Tales of Symphonia:Dawn of the New World

[Emo-Iwata]

Tales of Symphonia:Dawn of the New World

 

Developer: Tales studio

 

Publisher: Namco Bandai

 

Genre: RPG

 

Platform: Wii

 

Release: TBA

 

Vids: NA

 

Knight of Ratatosk takes place two years after the events of Tales of Symphonia.[1] The protagonist is named Emil, and characters from the original Symphonia will return (but will not necesarily be playable characters).[1] The game will use Tales of the Abyss's Flex Range Linear Motion Battle System.[citation needed] The player will be able to capture, breed, and level up monsters to fight alongside Emil in battle.[1] The Field Map won't be returning in this game.

 

A point-and-click system using the Wii Remote will be used to move across the overworld map.

 

Story:

 

Long ago, the world-tree of Kharlan was destroyed. The world was split in two by the dwellers of the heavens. Eventually, the Chosen of Regeneration created another world-tree. So it was that the two worlds of Sylvarant and Tethe'alla were reborn as one world. It was believed that this would herald in a new era. However...

Characters

Emil Castagnier (エミル・キャスタニエ, Emiru Kyasutanié)

Catch phrase: "F-fine. I'll try, but if I mess up don't blame me!"

Age: 16

Gender: Male

Height: 169 cm

Weight: 60 kg

Voice actor: Hiro Shimono

Weapon: Sword

 

Emil lost his parents in the blood purging of Palmacosta. He is an honest, somewhat naïve boy. Emil is a bit of a coward, and he does not like to make decisions. In order to protect Marta, he agrees to become a Knight of Ratatosk.

 

Marta Lualdi (マルタ・ルアルディ, Maruta Ruarudi)

Catch phrase: "If you’re a man, be strong!"

Age: 16

Gender: Female

Height: 153cm

Weight: 43kg

Voice actor: Rie Kugimiya

Weapon: ????

 

Marta lost her mother during the Giant Kharlan Tree's rampage. She tends to think along right-and-wrong lines. A bit of a tomboy, Marta is passionate about getting her way. She views Emil as effe

 

Source:Wikipedia

[Emo-Iwata]

new trailerr

 

[Emo-Iwata]

From 1up

 

We See The New World

 

Teruaki Konishi: Let's take a look at the opening movie first. It's two and a half minutes, which is probably the longest one we've done. The staff behind the movie put their all into it. Even the musician working on it said that two minutes weren't enough; they wanted it just a little longer.

 

1UP: Who's singing the song?

 

TK: That is misono, vocalist for Day After Tomorrow, the group who sang for Tales of Symphonia. I think we will be reworking the opening music for the US edition, so there aren't any plans to have her do the song yet. Production I.G. is the outfit behind the movie animation.

 

1UP: So then, is there more than just the intro that's animated?

 

TK: It's just the intro. Let me give you a quick rundown about the game. Storywise, this is a sequel to Tales of Symphonia, released for the GC in 2003. It is an RPG in the classic "Tales" style, but we've got some new features in this game that haven't been seen in the series before, so I'd like to concentrate my discussion on those.

 

For this game, we decided not to go with a field map. Stylistically, the game has you running back and forth through towns and dungeon maps like these, advancing the story and building up your party members.

 

1UP: Very convenient.

 

TK: You can point to the place you want to go, or you can just move there directly via the menu. There aren't any particular rules that govern how you move on the map; this is just meant to illustrate you moving around. So the player encounters an enemy in the dungeon and we enter battle. The field-map traveling may be gone, but the fights use the Linear Motion Battle system that's well familiar to Tales fans. For this game, we've further advanced the fighting aspects of the system. These are action-oriented battles, and we've built the system so even people who've never touched the game before can enjoy them.

 

One major aspect of this game is the ability to recruit monsters. You have the ability to bring monsters into battle after someone in your fighting party captures them. You have the ability to bring monsters into battle after someone in your fighting party captures them. Like any other member, these monsters can grow and earn new skills as you build up their experience.

