PlayStation Vita User Reviews

I don't see myself remembering most of the characters or events of this game long after finishing. Both the protagonists and antagonists were very lukewarm, and I constantly found myself expecting and hoping that the game had reached an appropriate conclusion, only for it to pull a gotcha and prolong things even further. It is a competent enough game, especially for a handheld action RPG, and "good" in many respects, but never quite reaches "great" in anything it does.

If you've played this game after some of the high points in the series, like the other modern Tales games (everything on console from Xillia onwards), or some of the older ones like Abyss or Symphonia, then I don't think you'll honestly be missing much if you skip Hearts R. Hearts R has a good soundtrack, a great story and characters, held back by a serious lack of polish. Early on, some of these flaws can be easily forgiven when you are still learning how to play the game, but they start becoming a hindrance in the late game. The biggest issues I tend to have is that enemies can seemingly tank through your combos seemingly at random, or whenever you try to attack an enemy, the auto lock tends to force you into a run to an enemy at the other end of the stage, oftentimes leading your controlled character to get ganged up on. Not helped by mostly dumb AI controlled partners. The best point in this game is the Soma growth system, which allows for different skill trees to level up, leading to stat boosts, new techniques, and new weapons. Overall, while Hearts R is not going to be regarded as the best Tales game in terms of gameplay polish, the strong story oftentimes makes up for some of the aggravation you will endure during the gameplay.

Overall it's a good Tales game, I liked the Soma/Bonding/Shared skills and counterattacks. It plays fine on the Vita. I didn't like how they changed some names on the localization as you can easily listen them saying other names but I guess they just wanted to respect the original translation? Random encounters can be reduced (or increased) by using items so I don't understand complains about that...

+ Tales games are usually solid games and play it pretty safe. This one is just ok though. + Great characters with good dialogue and some funny moments. + This game brings back the world map and it gives the game a strong sense of adventure. + Side quests in this game are optional and ignoring them won't leave you under levelled. - I like a lot of story in JRPGs but the story in this game drags on at times, like other Tales games. - The combat is very hack and slash and pretty mindless for the most part. - The counter attack isn't responsive enough, which made me not bother trying to use it. - Random encounters while trying to do an overly maze like dungeon and solve a puzzle is a pain.

I'm a fan of the Tales series but I found this title disappointing. It feels a bit flat and uninspiring. The localisation into English is poor, the story isn't that compelling, and there's a lack of atmosphere: the dungeons are repetitive regularly-shaped mazes and NPCs in the towns stand completely still! I enjoyed the mythos of the game: that all the characters are named after gemstones or rocks, and the choice of names for the artes and the weapons. The battle system is great, as is the case with all Tales games, but the random encounters detract from the experience. I found it slightly difficult in parts, a couple of the boss battles took several attempts adjusting the strategy settings of my team, which I guess is indicative of a well-devised difficult curve. It's sort of worth picking up if you're a fan of the series, probably best avoiding if you have no prior investment. Tales of The Abyss on the 3DS is a much stronger and more exciting pick if you're after a handheld RPG

They took a great game and made it better. The Tales series always has had deep character development and this game is no different. For spoiler purposes I will not explain why the love relationship between the main character and Kohaku seems forced. The battles were fun and there was better monster design than in the latest Tales games on the PS3. The game is voiced in Japanese, but I don't really care that they couldn't voice it in English. The fact that they imported the game to the US is enough to make me happy. It is not as long as some of the other Tales games, I took under 30 hours to beat it. It is a great game and if you are a fan of JRPGs I wholeheartedly recommend it.

I was kind of disappointed in this game. My enjoyment of the Tales series began with its most recent iteration, Tales of Xillia, so I was expecting something comparable. What I found was a much less compelling and much more mediocre story. Of course, then I found out that this is a remake of a DS game, which explains a lot. Unfortunately, it doesn't remove the disappointment I've felt from playing it.

