First released in August 2003 exclusively for the Nintendo Gamecube (with an arguably underappreciated sequel released for the Wii in 2008), Tales of Symphonia is one of those games that balances both the new and old elements of the long-running Tales series well, and deserves to be on the bucket list of every niche gaming fan. With the game last being ported across to the PlayStation 3 in 2014, Bandai Namco Entertainment has decided to remaster and bring Tales of Symphonia across to the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch in early 2023.
Tales of Symphonia Remastered will see players, whether for the first time or a repeat time, follow the journey of Lloyd Irving and his friends as they try to save Sylvarant and Tethe’alla, two inextricably linked worlds, where the rebirth of one means the decline of the other. Bandai Namco Entertainment hope that “players will experience a profound storyline with endearing characters in a rich and lively world, along with beautiful anime-like cutscenes designed by the renowned artist Kosuke Fujishima”.
The remastered version of Tales of Symphonia is pitched as offering “HD visual enhancements, gameplay improvements, and new features”, with more specifics on these expected to be shared in the coming weeks and months.
Tales of Symphonia Remastered will receive physical and digital releases on the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch, with a digital-exclusive distribution planned for the Xbox One. Here’s hoping that this will see them bring across other Tales games to current hardware, such as Tales of Xillia + Tales of Xillia 2 – also underappreciated games of their time..
