Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World
Encyclopedia
Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World, known in Japan
as , is a console role-playing game developed by Namco Tales Studio
and published by Namco Bandai
for the Wii
as a cross of spin-off and sequel to Tales of Symphonia
for the Nintendo GameCube
and PlayStation 2
. Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World's characteristic genre name is . The game was released in Japan
on June 26, 2008, in North America
on November 11, 2008 and in Europe
on November 13, 2009.
' and Tales of Destiny
' s battle systems, to create a battle experience comparable to Tales of Innocence
s Dimension Stride Linear Motion Battle System. A key feature of this enhanced system is the Elemental Grid. Each battle location, skill, and monster has an elemental attribute. The battlefield's element can be altered by using three skills with the same elemental attribute. Changing the element of the field determines both the effectiveness of an attack, as well as the characters that can participate in Unison Attacks, which return from the original Symphonia. A meter on the lower part of the screen indicates when the attack can be unleashed. Another returning element of the series are Mystic Artes.
Another new feature is the ability to capture, evolve, and level up over 200 monsters to fight alongside Emil. Monsters can be recruited once they have been defeated in battle while the elemental grid has four of the same element, as well as the main element matching them. In order to increase the odds of a successful recruitment, the element of the field should align with the element of the monster, and an altered version of the classic Tales affection system helps to persuade them to join the party. The monsters are controlled in battle by artificial intelligence. The party can only hold four monsters at a time; as such, those not in use can be stored in a pen at the Katz Guild. There are also several sidequests available at the Katz Guild.
The party obtains both experience point
s and GRADE after each battle. The amount of Experience points gained is given to all members of the party, not divided. Once a certain amount has been accumulated, each character or monster will level up, thereby improving their stats and possibly gaining new skills. Another way to increase a monster's status parameters is by cooking them special recipes, when fed some monsters may be able to evolve into new forms, allowing for "monster customization." The original Symphonia cast, however, do not gain levels through experience points; instead, they gain levels during plot events. The amount of GRADE received depends on how each battle is fought. From the second playthrough on, collected GRADE can be used to purchase game options, or transfer items or skills to carry to the next file.
Dawn of the New World makes limited use of the Wii Remote's features. Rather than the fully explorable Field Map traditionally used in Tales games, a point-and-click system using the Wii Remote is used to navigate the world. The development team left the Field Map out due to production schedule deadlines. The pointer is also used for minigame
s and as a cursor for the Sorcerer's Ring.
During the events of the first game, Lloyd Irving and his companions embarked to a journey that led to the merging of the twin worlds of Sylvarant and Tethe'alla. After the lands became one, however, maps were rendered useless and the climate went through many vast changes: desert towns became frozen wastelands and lakes dried up into valleys. All of this stems from an overlooked factor in the unification of the worlds: the spirit of the old Kharlan Tree, Ratatosk
, still exists somewhere, and its slumber has sent the world into chaos. To complicate matters, tensions have quickly escalated between the people of the two worlds. The Tethe'allans look down upon the Sylvaranti due to their inferior technology, and the Sylvaranti fear the Tethe'allans for their power. Two years have passed since the worlds were first merged, and the Sylvaranti have created an army, known as the Vanguard, with which to rise against the Church of Martel and the Tethe'allans.
One day, the Church of Martel goes to war with the Vanguard, and Sylvarant's city of Palmacosta is caught in the crossfire. Countless innocent lives are lost and the city is consumed in flames. This event comes to be known as the "Blood Purge," a massacre allegedly led by the same Lloyd Irving who helped unite the worlds two years before. Emil Castagnier, a Palmacostan boy, is forced to watch as his parents are killed by Lloyd; after this traumatic incident, he is sent to Luin to live with his aunt and uncle. He suffers continual mistreatment from them, however, and he is further ostracized by the people of the city, who view Lloyd as a hero.
Emil's life takes a dramatic turn when he befriends Marta Lualdi, a girl who is being hunted by the Vanguard and the enigmatic Richter Abend alike. Determined to protect her, Emil confronts Richter and helps Marta escape with the aid of Tenebrae, a centurion spirit who serves Ratatosk. Tenebrae states that there are other centurions who lie in a dormant state: to restore balance to the world's environment, all of them should be awoken in order to revive Ratatosk. Emil forms a pact with Tenebrae, and in so doing becomes the Knight of Ratatosk. So it is that Emil and Marta embark on their journey of revenge and restoration.
