I could argue some series --at least numerous entries in the series-- (Suikoden/Final Fantasy) it doesn't matter if you connect with the characters if the overall plot and gameplay is engaging.
@Weston Meyer Well I haven't played legendia so I can't really say if it's better or worse, I just meant that vesperia's cast go together with each other so well and keep complementing their personalities with one another that I could never see any other cast be better. But I might just be biased lul. Besides Yuri is most likely one, if not the, best main protagonist in the tales of mothership franchise. *Edit: I have played symphonia and berseria as well, probably gonna get abyss when I can!
Currently, those three are the only anyone needs to play. They are the best of the entire series (but let's hope we can add Arise to that list cuz god does it look good) there are a few other good ones, but those are the must plays. and no one should ever play legendia. I don't care what anyone says, that game is utter trash.
Tales of Vesperia was my first (and only) Tales game. I keep meaning to play the others and will likely do so after replaying Vesperia, but I LOVE Vesperia. I have so many happy feels from that game. If you're saying there are better Tales games, I am stoked to give them a try.
There is a special feeling that vesperia managed to capture. It will be hard to emulate that experience, but coming from symphonia first and then moving to vesperia, I still loved symphonia more. Part of that could be nostalgia, but there is no denying it is great
I think Tales of Vesperia, Tales of the Abyss or Tales of Symphonia are great games for newcomers. I think they are "balanced" between the old games and the modern ones. But better wait for the Tales of Vesperia definitive edition since it's coming to pretty much all consoles. Games I played: Tales of Symphonia (GameCube) first, then Tales of Phantasia (GBA), then Tales of Vesperia (Xbox 360), then Tales of Symphonia Knight of Ratatosk (Wii), then Tales of Hearts R (Vita), then Tales of Zestiria (PS4) and I have Tales of Berseria waiting in line...
Hey I know I'm 2 years late so I'm going to assume you have finished Tales of Berseria. I plan on getting into the Tales series and right now Berseria and Vesperia are both on sale where I'm from. Which would you recommend I start with? Side note, I only got into JRPGs recently and have only played FF7R and P5R.
@@maverick608 Not a problem. I say go for Vesperia but I'm being biased because it's one of my favorite Tales of games (and I personally like it's story better than Berseria). Honestly, you can go for either of them, they are great games.
As a tales veteran I personally recommend starting with either Abyss or Vesperia (The remaster that comes out this year) if you like open worlds and Xillia for field map-style. I do not recommend Graces f as a first, even though it's a good Tales game, but the combat isn't traditional with TP (the MP in Tales) and the combat might not be for everyone that want's to get into Tales.
It's gonna depend on the person. I got someone into Tales with Graces f actually and he loved the battle system. Tho i agree with Abyss and Vesperia just for their amazing combat,voice acting and cast.
Agreed, even if symphonia is a favorite among the fans (not me), I think Abyss is a better start point, the combat is better with free run and more abilities, the only downside of abyss comparing it to symphonia would be that the latter is more accesible, thought the remaster re-release and Luke is kind a bitch early on. Vesperia is the absolute best starting point IMO, but with the remaster coming out is kinda a waste going back to the 360 version.
Want to know something funny? Tales of legendia was the first tales game I've ever played before symphonia and I loved a lot about that game. The combat was weird but I just loved the music, story, characters, and atmosphere in that game. It was beautiful and the game that got me into the tales series :)
I mean, the battle system was pretty mediocre, and most of the other chars besides Edna and Zaveid didn't strike a chord with me (and they did mostly because I played Berseria before).
I myself like the game just fine. Zesteria had a nice and colorful cast with a story that works for me. I just find a lot about it's story intriquing. I have not played Berseria. (Actually I tried the demo and the conbat didn't sell me, much less the darker tone. Honestly, compared to Vesperia and Graces which I just played, it felt like the life was sucked out of the combat.) People like the game more after playing Berseria, and I get that. (It is a prequel and all that.) I however got all the info I needed to know about Berseria from watching Zesteria the X and the final boss of the game. (Minus anything to do with Eizen, I got the gist of the most important plot points. I'll watch the cutscenes or maybe even play Berseria one day to eventually learn more about Eizen. But for now, eh.)
I like Zestiria! It's honestly fun having to walk from area to area instead of the usual overworld (though I still love that), the battle system overwhelmed me at first but somehow I learned, I love absolutely all the characters and their interactions make me laugh every time I play, and the story is really enjoyable to me. It's a cautionary tale against what anger or grief can do and how you can lose yourself to it if you're not careful. Symphonia showed that as well, but only with the one character and not nearly as in-depth as this.
It’s funny cuz the first tales game I beat was zesteria . I like it got me into jrpgs and anime .I was shocked it had so much outrage .I did borrow tales of sym and play it a lil of it when I was in high school. Until this video I never could not remember the name of it and I been searching everywhere for it
"Don't start with Zestiria" wish I would have had that advice before I started the series with Zestiria. But thank you for the break down I will have to give Xillia or Beseria a try.
Kingdom Geekdom Play Xillia or Graces or Vesperia. Don't play Berseria until you've finished Zestiria (if you haven't already). The stories are too connected.
Kingdom Geekdom Xillia probably is the friendliest to start with. It has a ton of modern conveniences, easy to understand and follow, not too challenging first play through, good story and cast. And it isn't that long. 35 hours, maybe, for a playthrough and a few side quests. And if you like it, Xillia 2 is right around the corner for a beefier, 50+ hour adventure.
This was a very professional and intelligent way of going about it by grouping the tales games into tiers. I think your right that for the most part that many of the tales games are great for a start off point into the series but I think the middle tier of tales games bring the best out of what the series has to offer especially from all the reviews that I've read. I've only played abyss, xillia, legendia, and phantasia and abyss is still my favourite out of the ones I played. I think games like abyss, symphonia, and vesperia would be a great starting point because those games helped popularize the tales series into the jrpg series juggernaut that it is today. From all the video that I've watched regarding the tales of series, vesperia is the most common game that I see as number one so maybe its best that people wait for the tales of vesperia definitive edition in order to get the best out of what the tales series has to offer.
TheCompletionist To be honest, he claimed it wasn't any "official" grouping but he basically just grouped them how Tales Studio grouped them. They used to have two teams develop games in the series. The old games were made by Team Destiny and some other people. Symphonia, Abyss and Vesperia, the middle games, were all made by Team Symphonia. The modern games, after Graces, were all made by a joint team of both Team Symphonia and Team Destiny members.
I never knew the game series of Tales actually was huge, i played Tales of Destiny as a kid, then i played Tales of Phantasia and now i realise theres a massive brand behind it, awesome!!!
I started with Symphonia and was hooked. I think it's the best starting place simply because it's not complicated, the story was awesome, and due to the limited rpg releases on the gamecube it was most westerners first tales game.
Tales of Phantasia is the game that introduce me to the series. ToP makes me value more the retro Tales game. Its a long journey, but i managed complet most of retro series and move to modern one. And ITS hell an experience. For me ITS the story' that hooked me up, left aside the battle mechanic that have some low and high for each title
Awesome! I was looking for something like this and glad to see I’m watching it from you. I have too many games to play this summer, so I’m gonna wait for the Vesperia remake and rewatch this video after I finish that to know what to play next. Love your channel, thanks for the consistently high quality content.
Lalena Dee Two things. While I do agree that you shouldn't start with Zestiria, under no circumstances should you play Berseria before Zestiria. Berseria is a direct prequel to Zestiria and was made to be played after. It ties in very heavily to the plot of Zestiria and NOT playing Zestiria first will ruin a lot of cool moments in Berseria because you won't know things you're supposed to know and many of the big plot reveals won't mean nearly as much. Also, playing Berseria before Zestiria will simultaneously spoil some things you aren't supposed to know yet and will all around make both games worse than they could have been. The only way I'd ever recommend playing Berseria before Zestiria is if you simply won't ever play Zestiria at all.
