Tales of Graces F Message Board

This is Hideo Baba, producer of the Tales of franchise. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of our fans in North America and Europe. It’s been an absolute pleasure attending various overseas events and interacting with so many of you. I really feel like we’ve been able to sustain our franchise for 15 years because of such a loyal fanbase. I cannot thank you enough.

Starting March 26th, we’ll be digitally distributing Tales of Graces f on PlayStation Network. I strongly urge anyone unfamiliar to the series to give it a shot. An epic adventure of unimaginable proportions awaits you! We will have two versions of the game available next week; the Standard Edition ($34.99) and Knight Edition ($54.99). The Tales of Graces f: Knight Edition will come bundled with more than 10 DLC items to help new adventurers on their quest including increased stats, health and currency.

In addition, the western release of Tales of Xillia on PS3 is right around the corner — it’ll be out this summer!

For the first time in the franchise, you’ll be able to select between two main characters and experience the game from two different perspectives. It’s up to you whether you want to play as the male or female protagonist.

Tales of Xillia is a culmination of all our development efforts over the years, so I can’t wait for our western fans to try it out. We have a lot more events planned until the release of Tales of Xillia, so I strongly urge you to come visit us when you have the chance. I look forward to meeting all of you.

We’re planning on making this a Tales of filled year, so we have a lot of surprise announcements lined up — stay tuned! Thank you again to all of our fans who have supported us over the years. We hope for your continued support in 2013.

#culturesmash A favorite otaku (geek) hobby in Japan is taking photos of toys. The pictures can make oh-so-cute miniature figurines look lifelike. But this trend isn't only a Japanese thing. It's also a Formula One racer thing—at least for one man. More »

#talesof I knew becoming the father of twin boys would impact the amount of time I had to play video games. I didn't realize it would also affect the way I perceive them. As I played through the early hours of Namco Bandai's Tales of Graces F I came to a startling realization: I'm not merely 'me with kids'; I'm a father now. More »

#randomencounters We play video games for a number of reasons. Sometimes we need to kill time on the subway. Sometimes we want to pretend to be other people. Sometimes we crave that emotional gratification that you can only find in interactive entertainment. More »

Editor's Note: This review is based on 20 hours of testing with the retail version of Tales of Graces F. Because this only covers a small portion of a 50 to 60 hour experience, the following article will not feature a definitive score, but instead a consumer recommendation based on the author's time spent with the product...

When I was but a wee nerdling, I had an unhealthy obsession with Brian Jacques' Redwall book series. While other children frolicked in parks or used superior numbers to overwhelm prey or whatever normal children do, I dreamed of talking mouse-people and magic swords the size of thumbtacks. Over time, however, even Child-Me realized that I was basically being asked to pony up for slightly different spins on the same swords 'n' sorcery 'n' rodents-for-some-reason story. Same journey progression, same character archetypes, same pervasive message that badgers are the Best Animal, etc. But I read, like, 14 of the things, because they were comfortable -- the literary equivalent of a hug or that Snuggie no one knows you own.

Namco Bandai's Tales series hedges its bets on a taking up a similar role in the lives of its fans. Tales of Graces F doesn't reinvent any wheels or cure Japanese RPG characters of their tragic case of radioactive bedhead, but it's an especially strong showing from a series that knows how to make you instantly feel right at home.

It's been a long time coming, but it looks like the wait is nearly over. Well, by "nearly" we mean "three months from now," but that's better than nothing, right? The Namco Bandai localization of Tales of Graces F will bring purple pigtails and J-Pop to North American PS3s on March 13, according to the latest trailer above.

Now, there will be several points during this trailer where you will instinctively reach for the mute button on your keyboard, but we beg that you try and tough it out. Not because it's ultimately worth it, but because we had to listen to the whole thing, and we want you to suffer like we did.

It already seems miraculous that Western gamers will get to play Tales of Graces F through an official Namco Bandai localization. We suppose there's only so much we can reasonably expect. Not among the things we can expect: a localized release of the original Wii version of Tales of Graces.

During this weekend's Japan Expo, Namco Tales Studio director Makoto Yoshizumi told Kingdom of Tales that "there will be no Wii release." The explanation he gives sounds kind of odd, for a game originally released on Wii: "We wish to deliver the best and most complete experience for US and European fans, therefore we're localizing Tales of Graces f. The game on the PS3 version is on a blu-ray disc. It would be next to impossible to condense all the game's data on a Wii disc, so unfortunately, there will be no Wii release."

The statement isn't entirely unfounded: the PS3 version includes a new playable chapter not found in the Wii original, with a voice-acted script reportedly 3/4 the length of the original game's. The desire for the "best and most complete experience" likely refers to that extra content, thus explaining why the original Wii version is being skipped.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Leading video game publisher and developer, NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc., today announced its acclaimed role-playing titles Tales of Graces f for the PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system, and Tales of the Abyss for the Nintendo 3DS system will be released in North America. Tales of Graces f and Tales of the Abyss will both offer brilliant graphics, a dynamic real-time battle system, and deep, captivating stories filled with exciting quests and hidden secrets...

