The Tales series, known in Japan as the Tales of series (「テイルズ オブ」シリーズ, "Teiruzu Obu" Shirīzu), is a franchise of fantasy Japanese role-playing video games published by Bandai Namco Games (formerly Namco), and developed by its subsidiary, Namco Tales Studio (formerly Wolf Team) until 2011 and presently by Bandai Namco. First begun in 1995 with the development and release of Tales of Phantasia for the Super Famicom, the series currently spans fifteen main titles, multiple spin-off games and supplementary media in the form of manga series, anime series, and audio dramas.
While entries in the series generally stand independent of each other with different characters and stories, they are commonly linked by their gameplay, themes and high fantasy settings.[1] Most of the main Tales games have been localized for North America and Europe, although almost all of the spinoff titles have not been released abroad. While generally seen as a niche series in English speaking regions, Tales is considered a high-profile property in Japan, just behind other series such as Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest.[2] As of December 2013, the series has sold 16 million units worldwide.[3]
Video games
editIn 2007, series producer Makoto Yoshizumi defined two classes of Tales games, "Mothership Titles" and "Escort Titles".[4] "Mothership" essentially means "Main series", where as "Escort" essentially means "Spinoff".[5] The games are also frequently given what is called a "Characteristic Genre Name", which is a short subtitle or phrase that outlines the game's overall theme.[6] There are also terms that are used in remakes or ports of games: "R" stands for "remake" or "re-imagination" (as in Hearts R), while "F" in Graces F stands for "future", in reference to the game's extra story content.[7][8][9]
Mothership titles
editTitle | Original release date | ||
---|---|---|---|
Japan |
North America |
PAL region | |
Tales of Phantasia | December 15, 1995[10] | March 6, 2006 (Game Boy Advance)[11] | March 31, 2006 (Game Boy Advance)[12] |
Notes:
| |||
Tales of Destiny | December 23, 1997[18] | September 30, 1998[19] | none |
Notes:
| |||
Tales of Eternia | November 30, 2000[23] | September 10, 2001[23] | February 10, 2006 (PlayStation Portable)[24] |
Notes: | |||
Tales of Destiny 2 | November 28, 2002[25] | none | none |
Notes: | |||
Tales of Symphonia | August 29, 2003[26] | July 13, 2004[26] | November 19, 2004[27] |
Notes:
| |||
Tales of Rebirth | December 16, 2004[30] | none | none |
Notes: | |||
Tales of Legendia | August 25, 2005[32] | February 7, 2006[32] | none |
Notes: | |||
Tales of the Abyss | December 15, 2005[33] | October 10, 2006[33] | November 25, 2011 (Nintendo 3DS)[34] |
Notes: | |||
Tales of Innocence | December 6, 2007[25] | none | none |
Notes:
| |||
Tales of Vesperia | August 7, 2008[18] | August 26, 2008[37] | June 26, 2009[38] |
Notes:
| |||
Tales of Hearts | December 18, 2008[40] | November 11, 2014 (PlayStation Vita)[41] | November 14, 2014 (PlayStation Vita)[41] |
Notes:
| |||
Tales of Graces | December 10, 2009[42] | March 13, 2012 (PlayStation 3)[43] | August 31, 2012 (PlayStation 3)[43] |
Notes: | |||
Tales of Xillia | September 8, 2011[44] | August 6, 2013[44] | August 9, 2013[44] |
Notes: | |||
Tales of Xillia 2 | November 1, 2012[45] | August 19, 2014[45] | August 22, 2014[45] |
Notes:
| |||
Tales of Zestiria | January 22, 2015[46] | October 20, 2015[46] | October 16, 2015[46] |
Notes:
| |||
Tales of Berseria | August 18, 2016 | January 24, 2017 | January 27, 2017 |
Notes:
| |||
Tales of Arise | September 9, 2021 | September 10, 2021 | September 10, 2021 |
Notes:
|
Escort titles
editTales of the World, Narikiri Dungeon, Radiant Mythology
editGames that are a part of the Tales of the World, Narikiri Dungeon, and/or Radiant Mythology series.
Game | Original release date | Characteristic Genre Name | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | PAL region | ||
Tales of Phantasia: Narikiri Dungeon | November 10, 2000[18] | None | None | Dungeon RPG (ダンジョンRPG, Danjon RPG) |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of the World: Narikiri Dungeon 2 | October 25, 2002[18] | None | None | Cosplay RPG (コスプレRPG, Kosupure RPG) |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of the World: Summoner's Lineage | March 7, 2003[18] | None | None | Fantasy Simulation RPG (ファンタジーシミュレーションRPG, Fantajī shimyurēshon RPG) |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of the World: Narikiri Dungeon 3 | January 6, 2005[18] | None | None | Cosplay S-RPG (コスプレS-RPG, Kosupure S-RPG) |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology | December 21, 2006[18] | July 17, 2007 | September 7, 2007 | RPG For Your Sake (きみのためのRPG, Kimi no tame no RPG) |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology 2 | January 29, 2009[18] | None | None | RPG For Your Sake (君のためのRPG, Kimi no tame no RPG) |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology 3 | February 10, 2011[18] | None | None | RPG For Your Sake (君のためのRPG, Kimi no tame no RPG) |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of the World: Dice Adventure | April 26, 2012 | None | None | None |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of the World: Tactics Union | July 2, 2012 | None | None | None |
Notes: | ||||
Tales of the World: Reve Unitia | October 23, 2014 | None | None | None |
Notes:
|
Original
editBasically independent of other titles, titles with original worlds and characters are organized here.