It's perfectly fine to start with the "old Vesperia" because /nothing/ changed except for the inclusion of Patty (and her absence never hurt the story), Flynn being a temporary party member, and some more lines that had voices. Definitive Edition wasn't remastered, it's just the original version that until now, was Japan exclusive. I played both, they're the exact same game. I prefer what we call the original because Yuri's dialogue isn't so patchy and also you don't need a NG+ to unlock the Labyrinth of Memories. :D (I quite enjoy this video and your classifications of the games)
Lol, Zestiria was actually my first and I didnt have any problem playing at all for the first time. Heck, I even enjoyed using the Armatization concept and its open world setting.
Ive only played one Tales game which is a shame but i started with Tales of Symphonia for GameCube and it was just me and two other friends playing and i wont lie it was one of the best co-op experiences ive ever had. I can wait Vesperia to hit the new consoles
Legendia was my introduction to the series. The game doesn't get any praise but I really enjoyed the story arc and the characters here. Don't be afraid to try it.
My personal recommendation would be Tales of Symphonia/ Syphonia Dawn of a new world (I know it's not super well loved but it's my fav tales game) or Tales of Xillia 1 and 2.
Brandon P. Just out of curiosity and I really want to know, what is there to like? I could list a hundred reasons why it's a bad game, but I'm legitimately curious why anyone might like it. I've asked people before but they usually just get defensive and don't actually list any reasons. Also, you say it's your favorite, does that mean you think Dawn is better than Symphonia itself?
Deltath Riylaan I like the party dynamic and the combat. I liked the look of the menus. I enjoyed following the story despite it being kinda dumb. I haven't played the game in a long long time and I'm not saying it's some incredible game. But I really like it
Brandon P. From the party dynamic perspective, wasn't it frustrating though that you only had the two fully playable leads? I was disappointed that it didn't have a full, normal cast.
I first played the series earlier this year. Knew nothing about it other then it was a jrpg. Won Symphonia on a giveaway on instagram. Within 8 hours I was totally hooked and think it was a great game to start with
Literally went through this experience myself recently. Vesperia was my choice, partly because of the recent remaster (which also allowed me to replay it alongside them - fancy that!). I think it's the best choice if you want to show the slightly more traditional side of Tales, as it is inarguably the most accessible, aesthetically pleasing and gamer friendly entry of this era. If you wanted to go modern, I think I would have to recommend Berseria. Again, more easily accessible than the other entries and less dated at what it tries to do.
Personally I actually started with xillia 2. It actually got me into the franchise despite being a direct sequel so I guess depending on what kind of person you are anything can serve as a starting point.
I just realized I already played Tales from all three group that you mentioned. Retro: Phantasia(GBA), Eternia(PS1) Middle: Symphonia, Abyss, Heart R. Modern: Graces f My most favorite is Graces f follow by Heart R, the combat system from those games are unique and very enjoyable.
I don't like supporting emulation, but from everything pre- Abyss i would recommend emulating them, the Tales series has a similar issue of the Dragon Quest series in term of accessibility so if you can play it, do it lol
I started with Berseria and it hooked me. Then I played through Tales of Destiny II (aka Tales of Eternia) and found that it was also amazing. Looking forward to playing more of the series.
Tales of Destiny was my first Tales game and along with Star Ocean 2 will always hold a special place in my gaming heart. Something about that era will make me go back and play it again and again. Just started Berseria the other night and interested to see how the series changed moving into the 3D space.
I would say tales of the abyss because it has a great plot and characters, the fof system works really well and if you want to play coop it is definetly perfect for that
I finished Xillia still such an amazing story and berseria a real tear Machine with a lovable cast. I tried playing xilla 2 but I just hated the new main guy and I bet he gets good later but I couldn't play long enough to find out. I heared zestira comes after berseria time line wise and wanna give it a shoot next if not for Eizens sister alone
I agree to an extent with what is said here. For a starting point, “the newer the better” is a pretty good way at looking at Tales, but I would recommend the trio of middle games (Symphonia, Abyss, and Vesperia) over the modern titles as your first. When starting a anthology series like this, my top recommendations are usually what I think are the best games in the series and are representative of how the series is as a whole. Symphonia, Abyss, and Vesperia don’t have anything bizarre about them that would deter someone who is new to the series. From what I’ve seen of other people’s opinions and my own, the middle trio seems to be more universally liked, so there might be a higher likelihood that a newcomer would end up liking them more than some of the modern games. If you want to start the Tales series now, I would wait for Vesperia Remastered. It’s my personal favorite, and it has most refined version of traditional tales combat before the modern games started doing some weird things.
I'm attempting to get someone into the series from playing through Tales of Symphonia; the game I got into the series with. It's working out well I think? I'll just highly recommend my friends getting Tales of Vesperia when it comes out later this year. As for myself, I like all of the different types of games in this series, though somewhere in the middle is usually the best place to start. Starting from Berseria, then to Symphonia would be quite jarring to newcomers who want to experience the series.
All of them are pretty much good to start with (well i also agree with your reasons to not start with the older titles and a few of the later games for mostly the same reasons). Personally I'd recommend Symphonia for 2 main reasons: 1. It'll give you a solid foundation on the Classic (non arte tree) Tales game battle system since all games essentially build off and add to it. 2. Once you play newer systems Symphonia's will feel more dated due to a lack of things later games add. Not to mention i also love the game (tied with Berseria for favorite in series, only reason it beats Berseria is because i personally dislike arte trees. Favorite combat though is Hearts R due to the fact enemies can counter your attacks, allowing them to be a bit more than a punching bag (granted you can counter said counter if you guard at the right time)). Personally out of all the games in the series Symphonia's the one that's solid in almost every category but doesn't particularly excel in any category either (besides maybe story, but that falls more into subject opinion....the writing itself though probably among if not the best in the series). Granted you got to remember point 2, there will be quite a few dated things about the game since it was released 14 years ago (platforms are Gamecube, ps3, and PC).
Man I remember when I first got my ps vita, immediately bought tales of hearts r. It was such a blast of a game. I remember the urge and passion for playing more (vesperia, garces and xillia) . Got myself zestiria collectors edition. After that bersiria and arise arrived. Now after so many years I got a ps3 and in the mid of my 1st graces f playthrough. Planing on playing xillia 1 and 2. As a dessert I have vesperia definitive edition that I got at a discount on ps4. Such a lovely series of games. It's a shame they're not that known and most of them are locked behind old consoles
I started out and tried Symphonia, Abyss, Xillia, and Vesperia with no success. Berseria has been the breakthrough for me. I love it so much that I have put more than 70 hours into it, but decided to backtrack and finish everything in the main world before starting the final dungeon.
I only tried Vesperia thru the gamepass but didn't like the locations, the characters or the gameplay. However I still got Berseria cause it was super cheap on steam sale. Great decision, been enjoying it a lot. Some inconsistent writing, but overall great combat and interesting characters.
I can't really recommend playing Vesperia as a first entry option. Of the middle era I recommend Abyss because of the way the player is given information. Essentially we get full out tutorials through Luke without it feeling condescending. That was my one gripe with Vesperia's intro. Love the game but for a true beginner I think Abyss is much more forgiving and had the most diverse cast of personalities. I can't however recommend ANY of the games if a player cannot handle heavier themes like the 'weight of existence'. This was a great and informative video. Great job ^-^
Zesteria isn't bad... but man it doesn't feel like a Tales game until Edna shows up. And even then, it still feels very.. off. Like, if it was it's own rpg, it'd be just fine. But as a Tales of entry... eh. Though Besteria really improved it in my eyes. As for my recommendation, Tales of Symphonia is just the most logical. At least to me.
I think the easiest way to recommend is to tell them to play the first one, since it’ll be the most available, and as long as it’s not a direct sequel you will be fine with it, if you want someone to get hooked most people are going to want the most modern game. If they want more after then I’d say it gets harder to recommend, if they want something that sticks closer to what they have then probably tell them to work backwards, and maybe give a few to avoid, but if they want something that has a different feel.. vesperia is a no brainer considering it’s one of the most available games in the series right now and considered the best by many.
