Originally released exclusively for the Nintendo Wii in 2009 – and only in Japan –Stories of grace was eventually remastered and made available to Western audiences on PlayStation 3 in form Stories about graces f in 2012. Now, almost 13 years later, the JRPG has been remastered once again and made available on almost every current platform with Tales of Graces f Remastered.
Nowadays, remastering can mean many things when it comes to games, from basic ports, to a more current system, to a complete remake, e.g. Final Fantasy 7 Remake. In case Tales of Graces f Remasteredthat means updated graphics that look better on current displays, as well as plenty of quality-of-life additions ranging from miniature to huge.
Most of the additions simply make this two-decade-old JRPG more accessible and enjoyable to play, while remaining genuine and faithful to the original. Which, I’m not afraid to admit, is one of my favorites in the “Tales of” series.
Yes, you heard that right. If I had to pick an absolute favorite, it would probably be the newest album Stories of the Uprising. But I would have posted it sooner Stories about graces f there, next to it Tales from the Abyss as my favorite, mainly due to the fun, fast-paced combat system that stood out in the series. Fortunately, the creator of TOSE Co. LTD left the combat system intact from the original.
History Tales of Graces f Remastered The action takes place in the fantasy world of Ephinea, a world divided into three different countries: Windor, Strahta and Fendel. At the beginning of the game, the main character, Asbel, and his younger brother Hubert find a peculiar purple-haired girl named Sophie near their town. Sophie suffers from amnesia and has no idea who she is or why she is there. Asbel and Hubert take Sophie back to their village, where they meet Prince Richard, the future king of one of the other three kingdoms. The four become friends before an unexpected tragedy causes them to go their separate ways.
Hence, Tales of Graces f Remastered jumps ahead seven years to a time where the three kingdoms that were previously at peace are now threatened with war due to a series of events that took place during this period, resulting in childhood friends reuniting during some rather arduous times when the three kingdoms are threatened with total war.
Like most JRPGs, there is a story Tales of Graces f Remastered is an crucial part of the game. I think that’s why I like this story Grace so much of it comes from the constant tension created by an element of political intrigue that is often absent from JRPGs, and more specifically from the Tales of series. It’s not without its flaws – it certainly suffers from some of the usual JRPG clichés, especially when it comes to the characters – but the constant twisting of the story through backstabbing and politicking sets it apart from other entries in the series.
While I enjoy this story, it’s crucial to point out that I highly recommend playing the optional “Lineage and Legacy” after completing the main story. It was originally a DLC that actually served as an ending Stories of graceresolving many of the ongoing subplots and overall it also provides a nice finish to the main story. Lineage and Legacies DLC, as well as all other DLC for which it was released Stories about graces f apart from a few licensed cosmetics, they are included in the remastered version.
Tales of Graces f Remastered uses an action combat system where encountering enemies on the world map will send you into battle with the enemy in real time. You can run around the battle map and block or dodge attacks, all while attacking enemies with a variety of attacks, including A Artes (physical special attacks) and B Artes (magical special attacks). Using a system called Chain Capacity (often called CC), you can chain Artes to deal massive damage as you progress Tales of Graces f Remasteredcompleting various achievements will unlock titles for each of your characters, which also grant up-to-date Artes.
I remember trying to get the platinum trophy Stories about graces f which required obtaining 100 titles for each playable character. This took a lot of time, as many titles just needed mindless polishing. WITH Stories about Graces f remasteredyou’ll get full access to the Grade Shop, a special store that allows you to enable and disable certain systematic changes to the game on the fly, such as double item drop chance, increased experience and currency gains, and more. Believe me when I say that some of them will really cut down on the grind, especially if you want to get all the titles. Originally, you could only access the Grade Shop after completing the game. For those who have played before and want a less grindy experience, this is a very welcome quality of life addition. And those who don’t want to can simply opt out of enabling any buffs from the Grade Shop.
In addition to Grade Shop, here are some other quality of life add-ons Tales of Graces f Remastered. On the world map, you can switch the run button to the dash button to traverse the world faster. You can also turn enemy encounters on and off with a basic setting in the options menu, so if you want to avoid battles and just advance the story for a while, you can do so. All cutscenes and dialogue skits can be skipped (thank goodness), and destination icons have been added to the world map for the next main story quest.
At the end of the day, Tales of Graces f Remastered it’s everything a remaster should be: graphical improvements that make the vintage game look better on current platforms, a collection of quality-of-life additions that make the game better while staying true to the original version, and the inclusion of all the DLC into a complete package. This is a really solid value, especially for those who haven’t played yet Stories of grace in one of the two previous forms because it is essentially the final version. I just hope Tales of Xillia 1 and 2 will be next, and maybe even Tales of the Abyss!
