Okay okay okay I loved this game.

This is second 'Tales of' game I've played, my first being Arise. Honestly, it's just standard comfort jrpg through and through. But honestly that's my bread and butter and I eat that shit up. Group of misfits, killing God by the end.. I will never tire of it.

Tales of Beseria is pretty much 100% character driven. The plot outside of the characters is pretty straight forward. The dungeons are pretty much linear and quite bland. There's not really any sidequests. Combat is enjoyable and if you fight around half the enemies you see on the maps you will be pretty much evenly levelled with the bosses the whole way through.

It's a good thing all the characters, imo, were really well written and fleshed out. I felt every one of our main crew bought something and each of their individual storylines were enjoyable to see play out and watch to their conclusion.

The reason why I'm giving Beseria 4 stars whilst Arise got 4 and a 1/2 is that Beseria, didn't really get me feeling too super bothered by the stakes of the story until about 2 thirds in, whereas in Arise I was pretty much hooked from the start.

I would argue that this game is a must-play for anyone who enjoys the general jrpg tropes.

Prior to playing this I heard about how great character Velvet was, I was quite sceptical going in on if she was as great as everyone was making out, but by the last half of the game and certainly by the end I very much understand it.

"With an entrance like this, it's almost like we're--"
"A bunch of heroes!"

I tried Tales Of titles in the past, and unfortunately none of them really stuck with me, for different reasons.

Berseria is a massive exception. This title took me by surprise and turned into one of my favorite JRPGs.
It is able to present a story about revenge that does feels overdone, and full of emotions and depth, with a protagonist that makes for a great anti-hero without feeling like a complete edgelord like her design may make you think.

It has one of the best party members in any RPGs, with banters that alone are able to sell you on the title (Magilou, you absolute beast)

I feel the combat can become quickly repetitive, and the fact there is not a lot of options for fast travels makes for a kinda sluggish exploration. But the charm of the writing and the characters makes you go forward and makes you witness a fantastic adventure.

A big surprise for me. I highly recommend it!

It’s really about time I threw in the towel on this game. I’ve been playing this title on and off for a little under a year now, and I’d always go long stretches of time just forgetting about this game then being reminded of it’s existence by seeing it on my “playing” tab.

The thing about this game is that it really doesn’t have anything to engage me. There are a variety of things a game can engage me through and this game really has none of them. The cast is fine, none of the characters stood out to me in any way and I really didn’t enjoy them besides a select few story interactions and those skit segments. The villains are incredibly bland and merely serve as motivations for the protagonists rather than as fleshed out individual characters. The art direction is incredibly generic, the locations and world are incredibly standard for JRPGs, the dungeon puzzles are an insult to the word puzzle, I could really go on and on and on with each and every thing in this game.

It sucks too since I know someone who really seems to enjoy this game, but I just can’t get into it in the 20 hours I’ve given it.

Tales of Berseria, 70 hours played, although it's 90 hours on Steam due to occasional interruptions such as meetings and sometimes falling asleep when I planned to finish it over the weekend.

I distinctly remember playing Tales of Zestiria during my college days, and it's the only JRPG I intentionally dropped midway through. I despised the cast, the story, and its execution, finding it so cringe-worthy and boring that I often found myself banging my head on the table. However, a few months ago, I decided to purchase Berseria on a whim since it was on sale. To my surprise, I got hooked on the story immediately, playing for 20 hours straight without switching games, and I couldn't believe it was crafted by the same team and writer.

Tales of Berseria boasts a strong story and cast, possibly one of the best in the Tales series based on my experience. It's refreshing to play as a protagonist who isn't purely good from the start, with significant character development potential. The pacing and execution are spot-on, making it thoroughly enjoyable. The game is also incredibly emotional, taking us on a rollercoaster of emotions, from tearful moments to mind-bending twists and hilarious scenes, all perfectly balanced in tempo. Velvet's character is psychologically and morally complex, especially as her revenge motive is questioned, making her fascinating to play. Even the antagonists are portrayed sympathetically towards the end.

Unfortunately, the game's strengths lie primarily in its story and characters. The gameplay is decent, with AI that's an improvement over Zestiria but not particularly engaging to delve into further. Playing as Velvet on hard difficulty feels effortless, so there's little incentive to learn the intricacies of other characters' gameplay. Equipment management and modification are simpler than Zestiria but still cumbersome and tiring to deal with. The most disappointing aspect is the weak setting and environment. It's even worse than Zestiria; I didn't feel like the world of Berseria truly came alive, felt real, or was believable. The world-building is lacking, and the blandness of each dungeon, major city, etc., fails to evoke any sense of wonder. Despite the need for constant backtracking to familiar locations, there's no "wow" factor while playing. The music is also forgettable, a significant downside compared to Zestiria.

Overall, I'm more of a story-driven person who prefers reading visual novels for hours rather than playing games with minimal or poor storytelling. Berseria, however, satisfied me in terms of its narrative, although I must admit I wasn't too fond of the ending.

My score: 4/5.

P.S. Learn the Mystic Chain art (spam R2 and d-pad during Mystic Art) that the game never tells you about; it makes boss fights a breeze.