Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition

 Xbox One
User Score
7.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 49 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 35 out of 49
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 49
  3. Negative: 11 out of 49
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  1. Xbox_Alive
    Jan 15, 2019
    8
    The story was very enjoyable from start to finish and the few surprises that were included in the story meant that it always stayed interesting as well. In terms of content there is a decent amount for you to get to grips with and the variety that’s present in the content kept things fresh and interesting. I thoroughly enjoyed the presentation side of the game and you can tell right fromThe story was very enjoyable from start to finish and the few surprises that were included in the story meant that it always stayed interesting as well. In terms of content there is a decent amount for you to get to grips with and the variety that’s present in the content kept things fresh and interesting. I thoroughly enjoyed the presentation side of the game and you can tell right from the get go that a lot of thought and effort has gone into both the visuals and sound design. While the combat is simple in style it never seemed to get dull and defeating the various enemies and bosses always felt rewarding.
    You’re allowed a great deal of freedom when exploring and I recommend that you do because there always seems to be something for you to do. The game suffers with a few technical issues every now and then but thankfully these issues don’t happen very often. It doesn’t really offer anything new in regards to the Japan RPG genre. Thankfully I can now experience what the Xbox One offers in the form of Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition, and to say I enjoyed my time with the game would be a massive understatement, and I overlooked it 10 years ago. From the moment I started the game the story had me hooked and it stayed that way throughout my time with the game. The gameplay also had me hooked as well and exploring the fantastic looking world never seemed to get dull. The main reason why it never got dull is because there was always something new for you to do and without a doubt if you’re a fan of JRPGs the amount of content available to you will definitely satisfy your needs. Having lots of content is one thing though and having varied content is another and I’m pleased to say that it has both with some nice combat elements thrown in for good measure as well. At the end of the day then even if you only have a slight interest in the JRPG genre then you owe yourself to get Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition because it gets every important aspect spot on and it has very few shortcomings which culminate in an unforgettable adventure. Two Thumbs up!    … Expand
  2. Dronewolf
    Mar 19, 2021
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I've never played a 'Tales Of...' game before, but as this was on Game Pass, I gave it a go. The characters are quite good, out of all of them I only found two annoying (Zagi and Duke) and the ones who look like they would annoy me, didn't. The story is quite good. I was hook on it from start to finish, character development isn't perfect, but it's not terrible. The world is...alright. It's not a huge world, but there's not really a lot either and sometimes, even though the game sort of tells you where to go, sometimes it doesn't. I found a lot fo events by chance when exploring or actvely looking for my next location.

    The story as I said was good. It's just a generic JRPG storyline of; main protagonists set to to initially do a small, possibly mundane task, then gets roped in to literally save the world. Despite that, it is quite good, as I said.

    The battle system. This is why I only gave it an 7. It starts off okay when it shows you what to do, but when you find more party members, you face more enemies at once and then you gradually get thrown more elements to the battles.

    Battles, in my opinion, are really chaotic. A lot can be happening at once and you can't see some things that are happening. Some battles are quick, some take time. The battle system is like Grandia 2 if it wasn't turn based. You get skills (They kind of work like the Final Fantasy 9 skill system. I like that system) but sometimes, it was like some were useless.
    The battlefield is fully 3D, but you can only move left and right. The enemy you target, you can nly run toward or away, you can't run around it to avoid attacks, also, despite targeting, you don't lock on, so you can be attacking nothing if the enemy moves.

    The battle can be so chaotic, you can't block as you never saw an attack coming and you can get stun locked by the enemy until they finish their combo, which can be really annoying, and there is something else regarding stunlocking I'll get to soon.

    You get 'Fatal Strikes', which prompt you to pull the R trigger to do a finishing move when a green or red arrow appears over the enemy. The problem is that the arrow is so quick, you miss it, when they pop up for you to use, as they are random depending on the combos and they don't stick to an enemy. basically, if you pull the R trigger, you can do the fatal strike, but can do it AWAY from the enemy, totally missing.

