Tales of Graces f Remastered
Review
Wonderful watercolours
by JackCarter
reviewed on PC
Watercolour vista
Staring off the edge of the world, a watercolor vista being gently painted hues of orange and violet by the setting sun as a cherry blossom tree gently swaying in the breeze. This moment in time is a harbinger of things to come, things that the characters are not yet privy to – this is childhood's end. The Tales of Graces f Remastered prologue introduces you to it's cast when they're children, and it's all for the better. Not only does it plant the seeds for the years-spanning story, but it introduces you to it's cast when they're not jaded by the realities of life. The main character, Asbel Lhant, the heir to the Lhant family, is brave, caring, and very disobedient, always doing the opposite of what his father tells him to do. He's stubborn and brash, much to the detriment of his timid little brother, Hubert, and their sickly friend Cheria. Their disobedience leads them to find Sophie, an amnesiac mystery girl with surprising strength, and Richard, the kind, yet lonely, young prince. Their journey together leads them to loss, abandonment, and pain, and that's only in the first few hours.
Coming into Tales of Graces f Remastered, I didn't know what to expect. I've played Tales games before but for some reason or another, Graces f slipped past me. Luckily enough this remaster has rectified that for me, as I found myself in an early 2000's fantasy anime (one of the good ones) mixed with Game of Thrones, where political betrayal could be viewed through the dramatic lens of action cartoons from Nippon. Its cartoonish feel (not a bad thing, I love cartoons) ultimately serves it's narrative as it broadens it's characters, making them fit more into archetypal roles, allowing the audience to get a feel for them right off the bat. Then, later when the kids are grown up, it is used to show how different they've all become. That their actions have left scars. When Asbel is reunited with his little brother Hubert, the now cold and calculating Hubert is a stark contrast of who he used to be. Graces f's characters are fully fleshed out, and likable, I often found myself watching every optional dialogue scene, despite being on a deadline for the review, because I truly enjoyed the characters.
If you've played older Tales games, such as Tales of Vesperia, you'll be familiar with the combat system. It uses action combat that relies on stamina, which is displayed by numbers next to the health. It is used to counterbalance the combat, making the player block and regain stamina points or else risk leaving yourself tired and open for attack. As you progress you'll unlock new attacks that you can assign, allowing yourself to customize your combo. You can also switch which characters you play as, and each one plays slightly different. Asbel is well rounded, while Sophie is quick and deadly. I suggest trying out all of them and finding what fits best for you. It's a tried and true system for sure, bridging the gap between turn based and hack and slash, but if you're expecting something more like the newest entry, Tales of Arise, well, you'll have to look elsewhere. Overall, the combat isn't horrible at all, but it's what has aged the poorest.
For a game that originally came out in 2010 on the Wii, Tales of Graces f is surprisingly beautiful, even more so with the remaster. It's cell shading blended with watercolor style backgrounds has arguably aged better than a lot of games of the era. I was constantly stopping and admiring the views along my journey. Obviously, your mileage may vary, but I found it pretty aesthetically pleasing.
Roughly 15 years since the release of Tales of Graces f, it's still well worth the journey. The story, although familiar for the JRPG genre, is well told with enjoyable characters. When Graces f originally came out it was well received but swallowed up in the passage of time, so it's great that it's getting another go around with the remaster. It may not be perfect, but I think it's worth being remembered as a great game.
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8.7
fun score
Pros
Characters, Story, Visuals
Cons
Combat has aged poorly
