Talk about the one game of the year that will make you wonder where all your time went!!! FREAKING AWESOME!
The battles are real action so you actually get to customize your favorite character to have the moves you want, and combo with whatever you feel is the most effective and in the best interest of your ultimate goal...
It's got all the original componants of typical RPGs and then some. Weapons, armor, gloves, helms...the ability to upgrade on a whim; however, they throw in the "title" aspect of leveling up, rounding out the growth of each and every character. Depending on a specific title, your character will level up and gain STR, DEF, SPD, CON, etc at a quicker pace; thereby allowing you to fully and wholly customize your character into a walking bohemoth, a speed demon, or an all-around battle machine. It just depends on what you prefer your four member battle team to consist of.
The graphics are beautiful...the cell-shading is great in all regards of the meaning. The only SLIGHT (I really mean slight) downfall is the battle imaging in the background...it does get a little redundant and I think could have been a bit better, but it does NOTHING to take away from the game at all, it is still very good and does the job. The voice overs are good and precise, with great translation and very very very excellant scripting. The storyline is as deep and addicting as any other RPG I've ever played, and as enthralling and consistant and gut wrenching as any movie that you could think of.
When it comes to gameplay, this game is liquid smooth and easy to handle...you control the pace at which the story is completed. There are a few BRILLIANT CG-ed cinematic cut scenes that activate when key sections of the story are completed, but not so many that you're constantly dreading the next time you accomplish a mission. All conversations are scrollable, so there's no time consuming "I HAVE TO WATCH THIS WHOLE THING...and THEY'RE TALKING LIKE SNAILS." Plus, there is the "Friendship" part of the story, where you're looking for conversation points through out the map. Each convo-point ups the support that your team members have within battle, and actually changes minor parts throughout the story itself...in essence, you can decide who becomes your deepest and closest comrade...and with that comrade, you can decide how the story will play out.
With a total of eight different characters to choose from, and a four character battling team, you get to pick and choose who you want to control within the battle itself, and who your favorite support characters will be. Plus the ability to Unison Attack (all four characters attack one target) and the special Unison attacks that come from certain combinations of certain character moves....turns battles into a sheer delight to the eyes and to the gamer's experience and ability.
The soundtracking is great! Solid as they come and brings a very good setting to the mood depending on where you are at in the game and the intesity of the situation.
This game is truly great, and It WILL take your time up and it WILL give you gratification in the end. It is a game worthy of praise in all realms of play....
With all the different componants that Tales of Symphonia brings to the RPGing table, I'm very surprised that I say Tales of Symphonia, and the RPGing world still asks me what I'm talking about.
This game is so deep and compelling, that any true RPGer, or anyone with a Gamecube needs to go get this game. It is one of the very few masterpieces that has hit the console, and it deserves its dues.
P.S. I'd like to thank the nintendo industry for finally getting a decent RPG on the GC platform....I thought the gene pool had run completely dry for a moment...