    You also get Over Limits, Mystic Arts and Burst Arts. Over Limits send you into like a Final Fantasy 9 Trance mode where you can use Mystic Arts and Burst Arts. The only problem...Is that the enemies can also do this. In Over Limits, you can attack non stop until it wears off, you stop by choice or if an enemy hits you. Mystic Arts are a special combo move and Burst Art is a super move. I think I only used a Burst Art twice. If you bully a boss, they will Over Limit while you're essentially stun lockling them and fight fact. However, if they are stun locking you with combos, you can't Over Limit while getting damaged. You literally have to wait until you are not getting it or blocking. They can also interupt your Mystic Art, making it really hard to Burst Art, but you can;t interupt their special moves. It's quite unfair in that aspect. The final boss is cheesy too when it comes to them.

    There's also an achievement for getting a 150 hit combo, but it's literally impossible as the enemies can just stop your combos while you're hitting them, but you can;t do that the other way around.

    In the end, for me, the battles became a chore and I just avoided most of the enemies.

    I did enjoy the game, but it was the story driving me on. If the story wasn't that good, I would have quit it long ago due tot he battle system. I heard this is the best Tales Of game and if that's the case, I'm probably not going to play any of the others if the battle system is similar.

    All in all, I would recommend this game for sure, give it a go and try it for yourself. The battle system nitpick is just my personal opinion over all, other people may absolutely love it. So try it :D    … Expand
  3. yBazara
    Jun 17, 2021
    4
    [ENG] I found the game very boring, the game is not such an old game and has very ugly graphics, simple 3D, it doesn't even look like a game from the ''TALES'' franchise, I didn't have fun playing this game, I only played 4 hours of game :/

    [PT-BR] Achei o jogo bem chato, o jogo não é um jogo tão antigo e tem gráficos bem feios, 3D simples de mais, nem parece jogo da franquia ''TALES'',    [ENG] I found the game very boring, the game is not such an old game and has very ugly graphics, simple 3D, it doesn't even look like a game from the ''TALES'' franchise, I didn't have fun playing this game, I only played 4 hours of game :/

    [PT-BR] Achei o jogo bem chato, o jogo não é um jogo tão antigo e tem gráficos bem feios, 3D simples de mais, nem parece jogo da franquia ''TALES'', não me diverti jogando esse jogo, joguei apenas 4h de game :/    … Expand
  4. Bruninho1997
    Oct 13, 2021
    9
    O começo do jogo é bem fraquinho, tanto em questões de gameplay como a história, porém no decorrer da campanha diversos elementos serão adicionados à exploração e nas batalhas (como novos golpes em combos, integrantes da party, mecânicas, etc), tornando-o muito interessante após algumas horas de jogatina.
    Graficamente falando o jogo é bonito, tem combinações de cores que o torna    O começo do jogo é bem fraquinho, tanto em questões de gameplay como a história, porém no decorrer da campanha diversos elementos serão adicionados à exploração e nas batalhas (como novos golpes em combos, integrantes da party, mecânicas, etc), tornando-o muito interessante após algumas horas de jogatina.
    Graficamente falando o jogo é bonito, tem combinações de cores que o torna visualmente muito agradável, e sua trilha sonora é muito boa. A trama está bem caprichada e recheada de personagens extremamente carismáticos.
    Particularmente achei fantástico, eu sentia falta de uma aventura tão grande e bem elaborada.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

42
#42 Best Xbox One Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. Official Xbox Magazine UK
    Feb 27, 2019
    70
    A nicely remastered, pretty JRPG let down by a slightly dodgy battle system.
  2. XboxAddict
    Feb 7, 2019
    85
    If you loved the original Tales of Vesperia on the Xbox 360 and want to experience it again, this is obviously a no-brainer, as you’re given new content on top of a shiny new coat of HD paint. It may be pricey for a ‘Definitive Edition’, but the added content does boost its value to make it worth experiencing. If you want a great JRPG that you may have missed last generation, then Tales of Vesperia should be high on your list if you’re looking for a new game to dump 50+ hours into, as long as you can handle a dialogue and cutscene heavy experience.
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  3. Gaming Age
    Feb 1, 2019
    100
    The PS3 version of Vesperia that never made its way out of Japan has always been a long sticking point for fans, and with the release of the Definitive Edition, it’s a wrong that has finally been righted.
    Read full review
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