Tales of Symphonia First Impressions

[no.1gamer]

Well after going to Gamestop and Best Buy, I finally found ToS at Gamerush. It was actually their last copy!!!

:p

It looks super fun from the box. There is 2 discs and the manual is long and in full color. It's possibly the best manual for a Gamecube game I've seen yet.

Ok, well I haven't actually played the game yet. I'm looking at the case right now! I'm not sure when I'll have a few hours to start this RPG. Hopefully soon...

BTW, please keep this thread free of spoilers. After all this is a heavily story driven RPG right?

[Windwaker90]

Well after going to Gamestop and Best Buy, I finally found ToS at Gamerush. It was actually their last copy!!!

:p

It looks super fun from the box. There is 2 discs and the manual is long and in full color. It's possibly the best manual for a Gamecube game I've seen yet.

Ok, well I haven't actually played the game yet. I'm looking at the case right now! I'm not sure when I'll have a few hours to start this RPG. Hopefully soon...

BTW, please keep this thread free of spoilers. After all this is a heavily story driven RPG right?

Wow, I want this game also, but I'm not sure about it! You gotta tell me if it's worth the cash. Oh, by the way, did you say that this game has two disc. That must mean it's very long!!! Is that the only game with two discs?

[Reverb.]

Wow, I want this game also, but I'm not sure about it! You gotta tell me if it's worth the cash. Oh, by the way, did you say that this game has two disc. That must mean it's very long!!! Is that the only game with two discs?

I want this game a lot but I live in Europe meaning I have to wait untill Q4 to get it :( :mad:
Mgs Twin Snakes is on Two discs so is Moh Rising Sun. Probably others I don't know about as well.

BTW: no1gamer, what is your obsession with game manuals some might be quite good and all but they're just game manuals. :confused:

[no.1gamer]

Well, I've been playing the game for about an hour now and it's fun so far. But I still don't know what the @#$% is going on! It's pretty complicated at first. I'll get the hang of it soon.

Reverb.:

I think that the game manual is really important for my over-all satisfaction. It's just one of those things that I think is over looked sometimes.

That sucks that you have to wait even longer to play the European version though. I'll probably still be playing it at that time though!!!

Windwaker:

From what I've heard this game is very long indeed. It took me over 60 hours to play through Skies of Arcadia and I expect a similar play time for this game. You could race through the game much faster if you want, but I like to talk to everyone in every town and fight every monster in RPGs.

MGS:TTS, REmake and RE0 also cover 2 Gamecube discs. There are a few more as well, but I can't think of them now...

:)

Here's a picture of Colette. She's one of the main characters.

[Windwaker90]

Ok, thanks. Wow, I just can't wait to get that game though! I've also played Skies of Arcadia, and I want this one to be better, longer, and more enjoyable. Do you think the anime art style and cel shading are done well no.1 gamer? I wasn't too specific on my question earlier, i meant to say that are there any 2 disc rpgs out there?

[no.1gamer]

Ok, thanks. Wow, I just can't wait to get that game though! I've also played Skies of Arcadia, and I want this one to be better, longer, and more enjoyable. Do you think the anime art style and cel shading are done well no.1 gamer? I wasn't too specific on my question earlier, i meant to say that are there any 2 disc rpgs out there?

Yea, this is the only 2 disc Gamecube RPG that I know of. I can't comment on the length of the game of course because I just started it. It will probably take me a long time to play through. When all said and done SOAL took me the better half of a year to complete! I just now am figuring out how to play this game. So there is a learning curve of about 2 hours or so. And of course like with any RPG you'll be learning new aspects of the game all the way through probably.

I really like the anime art style of ToS personally. It's done very well. When you speak to someone they turn and face you. I also like the backgrounds so far. They're very detailed.

But so far I've been most pleasantly surprised with the voice acting. Usually in these Japanese/English translated games there is either no voice overs or it's so bad you wish there wasn't voices at all. When the charactes speak their mouths move to the english words they speak too. Now I see why the release date was pushed back so far. I'm not exactly sure what is done in the European translation that will take until 4th quarter though.

And for those of you who thought that SOAL was too light hearted and happy you'll definately dig this game. In the first few hours of the game you'll see what I'm talking about. ToS definately does not have a cheerful/everythig will be ok story line.

Here's a picture of Lloyd. He's the main character and has been friends with Colette (above) since childhood.

[Windwaker90]

So those are the in-game graphics huh. THAT was really cool!!!!! Are there cutscenes in the game where the graphics get better like in final fantasy? If so, that would be awsome. Does the real time combat work well? I've only seen low-quality video clips. I'll probably get that game next week or so.

[no.1gamer]

So those are the in-game graphics huh. THAT was really cool!!!!! Are there cutscenes in the game where the graphics get better like in final fantasy? If so, that would be awsome. Does the real time combat work well? I've only seen low-quality video clips. I'll probably get that game next week or so.

The real time combat is fun so far. I'm finally getting the hang of the battle controls. At first I was just mashing the A button because I didn't understand what to do. But there actually is an amount of strategy to the battles. I just have my teamates on "auto" which has them fight without me having to control them for right now. When I really get the hang of the controls, I'll try controlling a few party members at once. I prefer turn based combat to real time battles personally. But the real time battles in ToS are really fun so far.

