Tales of Symphonia Chronicles

 PlayStation 3
User Score
8.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 188 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 147 out of 188
  2. Mixed: 24 out of 188
  3. Negative: 17 out of 188
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  1. Trepadora
    Apr 4, 2015
    5
    In a way, Tales of Symphonia was doomed to a sub-par score. Much of the Tales fanbase seems to have developed a severe case of nostalgia blindness towards some of the older Tales games, and none more prevalent than the ever touted 'best of the series'.

    Make no mistake, Symphonia is an old, dated game that falls a fair short amongst modern JRPGs. No HD re-release is ever going to change    In a way, Tales of Symphonia was doomed to a sub-par score. Much of the Tales fanbase seems to have developed a severe case of nostalgia blindness towards some of the older Tales games, and none more prevalent than the ever touted 'best of the series'.

    Make no mistake, Symphonia is an old, dated game that falls a fair short amongst modern JRPGs. No HD re-release is ever going to change some of the underlying flaws with the game.

    I hardly have to say that they really cheaped out on the graphics. The models are blurry, stiff and have only a couple of extremely jerky animations to accompany them (the talking animation looks like they're always grinning, ruining any attempts at emotional scenes at all) . Backgrounds are boring, towns are uninspired and everything looks like it's barely been touched since its original release. In regards to the soundtrack, it's not bad but unlike other Tales games, no track is going to stick with you after you power down the console. On top of this the repetitive sound effects are likely to annoy you very quickly.

    The gameplay is as barebones as it gets. Then again, nothing less should have been expected from a game this old. Imagine any other Tales games except your only options are block, attack and artes. That's the entire battle system. There are a lot of archaic design choices from this game as well, such as: magic being completely unblockable, the enemies only able to receive hitstun sometimes. Notably bosses rarely seem to be bothered by your attacks and will continue going about their business regardless. Consequently, the battles become boring; a chore. With such a complete lack of options and such a mountain range of difficulty, you'll find yourself wanting to avoid battles. Which you can't. You'll find plenty of grinding in this game. And don't expect much from your AI teammates - you'll have to hold their hand for the entire ride since they seem to have been injected with an extra dose of artificial stupidity.

    The story is average. So average. The first half of the game holds a predictably boring arc through typically boring RPG shenanigans. Even despite the later twists and turns, it's hard to care about any of the characters. So many of them barely emerge from their shell of loose caricatures slapped together

    Tales of Symphonia isn't nearly as much as the hype would have you believe. Perhaps is was an outstanding game in its time, but against the future refinements to the series its flaws only stand all the more prevalent.    … Expand
  2. Dynel
    Mar 29, 2014
    5
    Mixed, at best.

    the GC one, Symphonia, was good and had a good ending... couldn't see why a continuation would make sense and was actually being not too trusting, because, continuation often fails, see all the continuations that already exists in RPG games, more to the point, FF. But, the continuation for Wii was actually good... to me. Many thought it was pointless or even bad. I'm    Mixed, at best.

    the GC one, Symphonia, was good and had a good ending... couldn't see why a continuation would make sense and was actually being not too trusting, because, continuation often fails, see all the continuations that already exists in RPG games, more to the point, FF.

    But, the continuation for Wii was actually good... to me. Many thought it was pointless or even bad. I'm not a die hard fan of the Tales of series of games, I only play them to enjoy and have fun.

