LogFAQs > #984523060

#6. Tales of Graces f (2010)
Total Points: 24
List Appearances: 8
First Place Votes: 2
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/5/5415bc39.jpg

Writeup provided by NBIceman
Graces is a bit of an odd duck as far as the Tales series goes. Not so much so that it cant be quickly and easily identified as being part of the franchise, of course - the skits are there, the combat is action-packed with fighters yelling out move names constantly, Motoi Sakuraba is doing Motoi Sakuraba things, and we can dress up a cast of vibrant characters in costumes that run the full gamut from cool to silly to unapologetic fanservice. But its enough to be notable. Its paced very differently from most Tales games in ways that are difficult to explain. It relies heavily on friendship is power themes that the series largely eschews. The weirdest thing of all, though? Theres a pretty wide consensus on it among the fanbase. That NEVER happens in this franchise. Look at any Board 8 topic regarding any Tales entry and youll see it spawn a spirited, multi-page debate on whether Abyss is the worst or best game of all time, or whether Zestirias music makes up for the fact that the game is an abomination, or whether Arise is an encouraging step forward for the series or something unrecognizable. And then theres Graces f. Ask a hundred players about it and the overwhelming majority will tell you that its a milquetoast, tropey plot wrapped in a pleasant watercolor aesthetic that just so happens to include an absolutely superlative battle system.

The story here is structured in a somewhat unique way in that it begins with a short Child Arc that functions as a prologue; as the name implies, it establishes the main characters in their younger years as they form some relationships and go through a tragedy together that forms the bulk of the plot in the main Adult arc. Its a bit clunky, both in a ludic and narrative sense, but works quite well as an introduction. We also get a Future Arc, which is where the f in the title comes from and is mostly an attempt to tie up a few loose ends. As stated previously, the story is unfortunately the games biggest weakness. Its not BAD, really. Its just substantially more cliched and told through substantially more trope-laden characters than one can usually expect from the Tales series. Even folks who like it will tell you that its just charming in a schmaltzy Saturday-morning-cartoon kind of way, and nobody will try to argue that its one of the games strengths.

The one aspect that you might see some disagreement on is the cast of party members. Ive seen plenty of opinions that its the best in the series, alongside plenty of players that hate everyone. Personally, I see where both sides are coming from for the most part. The Lhant trio has chemistry, for the most part, with plenty of fun interactions between them, but theyre consistently bogged down by obnoxious behavior and considerable missed opportunities, not to mention some absolutely horrid visual designs. Malik and Richard are delightful and can make a hell of a trolling duo when they get the chance, but one of them has too little plot relevance and the other one has way too much despite the precious little time he actually spends with the party. Pascal and Sophie are the best offerings. They do the best job of playing off each other and everyone else while also being entertaining as individuals, and as the games real main character in my mind, Sophie has the most satisfying development and comes the closest to being a more typical Tales character. Even then, though, I can completely understand how Pascal might rub some people the wrong way, and if youre not into the emotionless girl discovers her heart thing, Sophie aint gonna do much for you, either.

But that battle system, man. That battle system. Even as a traditionalist that tends to prefer the seriess usual TP framework in a vacuum, I dont know if theyll ever top the Graces combat. See, heres the incredibly deep secret to fighting in a JRPG: the fun part is hitting things with a stick. Graces understood this, and so made everything about its gameplay in service of hitting things with a stick better. Find an enemy weakness? You can hit it with your stick more before you have to rest. Get perfect timing on a dodge? You can do more stick hitting, and the enemy is more vulnerable for it. Did your stick hit critically? That gets you more stick hits, and for a few seconds, the enemy cant use their own stick to hit you back. And if you hit enough enemies with enough sticks, you get extra Titles, which teach you more ways to hit. Yes, Im making this sound incredibly stupid, but I mean it as a compliment. Graces developed a clear vision of what makes battles enjoyable, streamlined it, and put it in a form that feels unbelievably fluid and smooth. Simple to comprehend, tough to master. It encourages not only aggressive offense, but aggressive defense as well, because they both build upon the other, and theres a heavy risk/reward balance to all of it. On higher difficulties, it only takes a few good smacks to put you down, but its also perfectly possible to dash around the field without getting hit at all if your reflexes are good enough. You can even dodge Mystic Artes, then counter them with a combo that gives you a free one of your own! Fights in Graces feel exciting and satisfying from the most epic bosses down to the most banal of normal encounters. Youll be finding favorite combos and experimenting with others from early on right down to the end as you continue to discover different properties on the Artes at your disposal. And perhaps the most impressive part is that this is true for every playable character. No sluggish mages here that make you feel like youre trying to run underwater when you pilot them. Once you get used to the way their options chain together (for example, spells cast quicker if you do a stick-hitting combo first), you can make every character a swift and efficient bringer of destruction, and have fun doing it. It honestly feels closer to combat in a fighting game than a JRPG at times in terms of how you have to approach it.

So while I certainly have my problems with this game, one compliment that I can pay it without any reservation is that I have more fun playing it on a minute-to-minute basis than I do most titles in its genre, not just its franchise. Its writing weaknesses may preclude me from calling it a truly great game, but thats my critical side speaking, as I can also admit that even the cheese can be enjoyable. If the name doesnt make it obvious enough, Tales of Graces is a relentlessly earnest and optimistic game, and its not ashamed of it. If you can appreciate that for what it is, or at least look past it enough that it doesnt overwhelm the awesome fights, youll have a great time. I played a LOT of RPGs on the PS3, and Id still consider Graces one of its best.