 

1UP: Is this music a remix of the original?

 

TK: That's right.

 

Changing around the party allows monsters to join the group. So this is how you advance through the game -- going back and forth between dungeons and letting the story unfold. As the story advances, assorted event scenes happen in different places. This game uses motion-capture data for the event cut-scenes, an extremely common technique that we're using for the first time in the Tales series.

 

Andy Tsai: The use of motion capture is one of the reasons why the in-game cut-scenes this time aren't animated. In previous Tales games, the cut-scenes were always animated by production I.G., but because we used motion capture we decided to use mostly real time cut-scenes.

 

TK: Another small feature is the ability to create and organize your party of monsters, switching monsters in and out of the party depending on which you'd like to build up. Giving your home cooking to these monsters can improve their status parameters or transform them into competely new monsters.

 

1UP: Is this the only way you can strengthen the monster?

 

TK: There are two basic ways: raise their levels in battle, or build up their status points by cooking for them.

 

1UP: Cooking is for giving monsters extra enhancements and then leveling up would just be like for normal attack up and...

 

AT: Basically, yeah, and by participating in the battles the monsters can level up their basic parameters, but with the cooking system, this allows the player to, in a sense, customize their monsters.

 

We Ask Our Questions

 

1UP: Of all the Tales games currently available, why did you choose Symphonia for a sequel?

 

TK: Tales of Symphonia was the greatest critical success we've had, one that was truly international in nature. Overall it achieved the greatest response we've got from the North American and Japanese marketplace combined, something we felt was a priority to us. Also, we had a very engaging story and set of characters to work with, and we felt that leaving Symphonia as it was would be a terrible waste. We chose Symphonia for this sequel effort because we felt it'd be the best response to all the people who praised the original.

 

Tsutomu Gouda: It was also the case that Symphonia, being a GC game, was a natural fit to work with on the Wii when we decided to make a title for that platform. The original didn't come out in Europe [**TRANSLATORS NOTE: Actually the GC version did**], but we produced a total of 1.6 million copies for North America and Japan, including the PS2 port.

 

1UP: So how does this game use the Wii Remote?

 

TK: Our first rule of thumb was to build a control system that wouldn't alienate our core fans, something they could get used to immediately without losing the Tales games' trademark feel in the process. So this isn't a game that asks for a lot of Wii-mote waggling. The motion sensing is used to accent the core gameplay, to help make the experience feel more comfortable. For example, there are "shortcuts" available in battle that let your party members unleash skills by moving the remote a certain way.

 

1UP: Ah, so it's like the C-stick from the original Symphonia?

 

TK: Exactly. You can assign skills to motions and set them off that way. We also use the sensor for minigames and for targeting the Sorcerer's Ring. Most of your play time in an RPG is spent in battle, so asking the player to shake the remote all the time while fighting would just tire him out. That's why we don't use it every chance we get.

 

1UP: So you decided to make a game on the Wii, then chose Symphonia as your base.

 

TK: Right. Once we chose to make a Wii Tales game, Symphonia followed along soon after, since that was on a Nintendo platform and also happens to be the bestselling title in the series.

 

1UP: The bestselling in the series? More so than Abyss?

 

TK: Oh yes. Abyss didn't sell in North America. [Laugh]

 

TG: As we had the chance to talk with Nintendo, we learned that they don't necessarily see motion control as the answer to everything themselves. They don't see the remote as the end-all be-all of control, which is why Smash Bros. Brawl lets you use the Classic Controller and, in fact, all but recommends you play that way. So there's that concern, and then there's the reasons Konishi already stated. It seems to depend on the game.

 

AT: And basically it depends on the game and if it's appropriate to use the Wiimote for the game or not.

 

1UP: Tell us about the battle system. What's new and how is it different from the battle system you had in Tales of Symphonia?

 

TK: It's the latest refinement and advancement of the Linear Motion Battle system. It's based around a 3D free-motion system, and it controls largely the same as Abyss, but among the new features here is the Elemental Grid, the round icon next to the character portraits on the bottom. The largest sphere represents the element that currently rules over the battlefield, so if characters have water as their primary defense element...

