![]() But the fact remains that once the genie is out of the bottle, it’s impossible for us to not question the decision. Are Gald and healing items purposely scarce throughout the adventure to make the prospect of plunking down real money more appealing? Is the leveling curve artificially deflated, necessitating quite a bit more grinding to unlock new skills and abilities? Of course, it’s possible that none of this is true and that the DLC was created after the game had already been balanced. The worst part about this barrage of DLC offers is that it has me questioning the balance of Tales of Arise’s core game. And if you ever want to manually save or load your game, that very same menu contains links to the DLC as well. The game’s opening title screen has a scrolling notice at the bottom excitedly telling you that you can pay money for an early game XP boost. And it’s not just in the campfire scenes. And I’m really glad with my decision, preferring the casual clothing to the more outlandish armor that they’re usually wearing (and still do in certain cutscenes, which I find very, very funny).īut the way Tales of Arise aggressively hawks its DLC feels like a telemarketer that simply won’t take no for an answer. Hell, I’ll admit that I bought the School Life costume pack DLC for my Tales of Arise party, just so I could dress them up in modern-day outfits and pretend that I was playing some kind of weird Persona spin-off. By now, it’s honestly par for the course for many JRPGs, oftentimes leaning into anime staple fan service beachwear. I don’t have any problem with totally optional cosmetic DLC. If you want to become an OP Scrooge McDuck by the time you leave the starting area, the only thing standing in your way is a $20 bill. And again, these can be purchased several times. ![]() Another $1.99 will raise your party by 5 levels, with $2.99 giving you a 10-level boost. In terms of content, $1.99 will get you 100,000 in-game Gald (… seriously, just call it Gold) and can be purchased several times. Not only is “Downloadable Content” featured as prominently as the options to “Rest” or “Reminisce,” but there’s also a scrolling ticker off to the side advertising what you can buy now that you’ve already purchased the full-priced game, including cheers to “Save Time!,” which made me ponder whether I was wasting my time in the first place. These moments of weary travelers resting along their journey and just hanging out are usually things I love in games, whether it’s the iconic shot of your heroes lounging about fireside in a grove in Chrono Trigger or the Phantom Thieves hanging out in Ren’s room above LeBlanc before you head out to a palace in Persona 5.īut in Tales of Arise, each respite means being bombarded with prompts to dive into the game’s DLC, which honestly bummed me out every time. Sitting down at a campfire should be a moment for your party - as well as you as the player - to catch your breath, reflect on how far you’ve come, and prepare for what lies ahead. This is all stuff I love, save for one pronounced feature. You can skip right by them with no harm done, but if you engage with their stylish animated comic book presentation, you’ll gain entirely new perspectives on the story and your party in general.Īside from these skits, you can also gain a bit of insight into your pals at campfires, which allow you to regain all of your health and combat points, cook meals for temporary status buffs, and have one-on-one conversations that strengthen your bond with individual party members. These are basically optional little vignettes that usually have to do with the area you’re in, a battle you’ve just won, or some characters you’ve recently met. But the standout element for me in Arise is its cast of characters that slowly make their way into your party and guide you along the adventure.Īnyone who’s played a Tales game before is probably familiar with the massive amounts of skits available throughout your journey. The real-time combat is as exciting as ever, filled with all of the grandiose anime spectacle you could ask for, even if the enemy variety could use a bit of work. But there’s one glaring element of Tales of Arise that keeps trying its hardest to make me fall out of love with it: its aggressive and frankly gross DLC.Īfter a bit of a slow tutorial, Tales of Arise settles into a satisfying groove where I find myself wanting to explore and find new items, which will in turn help me craft new gear. It’s a big, beautiful adventure filled with colorful worlds to explore, a never-ending supply of enemies to battle, and a loveable cast of weirdos in your party to grow fond of. The latest in Bandai Namco’s long-running and much-beloved Tales series, Arise has a lot going for it. Let’s make this clear right off the bat - I think Tales of Arise is a great JRPG.
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