New face of PS Plus service “Game Catalog”! Why not get a quick introduction to the Tales of series and get addicted to the swamp?

A robust RPG “Tales of” series brought to you by Bandai Namco Entertainment. This series, which will celebrate its 29th anniversary in 2024, has a long history of over 50 titles, including side stories.

However, there are many who say, “I’m interested in the Tales of series, but there are so many that I don’t know where to start.”

In order to help solve this “problem with long-running titles,” this article introduces the “Tales of” series, which is easy to play because it can be played on current hardware.

This time, we will focus on four titles that will be added to the “Game Catalog” service for PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium in February 2024, making them even easier to play.

Golden Week is in full swing, so if you’re wondering, “I want to play an intense RPG since it’s the holidays, but what should I do?”, why not give the Tales of series a try?

◆There are 4 works in the “Tales of” series included in the game catalog!Find your favorite title within a limited period of time
A total of four “Tales of” titles were included in the game catalog: “Tales of Symphonia,” “Tales of Vesperia,” “Tales of Zestiria,” and the latest in the series, “Tales of Arise.”

All of these titles were originally playable on PS4, but now that they have been added to the game catalog, it has become easier to play them on a trial basis. Have you ever thought, “I’m a little curious about something, but I’ll be in trouble if I buy it and it doesn’t fit?” In such cases, we recommend subscribing to PS Plus Extra or Premium!

The subscriber-only service “Game Catalog” can be enjoyed for one month, so you can play an entire game at a much lower price than purchasing a single full-price game.

It’s a smart move to try something out, and if it’s interesting, buy it at full price.

Actually, I’m the type of person who doesn’t know how to get started, and there are several games that I wouldn’t have gotten into without the game catalog. We are now in a convenient era where you can play the entire game with a subscription.

Now, the Tales of series can finally be played using such a convenient service, but players’ time is limited. Also, since the game catalog is a subscription service, there is a time limit in which it will eventually be discontinued. With limited time, why not find the Tales of that suits you and make the best first impression of the series?

If you then purchase the entire title, the value of this article will be worth 100 points.

◆Start with the latest work! ? Let’s firmly open the entrance in “Tales of Arise”
Well, the first thing I would like to recommend is the latest work “Tales of Arise”. There are over 50 titles in the series, and some of them are related or numbered, but basically you don’t have to worry about the order in which you play them.

If I had to say anything, I would just say that you should avoid titles with clear numbering like “Tales of Xillia 2” released on PS3. Therefore, if you are unsure, you can definitely play the latest version.

In addition, since it is the latest work, the system, graphics, and battle action that have been accumulated over many years have been refined, making it attractive and not inconvenient.

The key story is a boy-meets-girl story between Alfen (the main character), a man who doesn’t feel pain, and Shion (the heroine), a woman who feels pain just by touching her.

In the Tales of series, the relationship between the hero and heroine is often the key, and this work is one of them.

I will refrain from expressing the relationship between these two as it would be a spoiler to the extent that this article, which was written with the intention of drawing in beginners, would fail, but there are six people in total, including Alfen and Shion, each with a completely different backbone. I want you to see the rich story told by one of them at least once.

However, I felt that this game was one of the most difficult in the series. In addition to the limited CP (cure points) system, which is common in RPGs, where you constantly manage MP while proceeding in battle, you are required to have a high level of action, such as avoiding attacks and getting behind the enemy. The so-called raising the level and hitting physically doesn’t work, so you might be forced to struggle even on the lowest difficulty level?

Still, the only reason I recommend this work as an entry point is because it’s the latest work, so the graphics are super beautiful. This is a highly recommended book for those who are confident in their action and are looking for beautiful graphics, a boy meets girl!

◆Recommended for those who value stories! “Vesperia” and “Sinfonia” are characterized by heavy developments that are essential
Next, I will introduce “Tales of Vesperia” and “Tales of Symphonia,” which are my favorites and it is no exaggeration to say that I wrote this article to promote these titles.

Even in the series, it has been highly evaluated from the time of its release to the present, and Yuri, the main character of “Vesperia”, has been inducted into the Hall of Fame after consistently taking first place in the series’ official popularity poll held at regular intervals (candidate for voting due to taking too many first place) going outside).

These two games have long been popular for their characters and gameplay, and both are now available in remastered versions with improved graphics in the game catalog.

Compared to “Vesperia” released in 2008, “Sinfonia” released in 2003 is slightly inferior in terms of graphics and system, but both games still do not feel the passage of time at all.