Actually the picture of Colette is from a cut-scene which looks like an anime film. And the screenshot of Lloyd is from the in-game graphics. The cut-scenes do look great. It doesn't look like the 3D realistic cut-scenes from Final Fantasy though. It looks like it was lifted strait from a movie theater quality cartoon. The in-game graphics look great too though. The backgrounds are in full 3D but still look like backgrounds that would appear in a cartoon.

Overall I'm impressed with the graphics so far. But I've only seen the Iselia forest and the town of Iselia so far which is the little town that Colette and Genis are from. The area I've explored so far is only a very, very, very small portion of the world map. My next stop is the Triett desert. Going by the intro theme song and video, there will be drastically different locations to explore ranging from snowy mountains to deserts to swamps.

Here's a screenshot of the battle graphics. On the left is Colette, the middle is Genis and the right is Lloyd.

[Windwaker90]

getting tos tommorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[no.1gamer]

getting tos tommorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Good, I'll have someone to talk to about the game!!!

:)

I'm about 6 hours into ToS now!

[Windwaker90]

OH NO!!!!!!!!!!!!! I went to all the game stores, but no TOS!!! EB GAMES is out of stock until friday!!

What a bummer..........

[no.1gamer]

OH NO!!!!!!!!!!!!! I went to all the game stores, but no TOS!!! EB GAMES is out of stock until friday!!

What a bummer..........

It seems as though ToS is selling better than anyone expected. The same situation happen to me as I stated in the original post of this thread.

I think that among the Gamecube userbase there are some pretty hardcore fantasy/RPG fans. SOAL has a pretty loyal following. Every Zelda game that comes out sells like nobody's buisness. Final Fantasy sold surprisingly well considering that you need a GBA to play it (the only reason I didn't buy it).

Maybe the "shoot everything that moves" genre doesn't do so well on the Gamecube, but I'm glad to see RPGs like ToS succeed. Hopefully this means there will be more RPGs that come to Nintendo consoles in the future.

:D

[Windwaker90]

I finally purchased tos!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm three hours through it and am at the beginning of the forest. How's that for a take your time gamer?

[Gadfly2317]

Hey Gamer,

I wonder if you'd seen Nintendojo's review. While they are a pro-nintendo site, they've also published the harshest, most insightful criticisms of Nintendo to be found on the Internet. They are about as objective as you're going to get at a system-specific site.

They gave ToS a 98%. That's about the highest score I've seen for it. I'm less concerned about the score; the review is well written and pretty much sold me on the game, which I will pick up eventually.

It's scoring pretty good everywhere, and certainly stomping this month's big Xbox RPG release, Sudeki (I know this isn't the sys wars forum, but I couldn't resist the dig.)

[no.1gamer]

I finally purchased tos!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm three hours through it and am at the beginning of the forest. How's that for a take your time gamer?

Alright!!! I finally have someone to talk to about this great game! I'm actually about 12 hours into the game. But like I said before you might catch up to me in a few hours because I'm just taking my time by exploring and talking to people.

I do have some early advise for you. When you get Raine and Kratos in your group set their strategy to "heal." That way when one of the characters gets low on HP they'll use their TP to heal instead of attacking.

And when you figure out how the U. Attack works please elaborate for me. You won't get it for a little while though. When my guage fills up I just press a bunch of buttons because I don't exactly know what to do.

:)

Hey Gamer,

I wonder if you'd seen Nintendojo's review. While they are a pro-nintendo site, they've also published the harshest, most insightful criticisms of Nintendo to be found on the Internet. They are about as objective as you're going to get at a system-specific site.

They gave ToS a 98%. That's about the highest score I've seen for it. I'm less concerned about the score; the review is well written and pretty much sold me on the game, which I will pick up eventually.

It's scoring pretty good everywhere, and certainly stomping this month's big Xbox RPG release, Sudeki (I know this isn't the sys wars forum, but I couldn't resist the dig.)


Well, one thing that I feel is missing though is that the backgrounds aren't very interactive. It would be nice if you could just examine everything like SOAL, REmake and RE0. Just where you get a brief description of whatever you're looking at. It seems like a small thing but it really goes a long way to immerse you into the game.

But, there is really no reason to give this game a poor review. As I mentioned before the voice acting is possibly the best I've seen in a Japanese RPG. The graphics are very cool. And even when you go back and visit somewhere after a major event, all the people you talk to have relevant conversations.

I won't give my final conclusion about the game until I've played all the way through it. The game is heavily story based and even though I've played the game for 12 hours, I get the feeling that I've only seen a fraction of ToS.

:p

[trebor]

Jeez, I was hoping to put off buying ToS for a while, but having just read through this thread I don't think I can wait anymore. MUST....PURCHASE......

haha

[Gadfly2317]

Jeez, I was hoping to put off buying ToS for a while, but having just read through this thread I don't think I can wait anymore. MUST....PURCHASE......

haha

I got a look at this game at a GC demo station. It is gorgeous. Just gorgeous. And from the positive things about the game and story, it's a must get. I wish I weren't so swamped right now, but this one will be waiting for me when I get a little more cleared off my plate.

[Shira]

I feel special. I got it the day it came out here and bought the second to last copy.

I have beaten the game already and I must say it is very good. Near the end of the first disc there are anime cutscenes that look like they came straight from a TV series and I think two more in the second disc. Very wonderful game with what I would consider MUST replay value. They also give a very indepth look in the characters! In one part- *slaps ducktape over mouth as to not give away spoilers* ^_^;

Hope you all enjoy playing this game as much as I did.

