by Adriana Disano

Created on: August 28, 2010

Tales of Vesperia is a role-playing game released for the Xbox 360 on August 28th, 2008 in North America. While the core of its gameplay was strong and its length was satisfying, its plot left something to be desired for an RPG.

Rating: 8.5/10

The game opens up to introduce the protagonist, Yuri Lowell, whose lower-class quarter of the imperial city is left without water due to a stolen aque blastia, effectively a facet of technology from an ancient civilization which is powered by aer, a force which is fatal to humans in large concentrations. As Yuri goes on a journey to recover the stolen blastia, he meets a girl named Estelle who is searching for Yuri's childhood friend Flynn. Yuri takes Estelle into his care and the two search for the aque blastia and Flynn together, while learning about the state of the world beyond the lower quarter. Over the course of their journey, the two meet a wide array of characters who share a common interest with them and decide to join their party.

While the plot unfurls to become something complex and enthralling, the inclusion of RPG staples, such as technology from an ancient civilization, an elven city beyond the clouds, and a villain with an ulterior motive, makes the story stale at times.

Gameplay is complex, starting slowly and gradually allowing you to perform more advanced moves, or Artes, with your characters. The player is allowed to choose four characters to go into battle with, and is allowed to switch between them during battle or team up with their friends. Battling is done in real-time, rather than being turn-based, making battles fast-paced and full of action. Boss fights in particular employ strategy as the key component in achieving victory, particularly since there are achievements for attacking the boss's weak point. Weak points become more difficult to uncover as the bosses become stronger. Characters develop new skills as they use new weapons and grow, making the art of levelling up rewarding. 

Outside of battle, players interact with the overworld in typical Tales fashion, using one of their characters as an "avatar" to explore the world with and solving puzzles with the classic mechanic of the Sorceror's Ring. Instead of random enemy encounters, the game makes use of on-screen enemies which the player can choose to avoid or fight.

One of the most interesting parts of Tales of Vesperia's gameplay is its skill system. It allows characters

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>