The story told with the voices of a gorgeous voice actor is full of surprises. When I first watched it, one scene was so shocking that I had to worry about it all night, which actually helped me sleep better. There are many memorable quotes, and once you play it, you’ll never forget it.

Regarding the order of play, I recommend starting with “Vesperia” considering comfort. In particular, Yuri, who is extremely popular in the series, is the first adult protagonist in the series to have the side of a so-called dark hero. Furthermore, since his personality has been fully formed since the beginning of the story, he takes a position that is more of a step back from among the party members.

What kind of true growth does he show through the story? By the time he realizes it, he’ll be completely hooked.

Then, when I played “Sinfonia” after playing the swamp that I was addicted to, my heart was torn to shreds by the story, which was so heavy that the package visuals were refreshing and cute. Why not try incorporating a story-heavy JRPG?

By the time you achieve this combo of two remastered versions that you can only enjoy now, you’ll have become a fan of the series.

Of course, even if the order is reversed, you will be drawn into the same swamp!

Additionally, the battle aspect of both games is basically the same as the aforementioned Arise, and both are action RPGs where you can use commands to perform techniques. However, these two games are overwhelmingly easier in terms of difficulty.

It’s so refreshing to be able to perform consecutive techniques and attack enemies with combos! The battle style allows you to gradually improve even if you don’t do well at first, so I highly recommend these two games to those who are interested in the characters, voice actors, and story.

The “Tales of” series is characterized by its gorgeous voice actors, theme songs, and animated movies, but it is easy to get into and play even if you don’t usually play games but are interested because there are voice actors you like. The title is finished.

◆I often hear about “Tales of Zestiria”, but what is it actually like?
The last game to be introduced is Tales of Zestiria. Because this work has become a hot topic for better or worse, there are probably many people who don’t know much about the other Tales of games, but only know about Zestiria. Even though nine years have passed since its release, this is a book that still receives harsh opinions, but I think it would be a waste if you don’t like it or dislike it, so I would like to introduce it again.

The story of boys and girls of different races, humans and celestials, is about transcending the boundaries of their races…but it turns out to be a dark story! ? Please check the truth with your own eyes.

The battle aspect of this work is quite difficult. Battles are seamless battles with no screen changes, but this reduces the comfort of battles. Also, there are many obstacles in the field such as rocks, trees, and sometimes doors, which are not compatible with seamless, and the biggest enemy is the camera work, which can impair visibility. .

Furthermore, this work has a unique element called “divine conversion,” which is a system that strengthens the combination of characters, which is key to both the story and battle. Don’t you think “combined!? Looks cool and strong”? Yes, it’s actually a good system that’s strong, divine, cool, and looks great on screen.

However, since the number of players physically decreases when the characters are combined, the bond and excitement between friends that can be felt in the story also decreases, which is a problem. On top of that, “God’s transformation is so strong that it’s OK to turn into God’s god if you’re brain-dead,” which tends to lead to one pattern in terms of tactics. I feel it’s a bit of a waste that such a notable feature becomes a factor that takes away the fun of the battle.

Why do I still recommend this work, which has some difficulties? That’s because “Tales of Berseria,” which shares a world view with this work and features the same characters as main characters, is frankly a masterpiece!

Since this title is not included in the game catalog, I won’t go into details about it, but after coming across Zestiria in the game catalog, I recommend purchasing Berseria first.

“Berseria” is more enjoyable if you have played “Zestilia”, but it is a game that can be played without any problems even if you haven’t played it, but both games are more enjoyable if you keep that in mind. I often hear people say, “I want to play Berseria, but it takes courage to buy from Zestiria, which doesn’t have a good reputation.” Please take the first step with this game catalog that will solve such problems.

Anyway, no matter how much I introduce them, my personal opinion is, “All the series are masterpieces, so if you have time to worry about it, buy them all!” But…Tales of “Tales of”, which can be played on the current hardware Nintendo Switch / PS5 There are only 5 books in the series.

Four of those games have been included in the game catalog, but the hurdles are a bit high as they require old hardware such as a PS3 or 3DS to play them. I hope that you will soon be able to easily play all the titles in this series, which is full of masterpieces.

All four titles in the Tales of series can be played as much as you like on the Game Catalog service for PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium users. Furthermore, “Arise” can also be played on Xbox Japan’s subscription service “Game Pass.” Why not try out the Tales of series in a comfortable environment during the holidays?