[Gamer88]

I've had this game since it came out. I'm about 5 hours into the game and am not as impressed as you all seem to be. Someone tell me, does it get any better?

[Shira]

You're still in the beggining, give it some more time. The game starts out slow but when you get farther in you'll probably like it more.

[no.1gamer]

I've had this game since it came out. I'm about 5 hours into the game and am not as impressed as you all seem to be. Someone tell me, does it get any better?

If you're not impressed why did you list ToS as your 2nd favorite overall game for the gamecube in our list?

As with any RPG you're going to have to invest a lot of time before the game gets good. IMO the story line and characters have a strong impact on the fun factor of an RPG. But you already know that Gamer88! You're an avid RPG gamer.

Anyway onto the more important question that we've been debating for a while Gamer88. Is ToS better than SOAL? I'm going to wait until I've finished the game to make my final conclusion...

[Gamer88]

If you're not impressed why did you list ToS as your 2nd favorite overall game for the gamecube in our list?

I listed it second because it is good so far Plus I love RPG's and this one seems to be the best on the gamecube so far. So I put it second. Though that is subject to change seeing as I haven't beaten the game yet. However, this game simply hasn't blown me away.....yet.

As with any RPG you're going to have to invest a lot of time before the game gets good. IMO the story line and characters have a strong impact on the fun factor of an RPG. But you already know that Gamer88! You're an avid RPG gamer.

That is true. What I meant by my statement though was that Im not impressed thus far. I know it could get better. It's just that most reviews I've read have all pointed to a predictable storyline. Thats why I had to ask if it got better. I was hoping to get a little more motivation to play this game. )(Im also playing xenogears which is really good so far so im debating which one I should focus on)(.

Anyway onto the more important question that we've been debating for a while Gamer88. Is ToS better than SOAL? I'm going to wait until I've finished the game to make my final conclusion...

Thats a hard one. I'll wait till I beat it before picking one over the other. But one thing that skies of arcadia will always have over TOS is the world map. I loved the world map in SOAL.

[Deathstroke]

Got this game today. Fourty Seven minutes in and I've just entered Iselia Forest.

Like the combat so far which is real time. The combos remind me of Star Fox's hashed combo engine. Although there are other aspects like magic, cooking and the EX and special attacks so it is actually far deeper then Star Fox's engine. So far, the game is a solid experience. It's also the first RPG I've ever gotten into this much.

[no.1gamer]

Got this game today. Fourty Seven minutes in and I've just entered Iselia Forest.

Like the combat so far which is real time. The combos remind me of Star Fox's hashed combo engine. Although there are other aspects like magic, cooking and the EX and special attacks so it is actually far deeper then Star Fox's engine. So far, the game is a solid experience. It's also the first RPG I've ever gotten into this much.

The real time battles actually do get quite elaborate as you progress throught the game. In addition to the combos you set to the control stick + B button, there is a U. Attack feature. There is a little guage that fills up and you activate it by pressing the Z button. Then in an instant every member of your group will attack one specific enemy. You won't get to use this until after you reach Palmacosta though.

[Shira]

The real time battles actually do get quite elaborate as you progress throught the game. In addition to the combos you set to the control stick + B button, there is a U. Attack feature. There is a little guage that fills up and you activate it by pressing the Z button. Then in an instant every member of your group will attack one specific enemy. You won't get to use this until after you reach Palmacosta though.

Actually you learn it right at the end of the Ossa Trail.

[trebor]

Well I picked up my copy of ToS which, by the way, was the last copy Gamecrazy had available (getting the last copy seems to be a recurring theme in this thread ;) )

Anyhoo, I haven't gotten outrageously far in the game, but I have completed the Iselia Forest, or whatever it's called. At first I couldn't get away from feeling a bit let down by the some of the formulaic JRPG qualities, such as the generic storyline, the spikey-haired, brash main character and his special feelings for his special lady friend, and the whole random encounter thing.

That is, until I had a few battles and got to check out the real time combat engine - which is a BLAST. It totally makes the game for me and has really helped me get into it as a whole.

Here are my thoughts on ToS...

Pros (so far)
- Real time combat engine is a blast.
- Lush, gorgeous graphics.
- Surprisingly good voice acting.
- Interesting side elements, such as cooking and little chats between characters.

Cons (so far)
- Story is about as generic and redundant as it gets for RPG's. (so far)
- Random worldmap encounters leave me with a "been there, done that" feeling.

Of course, I'm only a mere 4 or 5 hours into the game at this point, so my opinions are subject to be changed - hopefully the plot will become more unique the futher I get into the game. I would definitely agree with the average scores reviewers give this game - it's about an 8.5 out of 10.

[no.1gamer]

At first I couldn't get away from feeling a bit let down by the some of the formulaic JRPG qualities, such as the generic storyline, the spikey-haired, brash main character and his special feelings for his special lady friend

I was upset to see this in the opening cinima scene:

-----Highlight below for spoiler-----

In the intro movie clip it clearly shows that Lloyd and Colette have a romantic intrest. But I'm about 14 hours into the game now and they haven't hooked up yet. I can tell that Colette is into Lloyd but the story would be much better if I hadn't of known that going into it. Well, I'm still looking forward to the love scene between those 2. Still though that was pretty lame of NAMCO to include a major spoiler in the opening scene of the game.

-----Highlight above for spoiler-----

Here are my thoughts on ToS...

