Tales of Arise Review

February 18, 2024

Platform: Xbox Series S

Total gameplay time: 35 hours, 41 minutes
Review Score: 8/10

Tales of Arise was envisioned as a "revitalization" of the Tales series, to modernize it for a new generation of video games. I think it accomplishes this goal very well. The gameplay is similar to previous Tales games, but with slightly more exploration in some open areas. The combat system features 3D action-based battles, similar to previous Tales games, with standard attacks and artes for each character to use. There are also special "Boost Strike" moves involving any two party members that can be used after enough consecutive hits to a single enemy. Overall, combat is done well but battles can get repetitive further into the game. The story is interesting, and the game does a good job of world-building.

The premise of the game is that there are two worlds, Rena and Dahna. 300 years ago, the Renans invaded and enslaved the Dahnans in order to use their physical labor to harvest astral energy. Each of the five realms of Dahna is ruled by a lord, and they compete against one another to harvest the most astral energy to win the Crown Contest and become the sovereign ruler of Rena. The main character, Alphen, is a Dahnan slave that is missing his memories and cannot feel pain. He joins forces with Shionne, a Renan woman who is cursed with "thorns" that inflict pain on anyone that touches her, in order to kill the five Renan lords and liberate Dahna. The story continues from there, with the two joining forces with more characters on their quest. There are many plot twists, and by the end the truth is very different than what you thought you knew at the start. Like other Tales games, Arise features skits that can be triggered along the way that show fully voiced interactions between the party members. These are well done and help to build the chemistry and relationships between the characters. As a protagonist, Alphen is somewhat generic, but his story gets more interesting as his past is revealed. My favorite characters from the game are Shionne, Kisara, and Dohalim.

The graphics and music in Arise are excellent. The world is beautiful, with very detailed landscapes. The soundtrack, composed by longtime series composer Motoi Sakuraba, is fully orchestrated and very good.