Tales of Xillia 2

« Tales of Xillia 2 boasts a constant feeling of progression through the entire game, and though the leveling has a new, and somewhat particular, skill-based development, the complete RPG package can be found within this wholehearted sequel. »

« It feels like a big expansion, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't buy it. Actually, it's one of those games RPG fans cannot miss. »

« A fluid combat gameplay meets a great character progression system. The story does not reach the quality of the first episode, but the adventure is long and full of quests. »

« Follow up of one of the best JRPGs released exclusively for PS3. Almost as good as the original. »

« Thanks to a radical change of atmosphere and to a general revamp of the game mechanics, Tales of Xillia 2 is a very good JRPG, much better than what the limited scope of the production would suggest. »

« A Japanese style RPG with fast'n'furious real-time combat. There's a lot of stuff to do and nothing deviates too much from the tried and tested Tales of -formula. Maybe it should, though. [Nov 2014] »

« I would recommend Tales of Xillia 2 to any Tales or JRPG fan. »

« Tales of Xillia 2 had the potential to be one of the best games in the franchise. While it hits many notes perfectly, it also gets some things terribly wrong. »

« Rarely are there any games that play so closely with continuity the same way that Xillia 2 does, and because of that it can end up being another visit to the world Xillia set up or feel like rehash of the original game. Despite such a split difference when it comes to the world itself, Xillia 2 does manage to tell a wonderful story about perseverance, and experiencing what could have been.Strictly at a gameplay perceptive Xillia 2 has almost the exact same worlds, areas, and towns that Xillia 1 had. Absolutely something I think people should avoid when looking at Xillia 1 and 2 is to not play the game side by side; as a lot of game is heavily recycled. For the most part though, I wouldn't call Xillia 2 lazy. It does it's best with the new locations and constantly builds on what Xillia 1 did. Certain areas in Xillia 1 may have also been explored more compared to 2 or the environment may have changed as well. Again this is not usually the case, but such attention to detail with the world building and even character relationships make Xillia 2 what it is, a revisit to a familiar **** always, the characters are a real highlight about the Tales Of games, and Xillia 2 doesn't shy away from that either. The old gang is back in action, and taking on new duties and roles that make for some rather interesting character development. Certain characters don't go the path you expect, but they do stay true to who they were in the original game. The two new characters, Ludger and Elle are also a great addition to the cast, and help make Xillia 2 one of the biggest cast of characters to embrace the Tales series. Thankfully due to the past game and some chapters that exclusively focus on said characters, we learn more about the old cast while still experiencing the growing relationship between them, Elle, and Ludger. In fact, Ludger being such a new character and as the main led, a lot of the game plays out in a way that Ludger can feel like a self insert, even going as far as giving you choices every now and again. The majority of choices don't affect the game too much, but can help increase your affinity with the rest of the cast. Ludger is in fact his own character tho, and while there are some interesting reasons why we don't really get to explore his character much, there is enough interactions with people that help flesh out his character. Elle, meanwhile, is easily the best addition to the cast of characters, and is probably one of the best child characters in gaming. I don't say it lightly in the sense that Elle expresses herself like a child without ever really feeling too annoying or hurtful to the narrative. In fact, the majority of the driven story is actually caused by Elle, and to say that she has the biggest growth moments in this game is an understatement.Which speaking of character growth, this game's story is dark, really dark. While the majority of Tales games do dive down into the politics and morality of what drives someone to be who they are, Xillia 2 has a way of just sort of twisting the knife in the back for a lot of these characters. Xillia 2 is not without fun moments and laughter, but to say this is a happy game would be blatantly lying to your face. While I don't think the overall threat of this games antagonist is particularly great, the fact the characters have to personally take care of a lot of their demons is what really drives home the interest of Xillia 2, and honestly why you keep playing **** the most part, I don't think I could have asked for a better sequel the way we have Xillia 2. I don't think it's the best game in the series, but it manages to do a lot that make it far more memorable in my mind than any other Tales of game to date. While I would love to recommend this to anyone, honestly Xillia 2 is best played after a Xillia 1 playthrough, and even then with some time to process everything; if you can manage that, you'll be in for quite a treat. »