Pros (so far)
- Real time combat engine is a blast.
- Lush, gorgeous graphics.
- Surprisingly good voice acting.
- Interesting side elements, such as cooking and little chats between characters.

Cons (so far)
- Story is about as generic and redundant as it gets for RPG's. (so far)
- Random worldmap encounters leave me with a "been there, done that" feeling.

Of course, I'm only a mere 4 or 5 hours into the game at this point, so my opinions are subject to be changed - hopefully the plot will become more unique the futher I get into the game. I would definitely agree with the average scores reviewers give this game - it's about an 8.5 out of 10.

I haven't had a "random encounter" yet. Are you talking about some of the bosses who come out of no where? I've had to replay large portions of the game because I've lost to an unexpected boss. If I just could have replayed the battle I would have won, because I'd have time to properly heal my characters. But when you die you have to start all the way back at your last save point.

That is, until I had a few battles and got to check out the real time combat engine - which is a BLAST. It totally makes the game for me and has really helped me get into it as a whole.

I agree, I usually prefer turn based combat to real time in RPGs. But ToS has possibly the best real time combat gameplay I've ever seen. The action is totally kick @$$!

[trebor]

I haven't had a "random encounter" yet. Are you talking about some of the bosses who come out of no where? I've had to replay large portions of the game because I've lost to an unexpected boss. If I just could have replayed the battle I would have won, because I'd have time to properly heal my characters. But when you die you have to start all the way back at your last save point.

Well, those blobs you see on the world map are essentially the "random" encounters I'm referring too. Respawning monsters and foes ad nauseum has been a bit of a turn off, if it wasn't for the battle system I would be really disappointed.


I agree, I usually prefer turn based combat to real time in RPGs. But ToS has possibly the best real time combat gameplay I've ever seen. The action is totally kick @$$!

Yeah it has by far made the game for me. It's like a fighting game and RPG rolled into one graphically pleasing package.

[Gamer88]

Well I picked up my copy of ToS which, by the way, was the last copy Gamecrazy had available (getting the last copy seems to be a recurring theme in this thread )

Anyhoo, I haven't gotten outrageously far in the game, but I have completed the Iselia Forest, or whatever it's called. At first I couldn't get away from feeling a bit let down by the some of the formulaic JRPG qualities, such as the generic storyline, the spikey-haired, brash main character and his special feelings for his special lady friend, and the whole random encounter thing.

That is, until I had a few battles and got to check out the real time combat engine - which is a BLAST. It totally makes the game for me and has really helped me get into it as a whole.

Here are my thoughts on ToS...

Pros (so far)
- Real time combat engine is a blast.
- Lush, gorgeous graphics.
- Surprisingly good voice acting.
- Interesting side elements, such as cooking and little chats between characters.

Cons (so far)
- Story is about as generic and redundant as it gets for RPG's. (so far)
- Random worldmap encounters leave me with a "been there, done that" feeling.

Of course, I'm only a mere 4 or 5 hours into the game at this point, so my opinions are subject to be changed - hopefully the plot will become more unique the futher I get into the game. I would definitely agree with the average scores

I couldn't agree more. I was really let down by the characters. Im now 12 hours into the game and its not any better. Does it get better? My friend told me it gets somewhat better. But he said it would still be well below my standards.

[Windwaker90]

Wow!! I haven't posted anything in a while. I've been playing this fricken awsome game for the past week!!!!!!!!!!! Well, anyway, i'm 58 hours through it and am still on disc 1. I'm at this snowy place. It took me 58 hours to beat SOAL. So i guess this game is twice as long. There is just so much I want to say, but i won't. Okay, I'm going to go play some more tos!!!!!!!!!!!!

[no.1gamer]

Wow!! I haven't posted anything in a while. I've been playing this fricken awsome game for the past week!!!!!!!!!!! Well, anyway, i'm 58 hours through it and am still on disc 1. I'm at this snowy place. It took me 58 hours to beat SOAL. So i guess this game is twice as long. There is just so much I want to say, but i won't. Okay, I'm going to go play some more tos!!!!!!!!!!!!

Woa!!! I'm only about 18 hours into ToS. I'm at the Hakonesia Peak right now. The story of this game is great and rivals SOAL closely...

:)

[Gadfly2317]

Woa!!! I'm only about 18 hours into ToS. I'm at the Hakonesia Peak right now. The story of this game is great and rivals SOAL closely...

:)

Without giving away any big secrets, can you give us some general reasons about plot, character development, story etc. . .What I mean is, why do you think the story is great? Several gamers, and a lot of reviewers have criticized the story as the weak point. . . often calling it "cliche, formulaic, or generic." Is there any credence to what people are saying?

Or are these reviewers doing what most reviewers do, which is to play a game for a couple hours, and then write a rushed review so they can get back to their real jobs stocking shelves at Wal-Mart?

[trebor]

I'm about 15 hours into the game now, and I have to say, the story is getting better, but it is still very cliched. The main plot is as formulaic since it's been from the start, but there are side plot elements which are becoming more interesting.

ToS is all about the combat, which is worth the price of admission, IMHO.

[no.1gamer]

Without giving away any big secrets, can you give us some general reasons about plot, character development, story etc. . .What I mean is, why do you think the story is great? Several gamers, and a lot of reviewers have criticized the story as the weak point. . . often calling it "cliche, formulaic, or generic." Is there any credence to what people are saying?