 

AT: The primary icon basically indicates the primary element of that particular battlefield as of that moment. The smaller icons on the side, depending on the character and the moves that you use, change depending on the arts and the skills the characters cast or performed. That can change the primary element in the middle. That means the battlefield is constantly changing and that affects various things, for example: depending on which elements are on the grid, that can determine which party members participate in the unison attack, which is back again in 2, and it also decides on how powerful the unison attack will be. The elemental grid, also, depending on--for example--if it's water and there are more water elements on the side, would also give the players who have the water elemental defense bonuses. These are all things the player can change. For example, right now first aid is a water elemental. So if Marta casts first aid, one of the smaller elements on the side will change to water and by the players own actions the battlefield is changed. And that can add an extra...

 

UP: Element of strategy?

 

AT: Yes an element of strategy. Also, related to elementals, is the monster capture system. Depending on the elements the battle ends with, the potential that the player can create a contract with the monster will be higher. For example, you defeated a water monster and the battlefield is all water, then there is a much higher change that the player is able to create a contract and have the monster join the player's party.

 

The game there will be over 230 monsters and that breaks down into 10 species and that further breaks down into 33 different subspecies. These aren't just like different colors, there will be actual differences. Sizes can be large or small or some might have horns and some might not, so these are actually different monsters and not just different colors. We might be able to see this later but I'm jumping ahead. At the end of a battle, if you fulfill certain criteria you can form a contract with a monster. Before that, if you have monsters in your party they can help in making a contract with the monster you are trying to acquire. And the end result can be either the monster joins the party or he runs away.

 

1UP: So the monster never comes back to attack you?

 

AT: No. And you can have up to four monsters in your party, and they are treated as normal characters. As long as you have Emil or Marta in the active party you can have, like, Marta with three monsters. You can only have 4 characters active in your battle and one of them must be Marta or Emil.

 

1UP: Given the Wii's more casual/ mainstream audience, what kind of things did you try to do with this game to make it appeal to a wider audience?

 

TK: There isn't a full-scale RPG for the Wii.

 

1UP: That's true, except Opoona.

 

TG: Right. There are lots being made for the PS2 and other consoles, but being able to provide a full-blown RPG for the Wii where there weren't any others around was one of our major hopes. When we first started planning out this game, we didn't imagine that casual users would define the Wii marketplace as much as they have, but we also want to provide an RPG that they could have no trouble playing. On the side, we also actively worked on the monster-building aspect of the game, something players can really get into and spend a lot of time messing with if they're so inclined.

 

We couldn't have imagined it'd be like this, and the way Nintendo put it to us, they didn't predict things would turn out quite like this either. And since Nintendo is an extremely solid brand name when it comes to casual games, the offer they made to us third parties was to make more "game-like" games, the sort we've always been doing. Opoona is like that, of course, and we thought it'd be best as Namco Bandai Games to produce an RPG that could win out over that one, both in brand name and in terms of volume. If you ask us if we're explicitly targeting casual users, then the answer is no; it's more people who like RPGs or who've played Symphonia or other Tales games. And if I could add one more thing: A lot of developers, ourselves included, had the impression that "regular" games don't sell now that the Wii's come out. But if you actually look at the figures, that's not really the case; The sales rates of "game-like" games like these are about the same on the Wii as they were on the GC. So if you look at it that way, ignoring your personal opinion of Nintendo's hardware platforms, the phenomenon of Nintendo's games selling great and third-party titles doing just OK is hardly a new thing. There are definitely more casual gamers out there, but in terms of pure sales, it's not like our products have suddenly plummeted. As I was discussing with some people earlier, I wonder if some are putting their own personal fantasies into the debate.

 

1UP: Following the release of No More Heroes, Grasshopper Manufacture's Goichi Suda expressed a little frustration that the Wii might not have the "hardcore" gaming audience yet. Given that the Tales games have been considered somewhat "core", do you have any concern about this?