I didn't realize my Tales experience so far has only been in the Middle section and that I haven't touched a Modern group game yet and that they're so different. Something I need to do when I get away from my immediate backlog.
I love the approach to this. I wish Tales would return to form a bit from its retro roots. I loved the overworld and ability to actually summon the guardian spirits in Eternia. I feel like the number of places you explore between two worlds, their oceans, and the station between them was insanely epic. I hate exploring in the modern games since they feel like bland mazelike corridors or big open fields scattered with generic enemies. Graces f was a wonderful inbetween because it had very elaborate puzzles and iconic maps because of the fixed camera angles. Open world is pretty overrated for Tales. I'd take a well designed, tight dungeon over a bland field any day. So yeah you really can't go wrong with Eternia, Symphonia, Abyss, Vesperia, Graces, or Berseria. I love berseria's characters and combat but it doesn't really capture the core of the franchise to me.
OtakuDaiKun Abyss, Symphonia and Vesperia were all open world and they were arguably the best tales games. I hope they ditch the bland corridor shit with the next game.
Amaterasu To clarify an overworld map isn't what open world means. Open world is more of a sandbox approach to game design. Rather than tightly designed maps it's a large environment with objectives scattered on it. The world maps in Tales games are more a central hub for navigating between areas.
OtakuDaiKun No Tales game has ever been open world. Also, while I absolutely love Graces, there's literally one elaborate puzzle in the entire game and it's in an optional dungeon. The rest are almost all very, VERY, very simple box pushing.
I would strongly suggest starting with Symphonia then move to Abyss and Vesperia. From there you could go either retro or modern freely. If you go retro I'd start with Phantasia then move around however you wish. If you go modern I'd start with Berseria if you want to be dark or Xillia then Xillia 2 if you want to be more light. From here if you want combat focus but story is sacrificed I'd say graces f. I'd avoid Legendia, symphonia 2, and Zestira all together personally. This way you get the most of each title and it feels less dated progressing as apposed to starting modern and always working backwards.
I fell out of playing JRPGS in the PS2/3 eras. When I got back into playing them a few years ago I didn’t know much about the Tales of series but had heard positive things. So I picked up a few, Symphonia, Abyss, Hearts, Vesperia, Zestiria and Berseria. I didn’t watch a video like this and went straight into Zestiria. I haven’t played a second Tales game yet after not really liking Zestiria but know I should. I’ve also picked up Xillia since. What’s an ideal second chance Tales game if you played Zestiria first? The things I didn’t like about it were the weak story and the battle and fusion systems.
The best game to start for me would be abyss as luke is in my mind the greatest charcater in the tales series as he starts as a brat but grows to be a great person. Also i noticed many are way too mean to him in the game exept guy and natalia and jade
You should try the psp version of phantasia that comes bundled with narikiri dungeon x It's the absolute best version since there is no more spell pause, there's a whole new character and just the overall presentation is better... minus it being solely japanese PLUS i think they may have cut some of the extra content such as pluto and gremlin spirits 😒😒
@@alextorres5467 sadly, i dont replay games🤣 i will get bored and i already can predict what will happen in most games what more if i already played it. Thats why sometimes i wish i could erase the gameplay memories i have so that i can play it again🤣
I started out with Berseria but watched a play through of Zestiria prior to playing the series since I did not play a Tales game before, did not know if this a good starting point for a newcomer like me and did not know if I will like it but eventually enjoyed the series and bought Berseria since it was a prequel to Zestiria. I partially played Tales of Hearts R on Vita and waiting on Vesperia for Switch to be released.
I have a bit of a unique perspective here. I jumped in At Xillia (even though I technically owned the US iterations of Tales of Destiny 1 and 2 on PSX, well all know that story, and Symphonia on GC, but never got into them at that time) Xillia impressed me but Xillia 2 frustrated me and I only played the first few hours, jump ahead to this year and I finally began Zestiria (equipment choices may be the more difficult than any other game I have played) and I have really enjoyed this as well mainly Sorey and Mikleo's story and Edna my favorite character, and the other cooky cast members (Lailah Rose Zaveid xD ) shame Alisha was short lived but I can kinda see why. I am a veteran RPG player, but still new to Tales in general so all I can really say is Xillia finally hooked me after up and down experiences in the early days, I should maybe give Symphonia another chance at some point though.
I have always tried to get into Tales of series, but the one that I really get into is Zesteria. Though I didn't finish it. I want to try Vesperia once it comes to Switch. I bought Besteria when it was on sale on Steam, but I didn't start it.
Thanks man a got for the ps4 tales of besteria,vesteria and berseria and didn't know which to play first so I needed a real fan of the "tales of " series
I don't think Vesperia is the best starter, mostly due to a fair amount requiring not missing things in the early game or specific conditions. Symphonia does have some things (haven't had a chance to play Abyss), but very little important can be lost for good by simply missing something. Also, Symphonia has less to keep track of in combat, giving new players more of a chance to learn things like back-stepping or manual jumping. Also, I'd say Phantasia is a good starting game specifically for people who enjoyed some of the old JRPGs with active combat. Secret of Mana comes to mind.
If you start with Graces f, Zestiria and Berseria, these 3 have a confusing arte system from the older ones. Better start on the linear battle system like Phantasia, Destiny, Legendia and Eternia then Symphonia be the next. After Symphonia, you’ll enjoy the free run system in Abyss, Vesperia and Xillia As you see the battle system is based from 2D fighting games like street fighter, then the Tekken games
IMO I would never want to play the best one first as it would be down hill from there, so one thats around the (3rd -7th) best is one id recommend. I have never ranked them in my head but I think Tales of Xillia might be one i'd recommend as a starter. If i could wipe my memory of all the games and leave my self note as to which one to play first anyways. The downside is that one is PS3 so won't work on a ps5 so if they didn't have a PS3 then i'd suggest Tales of Zestiria which is underrated imo.
Now you tell me not to start with Zestiria. I am about 50% through and for my first tales game I actually like it a lot. Should be nothing but going up from here!
I actually really like Zestiria but some of the mechanics are just awful compared to the rest of the series, if you're liking it then you should love the rest of the series :)
I'd def recommend starting with either Symphonia or Xillia depending on if you wanna go with the middle or newer games. Vesperia's story feels more tropey and annoying at times than Symphonia's even though it's a great game and I think Symphonia is a slightly better start than Abyss because Abyss can be more appreciated after playing another Tales first. Graces F isn't quite your typical tales game and Berseria is better appreciated after playing Zestiria since they take place in the same world and Zestiria came out first so they were intended to be played in that order, but I agree with why Zestiria isn't the best starting point
as someone who started the tales franchise at Zestiria, I can say that you will be fine playing it as a stand alone game. I enjoyed it as an RPG game, not as a tales game at the time
Now you tell about this. My first and technical only game of the tales of series was tales of legendia. I had a great time. Hmm still need finish it though. Maybe I'll start over soon.
Me and brother started with Symphonia 1 and 2 in the chronicles collection. I liked both, but man Emil sure loves flashbacks. (Also Symphonia 1 and 2's puzzles are more annoying than fun.) We then played Zesteria and we both very much enjoyed it. Though we unintentionally handicapped ourselves by not doing equipment and stuff correctly. It made the game much harder than it truly was but it made it enjoyable. I'm hoping to play it again soon after we finish the tales game we are playing now. We played Graces F, but got bored of it. We then played Vesperia and I think this one is now my favorite. I main best dog Repede forever. :P We have just now hoped back into Graces F and we've just now caught up to where we were before. Not bad, but the bosses aren't scaled correctly with difficulties in my opinion. (Also why can they summon reinforcements so often?) Anyways, I love the series and I'm trying to figure out which to try next. Abyss 3DS, Xillia, Berseria, or maybe another one. I know most you won't be able to get anymore unless you emulate them (That's what I've read anyway.) and I don't know how I feel about that, but we'll see what the future holds.