Or are these reviewers doing what most reviewers do, which is to play a game for a couple hours, and then write a rushed review so they can get back to their real jobs stocking shelves at Wal-Mart?

Well a "cliche" storyline would be an accurate description of the main story line so far. Colette (the blond chick from the picture above) is the "chosen one" who has to save the world. The goal of the entire game is to release seals so the goddess Martel will save the world and only the chosen one can do it.

But outside of that the story is great and original! Each character has their own little side stories. All the characters' stories really tie in with their personalities, so you can see why they are the way they are. There are also bad guys called the Desians who are kind of like Nazis with their ethnic cleansing practices (I'm not joking!). And like I mentioned before if you revisit towns that you've already been to, all of the locals talk about recent events and what's going on at that point in the game. It may not sound like that big of a deal, but it really works well to immerse you into the world of Sylvarant.

I would go into more detail about the story, but of course I'm trying to keep this thread as spoiler free as possible...

:p

[trebor]

I have to admit I hit a point that stumped me. If anyone has gotten past the wind seal I could use some help.

[no.1gamer]

I have to admit I hit a point that stumped me. If anyone has gotten past the wind seal I could use some help.

Dude I'm stuck in the wind seal dungeon too!!! It won't let me in part of the dungeon because spikes stick up from the ground and hurt me! At least I'm gaining mad experience from wondering around this dungeon and fighting monsters though!

:p

It's at the Balacruf Moseleum! Someone please help us!!!

[trebor]

Dude I'm stuck in the wind seal dungeon too!!! It won't let me in part of the dungeon because spikes stick up from the ground and hurt me! At least I'm gaining mad experience from wondering around this dungeon and fighting monsters though!

:p

It's at the Balacruf Moseleum! Someone please help us!!!

I got past the spike part...they shoot up 3 times in a row so just run across them when the 3rd ones go down again. I usually end up taking damage but at least you can get past them that way. :p

I'm lost as to what to do after you have lit every torch and crap.

[Shadow]

Hello.

I baught this game three days after it came out. And im just about to finish disc one. Oh and to tell you all your still far from plot twists that happen latter on in the game. Be patcient.

Unison:

When the unison hits. four buttons will apear at the bottom right cornner.

b a y x

each button coresponds to a charcter depicted by a head icon. the button that the char is on replaces the b button for tech move in an unison attack

ive set Up b for lloyd for Psy Tempist and Up b to photon to Raine. this at the same time leads to a compunde skill Photon Tempist. first position goes to A second goes to B third goes to X and fourht goes t Y

so to do my photton tempest i have to fast puch Up A and Up Y

the game does get better.

tiny spoiler:

Kratos is a tratior.

Oh and the the seals thing, its not that simple.

[no.1gamer]

tiny spoiler:

Kratos is a tratior.

Oh and the the seals thing, its not that simple.

DUDE, YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO GIVE SPOILERS IN THIS THREAD!!! DIDN'T YOU READ THAT IN MY INITIAL POST!!!

DAMN YOU!!!

THAT'S NOT A "TINY SPOILER!" THAT'S A HUGE SPOILER!!!

:mad:

[Gadfly2317]

DUDE, YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO GIVE SPOILERS IN THIS THREAD!!! DIDN'T YOU READ THAT IN MY INITIAL POST!!!

DAMN YOU!!!

THAT'S NOT A "TINY SPOILER!" THAT'S A HUGE SPOILER!!!

:mad:

Yeah, I'm not even playing this game but when I saw that post saying



"whatsis name is a traitor" I knew we'd be seeing the bitter "spoiler" posts. Dammit. . .dude should have known better, but then you should know that this is the way all game threads work.

Fortuantely, I'm ADD and when I get around to playing this game I'll have forgotten all our conversations. Hopefully I don't forget to play the game!

McFly, Pudfly, Gadfly, Fruitfly.

etc

[Gamer88]

tiny spoiler:

Kratos is a tratior.

How could anyone call that a spoiler? It was obvoius from the very beginning he was going to. They hire a MERCENARY to gaurd the CHOSEN of mana. Thats just stupid. From that point on I knew he would. What else would he do? Its not like iselia would actually be able to pay him more money then say....the desians or anything. He is a mercenary after all, he can be bought out. I don't really know what happens, im not that far in the game. It just doesn't make since why they would hire a mercenary to gaurd her.,

[no.1gamer]

How could anyone call that a spoiler? It was obvoius from the very beginning he was going to. They hire a MERCENARY to gaurd the CHOSEN of mana. Thats just stupid. From that point on I knew he would. What else would he do? Its not like iselia would actually be able to pay him more money then say....the desians or anything. He is a mercenary after all, he can be bought out. I don't really know what happens, im not that far in the game. It just doesn't make since why they would hire a mercenary to gaurd her.,

They hired a mercenary to gurad Colette because everyone else going on the journey was not ready for the journey yet. They needed a battle hardend warrior to protect the chosen! I always thought he was kind of shadey but I wouldn't have suspected this!

[Gamer88]

They hired a mercenary to gurad Colette because everyone else going on the journey was not ready for the journey yet. They needed a battle hardend warrior to protect the chosen! I always thought he was kind of shadey but I wouldn't have suspected this!

Thats just stupid though. They could be assassinated at any time so they hire a mercenary to gaurd collete. A mercenary. A man who kills only for the money. Its not the smartest thing to do. Place the savior of slyvrant's life in the hands of a mercenary.

