Tales of Eternia, also called Tales of Destiny II in its original North American release, is an action role-playing game published by Namco. It is the third main game in the Tales series. The game was first released for the PlayStation in Japan in November 2000. An English version was later released in North America in September 2001. The game was developed by members of Telnet Japan's "Wolfteam," who had previously worked on earlier games in the series, Tales of Phantasia and Tales of Destiny. The game's producers gave it the special name for its genre: RPG of Eternity and Bonds (永遠と絆のRPG, Eien to kizuna no RPG). A version of the game was released for the PlayStation Portable handheld in Japan in March 2005, and in the PAL region in February 2006.

Set in the fantasy world of Inferia, the game follows the story of a young hunter named Reid Hershel and his friends, Farah and Keele. They meet a mysterious girl named Meredy, who speaks a language no one understands. Their journey to learn about her origins leads them through a portal to a different realm called Celestia, where they become involved in a long-standing conflict between the two worlds. Tales of Eternia received mostly positive reviews when it was first released and sold about 873,000 copies worldwide. Later, it inspired a 13-episode anime series produced by Xebec, which is loosely based on the game's story.

Gameplay

The game is similar to other Tales games and follows the same style as earlier role-playing video games. Players use an overworld map to move between locations in the game's fictional world. Cities and towns, which are filled with non-player characters (NPCs), provide important information. These NPCs can help start events that advance the story or give extra details about the game's setting. City merchants also trade Gald, the game's currency, for items or equipment that help players complete the game. Players can save their progress at any time, a new feature for the series. They can also learn recipes during the game to make food that improves character abilities or heals them during battles.

Battles use the Linear Motion Battle System, a mix of fighting game and traditional role-playing game elements. Players control their character in real-time, with fighting styles similar to the Street Fighter series. Like earlier games in the series, players have control over computer-controlled allies and the techniques they use. Since only one character is directly controlled at a time, other characters follow rules set by the player before and during battles. Players can switch between characters during battle and give specific commands to allies. The game can be paused to access menus for items, magic spells, battle strategies, equipment changes, and character stats. Some menu features, like using items or setting AI rules, are available during battles, while others are only used outside of battles.

Plot

The story follows Reid Hershel as he works to stop the Grand Fall, a huge disaster that would destroy his planet and the planet of his new traveling companion, Meredy. The Grand Fall happens when two planets, Inferia and Celestia, crash into each other. These planets are separated by a barrier called the Orbus Barrier. Although the planets are close, they rarely interact. Long ago, a bridge called the Bridge of Light connected them, but it has been broken for many years. A war called the Aurora War, which happened over 2,000 years ago, caused lasting distrust between the people of Inferia and Celestia. Recently, the Orbus Barrier has started to weaken because of an unknown force.

Reid travels to both planets to find those responsible for the danger.

• Reid Hershel is an 18-year-old hunter from a small village. He grew up with Farah and Keele. He is easygoing and likes to eat and sleep. He has a special power called "Fibril" that gives him amazing abilities. His name comes from British astronomer William Herschel.
• Farah Oersted is a 17-year-old farmhand and martial artist who is good at hand-to-hand combat and quick attacks. She is determined and caring, with a strong sense of justice. She develops a friendship with Reid during the story. Her name comes from Danish physicist Hans Ørsted.
• Keele Zeibel is a 17-year-old student of magic called Craymal Mage. He is physically weak but loves learning and solving mysteries. He sometimes relies too much on science and logic.
• Meredy is a 16-year-old Craymal Mage from Celestia. She speaks a language called "Melnics," which Inferians cannot understand at first. She is cheerful and enjoys dancing. She is always with her pet, Quickie.
• Chat is a 12-year-old Celestian and descendant of a famous pirate. She acts as the captain of a ship called the Van Eltia. She is very smart but lived alone until meeting Reid and his friends. She fights using tools in her handbag.
• Max is a 38-year-old Celestian leader of a group called Shikeska, which fights against the corrupt Celestian government. He is loud and enjoys laughing. He uses powerful energy cannons that fire different elements.
• Rassius "Ras" Luine is a 25-year-old swordsman who pretends to be a merchant. He appears calm but is very determined. He helps Reid and his friends sometimes. His name comes from the star Fomalhaut in the constellation Piscis Austrinus.

Development

Tales of Eternia was first announced in September 1999 during a press conference by Namco representatives as the third game in the Tales series. It was later shown in a non-playable form at the Tokyo Game Show in March 2000. The character design was done by artist Mutsumi Inomata, who had previously worked on the game’s predecessor, Tales of Destiny. The game includes animated cutscenes created by anime studio Production I.G. Namco released a special edition of the game in Japan called the Tales of Eternia Premium Box, which included character figurines, an art book, and a clock shaped like the character Quickie. Players who preordered the game at participating Sofmap stores also received an alarm clock with artwork of the main cast.

In Japan, the game was released under the name Tales of Eternia. However, in North America, it was retitled Tales of Destiny II. Some people believed the name change was to avoid using the word "Eternia," which was owned by Mattel in North America for the Masters of the Universe toyline. However, the game’s creators said the change was for brand recognition reasons. Tales of Destiny was the first Tales game released in North America, and the name change aimed to connect the two games. The first Tales game, Tales of Phantasia, was released in 1995 for the Super Famicom but was not brought to North America until 2006 when it was ported to the Game Boy Advance. This made Tales of Destiny the beginning of the series for North American players. Later, the release of the PlayStation 2 game Tales of Destiny 2 caused confusion because it was a true sequel to Tales of Destiny, while Tales of Eternia is not related to either game.