.
The original soundtrack for Dawn of the New World spanning four CDs was released on July 9 2008. A bonus DVD containing original animation involving the cast of Tales of Symphonia was given for those who preordered the game in Japan.
Since its release, Dawn of the New World has received mixed reviews. There are conflicting opinions about the game's voice acting on IGN
: Mark Bozon stated that the voice acting was stronger than the previous game, whereas Matt Casamassina
said that "the voice acting is...simply atrocious". Nintendojo
expressed their disappointment when it was learned that Scott Menville
did not return as the voice of Lloyd Irving.
Reviewers of Famitsu
magazine gave the game a score of 31/40 whereas Famitsu Wii+DS' s reviewers gave the game a 35/40. IGN
rated Dawn of the New World 6.7/10, praising the presentation, real-time battles, and length of the game, while criticizing the music, voice acting, graphics and linearity. Gametrailers
gave it an overall rating of 7.9/10, stating that in some ways the game was a worthy successor to Tales of Symphonia, but that the "erratic difficulty, budget production values, and a poorly paced story" make Dawn of the New World "ultimately just another passable action RPG". Nintendo Power gave the game a score of an 8.0/10, praising the battle system and nostalgic aspects of the title, though criticizing the limits on the old casts' levels and equipment, the removal of a traditional field map, and the voice actor changes. GameSpot gave the game a 6.5/10, hailing its familiar battle system, characters, and "fun" four-person multiplayer support; however, the abundance of cut scenes, the poor plot, deficiencies in the AI, and the monster system received harsh criticism. Other reviews were far more harsh, X-Play gave it a 2 out of 5 almost criticizing every aspect of the game, claiming that the graphics and writing are horrible, also saying that character animation were made hyper realistically, thus calling it a "bland and flawed RPG".
Fan reaction to the title is mixed: some praise the game as being a worthy and enjoyable spin-off
to the original, while other players regard the game as a misstep, criticizing the game's recycled elements, budget production values, and the English voice cast changes. Emil has often garnered much criticism, and is even listed as the fourth most irritating RPG protagonist of all time by 1up.com.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
as , is a console role-playing game developed by Namco Tales Studio
Namco Tales Studio
, formerly , was a Japanese video game development company founded in 1986. The company was renamed in 2003 when Telenet Japan sold part of its stake and made Namco the majority shareholder. Namco Tales Studio continues to be the primary developer of the Tales RPG series, as they had been since the...
and published by Namco Bandai
Namco Bandai Games
is an arcade, mobile and home video game developer and publisher based in Japan which is the product of a merger between the video game development divisions of Bandai and Namco. Namco Bandai Games is a wholly owned subsidiary of Namco Bandai Holdings and specializes in production and sales of...
for the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
as a cross of spin-off and sequel to Tales of Symphonia
Tales of Symphonia
is a video game first released for the Nintendo GameCube and later for the PlayStation 2 in Japan. It debuted in Japan on August 29, 2003, selling 953,000 copies, in Canada and the United States on July 13, 2004, and in Europe on November 19, 2004. The game received a Japanese-only PlayStation 2...
for the Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
and PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
. Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World's characteristic genre name is . The game was released in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
on June 26, 2008, in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
on November 11, 2008 and in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
on November 13, 2009.
Battle system
Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World uses the "Flex Range Element Enhanced Linear Motion Battle System" (FR:EE-LMBS), combining aspects of Tales of the AbyssTales of the Abyss
is a console role-playing game developed by Namco Tales Studio and published by Namco in Japan and Namco Bandai Games in North America. Tales of the Abyss's characteristic genre name is The Meaning Of Birth RPG . It is the eighth mothership title in the Tales series, and was released for the...
Tales of Destiny (PS2)
is a video game remake in the RPG genre published for the PlayStation 2 console by Namco Bandai Games on November 30, 2006 in Japan.It is a remake of the second game in the Tales series, the original PlayStation Tales of Destiny, which was released on December 23, 1997.Tales of Destiny 's...