 

TG: It's not that it doesn't have a hardcore audience "yet," so much as they just haven't bought Wiis. The core gamers who own PS2s haven't even bought the Wii hardware itself. And that's not just a Wii issue, either; a lot of them actually haven't made the switch to the HD consoles like the PS3 and Xbox 360 yet. You can see this in the way that PS2 games were the top sellers last year for both ourselves and other publishers, and you can also see that if there's a switch happening, it's happening more in the direction of the PSP.

 

What I'm trying to say here is that the way the industry used to think about things, if a hardware platform had a 20-million install base, then that meant a single game for that platform could sell up to 20 million copies. Times have changed, though, and now we think in terms of attach rate and how many games a single player buys and how much time he spends using that platform. Looking at it that way, we see Wii owners not using them near as much, and even with all the hits, the attach rate is low. Meanwhile, the 360 install base in Japan is just a little over 600,000 consoles, but the software sells like gangbusters, and the system really motivates its customers. You have to think about what sort of game would be best for the sort of customer each console attracts, so putting Tales out on the Wii could be called a mismatch, but we see it as a calculated business risk because there are no other RPGs. If that wasn't the case and we simply released a hardcore-oriented game, we'd fail, obviously. I think it's the right choice.

 

1UP: At the end of the original Synphonia, Lloyd and his companienes reunite the two worlds, they accomplish their two goal and we are left believing that what they did was right and the world wil be at peace. We see now in part two that is not the case and Lloyd has in a way become the villian and that more problems were created, rather than fixed. What was your motive behind this role reversal, and does this have broader context with concern to RPG stories and "hero" stories in general?

 

TG: I think that's one of the main hooks of this game; it's also one of the main intentions of the scriptwriter, I'd say. Why is Lloyd starting out like this, doing the exact opposite of what he's supposed to be about? Is that really even Lloyd at all? I'm sure that's what the fans are thinking, but I should note that we may be calling this a sequel, but it's not Tales of Symphonia 2, either. It's a spin-off title, and the story writer figured that handling it too "straight" wouldn't be interesting. So that's where the idea came from.

 

TK: Much of the story involves how your party (including Emil and Marta, the main characters) and Lloyd are on the hunt for a set of eight cores. Exactly what you do with these cores is the main issue of the story, and their existence raises a few key points: Why are the heroes trying to collect them all? Why is Lloyd standing in their way, and why is he trying to get them for himself? It's all gradually unveiled, and, well, since it's the main secret of the story, I can't talk too much more about it. [Laughs] It'd be great if all of you players could try it out and see for yourselves.

 

TG: Judging by the Internet response, it's all going to plan, I guess. [Laughs] They're all like, "Why?!" Well, you'll have to play to find out.

 

1UP: What else would you want to tell American gamers to get them excited about Tales of Symphonia for Wii?

 

TK: We're positioning this game as a spin-off title, but volume-wise, it's just as deep as any previous game in the series. In fact, this one might have the most voiced dialogue out of any Tales title. That's the level we're striving for. We've packed in all kinds of fun features, from the complex characters and drama-laden story to the addictive monster collection, so I hope you're looking forward to having a lot to play and a lot to check out.

 

TG: I bet a lot of your readers have played Symphonia, but I know those people are going to love the story; it's set two years after the original game and the same writer's working on it for us. Konishi's totally right about the volume of the game, too. If you've played Symphonia, you'll definitely want to buy this; if you haven't, the story's been set up to be easy to play your way into, so I think you'll enjoy giving it a shot as well.

 

AT: There are various things in the story where they refer back to Symphonia to help new users who haven't played Symphonia understand the story. So even if you haven't played Symphonia you can enjoy Dawn of the New World as much as people who have played the original.

[playstation]

I am playing Tales of Symphonia from the Symphonia chronicles on ps3.

 

I really have no idea about the combat...there is no explanation or guide on it either.

 

Game has nice anime style to it.

[The_Game]

i bought the two tales games on sale as well. Symphonia -7.5$ and Xillia - 10$.

Yet to play them.