Game | Original release date | Characteristic Genre Name | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | PAL region | ||
Tales of the Tempest | October 26, 2006[25] | None | None | RPG that Awakens the Soul (魂を呼び覚ますRPG, Tamashii wo yobisamasu RPG) |
Notes:
|
Compilations
editGame | Original release date | Characteristic Genre Name | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | PAL region | ||
Tales of Symphonia Chronicles | October 10, 2013 | February 25, 2014 | February 28, 2014 | None |
Notes:
|
Spin-off Sequels
editGames that are sequels to mothership titles, but are not considered to be one themselves, and are not a part of the Tales of the World, Narikiri Dungeon, or Radiant Mythology series.
Game | Original release date | Characteristic Genre Name | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | PAL region | ||
Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World | June 26, 2008[18] | November 11, 2008 | November 12, 2009 | RPG to Believe in Resonating Hearts (響き合う心を信じるRPG, Hibiki au kokoro wo shinjiru RPG) |
Notes: |
Non-RPG Spin-off
editGames that are not of the role-playing game genre but features characters and settings from the Tales series.
Game | Original release date | Characteristic Genre Name | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | PAL region | ||
Tales of VS. | August 6, 2009[25] | None | None | N/A |
Notes:
| ||||
Game | Original release date | Characteristic Genre Name | ||
Japan | North America | PAL region | ||
Tales of the Heroes: Twin Brave | February 23, 2012[25] | None | None | N/A |
Notes:
|
Fan Disk
editGame | Original release date | Characteristic Genre Name | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | PAL region | ||
Tales of Fandom Vol.1 | January 31, 2002[18] | None | None | None |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of Fandom Vol.2 | June 28, 2007[18] | None | None | None |
Notes:
|
Online
editGame | Original release date | Characteristic Genre Name | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | PAL region | ||
Tales of Eternia Online | March 3, 2006 | None | None | None |
Notes: |
Tales of Mobile
editGame | Original release date | Characteristic Genre Name | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | PAL region | ||
Tales of Tactics | February 16, 2004 | None | None | None |
Notes: | ||||
Tales of Breaker | January 31, 2005 | None | None | None |
Notes: | ||||
Tales of Commons | October 14, 2005 | None | None | RPG to Walk Alongside a Changing World and Trusting Thoughts (変わりゆく世界 信じる想い 共に歩んでゆくRPG, Kawari yuku sekai shinjiru omoi tomo ni ayunde yuku RPG) |
Notes: | ||||
Tales of Tactics Gaiden | November 16, 2005 | None | None | None |
Notes: | ||||
Tales of Wahrheit | June 21, 2006 | None | None | RPG To Find the Meaning of Living (生きる意味を見つけるRPG, Ikiru imi wo mitsukeru RPG) |
Notes: | ||||
Tales of the World: Material Dungeon | January 31, 2008 | None | None | Outfit Change RPG (着せ替えRPG, Kisekae RPG) |
Tales of Asteria | Spring 2015 | None | None | RPG That Ties Together Intersecting Thoughts (交差する想いが繋がる, RPG Kousa Suru Omoi ga Tsunagaru RPG) |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of Crestoria | July 15, 2020 | July 15, 2020 | None | |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of Luminaria | November 4, 2021 | November 4, 2021 | None | |
Notes:
|
Spin-offs
editGames that are not from the mothership nor escort titles, but are considered to have similar gameplay from the two.
Game | Original release date | Characteristic Genre Name | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | PAL region | ||
Keroro RPG: Kishi to Musha to Densetsu no Kaizoku | March 4, 2010 | None | None | None |
Notes:
|
Other media
editAnime
editTitle | Original Run | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | PAL region | ||
Tales of Eternia: The Animation | January 8, 2001 – March 26, 2001 | None | None | |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of Phantasia: The Animation | November 25, 2004 – February 24, 2006 | January 16, 2007 | None | |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of Symphonia: The Animation | June 8, 2007 – October 23, 2012[49] | None | None | |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of the Abyss | October 4, 2008 – March 28, 2009 | October 11, 2011 | None | |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of Vesperia: The First Strike | October 3, 2009 | June 26, 2012 | January 7, 2011 | |
Notes:
| ||||
Tales of Zestiria the X | July 3, 2016 – April 29, 2017 | Simulcast Streaming | Simulcast Streaming |
Radio
editTitle | Original Run | ||
---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | PAL region | |
Tales Ring | N/A | None | None |
Tales of the Radio | N/A | None | None |
References
edit- ^ Sheffield, Brandon (2 November 2012). "How Namco keeps its Tales Of RPG series fresh, 17 years later". Gamasutra. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
- ^ Parish, Jeremy (22 September 2006). "Tales of the Tempest Preview for DS from". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on 16 May 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2012.