« Yeah, I'm definitely late for this, 5 years in fact, but this is because I couldn't bother to review this game back when it was new and I was extremely hyped for it. Xillia was "officially" my first tales - even though I had Vesperia but I never managed to actually play it back then - and I loved that game so much: I loved the combat, I loved the Lilium system, I loved the characters (except Milla. **** Milla), I loved the setting, I loved the graphics, I loved the linked system...I just loved it and I'm just now replaying it for the first time in 6 years! My review of Xillia 1 might be a bit off but I truly enjoyed that game, so much that I'm even going to attempt the platinum I loved it so much. But Xillia 2 is **** good. Let's start from the very first thing you see when you start the game: what the **** happened to our characters? they look TERRIBLE, and I don't mean "Yeah they don't look as good" NO I mean they look terrible, their design is atrocious, HORRIBLE, UGLY! Jude's lab coat is so bland it feels like it's an extra costume! Alvin just looks blander now and Leia, just, how could they change her adorable design into a journalist? And Elize?! Argh! Why is she now a chirpy, slutty schoolgirl?! She doesn't act nor look like Elize, she's a completely different character! On this regard, yes, time has passed since the first game, changes are normal to occur and I'm not saying they shouldn't change them, but I at least expected them to grow into better people! Jude has become boring, Leia is a loser journalist instead of a charismatic and happy nurse, Alvin is shady once again - even though I remember him stopping doing that? - Elize is just a bland school girl with the personality of **** frankly, that's it for now, because I have more for later. But of course, how could I forget? Now we control Ludger, a new character **** doesn't speak at all. Yep, we got a silent protagonist now ****'s just okay, at best. It's really okay but I wish he spoke more rather than allow us to choose his answers. In addition, Elle, the other main protagonist, is a pain in the butt and she won't stop talking. What saves them from complete horror is definitely Rollo...I don't know why but whenever I saw him my complaints would end. It's hard to get mad when a damn big fat cat looks at you, and I'm a bird type of person! Okay, characters are ****ed, what's left? Oh the combat, one of my favorite parts of the game and probably the best combat I ever had in a tales so far: the linked arts and the unique talents of the character made it fun to experiment and the Lilium orb, a system similar to FFX's Sphere grid, made it all enjoyable and customizable at the player's pace. Well, the combat is pretty much the **** the Lilium system is not, replaced for probably one of the worst progression systems of those years. Remember whenever you leveled you'd receive GP to use it in the Lilium Orb? Forget that now: in order to obtain everything, from skills to artes, you're now having to get elemental ore. How do you get elemental ore? From enemies and from the overworld. Why is it worse? Because you can only grow certain elements at once depending on the Extractor, meaning that you can play 20 hours without obtaining any of the important artes like resurrection or pixie circle or anything. I played Xillia 2 for over 20 hours, 20 hours of boring grind - since combat is practically meaningless and you can grind the ores by just running out and in of the map - until I simply call it quits. I hardly quit games so soon because of boredom and it's usually a Square Enix game, but this time Tales of Xillia 2 beat them to it. I didn't even bother to get the last 3 characters like Milla but considering she was a **** in the first game I HIGHLY DOUBT she's any better in this game. At least I don't have to Boo her every 30 seconds. Bottom line, I just don't like this game...I replayed it twice but the feeling I get is the same: it's boring and the plot is just needless. The questing system **** and it's now tied to a "debt system" where zones are unlocked the more you pay and then you get the Rollo minigame which forces you to wait for REAL-TIME for his return and it is required in order to get certain items for quests. I just couldn't get more than that time and the more I played, the more I wanted to return to Xillia 1. And I did, despite the flaws it has (mostly Milla. because **** Milla) Apologies for the swearing, but this game pissed me off so much that I couldn't do a review years ago, and now I finally said my piece: **** this game, play Xillia 1. »

« This was the first tales of xilia game I've played. I loved it so much more than final fantasy xiii. it had a more complex battle system than what I'm used to, but totally playable even if you don't get every detail down. during some redundant parts of leveling up and getting jobs done, sometimes I'd put them all on auto so I can do other things, and then I'll control characters during the important parts. I love that they give the option to control whichever character, even though I didn't do that. I wasn't really clear on how to use the extractor thing. Overall it's an excellent game that reminded me of how much i love those japanese anime games and has a bonus scene after the credits that you won't want to miss. the way they make you make decision throughout the game, makes you get more attached to the characters, although i don't like how the main character seems to not have as much personality as the others since he doesn't talk as much. I wish i had played the first game first, but even starting with this one was great,. If you're questioning it, just get it. It'll be well worth it. »

« Diesmal nur kurz. Tales of Xillia 2 ist ein sehr gutes Spiel und ein solides Tales of... Leider kommt es meiner Meinung nach, genau wie sein Vorgänger, nicht an Tales of Vesperia heran. »

« Esta secuela es prácticamente lo mismo que la anterior, solo se jugaría para de alguna forma darle un final a la historia. Lo que si es lo peor de este juego es el maldito sistema de pago de tu deuda( si lo juegan entenderán) , ese punto es la contra mas grande del juego. »

« [SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.] »

