PlayStation 4 Critic Reviews

If Velvet’s party of anti-heroes were written by lesser writers, the thirst for revenge would have tired us out far too early; revenge is a state of mind of heightened emotion and impact, and over the course of a full-length JRPG the passion and anger would have boiled over far too soon. But, thanks to brilliant characterisation and the ability to throw some genuine humour and moments of softness into the mix, the team at Bandai Namco has been able to deliver one of the most refreshingly nuanced quests that we’ve seen in this series, and for the first time in a very long time, I haven’t been able to put a Tales game down.

Tales of Berseria is one of the best Japanese role games that PlayStation 4 has to offer. It features an amazing story with a duration of at least 60 hours. This is how this genre of games should always be.

A combination of complex characters and gameplay makes this one as satisfying as it is enjoyable. Even if you haven’t played any of its predecessors, Tales of Berseria is more than worth your time.

The story is gripping from the very beginning and keeps hold throughout the entire game. When it comes to the new battle system, I felt that Tales of Bersaria proved to be easily accessible to newcomers as well as offer extra benefits to those who’d like to master it.

Overall, Berseria has its flaws, but those feel like nitpicks compared to the solid core gameplay and story, and it marks a strong return to form for an older series that doesn't quite command the same respect it used to. The writing and characters are better than they've ever been, and the skill-based combat is no slouch either. On the other hand, dungeon-crawling can get a little tedious, the crafting system is acceptable at best, and a rushed localization certainly doesn't help either. But despite all that, any fan of the series deserves to check this out, and probably even people who aren't fans yet.

Faster, smoother, and bursting at the seams with content, Berseria delivers a much needed kick to the series.

Tales of Berseria is a surprisingly strong showing for this long-running series. Its tragic story of broken people fighting on the wrong side of history makes it utterly compelling, and its well-tuned combat more than makes up for its lack of interesting environments. Simply put, this is a tale too heartbreaking to miss, or to forget.

Extensive and surprising JRPG that shows a powerful history dressed up with an improved combat system that offers many strategic possibilities.

With the best story since Abyss and the best cast of characters since Vesperia, Tales of Berseria is the best entry in Bandai Namco's flagship franchise for years.

Tales of Berseria is a return to form for the JRPG franchise, with a captivating main story of betrayal and vengeance, satisfying real-time combat and an amazing cast of characters.