Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition

Tales of Missed Content (if you don't pay close attention)
Note, that I'm heavily biased towards this series, as it always was one of my favourites
If you want to know what I think about Vesperia, I'd tell you that I bought Xbox 360 together with this game when it released in EU, JUST for this title (turned out, that I've played few more afterwards, but that's a bonus).
Then, of course I've played Definitive Edition on console back in 2019. Of course, heavy, but fragile figurine of Repede is sitting on my shelf. Of course, I always voted in Tales of... polls for Yuri, as the best main character (until Namco banned him, that is xD). And it was one of the first jRPGs where I switched to English VA (Troy Baker as Yuri is just too perfect to be missed).
In short, you can clearly see my feelings towards Tales of Vesperia. Tales of...used to be my fav jRPG series back in the day, and Vesperia holds a very high place in my rankings (3rd spot, to be precise). Now, why?
Unique protagonist for jRPG standards
Yuri Lowell...everything was already said about you. Beloved Tales of...character. Not a perfect, shine knight as usual in jRPGs. Quite opposite, actually. Without going into spoiler territory, it is enough to say that Yuri have his own, maybe simplifed, but still - a moral compass. And he always follows it, no matter what. We have a saying "The end justifies the means", and this fits our protagonist well. Our lone wolf softens a little bit in the group (mainly, thanks to Estelle and partially to Patty) but never to a degree where he would throw out his twisted compass. Some of the lines he says in the game, are the most chilling and dark I've seen in jRPGs. It is more evident when you replay the game, knowing certain facts from the future events, while he is saying certain words. He kinda reminds me of Geralt (Witcher), of all people in a way.
Helping those in need, usually going into the trouble with law enforcement because of it (famous crime no.18 from the long list on his warrant - throwing out a knight to the river, who was collecting taxes from the poorest people).
His character is also in contrast with his best friend, Flynn, who balances "the dark" with his attitude and his moral compass and codex written in law. That is also the reason, why they're clashing with each other so often.
He is a bit of a lone wolf type, but what's interesting, it feels like he is the part of the Brave Vesperia, that cements the whole group (guild). But enough about Yuri. He is the best Tales of MC ever done, everyone knows that, and it irritates Namco Bandai to no end, and now Yuri is banned from all of their character popularity polls. I seriously doubt that we'll ever see such a character in any future title in the series...
Other characters in the group?
Serviceable. Not the best group ever, but I like most of them, especially fiery Rita and ice-melter Patty. To my surprise, when I played the game for the first time back in the day, I also liked Raven (usually I do not like this specific archetype), but it's more because of his double life and conflicting nature. Later in-game events led me to conclusion that he is just acting as a carefree playboy and he is actually not like that deep down. Although, scenes in Yumanju hot springs were a bit off to my taste dragging Karol, peeping through the hole AND commenting...
I liked growing relations between Estelle and Rita, and I was always confused in the past about their nature.
And of course...best romance without romance. Estelle and Yuri - these two couldn't be any further away from each other, but still...they are helping each other to grow and learn through the journey. There's no cheesy lines, no confessions, just actions. Can't say much without spoiling the story, so I encourage you to play the game to better understand their connection.
And there's Judith and Repede - I call them "missed opportunities". Judith was a merely a fanservice there, while Repede being a good doggie, had almost no personality. Why, oh why writers didn't give him normal dialogues??? Why suddenly, when you're about to finish his sidequest (one of the longest and most annoying sidequest in the history of gaming), writers suddenly decided to give him normal lines and he speaks? It was a sudden shock and realisation to me - that it would be so much better if this was happening through entire game, not just within one quest. Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of Repede, but I think that there's missed potential here.
Weak story?Oh well...it's yout typical Tales of...come on!
I always treated this series as a comforting dish. Something easy to digest, to have plenty of fun with it. I never expected convoluted stories or plots like in other series (Xeno, Trails). I want to have fun, smile on my face, I want to like the characters and combat. If there's a good story - it's a bonus. Story of Vesperia starts strong, but gets weaker from a certain, important story point. If I didn't play any other Tales of..., I'd say that there's missed potential here too, but because I've played ALL OF THEM, I know their strenghts, weaknesses and style of writing in the series in general. And it's not half bad. Yes, it's predictable, yes we have clear goals to achieve. Is it bad? I wouldn't say that. It's good enough to keep me engaged. And because I'm fond of characters and their interactions in the skits - I'd say - I'm totally okay with it.
Other stuff, like battle system, graphics, music
Battle system is sadly WORSE than in next mothership title (Graces), but at the time of the release it was the best, that Tales could possibly offer. Plethora of arts, skills, easy to pull Mystic Artes (although not as impressive as in later titles). You learn skills through your equipment and once it is learned, it stays and you can change your weapon. Important note - NEVER, I say NEVER sell your weapons. Always keep some spares for synthesis. That's a friendly advice.
Battles are fluid, but not every character is balanced well (playing as Judith is a bit of masochistic experience, and Repede's AI is still as stupid as it was back in 2008, he loves giving himself gels for some reason xd). Most of my time, I've played as Rita (easily the most OP character in the game, and THE MOST OP mage in the series) and Patty, because her playstyle was always a joy for me (funniest combos to pull).
Graphics and music. This is a game that originally was released in 2008. Also it was a first Tales of...game made in high definition. Have some respect and stop whining. I always loved artstyle of this generation of Tales games (Graces, Vesperia and Xillias). They are unique and I can easily say that they stood the test of time. To this day, they are my favourite entries in the whole series. Even tho, Mutsumi Inomata wasn't working on this game (rest in peace, she put her heart and soul into the series), I liked Fujishima work here and I stand by my opinion, that Vesperia is his magnum opus.
I only wish, that remastered version had better textures for 4K resolution, that's my only issue, graphics-wise.
Music. Motoi Sakuraba, everyone can go home now.
I'm still impressed how much work and effort this guy put into the series. He was working on Tales of Vesperia, Tales of Graces and Star Ocean 4 almost at the same time. And all of the soundtracks are great. "Fury sparks" is still one of my favourite tracks in the series. I will never get bored of that tune.
Overall conclusion:
While not perfect, it is a very strong entry in the series. I'm willing to give it 8/10, but only if you can pay attention to missable content, which is almost half of the game itself. Game doesn't offer you pointers to quests or any QoL aspects in this regard. You have to actively travel, talk to NPCs and be careful with save files. Only then, you will unlock the full potential of Tales of Vesperia.

