"Are you people crazy! This game ROCKS! Look beyond the shallow gamer."

I have been a huge "Tales" fan from day 1 of their very first game and all I have to say is, "Are you people CRAZY?!!!!" So many people are negative about this game, but the truth is, this is one of the best Tales game that I have played in a long time. I can't put it down! It's better than both Tales of the Abyss and Tales of Legendia. I thought the Tales series had died after playing those two games, but Tempest brings some life back to the series.
It's not the best Tales game ever, but it is a solid one. BUY IT, TRY IT!

Yes, I admit that the graphics and battle system stink and the music isn't all that great either, although it does have some charm. HOWEVER, the story line makes up for all of the games short comings. It is awsome. I am tottally addicted. It has a similar theme to Tales of Rebirth, but it also has it's own flavor as well. Also, when judging this game you should also put into consideration what system it is on.

Only the shallow gamer judges a game by fancy graphics and technology alone, especially in the world of RPGs. Some of the best games of all time are on old crappy systems. In the RPG world, story quality should always come first. Who cares about an impressive looking game if the story is bad. So many people don't understand this anymore. That is why so many of the great series are dying in quality: Final Fantasy, Suikoden, Zelda, just to name a few.

Also, just to set the record straight, this game not making it to the USA isn't just due to sales. It is also due to the games negative portrail of the Catholic church, which isn't a big deal in some countries, but would be here. The Pope is a villian for crying out loud. (Kind of, anyways). America is heavily catholic and Christian populated. Many Catholic Americans would probably be offended by it. (I'm a devoted christian, but I'm not catholic nor do I follow their beliefs, so it doesn't bother me too much. So this game is okay, in my opinion, for those of you who believe in Christianity, but aren't Catholic.) I would imagine that Namco probably doesn't want the contraversy. That's why they never released Tales of Destiny 2 in the US (the real one, not Tales of Eternia for PS1). Tales of Rebirth also has a "sacred beast" theme that could be interpreted in a similiar manner, depending on the story interpritation of the person playing the game. Interestingly, Namco also didn't release that game in the US either.

Anyways, here are my ratings if you break it down into categories: (10 best, 1 worst )
Story: 10/10
Music: 5 or 6 /10
Graphics: 4/10
Battle System 1/10

BUY THIS GAME! Give it a try. There is a english translation on the internet.

(If you want a better idea where my thinking is coming from, I would rate Eternia and Symphonia as the best Tales games).

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/13/07

Game Release: Tales of the Tempest (JP, 10/26/06)