Games I played in order: 1. Tales of Zestiria 2. Tales of Berseria 3. Currently on my way to finish Tales of Xillia (and I like it a lot so far) Gonna play Tales of Xillia 2 after last one for sure I guess I am the "modern type of tales" lover huh
I had always known of the series but never got round to playing them. After seeing Tales of Arise trailer u wanted to start. I started with and loved Beseria. Want to maybe go back and play Zestiria but so many games i need to play first like Trials of Mana and Ghost of Tsushima haha struggles
my first and only tales game was berseria and although it didnt make me a huge fan of the series it still was good enough to make me wanna play vesperia definitive edition.
Thanks for the video, though kinda late! I got Berseria as first game! But I definitely wanna experience Edna even though my friend tells me Zestiria is the worse by far and he hates it. I dont know anything about the Tales games yet and tbh Only thing I learned/first saw ever was Edna and she's the reason I wanna try the games. But seeing how much love Berseria gets and the fact that I just found the game on a reseller site for 7 euros from 50. Sure I'll start with that :D
I got Berseria, Symphonia, and Zestiria as part of a bundle on the Humble Store a few months back, and now that my exams are finally over, and I've taken a lengthy vacation from work, I'm looking into starting to play them. So based on this video, I'm assuming the order I should go with is Symphonia, Zestiria, and then Berseria?
That's a good order! You could also work your way back in the reverse order, ending with Symphonia gets you the best story of the 3 but the gameplay does feel a little dated compared to the newer entries. Depends what you want to end on. :)
So are you supposed to connect with the characters the most in a Tales game? Cuz I found the combat in Berseria kind of a slog, and really struggled to stay invested when it came to exploration, but I did enjoy the characters. Altogether I ended up dropping it but I'd like to pick it up again, Tales of has such a passionate fanbase, I wanna see just what's so awesome about it
Berseria's gameplay certainly isn't for everyone. I personally loved the combat for how deep it was and found exploration to be serviceable. The story and especially the characters makes up for those divisive aspects in spades though and I discovered that a lot of ppl who weren't fond of the gameplay either kept going just for those two formers alone. If you haven't picked Berseria back up yet and still not sure to continue despite how good the characters are, I'd say put it on hold for now and try out the recent game: Tales of Arise. It has a much more approachable and faster paced combat system and the exploration bodies the absolute fuck outta Berseria's plus the story/characters are interesting enough to keep you going. I'm still currently playing it and been having a blast!
I think Berseria is best for begginers, favourites aside because it has one of the strongest MCs and it is very player friendly, but I think combat-wise Vesperia and Graces-f were the most interesting and I like Destiny's plot and characters most if you want an older game. You really can't go wrong with the series unless Zestiria is your first game (no offense, it *really* had potential). I think even Xillia 2 isn't so bad either if you did the first, there are actually 2 ways I figured out how to solo most of the game, but the PS3 trophy roadmap has few errors back when I got 100% so I had to figure some of it out by myself. Keep in mind Xillia 2 *isn't* glitchy whatsoever so it is a good game. I did end up enjoying it more than the 1st Xillia game.
Funny that radiant mythology trilogy that got me to the tales series then zestiria made me stick to it Although not recommended hearts r has a amazing combat from beginning to end And zestiria is a lot of fun once you get the hang of it....
Good vid! Understandably, most vids like this are often mainly from those western or more developed countries PoV but the main factors that will greatly influence ones choice would probably be "Accessibility" & "Availability". A lot of would be Tales newbies WORLDWIDE are more likely to play the PC adaptations thanks to Steam, so as good as games like Xilia are, they are inaccessible or unavailable w/o going great lengths getting them especially to people like me from countries across the seas. *cough* pleasefutureSteamreleaseasswell *cough* So from a wider perspective, I guess the coming version of Vesperia would probably be the overall best choice to introduce newbies to Tales series in all its glory all around. ...And yes, Edna is indeed love. One of the few reasons that got me trough it. Personally started w/ the original Phantasia (loved it) on the SNES through...*cough* other conventional means. A long time ago, it was the only one that was that easily accessible after all.
I would recommend starting with any of them but if I had to choose 1 it would a tie between xillia or vesperia as both have solid combat and fantastic but easy to follow stories Also am I the only person who likes the tales series but not symphonia I liked the first half of it but the second half just bored me to death
While I agree with most of what you said here, a minor nitpick I have is that I don't think Graces is part of the modern Tales games. It has the same dungeon design as earlier games in that each dungeon is more unique, unlike newer games where dungeons are pretty much just long hallways. Plus, the graphics are also more similar to Abyss and Symphonia, whereas Xillia was the first game that had the more newer type of graphics-engine they've used for every game since.
Dobadobadooo Graces is part of the modern Tales games. Zestiria is a direct evolution of Graces, albeit with a lot of flaws. And it doesn't fit with Symphonia, Abyss and Vesperia, which are all Team Symphonia games.
Again, it doesn't use the same kind of graphics the modern games use, and still uses the same dungeon-design of the Symphonia-style games. To put it like this, my friend has played and enjoyed Symphonia, Abyss, and Graces with the latter being his favorite (he's wrong, but that's another topic), and has tried to play Xillia and Zestiria but didn't enjoy them because he felt they were too different.
i remember the first Tales game I ever played was Legendia I believe and I fell in love with the series and have been wanting to get every game that I can. xD Which I believe I have all of them besides the JP titles and PS1 titles because they're expensive as crap nowadays. Lol.
Tales is a hard series to recommend a "newcomer first" largely because, in my opinion, it depends on whether you connect with the cast or not.
exactly
what's an RPG that's good even if you don't connect with the cast?
I could argue some series --at least numerous entries in the series-- (Suikoden/Final Fantasy) it doesn't matter if you connect with the characters if the overall plot and gameplay is engaging.
@Weston Meyer Vesperia*, you mean?
@Weston Meyer Well I haven't played legendia so I can't really say if it's better or worse, I just meant that vesperia's cast go together with each other so well and keep complementing their personalities with one another that I could never see any other cast be better. But I might just be biased lul. Besides Yuri is most likely one, if not the, best main protagonist in the tales of mothership franchise.
*Edit: I have played symphonia and berseria as well, probably gonna get abyss when I can!
Middle era? More like the Golden Era of the Tales series. Symphonia, Abyss and Vesperia baby!
@Weston Meyer woah ur nut
Currently, those three are the only anyone needs to play. They are the best of the entire series (but let's hope we can add Arise to that list cuz god does it look good) there are a few other good ones, but those are the must plays. and no one should ever play legendia. I don't care what anyone says, that game is utter trash.
@@gorz2013 add graces f to that list too
I just started Vespia and beat besersia yesterday
@@gorz2013 Berseria has way better gameplay than Vesperia
Tales of Vesperia was my first (and only) Tales game. I keep meaning to play the others and will likely do so after replaying Vesperia, but I LOVE Vesperia. I have so many happy feels from that game. If you're saying there are better Tales games, I am stoked to give them a try.
Jason Platt yes if you’re playing the PS3 version (Definitive edition coming soon) it’s the best game of the series
There is a special feeling that vesperia managed to capture. It will be hard to emulate that experience, but coming from symphonia first and then moving to vesperia, I still loved symphonia more. Part of that could be nostalgia, but there is no denying it is great
Tales of Xillia 1 and 2 are the best. Try them!
I started with Abyss on the 3DS and i absolutely loved the story, made me think for a good while on a lot of things
I think Tales of Vesperia, Tales of the Abyss or Tales of Symphonia are great games for newcomers. I think they are "balanced" between the old games and the modern ones. But better wait for the Tales of Vesperia definitive edition since it's coming to pretty much all consoles.
