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The Good:
+A very good story filled with engrossing characters
+Very well crafted dialog makes the story entertaining
+Incredibly fun battle system with a lot of depth
+A game that looks rather good on the 3DS
+The voice acting is actually very good
+A lengthy quest filled with lots of side quests and secrets
The Bad:
-The story can get bogged down in exposition
-The 3D conversion isn't very good
-There is nothing here that will convince those who invested in the Playstation 2 version to invest in this one; there are no 3DS exclusive extras here
In 2006 Tales of the Abyss was released on the Playstation 2. It's release was, unfortunately, overshadowed by Square-Enix's Final Fantasy XII. It's a shame because several gamers missed out on a considerable gem. And strangely enough, six years later the game is still just as good as it was then. It's aged well, and now those who missed out before may have a second chance to experience it.
Tales of the Abyss takes place in the fantasy world of Auldrant. A world ruled by "The Score." An enormous stone that more or less tells the fate. A fate that can't be changed. And the one who is likely to change this is Luke Von Fabre. He's a rich young man living in a manor. He was kidnapped seven years prior and when he was rescued couldn't remember anything. As a result he has been kept in the manor and sheltered during this time. When training with his mentor Van, a mysterious woman named Tear breaks into the manor and in an failed attempt to assassinate Van, is suddenly transported away with Luke. For the first time Luke is in the outside world. But why was Tear trying to assassinate Van? And what does Luke have to do with the score? It all comes together.
There are a couple of things about Tales of the Abyss's story that work on a lot of levels. The first and most stand out are the characters. It's got a fantastic ensemble cast. These are charming characters who will develop and change throughout the story. They each come with their own histories as well as their own personalities. Luke becomes more than just the "spoiled brat," for instance. And his entourage are there to fill more than just the steretypical role you first come to meet them in. The story is helped even further because it's got a lot of well orchestrated dialog. It's funny at times and heartbreaking at others. There can sometimes be too much focus on character, though. In between story segments you can view skits that let you know more about the characters and they'll sometimes discuss certain plot elements. They're usually humorous or add more to the story, or let you know more about the characters. They pop up a lot, however. You can, at times, feel drowned out in character development.
The story also tackles some heavy themes, but manages to go about it in a way that isn't preachy like so many JRPGs have a tendency to do. Despite what topical issues Tales of the Abyss brings up, you never feel like the game is lecturing, talking down to you or trying to teach you lessons all the time. It's primarily there to be entertaining and fun.
The Tales series does, from time to time, have a tendency to get a bit wordy and drowned out in exposition, however. As entertaining as the story can be you'll find moments where you'll go to a town, hear all sorts of exposition and then be directed to another town (sometimes with no dungeon or battles in between) just to be hit over the head with more exposition. In Tales of the Abyss this happens primarily because there's so much to take in. The story can feel overwhelming at times and convoluted at others. It's entertaining, but gets bogged down because of how much is thrown in. So much so that it slows down not because the pacing of the game calls for it... but because the story has to take a moment to explain things to the player.
Don't think this means Tales of the Abyss is absolutely no fun. It's a lot of fun. Particularly because the battle system is so amazing. Tales of the Abyss, like many Tales games, uses the linear motion battle system. You come into contact with the enemy and are whisked into a battle where you can move around freely on a line. Soon you'll be able to free roam all you want without being on a single line. You can attack normally or use special techniques called Artes. It works in such a way that battling is actually quite fun. But even the battle system adds layers at some point. This isn't just mindless button mashing. If you don't begin to learn some of the finer points of the battle system, Tales of the Abyss just might crush you.
There are two things that add to the battle experience. The first are the AD skills. At some point you'll get capacity cores that can grant a bonus to stats as you level up. As you get these bonuses you may also get AD skills. Get enough bonus to your strength, for instance and you'll learn an AD skill that might add to your attack string (so you have five swings to an attack instead of just four). The AD skills serve as a slight boost to your characters. They start off basic, letting you free run or recover form an attack that knocks you away. But soon you'll have longer combos, or perhaps a boost in speed during battle. Maybe even skills that will let you recover a small amount of HP as you take damage. You don't HAVE to play with these perks on either. If you feel they are making the game too easy you can turn them off.
You second thing is the field of fonons. As you cast certain elemental spells certain fields will appear. Stand in them and use an arte and some of your artes will morph and turn into different and more powerful artes corresponding to that element. It's amusing stuff.
The only issue is that it takes a while before the game actually introduces you to the AD skills. You'll learn some, but you won't get a capacity core for quite some time. Likewise, the game doesn't even bother to explain field of fonons for a LONG time (but the game doesn't have to explain it in order for you to take advantage of it). Other aspects get introduced slightly later as well. Every character has an overlimit gauge. When full and they go overlimit they take half damage and don't stumble. Until you get Mystic Artes (more or less Tales of the Abyss's form of a super attack) it seems like a useless perk.
