the title of Captain. He often helps the party deal with problems in their travels. He has a sense of justice similar to Yuri's, but he pursues it through a different method, attempting to solve matters through peaceful politics rather than forceful rebellion. He is unplayable in the Xbox 360 version of the game (save for a single battle,) but is a fully playable character in the Japanese PS3 version.

Patty Fleur (パティ・フルール, Pati Furuuru)

Age: 14

Weapon: Knives

Sub-Weapon: Guns

Voiced by: Chiwa Saitou (Japanese)

Patty is a cheerful young pirate girl who travels around the world in search of romance and the legendary treasure of the notorious pirate Aifread. Despite her young appearance, she has a personality and manner of expression of that of an elderly person. She is an expert marksman, capable of using a gun and equally skilled at wielding a knife. She bears a resemblance to the pirate class of Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology 2. She is exclusive to the PlayStation 3 port of the game, and is a major main character of the game.^[10]

Antagonists

Zagi (ザギ, Zagi)

Voiced by: Akio Suyama (Japanese) Roger Craig Smith^[11] (English)

Zagi is a crazed assassin who holds a grudge against Yuri, mistakes him for Flynn upon their first meeting, and interferes at inappropriate times throughout the story. He sees Yuri as his equal because he was the first one to ever make him bleed in battle (during their second battle) and becomes obsessed with fighting Yuri. He's fought five times of the course of the game until he is finally killed at the Tower of Tarqaron by Yuri and his friends, and falls to his death.

Barbos

Voiced by: Masashi Hirose (Japanese) J. B. Blanc (English)

Leader of the Blood Alliance, one of the Five Master Guilds. On the surface, the Blood Alliance serve as a mercenary guild, doing jobs that no one else is brave enough to. However, their real purpose is the theft and illegal use and distribution of blastia. Yuri finally confronts Barbos in the Tower of Ghasfarost where Barbos attempts to kill Yuri and the others with a new weapon built with the Lower Quarter's aque blastia. But just as he's about to deliver the killing blow, Duke arrives and uses Dein Nomos to destroy the weapon. Resorting to his old tactics a fight breaks out between Yuri's part and Barbos' Blood Alliance, with Yuri emerging as the victor. Before falling to his death, Barbos warns Yuri that he will make powerful enemies later on.

Ragou

Voiced by: Takashi Taguchi (Japanese) Dino Andrade (English)

Ragou is the corrupt magistrate who rules over Capua Nor with an iron fist. He taxes the townsfolk and travelers very heavily and prides himself in watching people fight his pet monsters so that he'll cancel their debt. He frequently deals in blastia smuggling with Barbos. After Yuri gets back the aque blastia for the lower quarter, the Flynn brigade is successful in arresting Ragou in Dahngrest. However, on the eve that he's to be extradited back to Zaphias, Ragou was able to use his position in the Royal Council to clear the charges against him and get off with only a slight decrease in rank. Yuri is enraged after hearing this from Karol and confronts Ragou on the bridge in Dahngrest, where he cuts him down.

Cumore

Voiced by: Kenji Nojima (Japanese) Liam O'Brien (English)

Aristocrat born Captain of the Imperial Knights. He is sadistic and enjoys taking advantage of those less fortunate than he. After his atrocities in the desert town of Mantaic, Yuri confronts him at the inn and chases him outside, where Cumore accidentally falls into a dry quicksand as he was fleeing Yuri in cowardice. Cumore then begs Yuri to spare him by tossing down a nearby rope, but Yuri responds by asking Cumore how many of his victims begged the same of him. Yuri then turns away, leaving Cumore to sink to his doom.

Alexei Dinoia (アレクセイ ディノイア, Arekusei Dinoia)

Voiced by: Jurota Kosugi (Japanese) D.C. Douglas (English)

Arguably the game's main antagonist, Alexei is the Commandant (The highest ranking officer) of the Imperial Knights. However, he is secretly maneuvering events throughout the story to his own ends. He was in fact behind most of the events. He desires control of the Imperial Throne and world domination; however, his actions accidentally bring about a threat to the entire world. Alexei commits suicide after releasing the Adephagos (an apocalypse-like force) at Zaude, belatedly realizing the error of his ways.

Yeager (イエガー, Iegā)

Voiced by: Mitsuo Iwata (Japanese) Spike Spencer (English)

Yeager is the leader of the mysterious Leviathan's Claw guild and wields a scythe that changes into a crossbow. He has two adopted daughters: Gauche (ゴーシュ, Gōshu) and Droite (ドロワット, Dorowatto) who follow his orders without question. He's later revealed to have been working for Alexei. Much like Raven, he has a blastia heart. He occasionally aids the party for his own reasons, but ultimately fights against them at Zaude, where he is finally killed. In the Japanese version, he occasionally speaks in English, while in the English version, he has a German accent.

