Tales of Arise Review

Tales of Arise was my first game in the Tales series and so far, I am enjoying every second of it. The first Lord I took down with my companion doing most of the work was Balseph or as I called him, ball sack. Why not taunt a maniac?

What I enjoy about Tales of Arise is the fact you finally get a companion that not only can fight but does not keep repeating the same obnoxious phrase such as the guy that kept saying Aniki in one of the Yakuza games. Yakuza is a great series but that got annoying fast, and I was glad when that guy got taken out. In Tales of Arise our companion uses something called artes which they use to take out enemies.

Our character starts off as Iron Mask who wears an iron mask and has no memories. After defeating ball sack, he remembers that his name is Alphen. Did I mention that Tales of Arise is also an anime game? Tales of Arise is also a long running series such as Final Fantasy. In Tales of Arise the Renans are keeping the Dahnans as slaves for a terrible reason and Alphen wants to free them and his partner Shionne who is a Renan royalty wants to take out the Lords.

Not only is Alphen dumb but he feels no pain and does not have his memory. Shionne hurts anyone that touches her, so Alphen is the only one that can touch her without getting hurt. Shionne emits thorns. I enjoy this game's combat system and as I said Shionne can hold her own in a fight and will have to heal Alphen and even resurrect him.

Tales of Arise is a typical Japanese RPG and is so much fun. I now must try out the other Tales games. Once you free the Dahnans you will set out to free the rest of the planet from Renan rule. You will get limited supplies and build your party of interesting characters.

You will quickly figure out that Alphen is attracted to Shionne but does not realize it and Shionne is impressed with Alphen but too proud to admit it. Shionne tends to be more matter of fact and is more concerned with taking out the Lords while Alphen wants to free his people.

Combat in Tales of Arise is good. Your character will roll out of the way when you hit the correct button. Many times, I must hit the button many times in hopes my character will move out of the way but not in Tales of Arise. Not getting hit is a lot easier when your character moves out of the way and stops hitting once you stop pressing the button.

These games are built upon character building, relationships, building trust, exploration, coming of age tales baked into a grand adventure. Each character has their flaws and personality traits but nothing that is horrid. Tales of Arise is one big adventure that is full of fun, exploration, and actual camping.

If you like Japanese RPGs and anime, I am sure you will enjoy this game. Try it for yourself and see how fun it is. It should be noted this is not a game you can finish in a weekend or even a week. It will take time to complete but is worth the effort. You can check out my playthrough on my YouTube channel or on Twitch (Ferrariking1955). Feel free to subscribe and follow me on both.

Tales of Arise did not disappoint. It has combat, explorations, humor, and a lot more. It has gotten me interested in the rest of the Tales series.