1651 reviews liked by Yoshistar_123


this honestly plays a lot like old-school final fantasy games not so much in the combat but just the story progression and how to the world expands i know a lot of these tropes arent exclusive to ff but this one really gives the vibe. that being said the combat just wasn't for me i found it kinda of tedious and i wasn't dying to play this style of game since I already played a Tales game this year and I already played the whole of the pixel remaster and ff8 and 9 last year and this year but I am trying to finish the larger games in my hard drive to free up space and these jrpgs sure are big that being said for a definitive edition this is severely lacking in quality of life features, autoplay cutscenes/text would've gone such a long way.

This was my second Tales game (Tales of Berseria was my first) so it was kinda weird at first seeing how limited it was in terms of camera movement and the overworld but the charm of it eventually won me over. One of my biggest issues with ToB was how large a lot of it environments were which lead to the game feeling like it dragged on in areas, while with ToV the overworld in particular it was the perfect size to keep the pace going at a rate I enjoyed (though I did find myself getting lost more easily)

I've found with the Tales games that the gameplay isn't really that captivating, especially the real time battle system (it can be fun at first but for a JRPG the battles can start to drag after a while) but what really hooks you in with these games are the story and characters and my gosh did Vesperia hook me in

The story touched upon a lot of really interesting themes for me. Are the laws really punishing the worst people? Is it right to take the law into your hands? Are those at the top of class system only looking out for themselves? Could we give up a source of power that we've always relied on to save our world? So much of Vesperia's story was really interesting and I loved how they used the main party to explore some of the conflicts that can happen from these ideals. Yuri and Flynn, Judith and Rita in particular have really interesting clashes because of their ideals and it makes for a really good group dynamic.

Speaking of the characters my gosh they are so good. While I think Velvet from Berseria is the stronger protagonist, Yuri has a lot of really great moments that help his character shine. Judith came in and shook things up and I love the way she pushes Estelle to make up her mind on things. Rita was fantastic with her sarcastic attitude but also her dynamic with Estelle was so good. Ripede was a million times better than Bienfu. Karol was a really solid younger member of the group that really tied in the guilds well. Flynn was an excellent foil to Yuri. I can't really go into a lot of Raven's stuff without spoilers but I did enjoy the party calling him old man all the time and Patty.... well Patty had her moments but it was off putting having Yuri switch VA around her because Bandai Namco couldn't be bothered asking Troy Baker to come back to record new lines.
Finally there's Estelle who is easily my favourite character in the whole game. While she might be a princess, I found a lot her character to be really relatable. She has her wants and desires but tends to put herself behind others. The amount of times where it feels like she's just following the group decision because she feels like putting her opinion in can be a burden (I really love that Judith comes in and is immediately like "What do you want to do?" and Estelle is like.... i... i... dunno because she's so self conscious aaaaaaaaaaaaaa) I also love how when she's made her mind up on something it's near impossible to break her from it and her instinct to help others is so good. I love that the game tests her on that instinct with what I will call the "Estelle depression arc" that takes place in the game's second arc. Seriously, if you love Estelle as a character a lot of that second arc is gonna hit you hard, like I struggled through some of that my gosh.

I need to mention the ending. The majority of the game is so good and then the ending has to be one of the most anticlimactic and flat endings I've ever experienced. It doesn't ruin the game but it does leave with a big "is that it?" and that is the biggest mark against the game I have.

Overall, while I think Tales of Berseria has the higher highs with it's cast and story, I ended up enjoying Tales of Vesperia more due it's better pacing and that I ended up enjoying Estelle's character in particular a lot.
One last thing...... Ristelle is life

The one thing I just love about Tales of Vesperia is its understated story.

There are no Demons, Devils, Angels and Gods, no gigantic monsters and you don't travel to alternate dimensions or through time.

There are only a few plot twists and the ones that exist are subdued and don't change anything fundamental about the course of the tale (get it?!?).

You still save the world in the end of course, but the path to that is actually pretty held-back.

I see how it may be weird for this to be a positive, but I found it really rather refreshing in the landscape of JRPGs and simply very charming and infatuating.

murdering politicians MIGHT be ok guys

This is going to be a dishonest review.

The story is a snoozefest throughout 2/3 of the game and the finale and the final boss are severely forgettable, but Yuri carries. The combat system is a clunky and boring mess, but Yuri carries. Except a handful tracks, the soundtrack is extremely nondescript, but Yuri carries. The dungeons are streamlined corridors without any ambitious puzzles, but Yuri carries. Estelle is a stereotypically naive princess, but Yuri carries. This game bores me to death, but Yuri carries.

In the end, it was good enough to keep me going and to try other Tales games, so it was fairly and convincingly good. Yuri carries and he’s the reason all the other characters work so well in this story, due to his supportive nature. His vigilantism is the reason the dynamic between Yuri and Flynn is so strong. I mean it when I say that, because Yuri really does carry the entire game — in a good way.

easily the 2nd best jrpg i've played (2nd to symphonia). game is honestly just as good as symphonia, with tons of improvements in various areas...
...but if i'm being dead honest it was just how annoying karol was that makes me like symphonia more

Yuri Lowell doesn't pay taxes, kills politicians and the military, AND hates the government...

My mc...

Don't get me wrong, I love Aqua, but this wasnt a game, this was a demo for the Kingdom Hearts 3 engine. Plus the things it wanted from you to complete it was asnine or annoying at best. The fact I need to play it again to get my trophies back hurts my soul

Just cozy and I love it just as much as the other modern games. The small town setting hits just right for me and the characters and the story of the murder and the music! It's one of the easier games considering golden hands but bosses are damage sponges for sure. Idk can't decide if it's my favorite but I loved it alot.

What can I say here? It's a Persona game. It's a PS Vita version of a PS2 game that's (finally) re-released on modern consoles. I loved Persona 5. It got me into the series. That being said, I think Persona 4 Golden might be my favorite Persona game I've played so far. The pacing is much better than 5 in terms of the plot (some specific conversations can still drag on as everyone says their piece). I loved the sleepy town of Inaba and its vibes. I also absolutely loved the main cast (EXCEPT for the poorly aged attitude/reactions of Yosuke towards the mere idea of Kanji being gay).

Obviously, the gameplay itself is weaker when compared to Persona 5, but the simpler dungeon design also allowed me to fly through a lot of them instead of having to dedicate days to it (which, to be fair, is part of the charm of the Persona formula in my opinion).

I accidentally didn't get the "true" ending the first time around and had to load an old save before the "Golden" dungeon to go back and get it. After flying through the game in about a month, this caused me to take a 10 month break before coming back to finish it "properly" but man was it worth it. If nothing else, it gave me a bit of extra time and new content with the investigation team and, so far, my favorite Persona friend group.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go daydream of living in Inaba and hanging out with my friends.