Games I played:
Tales of Symphonia (GameCube) first, then Tales of Phantasia (GBA), then Tales of Vesperia (Xbox 360), then Tales of Symphonia Knight of Ratatosk (Wii), then Tales of Hearts R (Vita), then Tales of Zestiria (PS4) and I have Tales of Berseria waiting in line...
Hey I know I'm 2 years late so I'm going to assume you have finished Tales of Berseria. I plan on getting into the Tales series and right now Berseria and Vesperia are both on sale where I'm from. Which would you recommend I start with? Side note, I only got into JRPGs recently and have only played FF7R and P5R.
@@maverick608
Not a problem. I say go for Vesperia but I'm being biased because it's one of my favorite Tales of games (and I personally like it's story better than Berseria). Honestly, you can go for either of them, they are great games.
As a tales veteran I personally recommend starting with either Abyss or Vesperia (The remaster that comes out this year) if you like open worlds and Xillia for field map-style. I do not recommend Graces f as a first, even though it's a good Tales game, but the combat isn't traditional with TP (the MP in Tales) and the combat might not be for everyone that want's to get into Tales.
It's gonna depend on the person. I got someone into Tales with Graces f actually and he loved the battle system. Tho i agree with Abyss and Vesperia just for their amazing combat,voice acting and cast.
Agreed, even if symphonia is a favorite among the fans (not me), I think Abyss is a better start point, the combat is better with free run and more abilities, the only downside of abyss comparing it to symphonia would be that the latter is more accesible, thought the remaster re-release and Luke is kind a bitch early on. Vesperia is the absolute best starting point IMO, but with the remaster coming out is kinda a waste going back to the 360 version.
Vesparia is a good recommendation to start with. I Started with Berseria
Want to know something funny? Tales of legendia was the first tales game I've ever played before symphonia and I loved a lot about that game. The combat was weird but I just loved the music, story, characters, and atmosphere in that game. It was beautiful and the game that got me into the tales series :)
Confession. I haven't played any of the classics yet but love most of the middle and modern ones.
Finally some one else who doesn't crap all over zestiria. Lailah and Edna are 2 of my favorite tales characters and that game gets way too much hate
It was my first tales game so I couldn't hate it even if I tried.
I mean, the battle system was pretty mediocre, and most of the other chars besides Edna and Zaveid didn't strike a chord with me (and they did mostly because I played Berseria before).
I myself like the game just fine. Zesteria had a nice and colorful cast with a story that works for me. I just find a lot about it's story intriquing. I have not played Berseria. (Actually I tried the demo and the conbat didn't sell me, much less the darker tone. Honestly, compared to Vesperia and Graces which I just played, it felt like the life was sucked out of the combat.)
People like the game more after playing Berseria, and I get that. (It is a prequel and all that.) I however got all the info I needed to know about Berseria from watching Zesteria the X and the final boss of the game. (Minus anything to do with Eizen, I got the gist of the most important plot points. I'll watch the cutscenes or maybe even play Berseria one day to eventually learn more about Eizen. But for now, eh.)
Xilla to Bersia
I also just started my first Persona, 5, the other day and I'm still upset it took me so long
I like Zestiria! It's honestly fun having to walk from area to area instead of the usual overworld (though I still love that), the battle system overwhelmed me at first but somehow I learned, I love absolutely all the characters and their interactions make me laugh every time I play, and the story is really enjoyable to me. It's a cautionary tale against what anger or grief can do and how you can lose yourself to it if you're not careful. Symphonia showed that as well, but only with the one character and not nearly as in-depth as this.
It’s funny cuz the first tales game I beat was zesteria . I like it got me into jrpgs and anime .I was shocked it had so much outrage .I did borrow tales of sym and play it a lil of it when I was in high school. Until this video I never could not remember the name of it and I been searching everywhere for it
"Don't start with Zestiria" wish I would have had that advice before I started the series with Zestiria. But thank you for the break down I will have to give Xillia or Beseria a try.
Kingdom Geekdom Play Xillia or Graces or Vesperia. Don't play Berseria until you've finished Zestiria (if you haven't already). The stories are too connected.
Thanks for the heads up. Xillia has been on my radar for awhile but I never got it for one reason or another. No more excuses.
Kingdom Geekdom Xillia probably is the friendliest to start with. It has a ton of modern conveniences, easy to understand and follow, not too challenging first play through, good story and cast. And it isn't that long. 35 hours, maybe, for a playthrough and a few side quests. And if you like it, Xillia 2 is right around the corner for a beefier, 50+ hour adventure.
This was a very professional and intelligent way of going about it by grouping the tales games into tiers. I think your right that for the most part that many of the tales games are great for a start off point into the series but I think the middle tier of tales games bring the best out of what the series has to offer especially from all the reviews that I've read. I've only played abyss, xillia, legendia, and phantasia and abyss is still my favourite out of the ones I played. I think games like abyss, symphonia, and vesperia would be a great starting point because those games helped popularize the tales series into the jrpg series juggernaut that it is today. From all the video that I've watched regarding the tales of series, vesperia is the most common game that I see as number one so maybe its best that people wait for the tales of vesperia definitive edition in order to get the best out of what the tales series has to offer.
TheCompletionist To be honest, he claimed it wasn't any "official" grouping but he basically just grouped them how Tales Studio grouped them. They used to have two teams develop games in the series. The old games were made by Team Destiny and some other people. Symphonia, Abyss and Vesperia, the middle games, were all made by Team Symphonia. The modern games, after Graces, were all made by a joint team of both Team Symphonia and Team Destiny members.
I never knew the game series of Tales actually was huge, i played Tales of Destiny as a kid, then i played Tales of Phantasia and now i realise theres a massive brand behind it, awesome!!!
First one I played was Bersaria; it caught me in the feels so much that I can't wait to play other Tales games.
My first Tales games were Tales of Destiny 1 & 2 which I enjoyed very much (retro RPG feels). My favorite of the bunch is Abyss.
I started with Symphonia and was hooked. I think it's the best starting place simply because it's not complicated, the story was awesome, and due to the limited rpg releases on the gamecube it was most westerners first tales game.
Tales of Phantasia is the game that introduce me to the series. ToP makes me value more the retro Tales game. Its a long journey, but i managed complet most of retro series and move to modern one. And ITS hell an experience. For me ITS the story' that hooked me up, left aside the battle mechanic that have some low and high for each title
Awesome! I was looking for something like this and glad to see I’m watching it from you.
I have too many games to play this summer, so I’m gonna wait for the Vesperia remake and rewatch this video after I finish that to know what to play next.
Love your channel, thanks for the consistently high quality content.
Lalena Dee Two things. While I do agree that you shouldn't start with Zestiria, under no circumstances should you play Berseria before Zestiria. Berseria is a direct prequel to Zestiria and was made to be played after. It ties in very heavily to the plot of Zestiria and NOT playing Zestiria first will ruin a lot of cool moments in Berseria because you won't know things you're supposed to know and many of the big plot reveals won't mean nearly as much. Also, playing Berseria before Zestiria will simultaneously spoil some things you aren't supposed to know yet and will all around make both games worse than they could have been. The only way I'd ever recommend playing Berseria before Zestiria is if you simply won't ever play Zestiria at all.
I need this kind of positive comment on my gaming channel and it's pretty cool too
It's perfectly fine to start with the "old Vesperia" because /nothing/ changed except for the inclusion of Patty (and her absence never hurt the story), Flynn being a temporary party member, and some more lines that had voices. Definitive Edition wasn't remastered, it's just the original version that until now, was Japan exclusive. I played both, they're the exact same game. I prefer what we call the original because Yuri's dialogue isn't so patchy and also you don't need a NG+ to unlock the Labyrinth of Memories. :D
(I quite enjoy this video and your classifications of the games)
Lol, Zestiria was actually my first and I didnt have any problem playing at all for the first time. Heck, I even enjoyed using the Armatization concept and its open world setting.
My first was Abyss, and then directly after, I shifted to Xillia. :3 Yeah, good move.
