Best RPGs: Tales of Symphonia (GameCube)

Tales of Symphonia begins in the dying land of Sylvarant. The land is slowly losing its mana which supports life and is the source of its magic. The only hope for the people is the chosen one who must complete the Journey of World Regeneration and cure the world. Her name is Colette Brunel and it is your job, Lloyd Irving, to see that she completes her quest to save the world. In order to complete the Journey of World Regeneration you and your party must travel to the different continents in the world and awaken the Summon Spirits. Each spirit summoned helps transform Colette into an angel that will have the power to regenerate the world.

Gameplay
The battle system for Tales of Symphonia is called the Linear Motion Battle System and is the backbone of the most of the game play. This is a real-time battle system that allows direct control over one character of your choosing during battle. The remaining characters in your party are AI controlled but with a catch. You are able to assign strategies to these characters in order to control techniques, attacks and spells during battle. This greatly simplifies managing your party and allows you to focus on the character you are controlling. There are instances where during battle you will want to change the strategies of the AI characters or issue commands to them manually. This is simply done by pausing the game during battle and assigning commands manually to the other characters. In general the characters behave how you would expect. The magic users and healers stay in the back casting magic while the others take a more direct approach. You are also able to assign specific techniques, attacks and spells to buttons so that you do not need to pause the game in order to use them. This battle system keeps the game play interesting all throughout the game as you are constantly trying different strategies and looking for ways to fine-tune your party.

There are two other very important aspects to the battle system. The first is the Unison Gauge. The gauge fills when you deal combos to enemies. When full you can trigger a Unison Attack. When this is triggered each character in your party will perform a special attack that deals more damage. Certain special attacks when performed together will even deal greater damage. The second important feature of the battle system is the tension. This plays a large role in the battles and allows the characters to take less damage, cast spells quicker and perform actions without a waiting.

Visuals
Tales of Symphonia is a great looking game with a lot of personality and charm. The characters are beautifully cell-shaded and stylized with much attention to detail. One of the features that really made the game feel complete is that whatever weapon is equipped appears on your character. I know this is a small item, but one that should be in more games. This makes acquiring new weapons exciting and makes you want to increase your arsenal. The environments in the game are also charming with again a high level of detail. There are a wide variety of locations as well including, quaint villages, castles, dungeons and futuristic locals. These locations are the perfect backdrop to this complex tale.

Audio
The audio in the game, like the game itself, is charming and fits the mood of the game. In general the score of the game does not stand out from the game itself, but it is a nice addition to the game and is high-quality. One area where the audio shines though is the voice acting. This brings the characters to life with wit, humor and drama that makes you truly feel for them. Each person has their individual troubles, insecurities and strength and the voice acting really brings this out of the characters.

Conclusion
If you own a GameCube or a Wii you owe it to yourself to get a copy of Tales of Symphonia. The game is really the complete package with a moving story, likable characters, great soundtrack and deep gameplay. This is one of those games that you do not want to end. You know that you will miss learning more about the characters and seeing where their story takes them. The good news is that Tales of Symphonia 2 is currently in development so the story will go on.