Tales of Arise will mark the series’ debut on Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 (Tomizawa couldn’t comment one way or another on the possibility of a Switch release), revamping the previously squeaky graphics to the help from Unreal Engine 4. It will also feature a fully orchestrated soundtrack, giving Sakuraba’s soundtrack a sense of prestige. It will attempt to bridge the gap between the old and the new, leading the sometimes stereotypical series into a new era.
“Stunning” might be too strong an adjective for Tales of Arise’s graphics, but it’s certainly a dramatic improvement over previous games in the series, which for years relied on the same graphics engine. The impression this gives is that Tales is, well, a game of storytelling, filled with over-the-top anime flourishes that should be a hit with fans. While we’re not yet familiar with the new game, it’s by far the best entry in the series to date.
The Tales series will also get a break. Until recently, Namco Bandai pushed Tales games almost once a year, which made the series feel overwhelmed at times. Tales of Arise represents the biggest gap ever between Tales releases, with the last major release being 2016’s Tales of Berseria. Even before the pandemic, it was delayed due to what Tomizawa called “lots of quality issues. “, as well as the desire to launch on next-gen consoles. The extra work seems to have paid off, giving Tales of Arise a sense of polish that the series has been lacking lately.
The same can be said for combat, which received a “huge overhaul”, says Tomizawa. While it retains the arena-based combat system from previous games, it will “really improve player input and the game’s feedback loop and feel of the controls.” It will feature an evade and counterattack system similar to that of Tales of Graces, which Tomizawa calls “highly rated” for its combat, as well as the ability to actively switch between party members, which has its own “unique, interesting mechanics.”
We still haven’t really seen the combat in action, but the new Tales of Arise trailer suggests it will focus on colorful super attacks. One thing it won’t have, however, is multiplayer. With few exceptions, the ability for multiple players to control characters has been a key feature dating back to the original Tales of Fate, so its removal is pretty big for the series.
When asked about the decision to remove multiplayer from Tales of Arise, Tomizawa says, “So this game is really a standalone game where one person really likes the drama and the overall story of the game, we don’t really have any plans. for a multiplayer mode. But on the other side, we focused a lot on how the characters work together and how they cooperate in battle and how that plays out in game mechanics.”
Ultimately, combat comes up a lot when talking about Tales of Arise. This should probably come as a surprise given Tomizawa’s history with God Eater, a Monster Hunter competitor known for his fast-paced combat. Tomizawa talks a lot about wanting to stay heavily focused on the intensity of combat, which is one of the reasons why Tales of Arise will once transition to battle arenas instead of staying on the field. It will also be relatively linear in its progression, though Tomizawa promises it will feature “a bunch of side quests” as well as sub-routes and detours. It is interesting to imagine what could have been. According to Tomizawa, the team actually experimented with an open world version of Tales of Arise, but ultimately decided to stick with a more linear format.
“We actually debated whether to go with an open-world concept or a linear concept. It was something early on that we really had a back-and-forth debate about. We actually ran some tests simulating both situations and eventually we came to the decision that as we mentioned for reasons we want players to focus on we went with the linear option says Tomizawa. “We thought that was the best way for players to really enjoy what Tales of Arise is. Again, the story, the character development, all that good stuff, we thought that was the best way to deliver this gameplay to the player.”
Well, not every RPG needs to be open-world, especially considering the comparisons it would inevitably invite to the hugely successful Genshin Impact. But if the Tales series is indeed to reach a more international audience, some form of open exploration is probably needed. But in the meantime, a focused experience is certainly welcome, especially if Tales of Arise manages to improve on the lackluster, hallway-like dungeons of previous games.
If Tales of Arise manages to attract a new audience, he can attribute the decision to move to PC and next-gen consoles to its improved graphics and the fact that anime is generally trending these days. Genshin Impact, Persona 5, and even Atelier Ryza have shown just how successful an anime RPG can be in the five years since the release of Tales of Berseria. Now is the time for Tales of Arise to guide the venerable series into the future.
We will know soon enough if he succeeds. Tales of Arise launches September 10 on Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PS4, PS5, and PC.
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