Ive only played one Tales game which is a shame but i started with Tales of Symphonia for GameCube and it was just me and two other friends playing and i wont lie it was one of the best co-op experiences ive ever had. I can wait Vesperia to hit the new consoles
i personally started with Berseria, but i also bought Zestiria and Arise in the same time frame
i enjoy all three of them
Legendia was my introduction to the series. The game doesn't get any praise but I really enjoyed the story arc and the characters here. Don't be afraid to try it.
My personal recommendation would be Tales of Symphonia/ Syphonia Dawn of a new world (I know it's not super well loved but it's my fav tales game) or Tales of Xillia 1 and 2.
Brandon P. Dawn isn't loved because it's terrible and isn't a real Tales game.
Deltath Riylaan well I liked it and that's all that matters there,Greg
Brandon P. Just out of curiosity and I really want to know, what is there to like? I could list a hundred reasons why it's a bad game, but I'm legitimately curious why anyone might like it. I've asked people before but they usually just get defensive and don't actually list any reasons. Also, you say it's your favorite, does that mean you think Dawn is better than Symphonia itself?
Deltath Riylaan I like the party dynamic and the combat. I liked the look of the menus. I enjoyed following the story despite it being kinda dumb.
I haven't played the game in a long long time and I'm not saying it's some incredible game. But I really like it
Brandon P. From the party dynamic perspective, wasn't it frustrating though that you only had the two fully playable leads? I was disappointed that it didn't have a full, normal cast.
I first played the series earlier this year. Knew nothing about it other then it was a jrpg. Won Symphonia on a giveaway on instagram. Within 8 hours I was totally hooked and think it was a great game to start with
If you have a 3ds try tales of the abyss. It plays like its ps2 version now its hand held. Its still available at a reasonable price.
Literally went through this experience myself recently. Vesperia was my choice, partly because of the recent remaster (which also allowed me to replay it alongside them - fancy that!). I think it's the best choice if you want to show the slightly more traditional side of Tales, as it is inarguably the most accessible, aesthetically pleasing and gamer friendly entry of this era.
If you wanted to go modern, I think I would have to recommend Berseria. Again, more easily accessible than the other entries and less dated at what it tries to do.
A Phantasia remake with modern tales battle system would be the best tales game ever.
Personally I actually started with xillia 2. It actually got me into the franchise despite being a direct sequel so I guess depending on what kind of person you are anything can serve as a starting point.
I actually started with Xillia. Looking back, it's pretty beginner friendly.
I just realized I already played Tales from all three group that you mentioned.
Retro: Phantasia(GBA), Eternia(PS1)
Middle: Symphonia, Abyss, Heart R.
Modern: Graces f
My most favorite is Graces f follow by Heart R, the combat system from those games are unique and very enjoyable.
I don't like supporting emulation, but from everything pre- Abyss i would recommend emulating them, the Tales series has a similar issue of the Dragon Quest series in term of accessibility so if you can play it, do it lol
I started with Berseria and it hooked me. Then I played through Tales of Destiny II (aka Tales of Eternia) and found that it was also amazing. Looking forward to playing more of the series.
Tales of Destiny was my first Tales game and along with Star Ocean 2 will always hold a special place in my gaming heart. Something about that era will make me go back and play it again and again.
Just started Berseria the other night and interested to see how the series changed moving into the 3D space.
I would say tales of the abyss because it has a great plot and characters, the fof system works really well and if you want to play coop it is definetly perfect for that
Tales of Symphonia was my first one, then I went back and played Phantasia, I'd say either would be a good starting point.
JustAName If you're going to play both, play Phantasia first. Symphonia is a prequel to it and meant to be played second, story wise.
I finished Xillia still such an amazing story and berseria a real tear Machine with a lovable cast. I tried playing xilla 2 but I just hated the new main guy and I bet he gets good later but I couldn't play long enough to find out. I heared zestira comes after berseria time line wise and wanna give it a shoot next if not for Eizens sister alone
Woah, am i the only one here who started with Eternia on PS1? This is the series that made me a Tales fan since grade school.
I started with Destiny also in ps1
I agree to an extent with what is said here. For a starting point, “the newer the better” is a pretty good way at looking at Tales, but I would recommend the trio of middle games (Symphonia, Abyss, and Vesperia) over the modern titles as your first. When starting a anthology series like this, my top recommendations are usually what I think are the best games in the series and are representative of how the series is as a whole. Symphonia, Abyss, and Vesperia don’t have anything bizarre about them that would deter someone who is new to the series. From what I’ve seen of other people’s opinions and my own, the middle trio seems to be more universally liked, so there might be a higher likelihood that a newcomer would end up liking them more than some of the modern games. If you want to start the Tales series now, I would wait for Vesperia Remastered. It’s my personal favorite, and it has most refined version of traditional tales combat before the modern games started doing some weird things.
I've been waiting for something like this, thanks man!
I'm attempting to get someone into the series from playing through Tales of Symphonia; the game I got into the series with. It's working out well I think? I'll just highly recommend my friends getting Tales of Vesperia when it comes out later this year. As for myself, I like all of the different types of games in this series, though somewhere in the middle is usually the best place to start. Starting from Berseria, then to Symphonia would be quite jarring to newcomers who want to experience the series.
All of them are pretty much good to start with (well i also agree with your reasons to not start with the older titles and a few of the later games for mostly the same reasons).
Personally I'd recommend Symphonia for 2 main reasons:
1. It'll give you a solid foundation on the Classic (non arte tree) Tales game battle system since all games essentially build off and add to it.
2. Once you play newer systems Symphonia's will feel more dated due to a lack of things later games add.
Not to mention i also love the game (tied with Berseria for favorite in series, only reason it beats Berseria is because i personally dislike arte trees. Favorite combat though is Hearts R due to the fact enemies can counter your attacks, allowing them to be a bit more than a punching bag (granted you can counter said counter if you guard at the right time)).
Personally out of all the games in the series Symphonia's the one that's solid in almost every category but doesn't particularly excel in any category either (besides maybe story, but that falls more into subject opinion....the writing itself though probably among if not the best in the series). Granted you got to remember point 2, there will be quite a few dated things about the game since it was released 14 years ago (platforms are Gamecube, ps3, and PC).
Man I remember when I first got my ps vita, immediately bought tales of hearts r. It was such a blast of a game. I remember the urge and passion for playing more (vesperia, garces and xillia) . Got myself zestiria collectors edition. After that bersiria and arise arrived.
Now after so many years I got a ps3 and in the mid of my 1st graces f playthrough. Planing on playing xillia 1 and 2. As a dessert I have vesperia definitive edition that I got at a discount on ps4.
Such a lovely series of games. It's a shame they're not that known and most of them are locked behind old consoles
I started with Abyss on the 3ds, but not for any particular reason. It just happened that way.
Funny thing is, that Legendia was my first title. And I loved it. Still my favorite.
I started out and tried Symphonia, Abyss, Xillia, and Vesperia with no success. Berseria has been the breakthrough for me. I love it so much that I have put more than 70 hours into it, but decided to backtrack and finish everything in the main world before starting the final dungeon.
I only tried Vesperia thru the gamepass but didn't like the locations, the characters or the gameplay. However I still got Berseria cause it was super cheap on steam sale. Great decision, been enjoying it a lot. Some inconsistent writing, but overall great combat and interesting characters.
Tales of Vesperia is probably the bets place to start. It's older, but it doesn't feel old. It's a good balance between old and new.
Started with Vesperia! Enjoyed it. Currently playing Hearts R and Berseria
I can't really recommend playing Vesperia as a first entry option. Of the middle era I recommend Abyss because of the way the player is given information. Essentially we get full out tutorials through Luke without it feeling condescending. That was my one gripe with Vesperia's intro. Love the game but for a true beginner I think Abyss is much more forgiving and had the most diverse cast of personalities. I can't however recommend ANY of the games if a player cannot handle heavier themes like the 'weight of existence'. This was a great and informative video. Great job ^-^
Zesteria isn't bad... but man it doesn't feel like a Tales game until Edna shows up. And even then, it still feels very.. off. Like, if it was it's own rpg, it'd be just fine. But as a Tales of entry... eh. Though Besteria really improved it in my eyes.