You only control one character in combat, however. The others are controlled by AI, but they're usually quite competent. Usually they'll heal characters without question or exploit enemy weaknesses. The exception is that they sometimes will use items a little too freely. Luckily the game lets you customize some of these things. You can select for characters not to use items, for instance. Or to focus primarily on physical attacks or magic.
All these elements give Tales of the Abyss some depth to the battle system. And it's important to try and exploit them. The journey is long. It might well take you sixty hours to complete the game the first time through. However, the game has a lot of replay value as well as tons of optional content. In nearly every town you visit there is something extra to do. Small tiny quests. Some connect to an even bigger quest where the reward is a special item, a weapon for a character or perhaps even a title (which impacts a characters stats). There's a lot to explore in Tales of the Abyss. The main game itself can take around sixty hours, but do all the optional content and the game can be double that. There's also a New Game+ and you can alter the difficulty level in it.
In terms of what's changed from the PS2... there isn't very much. Although you will be impressed that they were able to port a Playstation 2 game to a handheld. The game certainly looks nicer on the 3DS as it looks a lot smoother and the presentation looks a little cleaner. The load times are also vastly improved over the Playstation 2 version. Most everything else is about the same, however. The voice acting is still very good and well delivered and it's nice that they retained it here. The music also still sounds good coming from the 3DS's speakers. What doesn't work out so well is the 3D. Like some of your favorite movies, some games just don't make the transition to 3D well. Tales of the Abyss is one of them. The 3D simply doesn't add anything to the experience. It isn't bad in battle, but Tales of the Abyss doesn't offer many other moments where the 3D is likely to enhance the experience. In most cases, you wouldn't even notice the game was in 3D at all. You're better off playing with the 3D turned off. Aside from that, the only other difference is that there is absolutely no multiplayer anymore. Even if you and a friend own the game, it's completely gone.
Aside from that, the game is virtually unchanged from the Playstation 2 version. There are no extra bosses or new sidequests thrown in exclusively for the 3DS. It's pretty much a straight port. This begs the question... is the game worth getting if you already have it on the Playstation 2? Well, that's hard to say. It's a smoother looking and running game, but the lack of any real extras doesn't really make it worth while for those who have the Playstation 2 version. Unless you really want it on the go or you just want to relive it there's no reason to pick it up if you've still got your Playstation 2 version. Those who have never played it and happen to have a 3DS, however, will definitely enjoy the game if they're looking for something to keep them busy for a while.
Tales of the Abyss is still a good game. One that has aged quite gracefully. If you haven't had the chance to experience this adventure and you're a fan of the JRPG, then this is a must own for 3DS owners who don't already have the Playstation 2 version.
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Tales of the Abyss 3DS is a more or less direct port of the PS2 version of TotA. I never had a chance to play the original, so this is my take on the game coming purely from the 3DS experience.
Story 9.5/10
First of all, the game has a fantastic, engrossing story. While many will say it is clichéd with anime tropes, I would only agree in part. However, this game has its own spin on many of those tropes and does so in such a way that captivated me unlike anything I've played since Xenosaga. The characters have real problems and address them. This game is filled with imperfect, jagged characters, and they all must band together across those imperfections to rise above what they expect from themselves. I won't go into any details, because anything would spoil the plot other than the game's brief blurb on the back of the cover. Make sure to not to read about the story because it must be experienced first hand, any spoilers will do just that--spoil the magic of this game.
Gameplay 10/10
The gameplay itself is fantastic. The Tales battle system took a big step with the addition of Free run, which allows the player to stray from the action line with the enemy, enabling you to run freely around the battlefield. The combat itself is quite engaging. It is not turn based. It is almost more like Smash Bros. in that you have two buttons to determine different attacks, which will vary depending on the direction the circle pad is pushed. Battles are engaging and only get more fun as the game continues. The difficulty is fairly low if you can wrap your head around the tactics of the combat system, but there are harder modes available (two after a new game).
Content 10/10 (if you've already played the PS2 version, this changes as there is no additional content in the game)
The game has many sidequests and the main game will probably last you anywhere between 40 and 60 hours your first time through--it is a substantial game. Some sidequests can only be completed on a second playthrough of the game which, along with multiple difficulties, is more incentive to play through the quest several times.
I don't know how the PS2 version differed in controls, but this game plays wonderfully on the 3DS. The controls are tight and effective.