Khroma

Voiced by: ? (Japanese) Kate Higgins (English)

Khroma is Alexei's only fully informed confidant. However, with each time Khroma appears before the party without Alexei, she is shown to be a traitor to Alexei's cause as she hints to Yuri Lowell and the party that she wants Alexei stopped before his plans come to fruition. In Relewiese Hollow, it is revealed to the party that she is one of the Entelexeia (pronounced en-tel-eh-kay-uh), although Yuri already suspected this beforehand. She transforms into her Entelexeia form, resembling a dragon or griffin, and does battle with Yuri and the party. In her death she allows herself to be reborn into the summon spirit of the wind, the Slyph.

Gauche (ゴーシュ, Gōshu) and Droite (ドロワット, Dorowatto)

Gauche (Voiced by): Satomi Arai (Japanese) Laura Bailey (English) Droite (Voiced by): Miki Nagasawa (Japanese) Megan Hollingshead (English)

Commonly referred to as the "Twins" to gamers, these two were adopted daughters of Yeager but are not blood-sisters. In general these two act as the same character, however they do have their own differences. The duo have an undying gratitude to their foster father because he once saved the financially troubled orphanage they lived in for so long. In a side quest where the team fights these two, it is revealed that Yeager potentially knew an old friend of Raven's when they give him her old bow in exchange for a locket. The primary difference between the two is seen in their view of battle where Gauche is seen as more violent than Droite. Perhaps the easiest way to remember who is who is by their hair color and meanings of their names. Gauche is French for "Left" (who holds her sword in her left hand), and Droite is French for "right (direction)" (who holds her sword in her right hand).

Duke Pantarei (デューク パンタレイ, Dyūku Pantarei)

Voiced by: Rikiya Koyama (Japanese) Jamieson Price (English)

Duke is a mysterious war hero who once fought for humanity's survival alongside the ancient king of the Entelexeia, Elucifer, in the Great War. He fights for his own cause, going against the party at times (but also assisting them at others), causing the party to doubt his trustworthiness. When the Adephagos is released, he plans to use an ancient weapon called the Tarqaron to sacrifice all human beings, including himself, revealing he had grown to loathe other humans for releasing the Adephagos and for killing Elucifer after the Great War, who was his close friend. The party faces him as the final boss of the game. Duke manages to survive the fight, and then helps in destroying the Adephagos. He carries a special sword by the name of "Dein Nomos".

PlayStation 3 Enhanced Port

Tales of Vesperia was ported to the PlayStation 3 and released in Japan on September 17, 2009^[12] with additional content as well as a different logo. On January 27, 2010 Namco Bandai stated that they currently have no plans to release the port outside of Japan.^[13] In April 2010, Troy Baker confirmed that he had done additional voice acting work for the PlayStation 3 version of the game when he was asked about the game by a fan during a Q&A session at Sakura-Con 2010,^[14] but in a response to a fan question posted on the PlayStation blog,^[15] an employee of Namco stated that there were currently no plans for localization of the game.

Additional content

The PlayStation 3 version of the game features full voice acting, containing nearly twice as much voice work as the original voice script, which covers previously unvoiced cutscenes in the 360 version. The game also features various new characters such as Flynn as a fully customizable, permanent playable character as well as Patty Fleur, a young girl with blond hair, who is an entirely new playable character. The game also features several unplayable characters from Tales of Vesperia: The First Strike, which the game ties-in with.^[16] In addition, Repede, Flynn and Patty are selectable as on-screen avatars with new mini-games such as a racing mini-game for Repede, new subplots, skits and main game quests as well as side quests. The game also has new music added to the game's soundtrack together with remodeled towns and new towns and dungeons. The game also includes new bosses such as the Sword Dancer from previous Tales games, Don Whitehorse and Clint/Tison/Nan, players are also able to replay boss fights at Nam Cobanda Isle, which is a play on words with the companies name, Namco Bandai.

In addition there are also new gameplay elements such as higher Overlimit Levels up to 8, more Mystic Artes including a dual Mystic Arte with Yuri and Flynn, new Artes, skills and equipments for characters. A new key item has also been added called the "Artes Ball", which allows an additional 8 Artes Shorcuts to be assigned to the previous 8 slots combined with the L1 button, which allows for a maximum of 16 Artes. The game also features a wide variety of new character costumes, which include cameo costumes based on characters from previous Tales games, as well as costumes based on characters from other series, such as Xenosaga and Sgt. Frog.^[17][18] Also included is a scene-skip feature, a Team Arena in the Coliseum, which also has new battles and modes together with Pre-Order Bonuses, which are Tales of the Abyss character costumes. The game also features connectivity with the Tales spin-off, Tales of VS. for the PlayStation Portable.