As for my recommendation, Tales of Symphonia is just the most logical. At least to me.
I think the easiest way to recommend is to tell them to play the first one, since it’ll be the most available, and as long as it’s not a direct sequel you will be fine with it, if you want someone to get hooked most people are going to want the most modern game. If they want more after then I’d say it gets harder to recommend, if they want something that sticks closer to what they have then probably tell them to work backwards, and maybe give a few to avoid, but if they want something that has a different feel.. vesperia is a no brainer considering it’s one of the most available games in the series right now and considered the best by many.
I stareted with berseria and absolutely loved it. been going back and playing other ones before i start arise
I didn't realize my Tales experience so far has only been in the Middle section and that I haven't touched a Modern group game yet and that they're so different. Something I need to do when I get away from my immediate backlog.
I love the approach to this. I wish Tales would return to form a bit from its retro roots. I loved the overworld and ability to actually summon the guardian spirits in Eternia. I feel like the number of places you explore between two worlds, their oceans, and the station between them was insanely epic. I hate exploring in the modern games since they feel like bland mazelike corridors or big open fields scattered with generic enemies. Graces f was a wonderful inbetween because it had very elaborate puzzles and iconic maps because of the fixed camera angles. Open world is pretty overrated for Tales. I'd take a well designed, tight dungeon over a bland field any day. So yeah you really can't go wrong with Eternia, Symphonia, Abyss, Vesperia, Graces, or Berseria. I love berseria's characters and combat but it doesn't really capture the core of the franchise to me.
OtakuDaiKun Abyss, Symphonia and Vesperia were all open world and they were arguably the best tales games. I hope they ditch the bland corridor shit with the next game.
Amaterasu To clarify an overworld map isn't what open world means. Open world is more of a sandbox approach to game design. Rather than tightly designed maps it's a large environment with objectives scattered on it. The world maps in Tales games are more a central hub for navigating between areas.
OtakuDaiKun Well they certainly were more “open world” then tales games we get now with just bland fields and corridors
OtakuDaiKun No Tales game has ever been open world. Also, while I absolutely love Graces, there's literally one elaborate puzzle in the entire game and it's in an optional dungeon. The rest are almost all very, VERY, very simple box pushing.
I would strongly suggest starting with Symphonia then move to Abyss and Vesperia. From there you could go either retro or modern freely. If you go retro I'd start with Phantasia then move around however you wish. If you go modern I'd start with Berseria if you want to be dark or Xillia then Xillia 2 if you want to be more light.
From here if you want combat focus but story is sacrificed I'd say graces f. I'd avoid Legendia, symphonia 2, and Zestira all together personally. This way you get the most of each title and it feels less dated progressing as apposed to starting modern and always working backwards.
I fell out of playing JRPGS in the PS2/3 eras. When I got back into playing them a few years ago I didn’t know much about the Tales of series but had heard positive things. So I picked up a few, Symphonia, Abyss, Hearts, Vesperia, Zestiria and Berseria. I didn’t watch a video like this and went straight into Zestiria.
I haven’t played a second Tales game yet after not really liking Zestiria but know I should. I’ve also picked up Xillia since. What’s an ideal second chance Tales game if you played Zestiria first?
The things I didn’t like about it were the weak story and the battle and fusion systems.
So basically start with the Nintendo Switch version of Vesperia
Why Switch? The Definitive Edition came out to all the systems...
You can literally play all the tales games at once it's kind of fun!
The best game to start for me would be abyss as luke is in my mind the greatest charcater in the tales series as he starts as a brat but grows to be a great person. Also i noticed many are way too mean to him in the game exept guy and natalia and jade
Played phantasia and yes its perfect and I am ready to play the rest of it
You should try the psp version of phantasia that comes bundled with narikiri dungeon x
It's the absolute best version since there is no more spell pause, there's a whole new character and just the overall presentation is better... minus it being solely japanese PLUS i think they may have cut some of the extra content such as pluto and gremlin spirits 😒😒
@@alextorres5467 sadly, i dont replay games🤣 i will get bored and i already can predict what will happen in most games what more if i already played it. Thats why sometimes i wish i could erase the gameplay memories i have so that i can play it again🤣
I started out with Berseria but watched a play through of Zestiria prior to playing the series since I did not play a Tales game before, did not know if this a good starting point for a newcomer like me and did not know if I will like it but eventually enjoyed the series and bought Berseria since it was a prequel to Zestiria. I partially played Tales of Hearts R on Vita and waiting on Vesperia for Switch to be released.
I have a bit of a unique perspective here. I jumped in At Xillia (even though I technically owned the US iterations of Tales of Destiny 1 and 2 on PSX, well all know that story, and Symphonia on GC, but never got into them at that time) Xillia impressed me but Xillia 2 frustrated me and I only played the first few hours, jump ahead to this year and I finally began Zestiria (equipment choices may be the more difficult than any other game I have played) and I have really enjoyed this as well mainly Sorey and Mikleo's story and Edna my favorite character, and the other cooky cast members (Lailah Rose Zaveid xD ) shame Alisha was short lived but I can kinda see why. I am a veteran RPG player, but still new to Tales in general so all I can really say is Xillia finally hooked me after up and down experiences in the early days, I should maybe give Symphonia another chance at some point though.
I've only played Phantasia. Enjoying it so far. I'm an old school gamer.
I started with Zesteria. Kinda killed the series for me. Might jump back in with Arise.
I have always tried to get into Tales of series, but the one that I really get into is Zesteria. Though I didn't finish it. I want to try Vesperia once it comes to Switch. I bought Besteria when it was on sale on Steam, but I didn't start it.
Edna was what made me continue with Zestiria
Awesome video do u plan on doing one for Final Fantasy or atleast Dragonquest sense the new game will be coming out soon?
Thanks man a got for the ps4 tales of besteria,vesteria and berseria and didn't know which to play first so I needed a real fan of the "tales of " series
I don't think Vesperia is the best starter, mostly due to a fair amount requiring not missing things in the early game or specific conditions. Symphonia does have some things (haven't had a chance to play Abyss), but very little important can be lost for good by simply missing something. Also, Symphonia has less to keep track of in combat, giving new players more of a chance to learn things like back-stepping or manual jumping.
Also, I'd say Phantasia is a good starting game specifically for people who enjoyed some of the old JRPGs with active combat. Secret of Mana comes to mind.
If you start with Graces f, Zestiria and Berseria, these 3 have a confusing arte system from the older ones.
Better start on the linear battle system like Phantasia, Destiny, Legendia and Eternia then Symphonia be the next.
After Symphonia, you’ll enjoy the free run system in Abyss, Vesperia and Xillia
As you see the battle system is based from 2D fighting games like street fighter, then the Tekken games
IMO I would never want to play the best one first as it would be down hill from there, so one thats around the (3rd -7th) best is one id recommend. I have never ranked them in my head but I think Tales of Xillia might be one i'd recommend as a starter. If i could wipe my memory of all the games and leave my self note as to which one to play first anyways. The downside is that one is PS3 so won't work on a ps5 so if they didn't have a PS3 then i'd suggest Tales of Zestiria which is underrated imo.
Now you tell me not to start with Zestiria. I am about 50% through and for my first tales game I actually like it a lot. Should be nothing but going up from here!
I actually really like Zestiria but some of the mechanics are just awful compared to the rest of the series, if you're liking it then you should love the rest of the series :)
I'd def recommend starting with either Symphonia or Xillia depending on if you wanna go with the middle or newer games. Vesperia's story feels more tropey and annoying at times than Symphonia's even though it's a great game and I think Symphonia is a slightly better start than Abyss because Abyss can be more appreciated after playing another Tales first. Graces F isn't quite your typical tales game and Berseria is better appreciated after playing Zestiria since they take place in the same world and Zestiria came out first so they were intended to be played in that order, but I agree with why Zestiria isn't the best starting point
as someone who started the tales franchise at Zestiria, I can say that you will be fine playing it as a stand alone game. I enjoyed it as an RPG game, not as a tales game at the time
Now you tell about this. My first and technical only game of the tales of series was tales of legendia. I had a great time. Hmm still need finish it though. Maybe I'll start over soon.