[trebor]

While I'm as angry at the rude n00b who gave away the "tiny" spoiler as the rest of you, I have to admit that the opening animation totally hints at it anyways.

Not to justify spoiling it for everyone, though. :mad:

[PapaSmurf]

Ok I'll be honest and say I didn't read past the first couple of replies. I too bought ToS the other day, and I noticed when I got it you can play with up to four players. That made the investment that much sweeter. I brought my friend over the other day and we tried to play two player. I realize you can only play the multiplayer in the battles, but I don't how to toggle it. We couldn't figure how to actually incorporate the 2nd player. The two people in my party just do their automatic thing and we can't control them with the other controller. If theres been a reply to this let me know, if not I'd like some help.

[Windwaker90]

All you have to do is go to tech menu on the 2nd character from the top. Once there, you should see Manual Semi-automatic auto in the top left. Toggle that to manual.
If you get lazy one day, you can just put all of the characters on auto and let them do all of the work. Also, for those people stuck at the wind temple. Hit the wind things in this order, topleft, bottomright, topright, bottomleft, middle. I beat the game!!!!!! So I know almost everything.

[Windwaker90]

Oh yeah, my completion time was 88 hours!!!

[no.1gamer]

This spoiler is about 22 hours into the game. All my characters are around level 24 or so...

-----Highlight Below for Spoiler-----

I just got Sheena in my party!!! She is definately kick @$$! I'm using her, Colette and Raine. So it's Lloyd and 3 chicks! I have Raine's strategy set to heal and the rest just using TP for attacks.

:)

I finally got all the controls down pretty good. I like the beast attack for Lloyd the best. He can knock down enemies no matter how big and tough they are!!!

-----Highlight Above for Spoiler-----

The combat in ToS is so much fun! The other day I just walked around fighting monsters for like 2 hours! Leveling up is super fun!

[trebor]

Yeah, I gotta say, I'm completely addicted to ToS at the moment. Namco somehow found a way to make random encounters FUN. The battle system is totally aces. I'm just floored by the sheer amount of depth and variety.

:D

[TheStealthSwift]

Ok Im about 25 hours into the game have just arrived at Tethe'alle and had not seen one cutscene. Wut the dilly. On the back of the box it says"beautiful cutscenes" Well I haven't seen one yet. Did I pick up a defect copy of ToS or do I have a wrong setting. PLEASE HELP

[Gamer88]

Im 48 hours into the game. I hear theres a awesome cutscene at the end of the first disk.

[no.1gamer]

Shira says that there is one at the end of the first disc and more on disc 2. Like I said before we should wait until playing through the entire game before making any conclusions. I haven't seen any cut scenes yet either and I'm about 28 hours in.

:)

[no.1gamer]

Well, I'm now about 42 hours in. I'm still only on disc 1!!!

I think I'm going to take a ToS break soon though. This game has consumed ALL of my gaming time recently. I'm going to make another run through MGS:TTS I think. Like I already said in this thread, I don't plan on finishing this game until later this year. Probably about the time Metroid Prime 2 comes out.

But I can already say that ToS has exceeded my expectations. There is a lot of quality in this game. Try switching characters while walking around towns and you'll notice that the conversations you have with the people will change! I highly recommend ToS to any Gamecube owner who likes RPGs.

Is Skies of Arcadia Legends better than ToS though? Hmmm...

:cool:

[Gamer88]

Well, I'm now about 42 hours in. I'm still only on disc 1!!!

I think I'm going to take a ToS break soon though. This game has consumed ALL of my gaming time recently. I'm going to make another run through MGS:TTS I think. Like I already said in this thread, I don't plan on finishing this game until later this year. Probably about the time Metroid Prime 2 comes out

We're probably around the same part then. I sat it down a month ago. Its pretty good....but theres better stuff to play right now. I also plan on finishing this game later this year.

But I can already say that ToS has exceeded my expectations. There is a lot of quality in this game. Try switching characters while walking around towns and you'll notice that the conversations you have with the people will change! I highly recommend ToS to any Gamecube owner who likes RPGs.

It's well below my expectations. But, I had high expecations for this game....really....high expectations. So its still a good game to me. I only talk to people as zelos (I love the free items you get by talking to females).

Is Skies of Arcadia Legends better than ToS though? Hmmm...

Eh....Well here is how I look at it.
Soal has...
-A awesome world (World map yes...but im also talking about the countries and stuff)
-Decent characters
-A pretty good battle system
-Great soundtrack (I love the soundtrack for this one...it definatly beats TOS's IMO.)
TOS has...
-Decent Characters...
-Unique Battle system (I can't decide...I love turn based battle systems...but this one is really good, my only problem is that its hard to take a boss battle seroiusly when you can just run up and hit them....In turn based ones the boss is so much more...intimidating.)
-Pretty good graphics

Its really hard to say....I'd have to beat TOS before I can really decide....though right now, im definatly leaning to SOAL.

[no.1gamer]

We're probably around the same part then. I sat it down a month ago. Its pretty good....but theres better stuff to play right now. I also plan on finishing this game later this year.

Well, it's not that I'm bored with the game so much. But rather I pretty much haven't played any other games since I started this one.


It's well below my expectations. But, I had high expecations for this game....really....high expectations. So its still a good game to me. I only talk to people as zelos (I love the free items you get by talking to females).