Tales of Innocence
is the ninth mothership title in the Tales series for the Nintendo DS. The game was developed by Alfa System, and was released on December 6, 2007 in Japan. Tales of Innocences characteristic genre name is . The game has not been released outside of Japan although there is a full fan translation...
s Dimension Stride Linear Motion Battle System. A key feature of this enhanced system is the Elemental Grid. Each battle location, skill, and monster has an elemental attribute. The battlefield's element can be altered by using three skills with the same elemental attribute. Changing the element of the field determines both the effectiveness of an attack, as well as the characters that can participate in Unison Attacks, which return from the original Symphonia. A meter on the lower part of the screen indicates when the attack can be unleashed. Another returning element of the series are Mystic Artes.
The party obtains both experience point
Experience point
An experience point is a unit of measurement used in many role-playing games and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's progression through the game...
s and GRADE after each battle. The amount of Experience points gained is given to all members of the party, not divided. Once a certain amount has been accumulated, each character or monster will level up, thereby improving their stats and possibly gaining new skills. Another way to increase a monster's status parameters is by cooking them special recipes, when fed some monsters may be able to evolve into new forms, allowing for "monster customization." The original Symphonia cast, however, do not gain levels through experience points; instead, they gain levels during plot events. The amount of GRADE received depends on how each battle is fought. From the second playthrough on, collected GRADE can be used to purchase game options, or transfer items or skills to carry to the next file.
Presentation
The only animated segment in the game is its opening sequence. Most of the story is told through real-time cut scenes that were filmed using a motion capture system. Skits, which are short, optional conversations between the characters, make a return; unlike in previous North American releases, these skits are fully voiced. There is more voice acting in towns and dungeons than in the previous game. Much of the music in Dawn of the New World is remixed from the soundtrack of the original Tales of Symphonia. The game also has widescreen support. Furthermore, many of the assets and locations in the game have been taken directly from the original Tales of Symphonia, but the textures have been updated.Dawn of the New World makes limited use of the Wii Remote's features. Rather than the fully explorable Field Map traditionally used in Tales games, a point-and-click system using the Wii Remote is used to navigate the world. The development team left the Field Map out due to production schedule deadlines. The pointer is also used for minigame
Minigame
A minigame is a short video game often contained within another video game. A minigame is always smaller or more simplistic than the game in which it is contained. Minigames are sometimes also offered separately for free to promote the main game...
s and as a cursor for the Sorcerer's Ring.
North American additions
The North American version of Dawn of the New World has additional features that were not present in the Japanese release. New features include the ability to load cleared Tales of Symphonia game data to receive extra items or Gald at the beginning of the game. In addition to this, while not a new feature, the number of motion control shortcuts in battle has been increased from four in the Japanese version to eight for the North American version.PAL additions
The PAL version of "Dawn of the New World" includes a Gallery Mode and head accessories for Emil and Marta. Gallery Mode contains a Skits Library containing viewable skits of the game, and an Image Library to view design sketches, illustrations, pack art and more. Head accessories include masks and head accessories which will be able to give new special effects during battles.Plot
Ratatosk
In Norse mythology, Ratatoskr is a squirrel who runs up and down the world tree Yggdrasil to carry messages between the unnamed eagle, perched atop Yggdrasil, and the wyrm Níðhöggr, who dwells beneath one of the three roots of the tree...
, still exists somewhere, and its slumber has sent the world into chaos. To complicate matters, tensions have quickly escalated between the people of the two worlds. The Tethe'allans look down upon the Sylvaranti due to their inferior technology, and the Sylvaranti fear the Tethe'allans for their power. Two years have passed since the worlds were first merged, and the Sylvaranti have created an army, known as the Vanguard, with which to rise against the Church of Martel and the Tethe'allans.
One day, the Church of Martel goes to war with the Vanguard, and Sylvarant's city of Palmacosta is caught in the crossfire. Countless innocent lives are lost and the city is consumed in flames. This event comes to be known as the "Blood Purge," a massacre allegedly led by the same Lloyd Irving who helped unite the worlds two years before. Emil Castagnier, a Palmacostan boy, is forced to watch as his parents are killed by Lloyd; after this traumatic incident, he is sent to Luin to live with his aunt and uncle. He suffers continual mistreatment from them, however, and he is further ostracized by the people of the city, who view Lloyd as a hero.