Visuals 8.5/10
The visuals in this game are quite nice--thus far, this is certainly the nicest looking RPG I've ever played on a handheld. The size of the world is impressive as well, and I don't think it would be exaggerating to rank this among the biggest RPGs on a portable system. The low resolution of the 3DS screen, along with a lack of anti-aliasing, means that a lot of small details are more jagged than playing this on a large CRT television through your PS2. However, despite what people have said about the game, the 3D adds to help this a little--if you put the slider to somewhere between 30 and 40 percent, the game looks really grand. I haven't turned the 3D for more than a minute in my first playthrough simply because it is quite enjoyable and adds a nice depth to the game.
In short, if you have a 3DS and like RPGs, this is your game. If you don't have a 3DS but like RPGs, this is the time to get one. If you can find a copy of this increasingly hard-to-find game, grab it. You'll enjoy it and if you don't, you can probably sell it for little, if any, loss.
10/10
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Disclaimer: I never played the original PS2 version of this game. I've only played the 3DS verison.
I... I just love this game. After plugging 40 hours into it in the past month, I've decided that it is my favorite 3DS game to date. The story, if you haven't played it before, is wonderful. It's the first storyline in a long time that's made me emotionally invested in the characters. I feel like I know them like old friends, and the enemies and foes truly feel like my own enemies and foes. As far as story length goes, yes it's LONG. It's a very long game. An chances are, you won't get most of the secret story points on your first playthrough. I'm still not done yet, but who knows, maybe I'll play it again. :D
Now, onto the nitty-gritty: graphics and controls. The game feels very good to play, and the battles (all that's really important control-wise) are VERY fun. The shortcut feature is now implemented to the touch screen for easy access. I can say with absolute confidence that the controls feel natural and are very easy to grasp, leaving the rest of the game to perfect your skills. Lotsa fun, I can't tell ya enough.
Graphics are wonderful, and easy on the eyes. I don't use the 3D on the game much though. It's just not really needed. I mean, it's cool, but not needed, ya know? Same kind of sentiment that I had with Ocarina of Time 3Dgreat game, with 3D if you want to use it. Considering this was a PS2 game before, the visuals are WONDERFUL. I really wish they could do this kind of port with other Tales of the World games. Battle camera feels very smooth, too.
The audio in this game is where I was really taken back. Most Japanese RPGs that are translated to English have TERRIBLE voice acting, but this game... it feels like the characters really FEEL what they're saying, and they don't sound too obnoxious. Yes, there are a couple bad voices (two, tops), but how different is that from day-to-day life, huh? ;) The music is wonderful. It makes you feel the mood of the game. While there are many tracks that are used over and over, they never really feel out of place. A nice touch, I gotta say.
Overall, this game is a typical JRPG: young adults fight an evil organization to save the world, and they all grow up along the way. However, this game has left a great impression on me, and I can't wait to finish the game, and then play it again. Why not? After all, it's the best RPG on the Nintendo 3DS to date!
If you're looking for an RPG and Pokemon and Kingdom Hearts don't fit your fancy, this game will satisfy. I guarantee it. I still can't believe final fantasy xii overshadowed this gem...
Honest reviews on Tales of the Abyss - Nintendo 3DS
I'll keep this short. The Tales Of series has been 1 of my favorite rpg series since Tales of Destiny for PS1 & i've loved every game in the series since.. They always deliver amazing, rich worlds to explore with fun, lovable, anime style characters, engaging stories with epic plot twists, great action oriented battle systems & enough depth of rpg gameplay to satisfy most die hard rpg fans.. I was so happy when i found out they were bringing the ps2 classic to the 3ds i didnt know what to do with myself except snatch it up & try & spread the word that this is a great game that everybody who has 3ds should play.. Its worth every penny & in purhasing it hopefully it'll show Nintendo & the powers that be that we americans love not just rpgs but great games just as much as the next gamer & want more of these great games to come our way... If your looking for a great rpg for the 3ds, this is it!!!!!!
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This game, when it first came out on PS2 years ago was absolutely fantastic! The anime cut-scenes are gorgeous (yes, full-on traditionally animated), the voice acting is solid, the story is interesting, the in-game sprites are 3d modeled & have all sorts of little expressions for different emotions plus different costumes for many in-game earned "titles"
The 3DS version is basically the exact same game. There is absolutely nothing new here. The graphics on a tiny lil 3DS screen don't look very good as nobody bothered to remake them for the new media (everything was made to see on a bigger screen of a television, it really shows) and the dual-screen is severely underused
If you have access to the PS2 release go play that instead. Otherwise, play this on the XL. The graphics on smaller screens just look pathetic
Really sad the "skits" are still total silence. Yes, the original American PS2 release was silent too, but you'd think they would have dubbed at least a few for the new release (the Japanese release had a dub! Why can't we??). The icons still have animated mouths, and the music quiets down... but there's no dub! (you also can't fast-skip the text in the skit. The experience really starts to drag)