Eh....Well here is how I look at it.
Soal has...
-A awesome world (World map yes...but im also talking about the countries and stuff)
-Decent characters
-A pretty good battle system
-Great soundtrack (I love the soundtrack for this one...it definatly beats TOS's IMO.)
TOS has...
-Decent Characters...
-Unique Battle system (I can't decide...I love turn based battle systems...but this one is really good, my only problem is that its hard to take a boss battle seroiusly when you can just run up and hit them....In turn based ones the boss is so much more...intimidating.)
-Pretty good graphics

Its really hard to say....I'd have to beat TOS before I can really decide....though right now, im definatly leaning to SOAL.

Well I guess that's the difference then. You were expecting a lot. To be honest my expectations are low for any non-Nintendo game to come out for the Gamecube.

Yes, I also like to walk around as Zelos and score free items from chicks. But I switch characters a lot just to hear the different conversations.

[no.1gamer]

Well after almost 4 months, and 64 hours of game time I have made it to disc 2!!!

With the exception of possibly Animal Crossing and The Sims, this is the definately the longest Gamecube game available.

I think I'm going to take a break from ToS for a little while. After all Metroid Prime comes out soon!!! And all of my other gaming will stop to make way for MP2!!!

But I will finish ToS sooner or later! Perhaps by the end of this calander year?

:p

[trebor]

I actually cracked the 80 hour mark before I finished ToS a few weeks ago. I pretty much had to stop trying to do every little side task and unlock every secret or I would still be playing it :p

It has a gorgeous ending animation, I must say. :D

[no.1gamer]

Well after going to Gamestop and Best Buy, I finally found ToS at Gamerush. It was actually their last copy!!!

:p

It looks super fun from the box. There is 2 discs and the manual is long and in full color. It's possibly the best manual for a Gamecube game I've seen yet.

Ok, well I haven't actually played the game yet. I'm looking at the case right now! I'm not sure when I'll have a few hours to start this RPG. Hopefully soon...

BTW, please keep this thread free of spoilers. After all this is a heavily story driven RPG right?

Well here I am over a year later and still working on this game.

:p

I'm pretty far now. I just left the city of Angels. I've been experimenting with the different characters and this game has a lot of depth! I just pretty much stuck with Loyd before but now I really like Presea! Her axe moves are awesome! The different characters each have their own unique abilities and gameplay which keeps this game fresh for ummmm......14 months?

:)

I was at the gamefaqs forums and some guy there said he's going to try to beat ToS in one sitting! He claims his lowest total time to be 30 hours. Ha Ha! I'm at 78 now!

[Aylmer]

Tales of Symphonia is, IMO, one of the top RPGs of all time. I loved that game. Plus, it has the best "do it again" gotcha of any game I've played. (hint: hoard all your Grade, do not trade it for anything, and collect all the extra that you can)

There is a new Tales game in the works, Tales of Legendia, for the PS2, maybe other platforms. It's coming out early next year, and I can hardly wait.

[no.1gamer]

Tales of Symphonia is, IMO, one of the top RPGs of all time.

I will have to agree with you here. Final Fantasy 3 on Super Nintendo is still the best RPG of all time IMO!

:)

Have you played Skies of Arcadia Legends Aylmer? That's another Gamecube RPG that is great.

[trebor]

Plus, it has the best "do it again" gotcha of any game I've played. (hint: hoard all your Grade, do not trade it for anything, and collect all the extra that you can)

Can you elaborate on that?

[Aylmer]

Well, I don't really think that the following is a spoiler, so here goes.

As you complete battles, you'll notice that in addition to exp you'll aquire this mysterious thing called "Grade", in very small amounts. It is cumulative, when you check your stats, you'll notice that the amount of grade you have is building up.

At some places as you progress in the game, you'll be able to trade some Grade for items. DON'T DO IT! It's way too valuable to trade. In fact, try to fight extra battles and accumulate all the extra you can.

Why, you may ask?

Because at the end of the game, after you defeat the final boss, the game will give you the option to create a save file that, unlike your other save files, has an asterisk next to it. When you load this save file, you'll be prompted to start a new game, and when you do, a list of things will come up that you can (finally) spend your Grade on.

things like 3x or even 10x the exp, or keeping all your spells, keeping certain weapons, and so on. the more Grade you have, the more powerful things you can buy. I went for more exp., but be careful. You can, with the rapid leveling up, go into areas that you never would have been powerful enough to go in the first time around, and you can screw up the gameflow and lock yourself out of certain events (yes, we are talking bugs), effectively putting yourself in an endless loop. As long as you don't go into those 'forbidden' areas, though, you'll be ok.

I eBayed that game and strat guide last year, and now I'm starting to regret it. but, there are so many good RPGs out...

[Aylmer]

I played the original Skies of Arcadia on the Dreamcast. It is also an incredible game, though nowadays, I avoid random battle games unless they are just too irresistible. I bought the GC game used a while back, but I may just sell it because of so many RPGs I've not done yet.

[trebor]

Well, I don't really think that the following is a spoiler, so here goes.

As you complete battles, you'll notice that in addition to exp you'll aquire this mysterious thing called "Grade", in very small amounts. It is cumulative, when you check your stats, you'll notice that the amount of grade you have is building up.

At some places as you progress in the game, you'll be able to trade some Grade for items. DON'T DO IT! It's way too valuable to trade. In fact, try to fight extra battles and accumulate all the extra you can.