Personally I'd recommend Abyss or Vesperia as a first as those were the first ones I played and the most beginner friendly in my opinion :)
Me and brother started with Symphonia 1 and 2 in the chronicles collection. I liked both, but man Emil sure loves flashbacks. (Also Symphonia 1 and 2's puzzles are more annoying than fun.)
We then played Zesteria and we both very much enjoyed it. Though we unintentionally handicapped ourselves by not doing equipment and stuff correctly. It made the game much harder than it truly was but it made it enjoyable. I'm hoping to play it again soon after we finish the tales game we are playing now.
We played Graces F, but got bored of it.
We then played Vesperia and I think this one is now my favorite. I main best dog Repede forever. :P
We have just now hoped back into Graces F and we've just now caught up to where we were before. Not bad, but the bosses aren't scaled correctly with difficulties in my opinion. (Also why can they summon reinforcements so often?)
Anyways, I love the series and I'm trying to figure out which to try next. Abyss 3DS, Xillia, Berseria, or maybe another one. I know most you won't be able to get anymore unless you emulate them (That's what I've read anyway.) and I don't know how I feel about that, but we'll see what the future holds.
Games I played in order:
1. Tales of Zestiria
2. Tales of Berseria
3. Currently on my way to finish Tales of Xillia (and I like it a lot so far)
Gonna play Tales of Xillia 2 after last one for sure
I guess I am the "modern type of tales" lover huh
About to start my first tales game today and i have gone with berseria
Berseria, I would always recommend that one for beginners
My first tales game is tale of the abyss
Huhu my fav
I just preordered vesperia's definitive edition, ironically.
Though my first tales game was symphonia. Still have my gc copy!
I had always known of the series but never got round to playing them. After seeing Tales of Arise trailer u wanted to start. I started with and loved Beseria. Want to maybe go back and play Zestiria but so many games i need to play first like Trials of Mana and Ghost of Tsushima haha struggles
my first and only tales game was berseria and although it didnt make me a huge fan of the series it still was good enough to make me wanna play vesperia definitive edition.
Thanks for the video, though kinda late!
I got Berseria as first game! But I definitely wanna experience Edna even though my friend tells me Zestiria is the worse by far and he hates it. I dont know anything about the Tales games yet and tbh Only thing I learned/first saw ever was Edna and she's the reason I wanna try the games. But seeing how much love Berseria gets and the fact that I just found the game on a reseller site for 7 euros from 50. Sure I'll start with that :D
If you’ve played Berseria skip Zesteria, Berseria did literally everything that Zesteria was trying to do better than it
I got Berseria, Symphonia, and Zestiria as part of a bundle on the Humble Store a few months back, and now that my exams are finally over, and I've taken a lengthy vacation from work, I'm looking into starting to play them. So based on this video, I'm assuming the order I should go with is Symphonia, Zestiria, and then Berseria?
That's a good order!
You could also work your way back in the reverse order, ending with Symphonia gets you the best story of the 3 but the gameplay does feel a little dated compared to the newer entries. Depends what you want to end on. :)
@@JRPGGaming Thanks! I'm all about story, so I think I'll work through it the way you suggested then.
So are you supposed to connect with the characters the most in a Tales game? Cuz I found the combat in Berseria kind of a slog, and really struggled to stay invested when it came to exploration, but I did enjoy the characters. Altogether I ended up dropping it but I'd like to pick it up again, Tales of has such a passionate fanbase, I wanna see just what's so awesome about it
Berseria's gameplay certainly isn't for everyone. I personally loved the combat for how deep it was and found exploration to be serviceable. The story and especially the characters makes up for those divisive aspects in spades though and I discovered that a lot of ppl who weren't fond of the gameplay either kept going just for those two formers alone.
If you haven't picked Berseria back up yet and still not sure to continue despite how good the characters are, I'd say put it on hold for now and try out the recent game: Tales of Arise. It has a much more approachable and faster paced combat system and the exploration bodies the absolute fuck outta Berseria's plus the story/characters are interesting enough to keep you going. I'm still currently playing it and been having a blast!
I think Berseria is best for begginers, favourites aside because it has one of the strongest MCs and it is very player friendly, but I think combat-wise Vesperia and Graces-f were the most interesting and I like Destiny's plot and characters most if you want an older game. You really can't go wrong with the series unless Zestiria is your first game (no offense, it *really* had potential). I think even Xillia 2 isn't so bad either if you did the first, there are actually 2 ways I figured out how to solo most of the game, but the PS3 trophy roadmap has few errors back when I got 100% so I had to figure some of it out by myself. Keep in mind Xillia 2 *isn't* glitchy whatsoever so it is a good game. I did end up enjoying it more than the 1st Xillia game.
Funny that radiant mythology trilogy that got me to the tales series then zestiria made me stick to it
Although not recommended hearts r has a amazing combat from beginning to end
And zestiria is a lot of fun once you get the hang of it....
I'm gonna go with Symphonia and/or Berseria. Do any Tales games have romance elements?
Good vid! Understandably, most vids like this are often mainly from those western or more developed countries PoV but the main factors that will greatly influence ones choice would probably be "Accessibility" & "Availability".
A lot of would be Tales newbies WORLDWIDE are more likely to play the PC adaptations thanks to Steam, so as good as games like Xilia are, they are inaccessible or unavailable w/o going great lengths getting them especially to people like me from countries across the seas. *cough* pleasefutureSteamreleaseasswell *cough*
So from a wider perspective, I guess the coming version of Vesperia would probably be the overall best choice to introduce newbies to Tales series in all its glory all around.
...And yes, Edna is indeed love. One of the few reasons that got me trough it.
Personally started w/ the original Phantasia (loved it) on the SNES through...*cough* other conventional means. A long time ago, it was the only one that was that easily accessible after all.
I would recommend starting with any of them but if I had to choose 1 it would a tie between xillia or vesperia as both have solid combat and fantastic but easy to follow stories
Also am I the only person who likes the tales series but not symphonia I liked the first half of it but the second half just bored me to death
Been curious about the series since the Abyss and a lot of friends keep recommending Berseria which is currently at 9.99
While I agree with most of what you said here, a minor nitpick I have is that I don't think Graces is part of the modern Tales games. It has the same dungeon design as earlier games in that each dungeon is more unique, unlike newer games where dungeons are pretty much just long hallways. Plus, the graphics are also more similar to Abyss and Symphonia, whereas Xillia was the first game that had the more newer type of graphics-engine they've used for every game since.
Dobadobadooo Graces is part of the modern Tales games. Zestiria is a direct evolution of Graces, albeit with a lot of flaws. And it doesn't fit with Symphonia, Abyss and Vesperia, which are all Team Symphonia games.
Again, it doesn't use the same kind of graphics the modern games use, and still uses the same dungeon-design of the Symphonia-style games. To put it like this, my friend has played and enjoyed Symphonia, Abyss, and Graces with the latter being his favorite (he's wrong, but that's another topic), and has tried to play Xillia and Zestiria but didn't enjoy them because he felt they were too different.
My first Tales game was Tales of Xillia but I have Tales of Zesteria because I don't have a PS4 yet so unfortunately I can't play Berseria yet
Vesperia on Switch hype train choo choo!!!
i remember the first Tales game I ever played was Legendia I believe and I fell in love with the series and have been wanting to get every game that I can. xD Which I believe I have all of them besides the JP titles and PS1 titles because they're expensive as crap nowadays. Lol.
I started on Berseria on PS4 and then Zesteria on PC.. also looking to get Xillia for PS3.