Next "Tales" on New Hardware

[Leroy]

At least, according to an interview in the newest Famitsu:
http://www.neogaf.com/for...m/showthread.php?t=135557

I'm guessing PS3, sadly.

[Cless]

Hope it comes to the US, whatever it is. I seriously can't see it being easy to hack next gen system games, especially those that may need to download patches via online services...

[Leroy]

On the plus side, PS3 games are region free.. so you won't have to deal with the battle of mod-chips versus firmware updates. It's still a shame you're still stuck to your region for PS1/PS2 games.

[Cless]

I was pretty sure I heard that PS3 games are only region free at the developer's discretion, like X360...

[bungiefan]

I was pretty sure I heard that PS3 games are only region free at the developer's discretion, like X360...

They are, as the system will enforce a lockout if told to. Everything that has shipped for it so far has been region-free though. Sony seems to be coercing the developers to release as region-free discs, unlike Microsoft.

[Datschge]

Everything that has shipped for it so far has been region-free though.

That's not completely correct, Resistance for example chooses servers and censors blood based on what region's PS3 unit you use to play it. Also it is still unknown how PAL PS3 systems/games will be handled.

[Dimentionalist]

I'm guessing PS3, sadly.

Upon reading that article, I got the same premonition... I'm still holding out it being on Wii, but it's probably a hopeless cause. At least a PS3 Tales will give me good reason to cough up $600 for a PS3, as nothing on that system that's currently available interests me.

[Leroy]

Upon reading that article, I got the same premonition... I'm still holding out it being on Wii, but it's probably a hopeless cause. At least a PS3 Tales will give me good reason to cough up $600 for a PS3, as nothing on that system that's currently available interests me.

A new Tales won't really push me any more towards a PS3, to be honest. A new Kingdom Hearts? Yeah.. but then there were only two of those on the PS2, whereas there were SIX new Tales games on the PS2. So yeah, the excitement wouldn't be there (yet).

[bungiefan]

That's not completely correct, Resistance for example chooses servers and censors blood based on what region's PS3 unit you use to play it. Also it is still unknown how PAL PS3 systems/games will be handled.

And that's not exactly a lockout. The disc isn't unusable on a foreign system. They just have subsets of data in the game that are loaded for different regions. If there is no data for your region, it just loads the default data. So now it's a regional censoring system, instead of a lockout system. It will still enforce a lockout if they do decide to release a game as Japan/NA/PAL-only though. It's just that the media has so much capacity now that they can put the data for multiple regions on one disc, and thus they can just make the discs once, and label them as they need to ship them out to various countries, rather than having to press discs for each region's release.

[Leroy]

I hope that if they move to the PS3, they take the series back to cell-shading. Eternal Sonata on the Xbox 360, for example, looks absolutely AMAZING in that style.

[Leroy]

http://www.rpgfan.com/news/2006/1614.html

Bandai Namco Games' Tales series producer Makoto Yoshidzumi also chose his words carefully. He explained that, traditionally, the Tales series wasn't about the latest technology and CG. Instead, the developers focused on using existing technology and offering players a story they can freely enjoy. However, the producer said he had no idea what the future had in store for the series. He feels the time has come for the entire concept behind Tales to be re-built.

[Cless]

Not sure what to think of that... Resident Evil 4-calibur overhaul in the works? With declining sales in Japan, that could be what the series needs.

Usually, aside from the battle system and character customization ideas all the games haven't really been that much fundamentally different.

Since Eternia refined the basic game system to near perfection, and aside from the above mentioned, the rest of the series has largely stuck to that model, with some minor differences. I can see some traditions growing stale, especially at the rate these games have been coming out the last few years.

I really liked where Abyss was headed but I guess the developers don't feel like that was enough.

Well. I know that I'd sure like to see some more RPGs with platforming dungeons...

EDIT: And it might also be interesting to see Tales add some platforming to the battle system, ala Smash Bros. Field design could add to strategy...

[Yetika]

I'd certainly love to see new elements put into the Tales series to keep it going, like platforming mentioned above.

I just hope it won't come at the expense of the quality of the story/plot, because a properly written and well-paced story is what holds the interest in most players; Even Narikiri Dungeon 1 has it better than its' successors when it comes to story (granted, ND2-3 are technically different in purpose so maybe that isn't a good example)... And I really hope some of the tacked-on cheap attempts at humor are put to a stop, they're getting a bit much.

[Leiw]

It'd be pretty cool to use the Wiimote+Nunchuk in battles ^^

But I guess the xbox360 is the least likely console they are bringing the Tales of series to??

[Leroy]

Honestly, I'm not sure what I'd suggest to "change" the series. I really love the way the Destiny remake came out.. but as Cless said, it's still essentially minor changes from what they established on Eternia. Even Abyss was a minor upgrade from Symphonia.. it's strength really lied in finally not having horribly generic anime characters and a plot worth paying attention to.

The platforming idea seems like it could work. I'd actually be for something even more action based.. I think it be nice to remote or streamline some of the more archaic RPG elements the series has stuck to and focused on getting the battle system integrated with the world/dungeon maps.

[Goshi]

If it were a platformer I have feeling it might end up something like Castlevania (The Castleroid versions) for some reason.