Why, you may ask?

Because at the end of the game, after you defeat the final boss, the game will give you the option to create a save file that, unlike your other save files, has an asterisk next to it. When you load this save file, you'll be prompted to start a new game, and when you do, a list of things will come up that you can (finally) spend your Grade on.

things like 3x or even 10x the exp, or keeping all your spells, keeping certain weapons, and so on. the more Grade you have, the more powerful things you can buy. I went for more exp., but be careful. You can, with the rapid leveling up, go into areas that you never would have been powerful enough to go in the first time around, and you can screw up the gameflow and lock yourself out of certain events (yes, we are talking bugs), effectively putting yourself in an endless loop. As long as you don't go into those 'forbidden' areas, though, you'll be ok.

I eBayed that game and strat guide last year, and now I'm starting to regret it. but, there are so many good RPGs out...

Yeah, I noticed that when I won the game, but I never played through a second time, so I never spent my grade points. I thought that maybe there is a surprise alternate ending if you play through a second time, or something.

[no.1gamer]

Well, I don't really think that the following is a spoiler, so here goes.

As you complete battles, you'll notice that in addition to exp you'll aquire this mysterious thing called "Grade", in very small amounts. It is cumulative, when you check your stats, you'll notice that the amount of grade you have is building up.

At some places as you progress in the game, you'll be able to trade some Grade for items. DON'T DO IT! It's way too valuable to trade. In fact, try to fight extra battles and accumulate all the extra you can.

Why, you may ask?

Because at the end of the game, after you defeat the final boss, the game will give you the option to create a save file that, unlike your other save files, has an asterisk next to it. When you load this save file, you'll be prompted to start a new game, and when you do, a list of things will come up that you can (finally) spend your Grade on.

things like 3x or even 10x the exp, or keeping all your spells, keeping certain weapons, and so on. the more Grade you have, the more powerful things you can buy. I went for more exp., but be careful. You can, with the rapid leveling up, go into areas that you never would have been powerful enough to go in the first time around, and you can screw up the gameflow and lock yourself out of certain events (yes, we are talking bugs), effectively putting yourself in an endless loop. As long as you don't go into those 'forbidden' areas, though, you'll be ok.

I eBayed that game and strat guide last year, and now I'm starting to regret it. but, there are so many good RPGs out...

Wow, I'll stop spending my grade now then. I'm not sure if I'll ever play through ToS again though. But who knows?

[Aylmer]

I have played lots of RPGs, and I always buy a strat guide for the game if it's available, if for no other reason than it makes it much more saleable on eBay when I'm done with it (do a search for Star Ocean2 guide to see what I mean).

I don't always use the guide, though, with some games it's not necessary.

But I have to say, ToS has more subplots and hidden stuff than any other game I've ever played. What's more, all the stuff you get for completing the mini-quests and so on are real enhancements, like awesome swords, etc. rather than a simple powerup.

For instance, have you met the skeleton with four arms yet? The one that will likely kill your entire party before you can finish a sneeze?

[trebor]

For instance, have you met the skeleton with four arms yet? The one that will likely kill your entire party before you can finish a sneeze?

Yeah, I killed all 3 of them guys. The Abyssion side-quest has one of the best payoffs, as far as I can remember.

[no.1gamer]

After a late night 7 hour ToS binge I finished in just over 80 hrs. This game has taken me about a year and a half to beat and was definitely worth it.

My favorite group would have to be Loyd, Genis, Raine and Sheena. I switched groups a lot though. Presea is awesome to control. Regal is cool cause he can heal as well as kick @$$. The spell casters can be boring to control so I just left them to the computer AI and set strategies. Sheena is hott and I used her as my visible character while walking around in villages and stuff mostly.

Overall the game isn't incredibly tough but does have you planning out attack plans and character combos. I never run or try to avoid any enemies so my characters become powerful enough to take down most baddies at that point in the game. Some of the boss battles are challenging.

The plot always kept me going and gave me a reason to get past the cave or forest or whatever I got stuck in. Definately a memorable tale when all said and done.

-----highlight below for ToS spoiler-----

The end sequence is super awesome with the movie and all. It was really cool to see Loyd and Colette in the full animation. Kratos kicked my @$$ a few times in the 1 on 1 battle against Loyd. Didn't see the father son plot coming at all. Great story overall. A little corney but that's expected with any console RPG.

-----highlight above for ToS spoiler-----

This game is definately recommended to any RPG gamer that is willing to invest many hours. Never really got boring even while grinding it out cause like I said before there is lots of character combos and different gameplay for each of them. There's just so much in this RPG to keep it going for all 80 hours. There's a cooking system, countless abilities/spells to learn, tons of items to collect, EX gem skills and lots more. I read in one of the reviews on this website that this game will develop a "cult" following. I think that sounds about right. Go check out the gamefaqs form or any other high populated website and you'll read from people who are really into this game. I think 1 time through is enough for me cause 80 hours is a long time to spend on a "2nd run through." But who knows maybe one day I'll want to do it all over again.

It took a lot out of me. I'm all RPGed out for now. Don't think I'll start Paper Mario 2 or Fire Emblem just yet. Maybe finish the second half of a Metroid Prime run. Perhaps check out Pikmin 2 as well. Since Gadfly claims it to be one of the Gamecube's best and all. Must sleep now. So tired. So late. Typing in fragments...

:eek: