You can do this alongside friends as well, as “Dawn of the New World” is four-player compatible. Simply assign a character to each controller, and shut off the AI by making the characters either Semi-Auto (where they move automatically towards enemies) or Manual, when they are completely in control by a player. Thanks to the improved camera, this system works much more effectively than it did in the first Symphonia title, as things are a bit more zoomed out when they need to be in order to make sure everyone can see what they are doing.

“Dawn of the New World” has also done away with the overworld and replaced it with a world map, much like the one used in the earliest titles in the series. This is an effective change overall: if you have played the original Symphonia, you have already traveled to the vast majority of these locales, and there is a lot of backtracking to be done. Simply pointing and clicking, or scrolling through a list of locations, is much simpler than having to deal with the awkward vehicle mechanics many Tales games employ.

In addition to that change, Namco Tales Studios also introduced a monster collection system. You can recruit monsters you fight to join your team, and then level up those beasts and evolve them in order to create some scary muscle to use at your leisure. Recruiting is easy, in a way, as you have to match up your element grid (found on the bottom left of your battle screen) with the element of the monster you are fighting. Your arts have different elemental attributes, so it’s just a matter of remembering which is which and performing those attacks accordingly.

The problem comes from the fact that you have to balance this strategy against your desire to collect the most Grade by winning a battle as fast as you can. You have to concentrate on collecting monsters if you want them in your party (you can carry four at a time, though the others remain in your control waiting to be switched into your group), but matching up the elements is not a guarantee of success either, as they may still run off unconvinced of your superiority.

The game also needs to give you more of a reason to want to use the monsters. There are many times where you need them in your party, as it is just Emil and Marta around as far as human characters go, and monsters are a huge benefit then. Many times though, especially later on in the game, you have multiple characters from the original Symphonia under your control, and, given how carefully crafted their personalities are thanks to the cutscenes, skits, and your familiarity with them to begin with, you will want to use them instead of your soulless monster squad. It’s an interesting idea, and one that added to the enjoyment of the title overall, but it could use (and deserves) further polish and more of a starring role in a future Tales title.

Much like Emil, this game has its light and dark sides, with the battle system, motion-capture cutscenes, skits and story working very well in its favor, but certain aspects like the outdated graphics, poorly paced story and a monster collection system that is in need of a tune-up hampering these efforts. Thankfully for Tales fans and RPG-starved Wii owners though, these negatives do not overshadow the positives, especially when you consider the multiplayer aspect and the replayability inherent in any Tales title thanks to the Grade system, and in Dawn of the New World’s case, multiple endings. If you played the previous Symphonia and enjoyed it, this is a must have game to add to your collection, and not just because RPGs are few and far between on the Wii. If you are new to the series, it will still be enjoyable, but not as much so for you; find the original, play it, and then pick this one up, as it is worth it in spite of its flaws.

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About The Author

Marc Normandin was gaming editor of Blast from 2008 to mid-2010. You can reach him via e-mail at [email protected], or follow him on Twitter @Marc_Normandin

One Response

  1. miquel

    wy ToS the dawn of a new world not come to Nederland??
    let it come to in Nederland plzzz.
    dont matter when but if its come in 2009 then evryone will be happy
    plzz thats my wish

    Reply

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