    So... why a 5? Easy. This particular edition has many problems, frame rate and loading times. for a Ps3 game that is unforgivable, since the Ps3 is obviously better than the GC. And yet, the game suffers from them, meaning, Namco did nothing to this game... aside from porting it. Which isn't good enough. Especially if they want full price for a direct port of a Ps2 game. Advice? Stick with the GC one.    … Expand
  3. FantasyFanatic
    Feb 28, 2014
    7
    Tales of Symphonia is one of my favorite RPG's of all time but this version isn't what I would consider the definitive version it's decent but not great. The addition of the Japanese Voice track and the revamped graphics are worth the purchase. However there are some things you should know: This is a direct port of the Japanese PS2 Edition and some of it's problems (like decreasedTales of Symphonia is one of my favorite RPG's of all time but this version isn't what I would consider the definitive version it's decent but not great. The addition of the Japanese Voice track and the revamped graphics are worth the purchase. However there are some things you should know: This is a direct port of the Japanese PS2 Edition and some of it's problems (like decreased framerate) are still intact. This version runs at 30fps instead of the original 60fps this is both a good and bad thing. The good thing is that the game runs without slowdown but the bad thing is that the game looks and feels less fluid than the Gamecube Version it is a bit disappointing especially considering the PS3's hardware. The next issue is the World Map if any of you replayed the Gamecube Version just recently you will notice the movement speed on the World Map is significantly slower than the original this sure to try your patience as it now takes longer to reach towns or dungeons. The new attacks and mystic artes are nice but they don't add up to much in the end. If any of you imported the PS2 Version back in the day one noticeable improvement you may notice is the loading times. The loading times are a lot faster compared to that version they still aren't as quick as they are on the Gamecube but it's a close enough match. the overall port is good for newcomers but if you already have the Gamecube Version then you will probably want to stick with the original game.… Expand
  4. Daze072401
    Apr 1, 2018
    6
    It's a bit hard to appreciate the original when it's graphics have ironically been worsened (framerate being cut in half, cel shaders missing), and some odd audio errors.The sequel survives the transition slightly better, but there are still some audio issues, and the second game isn't exactly a fan favorite anyways. I suppose this is passable if it's your first time with Symphonia, butIt's a bit hard to appreciate the original when it's graphics have ironically been worsened (framerate being cut in half, cel shaders missing), and some odd audio errors.The sequel survives the transition slightly better, but there are still some audio issues, and the second game isn't exactly a fan favorite anyways. I suppose this is passable if it's your first time with Symphonia, but the Gamecube version is the preferred option.… Expand
  5. Empyrea
    Mar 5, 2018
    7
    First of all this game was made in 2004 and at that moment it would have been great but nowadays you really have to love old rpg to enjoy this game. It took me 62 hours to beat. The second part is Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World this game is from 2008 so graphics are better than the first game, the soundtrack is good and the plot is ok. A good think is that you see again the mainFirst of all this game was made in 2004 and at that moment it would have been great but nowadays you really have to love old rpg to enjoy this game. It took me 62 hours to beat. The second part is Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World this game is from 2008 so graphics are better than the first game, the soundtrack is good and the plot is ok. A good think is that you see again the main characters although this time they are secondary characters. Most of the places are the same than in the last game but some rooms where you could access in the first game you cannot in this game and that felt odd. About the difficulty I only had to level up a little bit my team with the first or second boss. It took me 38 hours. My score for this one would be an 8. As I said the first game is an old rpg game and you notice this in every aspect of the game. I hated puzzles and I don't like to use guides because then you don't enjoy the game but, yes I used it and a lot (in the second there are puzzles but they are easy). Some people say that chiefs are very hard to beat in the first game. Well this is true if you don't use well your team. An advice: make sure you have Raine in healing mode in your Tactics. Plus, I think the first game is more for kids and young people. Plot is good but with some plot twists and a story that is getting more and more complicated to follow. One good thing is that you don't have to wait any time when you go inside a building (in Skyrim you feel you are wasting your time when you do that). i don't know, in my opinion you should play the games when they are released and not after more than 10 years. To sum up, if you love old rpgs you can buy it. If it's not the case you can choose among other good PS3 games.

    PS: I saw there is an OVA on youtube and I think is worthy to watch when you finish the game just because the fact that the voices are exactly the same than in the game (I think that even dialogues have been copied from the game!) Although I've only seen the first 4 episodes in English, the rest are in Japanese with English subtitles.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

22
#22 Best PS3 Game of 2014
17
#17 Most Discussed PS3 Game of 2014
31
#31 Most Shared PS3 Game of 2014

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 37 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 26 out of 37
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 37
  3. Negative: 0 out of 37
  1. RPG Fan
    Aug 18, 2014
    93
    Symphonia alone is worth the price of admission.
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  2. CD-Action
    Jun 28, 2014
    70
    After all these years Myst is still a masterpiece, a brilliant game that deserves acclaim. [05/2014, p.73]
  3. Merlin'in Kazanı (Turkey)
    Jun 27, 2014
    73
    Tales of Symphonia Chronicles includes the PlayStation 2 port of Tales of Symphonia and Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World. With new costumes and new 3D graphics, the story seems so nostalgic.
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