- ^ Spencer (13 December 2013). "Altogether, Namco Bandai Shipped Over 16 Million Tales Games". Siliconera. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
- ^ "Creator's Voice". Nintendo DS Creator's Voice. Archived from the original on 24 November 2007. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
- ^ Robson, Daniel (26 June 2014). "Why 90% of Fans at Tales of Festival Are Female". IGN. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
- ^ Laura (23 June 2011). "Tales Games Aren't RPGs, Says Tales of the Abyss Producer". Siliconera. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
- ^ Shreier, Jason (5 April 2013). "Tales RPGs Are Like Gumdrops, Says The Guy Who Makes Them". Kotaku. Retrieved 2 August 2014.
- ^ Romano, Sal (25 January 2012). "Tales of Innocence R credits tease another Tales remake". Gematsu. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
- ^ Spencer (2 August 2010). "Tales Of Graces F Includes A Tale About Asbel's Future". Siliconera. Retrieved 2 August 2014.
- ^ a b c "Tales of Phantasia - Super NES". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b "Tales of Phantasia - Game Boy Advance". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ McCarroll, John (2005-11-03). "Tales of Phantasia Hitting US, Europe". RPGFan. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ "Tales of Phantasia - PlayStation". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ "Tales of Phantasia - PlayStation Portable". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ 中野信二 (2008-03-16). バンダイナムコ、iモード/EZweb「テイルズ オブ ファンタジア モバイル」「テイルズ オブ」シリーズの第1作目が携帯ゲームアプリとして初登場. Game Watch (in Japanese). Impress. Retrieved 2010-04-05.
- ^ "Tales of Phantasia - iPhone". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ Gantayat, Anoop (2010-03-10). "Jump Mystery Title Revealed to be New Tales Game". Andriasang. Archived from the original on 2012-04-06. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y テイルズチャンネル+ (in Japanese). Bandai Namco Games. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ "Tales of Destiny - PlayStation". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c d e f Goulter, Tom (2011-11-21). "Tales Studio shut down by Namco Bandai". GamesRadar. Future. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ テイルズ オブ デスティニー [Tales of Destiny] (in Japanese). Bandai Namco Games. Retrieved 2015-01-29.
- ^ テイルズ オブ デスティニー ディレクターズカット [Tales of Destiny Director's Cut] (in Japanese). Bandai Namco Games. Retrieved 2015-01-29.
- ^ a b "Tales of Destiny II - PlayStation". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b "Tales of Eternia - PlayStation Portable". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Wallace, Kimberly (2014-05-02). "The Tales Games We Missed". Game Informer. GameStop. Archived from the original on May 3, 2014. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c d "Tales of Symphonia - GameCube". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ Bowskill, Thomas (2005-12-14). "Tales of Symphonia (GameCube) Review". NintendoLife. Gamer Network. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ "Tales of Symphonia - PlayStation 2". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ "Tales of Symphonia - PlayStation 3". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c "Tales of Rebirth". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ "Tales of Rebirth - PlayStation Portable". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c d "Tales of Legendia". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c d "Tales of the Abyss". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b "Tales of the Abyss - Nintendo 3DS". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Alfa System Home Page". Alfa System. Retrieved 2015-01-29.
- ^ Romano, Sal (2011-10-21). "Tales of Innocence dated, new character revealed". Gematsu. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b "Tales of Vesperia". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ "Atari FR - Tales of Vesperia" (in French). Atari. Archived from the original on 2009-04-26. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ "Tales of Vesperia - PlayStation 3". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c 【3分ランキング】PSP『ディシディア FF』が約50万本を販売してトップに!. Dengeki Online (in Japanese). ASCII Media Works. 2008-12-26. Archived from the original on 2014-07-03. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c d "Tales of Hearts R". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b Gantayat, Anoop (2009-10-08). "Tales of Graces Gets Special Wii Bundle". Andriasang. Archived from the original on 2012-10-01. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
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- ^ a b c d "Tales of Xillia". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c d e "Tales of Xillia 2". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ a b c d e Moriarty, Colin (2014-09-17). "TGS 2014: Tales of Zestiria's All-New Take on a Classic JRPG Series". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
- ^ Agossah, Iyane (2021-12-07). "Why is Tales of Crestoria Global Shutting Down & is it Closing in Japan?". DualShockers. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
- ^ "Tales of Luminaria Ends Service In July, Less Than One Year After Launch". GameSpot. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
- ^ "Tales of Symphonia OVA Sequel Series Green-Lit". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2009-01-09.