« I am not a fan. My brothers and I played through the first one and I loved it and so logically we got the second one. And I mean, we knew it wasn't gonna be as good as the first one cause sequels rarely are but this....this is **** es bueno. We have been playing for 72 hours, we are level 63, we've already maxed out abilities on 7 characters and we're only like half way through the game, at least that's what it seems like, and it's sooo boring. And annoying cause the creator decided they didn't want people having fun cause they changed things up in a way that's just irritating. Like the main character is locked on the party throughout the game, now combine that with the linked system, you can't change party members on the world map, now combine that with the fact that only Leia can steal, and the main character has a super mode that takes over the entire battle, now combine that with **** see a pattern? These things, while probably 'meh' when playing solo become a huge irritation when playing in a group. And the game designers didn't stop there. Now take that already horrible mixture and throw in a bratty 8 year old that won't shut her freaking mouth, a freaking loan shark who calls you CONSTANTLY even in timed areas, and a main character who has the emotional complexity of a slug who never talks and you have to make decisions for and you have the **** sandwich that is this game. There are so many draw backs, if it weren't for the fact that I loved like 66% of the characters in the last game, Idda already bailed. Also, there are quests where your party is Ludger, a pair of characters and then a free character, the pairs are always the same, so you don't get the fun interactions you might get from Alvin and Elize, plus that would make more sense than sending both mages together. It's ****'s bad. Plus, just random complaint, why did the name the child Elle when we already have Elize who's nickname from Teepo was Ellie? That just seems like poor planning. »

« May Contain Spoilers Tales of Xillia 2 is an amazing sequel. Plot - Fractured Dimensions now threaten the World of Elympios and the only one who can destroy them is our hero Ludger Will Kresnik a mostly silent protagonist who sometimes talks and sometimes doesn't. He has an ability known as Chromatus which allows him to destroy Dimensions. If you played Xillia 1 you will be familiar with the word Kresnik and what it means. My thoughts On Story - Interesting Satisfying & Entertaining. ~ Characters ~ Ludger - He's pretty cool he owns a cat, can wield 3 weapons, owes a large debt, has an apartment and a crazy brother. Tsundere Milla - I'm happy to say that she is not the real Milla but she is kind of funny and entertaining. You'll meet and get the normal Milla later on. Alvin - Alvin is attempting to not be "A big fat liar" like he used to be. In my opinion Alvin is the same except he lies less in this game and he doesn't betray you like he did in the last one like a backstabbing bastard. Elize - Is exactly the same but now she's less shy. Rowen - Exactly the same. Leia - Exactly the same. Jude - Exactly the same. Gaius - He is surprisingly funny in this game. Gaius is still the same badass don't worry they didn't change him that much. But it is weird to see the antagonist become the protagonist especially someone as serious as Gaius its his seriousness that makes him funny in skits. Muzet - Muzet is no longer a crazy psychopath **** she's good now and I like that. Muzet is also hilarious and I love to see her in the skits. I always pictured Muzet as being the protagonist rather then the antagonist like in Xillia 1 so to me this fits perfectly. Nova - Some people think she's annoying but I like her. Nova is always happy and lively. People hate her because she's in charge of Ludger's huge debt and since she's such a happy little character it makes it seem like she's the one responsible for his debt but its actually Rideaux whose responsible for it. Nova is just doing her job Rideaux is the evil bastard who should get all the hate. Elle - Now I think she is annoying but sometimes she's a little cute and has a few moments here and there which makes her a tolerable and worthy character for the series. My Thoughts on Characters - Their amazing. Gameplay - The Gameplay is mostly the same as the 1st one but it they add alot of new things. The 1st is that Ludger can use 3 weapon types Swords Guns & Hammers which makes him the most fun to use. You also have the addition of 2 new characters Gaius & Muzet. The Lilium Orb has changed to the Allium Orb which is very different from the Lilium Orb however I'll let you find out from the game how it works. The 3rd thing is that Ludger can use Chromatus which is basically his trump card for difficult battles. When your in Chromatus Mode you are invincible and cannot be damaged by any attacks and you can perform large combos and use some amazing attacks. For other Gameplay related things. Ludger has a large debt to pay and unless he pays this debt he will be unable to travel to certain places which will halt the main story. To pay this debt you'll have to go on item searching missions kill certain monsters and go on Elite Monser Hunting Quests. Each character also has his/her own story which you can do on the sidelines while your paying your debt you also get money for doing some of these stories. 1 thing that might make people mad is that most of the areas in this game are the same from the 1st Xillia but there is some new areas in this game especially in Elympios. 1 thing I forgot to mention is that Ludger can make decisions based on interactions between characters and situational conflicts. It gives you the assumption that these decisions change the story however it does not until the end of the game where your decision can change the endings. My Thoughts on Gameplay - Love it Love it Love it, I sigh over a few disappointments but I still Love it. Audio - There is no Dual Audio like there was in Symphonia Chronicles but I don't think you need that because the dub of this game is great. If you liked the dub of Xillia 1 your feelings won't change for this one. There are a few reused tracks in this game and there are alot of new Tracks in this game and Motoi Sakuraba does not disappoint once again he makes an amazing OST. Graphics - Are exactly the same as Xillia 1. Replay Value - The meter broke that's how high the replay value is. Overall - If you loved Xillia 1 buy this right now. If you want to buy this game without having played Xillia 1 I strongly do not recommend it. Play Xillia 1 then play Xillia 2 so you can understand everything. There a few disappointments but overall the Pros outweigh the Cons which makes this yet another Tales Game Masterpiece. »