Tales of Graces f Remastered

 

Review by · January 15, 2025

Even before Tales of Graces f Remastered, approaching the Tales series in 2025 feels like a monumental task. Now in its thirtieth year, it spans multiple titles with some gated behind older, potentially less accessible hardware. Tale of Graces f Remastered forms part of Bandai Namco’s ongoing effort to address this issue through the rerelease of games that otherwise might be neglected.

First appearing on the Wii in 2009 and ported to the PS3 shortly afterward, Tales of Graces f Remastered offers a glimpse into the middle years of Tales, showing us a series firmly in its stride yet not fully developed into its present form.

The main character is a young noble named Asbel, a recalcitrant mischief-maker who, together with his brother Hubert and his friend Cheria, discover a young girl in a flower-filled meadow, who suffers from that common JRPG malaise, amnesia. They take her home, at which point Asbel engineers a meeting with Richard, the prince of the kingdom. There follows a tale of adventure and misfortune, leading to a time-jump that sees us rejoin the leads in their adulthood as they struggle to deal with the consequences of their past and the emergence of a supernatural peril that could threaten their entire world.

Asbel kneels and holds his sword in Tales of Graces f Remastered.
Our hero is ready for battle.

It’s a relatively basic narrative, but as with so much of this release, its beauty lies in simplicity. Lower polygon graphics than you might find in a modern title inhabit the strange area somewhere between chibi and realism. Everything, from the environments to the character models, seems imbued with vibrant colour, like an anime aimed at a younger audience but cannot help but enthrall the older viewer. The first moments where we look at the sky over that meadow took my breath away, the multihued horizon containing an unusual complexity that obtained even more significance as the story progressed. The remaster makes visuals crystal clear, with a sharpness that enhances the original vision behind the design work.

As expected from a Tales game, the heart of the experience lies in the action gameplay, which attracts so many enthusiasts to the series. In Tales of Grace f Remastered, we observe a battle system in full bloom. Avoidable monsters appear on the field, but it’s not necessary to worry much about entering encounters. When I fought that initial battle, the speed and impact of the combat struck me as jumping straight into the fray and immediately out again in mere seconds. Graces aims for intensity over duration, a nice change of pace from some newer action RPGs. The game teaches you the mechanics by drip-feeding information at a measured pace which otherwise could easily overwhelm.

Graces, like other Tales games, contains a distinctive blend of the fighting genre with the traditional RPG. The “Chain Capacity” or “CC” gauge limits the amount of moves you can perform. You use this up by dodging and performing special actions, holding the left stick as you enter button combinations to select your moves, with each further attack increasing the associated cost. Doing so causes your character to spin around the screen, as fast as a petal caught in a whirlwind, as they shout out the names of the techniques in familiar Tales fashion.

Asbel stands behind Sophie, a purple-haired girl with pigtails in Tales of Graces f Remastered.
Everything revolves around Sophie.

As with the best fighting games, you cannot button-mash your way to success. Choosing unwisely leaves your character momentarily motionless on the field as your CC recharges through guarding or otherwise taking no action. CC also replenishes by pulling off a well-timed dodge, which I found extremely satisfying. The key to victory lies in analysing an enemy’s weakness and utilising the moves most likely to deal damage to that vulnerability. Doing so successfully sends the damage counter soaring upward, making you a martial master.

This system feels like a boon and, potentially, an annoyance. If you wish to vanquish your foes efficiently, you need to investigate the menu to carefully match monsters with the appropriate moves. Alternatively, you must memorise each action’s strengths and the associated inputs needed to bring them about in a feat of memory which some might be capable of, but one that lies far outside my reach. This gives the action depth and ensures that you remain engaged, but it also adds an element of administration to fights that can detract from their immediacy. Furthermore, you can freely switch between party members, each with their own unique set of moves and mechanics, which increases this factor exponentially.

Tales of Graces f Remastered does a lot to cater to those who find this element frustrating. Its multiple difficulty levels aid those who would rather bypass some of this mechanical weight, or alternatively, the challenge can increase for the more adventurous. Additionally, you can access the “Grade Shop” from the very first playthrough—something originally unlocked only after completing the game— to give access to modifiers such as increased experience points and currency. This allows you to play the game the way you want to, something beneficial for those new to Graces, but equally for veterans who want a breezier experience on a secondary playthrough.