Tales of Vesperia: The First Strike

Tales of Vesperia: The First Strike is the official name for the anime adaptation of Tales of Vesperia, which was released as an animated feature film in Japan in Autumn, 2009; this is the same season in which the PlayStation 3 port was released. The movie is a prequel to the game showing Yuri Lowell's time as an Imperial Knight.

On April 5, Funimation announced a Blu-ray/DVD combo pack of the anime in full English (but also with the Japanese voices/English subtitles), it was released on June 26, 2012 in the US. Two clips are available on Funimation's YouTube account showing scenes with the full English voices. Only Troy Baker and Sam Riegel reprise their roles as Yuri Lowell and Flynn Scifo. Returning characters such as Rita, Raven, and Estelle, who were voiced by Michelle Ruff, Joe J. Thomas, and Danielle Judovits, are replaced with Luci Christian, Jonathan Brooks, and Cherami Leigh.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores Aggregator Score GameRankings 91.00% (PS3)[19] 81.84% (X360)[20] Metacritic 79/100 (X360)[21] GameStats 8.2/10 (X360)[22] 9.0/10 (PS3)[23] Review scores Publication Score 1UP.com B+[24] Edge 8 of 10[25] Electronic Gaming Monthly B+[26] Famitsu 35 of 40[27][28] Game Informer 7.5 of 10[29][30] GamePro [31] GameSpot 8.5 of 10[32] GameSpy [33] GameTrailers 8.8 of 10[34] IGN 8.2 of 10[4] Official Xbox Magazine 8.5 of 10[35] X-Play 4 of 5[36] Hardcore Gamer Magazine 4 of 5[37] RPGFan 91%[38]

The game received critical acclaim. Famitsu awarded Tales of Vesperia a score of 9/9/9/8, totaling 35/40.^[28] Hardcore Gamer gave the game a 4 out of 5, praising the game for its anime-style graphics and characters.^[37] GameSpot gave it an 8.5/10, stating that "Tales of Vesperia is the best game yet in the series."^[32] In GameSpot's "Best of 2008" the game was nominated for "Best Story"^[39] and "Best Graphics, Artistic"^[40] categories, though it did not win either category. While they criticized the visuals as being a little inconsistent, IGN gave it an 8.2/10, stating "Tales of Vesperia is a strong anime-style Japanese RPG with a wide-ranging story, compelling characters and an intense real-time battle system that keeps you on your toes." In IGN's "Best of 2008" awards it was nominated for "Best Xbox 360 RPG" and "Best Xbox 360 Original Score".^[4] X-Play gave the game a 4 out of 5 praising its characters and visuals.^[36] In X-Play's "Best Of 2008" it was nominated for best role-playing game. VG Chartz awarded Tales of Vesperia "Best Game No One Played 2008" for the Xbox 360.

Sales

According to Famitsu's annual top 100, Vesperia was the 82nd best selling title in Japan in 2008 having sold 161,070 copies.^[41] The launch of Tales of Vesperia in Japan caused the Xbox 360 to sell out for the first time since the system's release in Japan.^[42] With 204,305 copies sold, it is currently the second best-selling Xbox 360 game ever in Japan, behind only Star Ocean: The Last Hope.^[43] In North America, Tales of Vesperia sold 33,000 copies during the 4 days after its 26 August launch.^[44]

Tales of Vesperia for the PlayStation 3 sold 147,000 copies on its opening day, which is more than double that of the Xbox 360's version, which sold 71,000 copies on its opening day and a total of 140,000 in two weeks.^[45][46] Tales of Vesperia for the PlayStation 3 sold a total of 352,961 copies in by the end of 2009 making it the 24th best selling game in Japan of 2009.^[47]

Namco Bandai reported on their tax reports that Tales of Vesperia PS3 has sold just 450,000 copies in Japan since its launch in 2009 until today after the recent launch of Tales of Xillia.

References

External links

• Official Xbox 360 Version Site  Japan
• Official Xbox 360 Version Site  Europe
• Official PlayStation 3 Version Site  Japan
• Tales of Vesperia at the Internet Movie Database

v t e Tales series Main series Tales of Phantasia Destiny 2 Eternia Online Symphonia Dawn of the New World Chronicles characters Rebirth Legendia Abyss anime episodes Innocence Vesperia The First Strike Hearts Graces Xillia 2 characters Zestiria Tales of the World series Narikiri Dungeon X 2 3 Summoner's Lineage Radiant Mythology 2 3 Dice Adventure Tactics Union Other games Tales of the Tempest Tales of Mobile Tales of VS. Tales of the Heroes: Twin Brave List of Tales media