Peak JRPG. I played through this game extensively back in my Xbox 360 days, but recently had the urge to do another quick playthrough on Steam. I thought I would just blast through the main story (and for the most part that is what I did), but I was surprised how much I was drawn to doing the side content. It’s just a testament to how good of a game Vesperia is. It’s full of terrific characters, a deeply complex battle system (that I am still not very good at), and an adventurous story full of twists and turns. But perhaps most importantly: to me the aesthetic of this game is timeless. It still looks so good with such a beautiful and colourful artstyle. The characters, environments, enemies - everything still looks so incredible, even playing this in 2025.

- Great story.
- Great variety of characters (Yuri Lowell being my ALL TIME FAVORITE "Tales of" protagonist).
- Great soundtrack (both town AND battle themes).
- Great visuals.
- Great combat system (arguably THE BEST combat system in all "Tales of" games).
I have some gripes with the story in the last few chapters (as well as the terrible post-game extra dungeon), but overall this is one of THE BEST Tales of games I ever played. Highly recommend it!
Final Rating: 9/10.
Summary Ratings:
Game
Rating
Tales of Symphonia
10/10
Tales of Vesperia
9/10
Tales of Zestiria
7/10

Enjoyed this game so much, I hunted down all the gigantos.
I played the old Phantasia, Symphonia, Zestiria, Berseria, and this is definitely the best out of the bunch,
truly worthy of its reputation.

The story is as usual kinda convoluted, but the characters more than made up for the story.
The bond of the group is the strongest I have seen in the Tales games i have played.

The battle system is just nice, not so hard, not overly complex as later games like Zestiria and Berseria.
Music is kinda lacking compared to other JRPGs.
Some boss fights have surprising difficulty spike, but you can easily lower the difficulty.

Overall, this game is a must play if you like JRPGs.

I LOVE THIS GAME. This is was my first Tale series game I've played and fell in love on the Xbox360. it has some noticeable issues but the goods was so good that it stopped mattering to me