Tales fans will also find the Title system familiar, wherein characters earn titles with amusing story-related nomenclature. You can only have one title at a time, though each awards different bonuses that you can level up and retain, a unique twist on typical experience systems that never outstays its welcome.

If, like Asbel, you have a few friends willing to support your adventurous nature, they can grab a controller and join you in the battles, taking ownership of one of the characters, in a feature that the developers sadly seem to be moving away from now.

These characters and the story that forms the foundation of the experience are solid. Truthfully, literary theorists in the future won’t agonise over this story, but sometimes we need a straightforward presentation of the basic themes that brought many of us to the genre in the first place. The writers examine the benefits of friendship, its cost, what it takes to maintain, and whether the price can ever be too much. The thread of parenthood weaves itself throughout the game, which we see in several guises: fathers whose harsh decisions defy obvious explanation and those parents who act with self-sacrifice and devotion. Although I’m not sure how much I gel with Tales of Graces f Remastered’s messaging on duty and obedience, the conversation is nonetheless interesting to have.

More positively, I found the pacing excellent, with story developments leading swiftly into entertaining boss encounters and further voyages beyond. The fantastical world of Graces has seeds of science fiction within that increase gratifyingly as the tale unfolds. By the close, the setting reaches a level of novelty and intrigue much higher than I suspected from the opening chapters.

Asbel fights his enemy in the combat of Tales of Graces f Remastered, landing a strike.
Another furious fight to the death!

Additionally, Graces contains many appealing characters. True, we’re not going to reach the multi-layered sophistication of a party member from a Persona or Mass Effect game, but again, Tales of Graces f Remastered does not strive to achieve that. Instead, we have a group of individuals who I enjoyed spending time with and did not want to leave by the finale. However, the English voice acting, while being of generally high quality, does have an element of late noughts hesitancy to its delivery, fearless of an occasional dip into shouty campiness.

In terms of those characters, my personal highlights include Pascal, the eccentric inventor who, after her abrupt introduction, I suspected I might despise, but whose chaotic nature and use of endearing onomatopoeic abbreviations won me around in the end. Sophie (the mysterious girl I mentioned earlier) also impresses, here voiced by Cassandra Lee Morris, perhaps most well-known to our readers for voicing Morgana in Persona 5. Morris gives a nuanced performance in a difficult role requiring emotion without emoting, selling the character completely.

The anime sequences form another compelling reason to progress through Tales of Graces f Remastered. Though generally short, they heighten the drama of the game’s pivotal moments. What’s more, once you’ve completed the main story, you gain the option to watch these movies again at your convenience.

A soundtrack composed by series regulars Motoi Sakuraba and Shinji Tamura accompanies the action. Although not ranking amongst the greatest JRPG music, the tracks rarely fail to support the game’s atmosphere. Nevertheless, the competent opening song “Mamoritai” does not reach the stirring heights of “White Light” from Tales of Zestiria. Some truly great pieces, such as the dolorous track “A Fortress of Hundred Blacks,” convey an impressive sense of dread and foreboding.

Tales of Graces f Remastered presents the ideal way to experience this enjoyable entry in the Tales series. While I can’t promise Graces will revolutionise your view of the genre, I can assure you of an enjoyable time in the company of an entertaining group of characters, coupled to a battle system that gets your adrenaline flowing. Just like Sophie, the memories you create in your time here will be worth the journey.


Pros

Attractive and colourful graphics taking you to another era, snappy action-focused gameplay with deep systems adding complexity, a likeable cast of characters that can hold attention.

Cons

Story is a little basic and sometimes a bit too earnest, the complexity is not for everyone and can sometimes feel like a chore.

Bottom Line

Bandai Namco brings an old favourite back to life in a joyous adventure that JRPG historians need to add to their backlog.

Graphics
84
Sound
82
Gameplay
88
Control
89
Story
82
Overall Score 85
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Paul Skevington

Paul Skevington

Paul first started gaming at the dawn of time on the ZX Spectrum, playing text adventures such as Zork and The Hulk. He would be introduced to the world of JRPGS in his teens, with the likes of Mystic Quest and Secret of Mana. Like so many people, Final Fantasy VII cemented his love for the genre. For now, he's on a quest to play all the major titles that he missed in the past, but is also looking forward to the wonderful titles that lie ahead!