Emil's life takes a dramatic turn when he befriends Marta Lualdi, a girl who is being hunted by the Vanguard and the enigmatic Richter Abend alike. Determined to protect her, Emil confronts Richter and helps Marta escape with the aid of Tenebrae, a centurion spirit who serves Ratatosk. Tenebrae states that there are other centurions who lie in a dormant state: to restore balance to the world's environment, all of them should be awoken in order to revive Ratatosk. Emil forms a pact with Tenebrae, and in so doing becomes the Knight of Ratatosk. So it is that Emil and Marta embark on their journey of revenge and restoration.
Development
The opening music has been reworked into an orchestral theme for the English version of the game, similar to what was done to Tales of Symphonia. The Japanese version's theme song is by misonoMisono
, who performs under the mononym Misono , is a Japanese singer-songwriter from Kyoto. She is also the younger sister of Japanese singer Kumi Koda. Misono was the lead singer of pop band Day After Tomorrow, until the group disbanded in 2005. In 2006, Misono made her debut as a solo artist, remaining...
.
The original soundtrack for Dawn of the New World spanning four CDs was released on July 9 2008. A bonus DVD containing original animation involving the cast of Tales of Symphonia was given for those who preordered the game in Japan.
Reception
Dawn of the New World sold 120,000 copies in Japan on its first day of release and concluded the week of June 23 to June 29 (with Dawn of the New World being released on the 26th) with over 151,000 copies sold. This made it the bestselling game of that week. In a report detailing Namco Bandai's results for the first fiscal quarter 2009, the company revealed that as of 6 August 2008, Dawn of the New World has sold over 215,000 copies in Japan. The game was later released under Nintendo’s "Everyone’s Recommendation Selection" of budget titles in Japan.Since its release, Dawn of the New World has received mixed reviews. There are conflicting opinions about the game's voice acting on IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
: Mark Bozon stated that the voice acting was stronger than the previous game, whereas Matt Casamassina
Matt Casamassina
Matt Casamassina is a video game journalist who worked for IGN until April 23, 2010. In his time at the site, he was the author of many reviews and previews of Nintendo games. He resides in Los Angeles, California, is married and has two daughters, Zoe and Fiona Jade, and a son named Rocco Archer...
said that "the voice acting is...simply atrocious". Nintendojo
Nintendojo
Nintendojo is a non-profit website that focuses on Nintendo-related subject matter, created and run by fans. Nintendojo is the oldest Nintendo-specific fansite still in existence, having been founded by Peer Schneider in September 1996...
expressed their disappointment when it was learned that Scott Menville
Scott Menville
Scott David Menville is primarily an American voice actor, actor, musician, and comedian.-Early life and career:The son of Chuck Menville, he was bassist for the Southern California rock band Boy Hits Car, which released three albums until he left the band in 2006. He was with the group since...
did not return as the voice of Lloyd Irving.
Reviewers of Famitsu
Famitsu
is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD...
magazine gave the game a score of 31/40 whereas Famitsu Wii+DS
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
rated Dawn of the New World 6.7/10, praising the presentation, real-time battles, and length of the game, while criticizing the music, voice acting, graphics and linearity. Gametrailers
GameTrailers
GameTrailers is a media website that specializes in video game related content. It provides free access to original programming , game trailers and recorded game play. Along with standard definition , many of the video clips are offered in a higher resolution .Users can upload videos, create...
gave it an overall rating of 7.9/10, stating that in some ways the game was a worthy successor to Tales of Symphonia, but that the "erratic difficulty, budget production values, and a poorly paced story" make Dawn of the New World "ultimately just another passable action RPG". Nintendo Power gave the game a score of an 8.0/10, praising the battle system and nostalgic aspects of the title, though criticizing the limits on the old casts' levels and equipment, the removal of a traditional field map, and the voice actor changes. GameSpot gave the game a 6.5/10, hailing its familiar battle system, characters, and "fun" four-person multiplayer support; however, the abundance of cut scenes, the poor plot, deficiencies in the AI, and the monster system received harsh criticism. Other reviews were far more harsh, X-Play gave it a 2 out of 5 almost criticizing every aspect of the game, claiming that the graphics and writing are horrible, also saying that character animation were made hyper realistically, thus calling it a "bland and flawed RPG".
Fan reaction to the title is mixed: some praise the game as being a worthy and enjoyable spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
to the original, while other players regard the game as a misstep, criticizing the game's recycled elements, budget production values, and the English voice cast changes. Emil has often garnered much criticism, and is even listed as the fourth most irritating RPG protagonist of all time by 1up.com.