The Tales of… series is well known to many gamers, having been a fan favourite for around ten years now, and this latest instalment does not disappoint. You pick up the story of a group of friends from a small village in the world of Sylvarant, where a legend foretells of a Chosen One who will regenerate the land torn in two between peaceful humans and evil Desians – half elves who breed humans like cattle.

From such humble beginnings the story evolves as you find out that your friend Collette is The Chosen One and you set off on an adventure to protect her as she travels from magical seal to magical seal, saving the world.

Truly an epic, this 3D RPG offers 60+ hours of gameplay which is what all hardcore RPG-ers like to hear, plus in the end saving one world isn’t enough- you have to save two! Although quite a linear game, there is a level of flexibility there - with many plot twists to go through and story arcs to follow, depending on what decisions you make, you choose your own path through the game.  Plus if you wish, you do also get the ability to gather further background info on your band of travellers by opting to watch small side ‘skits’ and there are also side-quests to take on if you feel like rising to the challenge. You’ll want to take advantage of the skits as they offer a window into the characters relationships, and aren’t too intrusive as you follow text boxes through these silent sections. There is a problem with them though; you can’t control the text box speed which can be annoying, and you may end up abandoning reading them because, although useful, they can become very dull as they appear quite often.

As with all good RPGs, ToS has a definitive real time battle system which allows you to execute and combine hundreds of special moves and spells which you will learn during your travels and as you earn your battle experience points. To be truthful, there is a hell of a lot of information to take in, but if you feel like you’re reaching battle info overload, panic ye not; all data gets stored in a training manual, so you can always go back to it at a later date for a refresh.

The battles are never dull; instead being fast paced affairs where you control one of the four characters and the rest battle using their own AI or, if you don’t like their style (or they just keep darn well dying!) you can give them instructions such as use magic, use distance attacks, defend or heal depending on your needs and their strengths. Regularly check their command options – you’ll need to use different strategies to beat different monsters.

Character growth is also very much in your hands as depending on what ex-gems you discover and equip characters with, you’ll see them evolve in different ways. Characters also gain ‘titles’ throughout the game when they meet certain criteria. These offer stat boosts when the character next levels up. These titles can range from the silly to the extreme with and can simply be obtained by reaching a specific cut scene, but the most powerful titles need the most work and can be near to impossible to achieve for some.

A very battle-orientated game, during your travels between towns you can choose to dodge enemies however you will benefit nothing from doing this – the more you fight the better. Especially as money is quite scarce compared to how often you’ll need it to restock and buy new equipment and clothing, so fight whenever given the opportunity.

To add a slight twist, the game offers a multiplayer element, but personally I don’t think it’s a great one, especially since it’s unclear as to what you can do in multiplayer. In a nutshell, by plugging in some more pads, your mates can join you to control other characters moves within battles and help execute combo attacks, but that’s about the limit. It’s a bit weak to call it a multiplayer me thinks.

Visually, the game’s graphics are amazing; so good that sometimes they take the spotlight off the games playability itself.  Anime style, cel-shaded graphics are used, and the gorgeous cut scenes and character design come from the hand of renowned artist Kosuke Fujishima. You’ll want to explore towns just to see all the different environments the game has to offer, plus you’ll never get bored during the cut sequences, as the graphics alone will hold your attention as you admire the detail.

Musically, it’s nothing fantastic, but is that really the reason you pick up a game? When it comes to an RPG, you want a non-intrusive music style, and it would be fair to say that this is what ToS offers – that and a hummable battle tune and I’m ready to go!

As for its replay appeal, ToS isn’t too bad. Once completed, it offers a new game + mode, plus the numerous side quests and optional bosses mean you may just have to play it through multiple times in order to complete everything possible.

A mammoth game, ToS won’t leave you disappointed. If only more games of this ilk would come out for such an overlooked console!