Tales of Vesperia is an action JRPG with a focus on storytelling. The Definitive Edition comes with a cosy, timeless art style that reminds me a little of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The music is okay, with no track really standing out, but the voice actors do a good job and almost all of the dialogue is voiced. Overall, the PC port runs well, although the loading times for saving and entering new areas could be quicker.
The game mechanics are better introduced than in other Tales of games. The 2.5D fighting game combat system starts off simple: besides blocking, you have two types of abilities (artes): normal and advanced artes. The latter cost energy. In addition, you can sometimes trigger special artes. Later in the game, more advanced combat mechanics are unlocked, such as different types of artes and combo chains, which offer much more options and freedom.
Character progression is similar to Final Fantasy 9. Each character learns new skills by using certain weapons for a while. The crafting system is also simple: you make new items which slightly improved stats from resources you collect from enemies. Sometimes a character will unlock new artes as they level up. You can also cook food for temporary stat boosts.
The main protagonist, Yuri, stands out because he is not the usual hero. I like that he makes some questionable decisions throughout the game, unfortunately this is hardly touched upon by the other companions. I like that Yuri does not judge other people and lets them do what they think is right. He is also empathetic and has a charming way of empowering his companions and making them feel important. The other main characters are fine. Except for two child characters who fight alongside adults. Patty in particular can be quite annoying. However, each character has their own personal motivation and character development throughout the game, which makes them more interesting, although for some characters this may take a while.
Tales of Vesperia features a nice looking explorable world map. Unfortunately, there is nothing to explore. The game is completely linear, and other locations are off-limits until you reach certain points in the main story. The world map is only used for enemy encounters and walking from point A to point B (there is no fast travel). I wish your character could move faster, as some areas can be quite large and there is occasional backtracking.
I originally thought the game had no side quests, until I found in a walkthrough that there are a bunch of (missable) side quests, but they are not easy to find and some are only available for a certain amount of time (best done with a walkthrough). Moreover, it is sometimes not so clear where to go next - the game only gives you a description of the next location, and the in-game map, which is hidden in a nested menu, does not always help either.
The level design is mostly linear with some forks leading to dead ends with treasure chests. I did not like that many corridors and rooms look the same, making some dungeons feel like a maze, especially as there is no (mini) map for most areas. The world is quite large and offers many areas with different climates or themes. However, there are only a few places in the game that stand out for their unique design and atmosphere. I also like that the designers sometimes play with perspective, where you can either move in a 2D plane (left and right) or in a 3D space (left, right, back and forth).
Some dungeons require you to solve basic puzzles based on running back and forth and activating switches in the correct order. I like the puzzles in the Water Temple, which are a bit more sophisticated.
Enemies can be dodged to avoid random encounters, but some areas are so dense with spawning enemies that dodging can be difficult - There is a potion you can drink to avoid encounters, but you will need combat experience to level up to avoid being underleveled. Encounters let you fight different types of enemy with individual weaknesses, but most of them behave in the same way, and you usually only need to change your strategy for certain boss encounters.
The difficulty is easy in the beginning, except for challenging boss fights. The game does a poor job of explaining the more advanced combat mechanics and how to extend combos. For example, I was very annoyed that I could not hit enemies lying on the ground, until I found out from a guide that there are combos for that. Another example is jumping, which can be the only way to avoid certain attacks.
Standard enemies can be easily defeated by button-smashing, but there are difficulty spikes for bosses later in the game, forcing you to learn the advanced combat mechanics that you may have ignored before. I recommend playing in manual mode and studying the in-game battle book and each new entry from the beginning.
A nice (optional) feature is that you can fight with each party member and each one has his or her own play style. You can customize how your companions behavior in battle (via the Strategy menu). Furthermore, you can enable fully automated combat and change the difficulty level at any time.
My main problem with Tales of Vesperia is the story. It starts off relatively slow, and the first two-thirds of the game is spent chasing after changing objectives that I have little connection to. For example, the game starts with Yuri chasing someone I don't know, and I don't know why. A related problem is that I had no sense of urgency or importance for the objectives. Most of the time I felt aimless and the story seems to have no particular direction. Until later in the game, there are too few highlights and the game feels like it is just drifting on and I am wandering from one town to another. An additional factor is that the story is mostly told with the in-game engine: these scenes often feel static due to the lack of character animations. The skits (drawn anime) are fine though.
Another major problem is that the scope of the story is too large, covering a large group of characters from many different factions. On top of that, the game covers various political, social, technological, and historical topics. The game would have been better if it had focused more on the party members (maybe even fewer) instead of introducing more and more side characters in each new city. The result of the wide scope is that many aspects of the story lack substance, which becomes more apparent in the last part of the game. Here, the story changes quite a bit and more things happen and the stakes rise, but it also relies more on meaningless technobabble and exposition.
The last major problem is the villains in the game, who have a minimal background story and are barely introduced.
Another minor problem is that some of the conversations feel a bit repetitive: the party members repeat their current personal goals and argue why they should still stick together a bit too frequently. Most of the main characters also feel rather one-dimensional until halfway through the game, as each character only has one or two topics to talk about. In general, I found the dialog less funny than in other Tales of games.
In addition, I would have liked the option of not having to press a button after every sentence to continue the dialog.
An additional minor problem is that you cannot save anywhere at any time, and you may have to play another hour to reach the next save point.
All in all, Tales of Vesperia is a nice looking game with timeless art style, good voice acting, and decent music. I would recommend it to people who like combo-based combat systems. However, the story failed to grab me, mainly because of its vast, ambitious scope with a lot of story elements and characters, which led to a lack of substance and emotional connection that becomes more apparent in the last part of the game. I had similar problems with Tales of Arise, so if you like Arise, you might like Vesperia.

The game is very good. Very similar to Final Fantasy but not as serious as FF. Also it has more "anime"-style graphics. I like characters, acting is good. Everything is so cute and beautiful. The plot is very slow burning but pretty interesting.
The battle system is strange and confusing. I am just clicking all buttons. FF7 battle system was more understandable but I guess more fun. But this one is not but, it's just strange.
This was the first Tales of game I've ever played. I have never ever heard of this series before and it looks like I've missed a lot! I am going to finish this one and probably Berseria too!