In early 2004, Namco announced a port of Tales of Eternia for the PlayStation Portable, under the project codename "T.O.E." A playable demo was shown at the 2004 Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles and later at the 2004 Tokyo Game Show. The game was mostly unchanged, but loading times were reduced, and the game was adjusted to match the PlayStation Portable’s specifications. Field graphics were cropped, battles were redone in full widescreen, and the frame rate was improved in the overworld map. The Japanese version was released on March 3, 2005, because it was the third unique title in the Tales series.

Namco only released the PlayStation Portable version in Japan. Ubisoft distributed the game in Europe, but it was not released in North America. The game retained the name Tales of Eternia in Europe, even though it had been called Tales of Destiny II in the previous English-language release in North America.

The music for Tales of Eternia was composed by Motoi Sakuraba and Shinji Tamura, who had previously worked on the soundtracks for Tales of Phantasia and Tales of Destiny. The Japanese theme song, "Flying," was performed by J-Rock group Garnet Crow. This was replaced in English versions with an original orchestral piece.

An official soundtrack was released in March 2001 by Marvelous Entertainment, containing 109 tracks from the game across two discs. In April 2001, Namco released a second soundtrack by Media Factory called Tales of Eternia Remaster Audio, which included the same tracks in slightly better quality and arranged in a more logical order. Between November 2000 and March 2001, Movic released a five-volume radio drama album series called Drama CD Tales of Eternia. Additionally, a two-volume drama series called Tales of Eternia: Labyrinth ~Forget-Me-Not~ was released from January to February 2002.

Reception

Tales of Eternia was very well received in Japan. It earned a score of 33 out of 40 from Weekly Famitsu, based on individual scores of 9, 8, 8, and 8. This score earned the publication's Gold Award. In 2006, readers of the magazine voted it the 57th greatest game of all time, making it the second-highest ranked Tales game at that time. By the end of 2000, the game had sold over 550,000 copies in Japan. Because of this, Sony Computer Entertainment Japan gave it a Gold Award at the 2001 PlayStation Awards ceremony for selling more than 500,000 copies in the region by April 2001. By December 2007, the game had sold over 873,000 copies worldwide.

The game received "favorable" reviews from Metacritic, a video game review aggregator. IGN praised the gameplay, saying it had "a great action-oriented battle system that has no close equivalent in any other game." GameSpot recommended the game only to players who preferred gameplay over graphics, noting that "it's a good bit of fun to play" but that the graphics "would not be out of place on the Super Nintendo about eight years ago." Namco's effort to adapt the game for North American audiences was generally seen as adequate, with the humor of the script translated well for that audience. However, reviewers found the game's voice acting to be weak and unimpressive. AllGame praised the gameplay, character designs, and 2D graphics but criticized the story, which was not as strong or detailed, and the voice acting, stating, "It isn't that the voice actors do a horrible job, it's just that more often than not, they sound as if they're waiting to get their oil changed instead of on a life-or-death mission."

Like its predecessor, the Japanese PlayStation Portable version of Tales of Eternia earned a score of 33 out of 40 from Famitsu, based on scores of 8, 8, 9, and 8. The game sold 80,650 copies in its first week, becoming the second-best-selling title in Japan during that period. By December 2007, it had sold approximately 398,000 copies worldwide.

The PSP version also received "favorable" reviews from Metacritic. Eurogamer said the game was "by far and away the best RPG for the PSP currently on the market (as of April 2006)," praising its graphics and gameplay but noting the story felt "cliche" and "rushed." PALGN praised the game's story, saying it had "a few major twists" and "a pace that will keep you interested," though it was not "spectacular." The game's sense of exploration was also highlighted, with PALGN stating, "That's one of the best things about Tales of Eternia. Despite being somewhat linear, you can still go your own way." In 2012, Game Informer named Farah one of the best characters in the Tales series, calling her "a loveable character with infectious energy."

Other media

A 13-episode anime series called Tales of Eternia was created by Xebec. It was inspired by a video game. The series first aired in Japan from January 8, 2001, to March 26, 2001. Media Blasters licensed the anime for release in North America on July 6, 2002, but the license ended, and the anime was never released there. The story of the anime is not connected to the original game's story. However, it shares some elements, such as four main characters, Greater Craymels, and spells. A manga version of the anime was released in 2002.

Tales of Eternia Online, the 13th main game in the series, is a game where many players can play online together. It was released in Japan on March 3, 2006, and remained active until March 31, 2007. Players could play for free after paying monthly fees until January 29, 2007, when the service ended. Japanese media reported that the number of players decreased, but Bandai Namco Games did not explain why the game was shut down.

The company partnered with Dwango in 2004 and tested the game in early 2005 before its release. The online game's story takes place around the time the main characters travel to Celestia. Its gameplay is similar to other Tales games but has changes for online play. Players can create their own characters, and small text boxes appear during conversations. Character classes include warriors, who defend against attacks; swordspersons, who attack; martial artists, who are fast and can heal or attack; white sorcerers, who use healing and support spells; and magic sorcerers, who use attack spells. Players can form groups of up to four, but they can also play alone. The group leader decides who earns experience points and items after battles. The game includes mini-games, such as one where players cook using ingredients found or bought in the game. It required a computer with Windows 98 Second Edition or a newer version.