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The right RPG, on the right system, in the right place
at the wrong time.
It's a fate that has befallen a decent number of RPGs, consigning worthy games to the
status of "cult hit" after being steamrolled by the juggernauts of the industry. And though
many a fan bemoans the lack of support for their favorite niche title, seldom are such
feelings as justified as they are for the best RPG nobody seemed to play last year: Tales
of the Abyss.
One may wonder what Namco-Bandai was thinking. After the runaway success of Tales
of Symphonia on the Gamecube, the Tales series was poised to take a firmer foothold in
the West, and Tales of the Abyss the newest project from Symphonia's design team
was the game with which they could cement a larger international fanbase. As the 10th
Anniversary Tales series title, much care was put into the game's making, and although it
won't win any awards for technical prowess, the stripe of quality is evident throughout.
So, what's the best way to sell a great game? In Symphonia's case, it was to release it on
an RPG-starved console at a time when there were few major RPGs around to compete
for gamers' dollars. Tales of the Abyss may not have had the captive audience advantage
that Symphonia's midsummer release on the Gamecube gave it, but Namco-Bandai could
have at least positioned its release at a more opportune time. Granted, 2006 was a year
rich with RPG offerings, but even so, there had to have been a better time to release the
game than the middle of October set against a powerful barrage from Square-Enix,
including Valkyrie Profile 2, Final Fantasy V: Advance, Final Fantasy III DS, and in a
mere matter of weeks after its release, the almighty Final Fantasy XII. The odds were
stacked against it, like the odds of a pygmy catching the boquet at a giant's wedding.
The sales reflected the poor timing of the release. While Tales of Symphonia would
eventually go on to sell more than 400,000 copies, Tales of the Abyss struggled to pass
30,000 sales a truly lamentable number, given how good the game is. If you've played
the game, perhaps you agree. If you haven't played it, exactly what are you missing?
Possibly the greatest RPG of 2006, that's what. Tales of the Abyss may have its weaker
points among them, raw technical quality in its aesthetic sensibility (FFXII or Valkyrie
Profile 2 it isn't). However, the magic of the game is that Tales of the Abyss is
excellent in every category that really matters for an RPG to be compelling.
Corollary to that, the game has no glaring weak points. Often, the enjoyability of a game
is determined not by its strongest points, but by its weakest points. Even if many things
about a game are great, a bad mark in an area that's important to the overall experience
can drastically reduce the amount of fun one can have playing a game. Tales of the
Abyss has no such overriding weaknesses, really it is amazingly solid all-around. Even
if the graphics aren't the most advanced, the character models are amazingly well-
designed and very emotive, making cutscenes amusing and even emotional affairs. The
music may not be a superb score, but it does fit well within the game, and underscores the
story's events admirably.
The battle system is what you may have come to expect from the Tales series fast-
paced, player-controlled action, with pretty good AI, and the ability to switch between
controlling any character. However, there are many smaller skills within the combat
engine that are earned over the course of the game that, taken as a whole, allow the player
to exercise a startling amount of control over their character. You can jump back to
avoid an attack, add an extra hit to a basic combo chain, double-jump, chain normal hits
into special techniques, block and parry, and even run freely around the field by holding
down L2, which comes in incredibly handy for strafing enemies and dodging big spells.
Together, these improvements make this incarnation of the famous Tales battle system a
feature not to be missed. However, this isn't what I was talking about when asserting that
Tales of the Abyss has top marks in all the right categories.
It comes down to this: Why should you play this game? Surely there's no dearth of RPGs
to choose from these days very likely, there are more than you have the time (or desire)
to complete.
The reason Tales of the Abyss deserves your attention is its characters. This RPG offers
an excellent cast that sidesteps the stereotypes so common in the genre to deliver
thinking, feeling characters that seem constantly dynamic. Not only are they believable
while still being entertaining, they develop a rapport among themselves that really gives
the impression of a group of people coming together and developing bonds they are
ultimately likeable. But even while there's a healthy helping of comedy and good
times, the characters all have their secrets, and aren't always quick to trust. As the best
and worst of each cast member comes out over time, each becomes a truly multifaceted
person, interesting and individual in their own right. Even the antagonists are given a
good amount of screentime and development, and each similarly defies easy stereotyping.
And among the antagonists, are any of them truly "villains?" That's a savory question for
one to ponder as they experience the story.
The characters come off so well due in no small part to an excellent localization. Those
who experienced Tales of Symphonia's top-grade localization know what to expect, and
Tales of the Abyss goes one better. The writing flows smoothly and conveys each
character's personality and quirks through smartly-penned dialogue. Lines that might
have sounded corny or awkward in an inferior localization come off as genuinely
humorous or heartfelt in this excellent script. The voice actors and actresses do a
smashing job too; I'd compare them favorably with the best-voiced RPG casts of this
console generation.
These characters take part in a story that feels refreshingly thoughtful in a genre that is
often content simply to retread generic themes and evoke generic sentiments. Tales of
the Abyss isn't some alien RPG with no similarities to anything you've ever played, but
it's different enough that the story is always interesting, and often gripping. It's not my
intent to hype the story, so I'll remain vague about what it's about, or why it's so
satisfying. But suffice to say, it has meat to it. It's a lengthly game, but its length would
mean nothing if the whole of the experience wasn't compelling. The sidequests are
numerous, but many are actually worth completing, since instead of (or in addition to)
some reward item or money, these subquests actually further the development of the cast.
It was a pleasant eye-opener, seeing optional events that I actually wanted to continue on
with because I enjoyed learning more about the world and characters. In many ways,
Tales of the Abyss goes as deep as one wants to go. It rewards exploration and
subquesting, but doesn't lose enjoyability if you're gripped by the main plot and
can't stop yourself from gunning through to see what'll happen next.
It is a shame that Tales of the Abyss came out when it did. At another time, it might have
garnered the critical praise and larger sales that it deserves. But even still, it's not
"consigned to the abyss," so to speak. Still it sits, on the shelves of many a game store or
electronics department, waiting to go home with a gamer in search of a captivating,
rewarding RPG. The legendary Suikoden II was similarly overlooked around its time of
release, but through word of mouth, it became recognized as the classic we know it as
today. It's my hope that Tales of the Abyss will soon become as well known though
hopefully, easier to acquire. After all, it'd be a true shame to miss out on what is
undoubtedly one of the very best RPGs the PlayStation 2 has to offer.
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