Fans of the Tales Of series rejoice, as Tales of Graces F is finally getting a European PS3 release after getting a Japan-only release at the end of last year. Tales of Graces F (the F stands for future) is an update of the original Japanese Wii-exclusive title Tales of Graces set six months after the end of Graces' story, and marks the first European appearance of the much-loved franchise on the PS3...

For the Japanese release of Gods Eater Burst, Namco Bandai is planning DLC that brings in costumes and items based on other Namco properties that, frankly, have no business being in a game like this -- which is great!

A free DLC pack headed to the Japanese PSN on February 10 adds costumes to make your characters look like Asbel and Cheria from Tales of Graces (the PS3 version of which was just announced for North America). The pack also comes with weapons based on the Soul Calibur and Soul Edge swords from the Soul Calibur series. Best of all, the DLC includes costumes based on Taiko Drum Master, which are way too bright and happy to be appropriate for the grotesque Gods Eater Burst.

Burst arrives in North America this spring, but no announcements have been made about whether we'll be wielding the Soul Edge in our version.Japanese Gods Eater Burst DLC includes Taiko Drum Master, Tales & Soul Calibur items

#talesofports Another Tales game will come to the West, publisher Namco Bandai has announced. Tales of Graces F, the enhanced PlayStation 3 port of a 2009 Wii game, is "coming soon to North America." Enjoy this victory, long-suffering Tales fans! More »

Namco Bandai is doing what many fans thought would be impossible: they're localizing another Tales game. A teaser site reveals that Tales of Graces F is "coming soon to North America," even though everyone pretty much figured that out already. No other details have been revealed, like why, when and Wii? (The original Tales of Graces was a Wii release in Japan.)

Although we eagerly await more information, this confirmation should be good enough for most Tales fans. Well, except the really angry ones who don't have a PS3.

Yesterday, Namco Bandai posted a link on Facebook to a series of glyphs on its company site. It turned out each glyph represented a letter, and with the puzzle solved a new site was spelled out: ATaleOfTwoRichards.com. And that site has brought us the blurred image seen above, which bears a striking resemblance to the logo (posted after the break) for Tales of Graces F, the PS3 port of Tales of Graces. And the "Richard" in the URL could be a reference to the character of the same name, who appears both as a child and an adult in the game (which could sort of be considered "two Richards").

Even more conclusive evidence that Namco is doing the impossible and actually localizing a Tales game can be found after the break, in the form of the less blurred image that was initially posted on the teaser site, according to NeoGAF poster miladesn.

#talesofgraces Tales of Graces, the buggy Wii game, is getting ported to the PS3 and its own curry. This isn't the first time for ToG curry, but the second. Because when people think of curry, they immediately imagine Tales of Graces. No, no they do not. More »

#sonycat These days, cross-promotions are all the rage in Japan. Monster Hunter in your Metal Gear Solid. Ace Attorney in your Professor Layton. This Tales of Graces collaboration might be overdoing it, though. More »

It's disappointing to see Tales of Graces continue to go without a North American release. Last year's Wii game was not localized, and it's a shame that the enhanced PS3 version, Tales of Graces F, will likely miss an American release as well. That's too bad, because Graces is an excellent (albeit familiar) addition to the RPG franchise.

TGS: Tales of Graces F Screenshots

Namco Bandai readying Japanese demo for PlayStation 3 version.

#namco Wii title Tales of Graces was so buggy that the game had to be recalled. A ported (and no doubt refined and hopefully bug-free version) is coming to the PS3. More »

Namco Bandai has officially acknowledged the existence of a leaked Tales of title. Andriasang reports series producer Hideo Baba confirmed at a press conference that there is a new entry coming to PS3, but that it's currently nameless -- shooting down rumor that it'll be called "Tales of Unitia." There is currently no release window for the game, but some concept art was shown (pictured).

Additionally, the company verified the port Tales of Graces F for the PS3 this winter, which will include an "after-story" that wasn't in the original Wii game. A Namco Bandai representative informed Joystiq that the publisher currently has no plans to release "Tales of Graces (PS3)" in North America.

Namco Bandai has officially acknowledged the existence of a leaked Tales of title. Andriasang reports series producer Hideo Baba confirmed at a press conference that there is a new entry coming to PS3, but that it's currently nameless -- shooting down rumor that it'll be called "Tales of Unitia." There is currently no release window for the game, but some concept art was shown (pictured).

Additionally, the company verified the port Tales of Graces F for the PS3 this winter, which will include an "after-story" that wasn't in the original Wii game. A Namco Bandai representative informed Joystiq that the publisher currently has no plans to release "Tales of Graces (PS3)" in North America.

Namco Bandai readying upgraded version of Wii title along with all new entry in series.