I wasn't sure I would like this since it is not an english dub (has english subtitles but the voice actors speak in Japanese), but I thought to myself, "it wasn't too long ago that jrpgs didn't even have voice acting and you had to read all the story." So anyway, I made a good choice because the Japanese voice actors are great at giving you the emotion of the text you are reading and brings them to life like a good anime. The combat is better than I thought it would be with real time blocking, normal attacks and special attacks (pretty easy on normal so far, but if its too hard you can put battle difficulty on easy). The characters are likeable and good and not annoying (which can often be the case with these games). The story so far has mystery and magic and is very interesting (and I needed a positive upbeat game after the dark, depressing Bloodborne that I just finished). I don't think a story has grabbed me like this in a game in the last 10 years or so. I love a good story where you need to continue to find the answers to the mysteries and how the story ends. The cutscenes are good quality higher budget anime. Much of the conversation is in game engine (i.e. not cutscene), but the in game engine animations are pretty good if a little repetitive. If you love a good story with a little prophecy (which I'm assuming my characters will be a part of fulfilling - but I could be wrong) and good Japanese characters and interesting combat with well done upgrade system then I highly recommend this game to you.

So far TOHR has a great story perhaps a little similar to Tsubasa chronicles or at least so far. The characters are great lots of funny moments, gameplay is nice and it looks great . If you are a fan of the tales series then you will want to play this one

One of the best JRPG (and one of the best games overall) for PS Vita. Great story, nice cast of characters, fantastic battle system and a huge amount of content. A must have!

Awesome game. Its story is deep, Its characters fleshed out, its concepts are solid and the locations are many. Lots of humour i found which really brought the game to life. The battle system was VERY engaging and kept you imersed in the slog that often becomes of random battles. a few of the negatives include the dated graphics (a quick search reveals they were originally from the Nintendo ds version of the game) and the soundtrack left me wanting. Sometimes the story can be a little "draggy" as you go from place to place then back to place 1 again. Over all a VERY recomended game.

The funny characters and sensational battle system deserve a higher score, but the game is just pegged back by its rather bland world - the dungeons, towns and field are all lacklustre. Despite that, I would imagine that most JRPG fans will struggle to put this one down with its character-driven story keeping the player interested to the very end.

This is a great game for vita owners and anybody who loves the tales series. Ive played this game for hours on end and the story is amazing. Love this game and you will too.

Amazing Tales game. The characters are lovable, the plot is entertaining and paced well, the fight system is even faster then usual and extra exhilarating, and the presentation is great. However, the music is just okay, the translation/localization has it's highs and lows, and the dialogue can get pretty sappy sometimes. Overall a great experience. I consider this to be one of the very best Vita games, and my second favorite in the Tales series.

While not an innovative in any way, Tales of Hearts R is a wonderful remake made for fans with sincere love. Respecting the lore of JRPG genre, while adding colorful, if typical, cast of characters along with an addictive battle-system, the game is a delight in a world where Final Fantasy franchise have grown stale and uninspired and Persona 5 is nowhere near. It is also exclusive to PS Vita so kudos to developers for bringing the game to a platform that is thin on similar big titles.

I haven't played very much of it so far but so far it's awesome and a great addition to the Vita and the Tales series. I can tell already it will be one of my favorite tales games. SOme minor gripes would be the fact there's no english voice overs and the most disliked part of this game is RANDOM BATTLES!!!...I mean seriously ever Tales game ever had enemy models to run into EXCEPT this one. All in all though still a terrific tales game. 9/10 for sure

It's so awesome to finally have a tales of game on the vita, I have a feeling that this one is going to sell more vitas. The story is really good so far and the combat is just like any other tales of game. Also has a great cast of characters as well! this game is well worth your money, buy it so vita will be more popular! PLEASE!

I'm loving every minute of Tales of Hearts, it's a wonderful jrpg that captures all that I wanted from this genre since the PSX days: a colorful world, a likeable cast of characters that can be silly or serious as the situation demands, a funny and well told story and a killer combat system. Fighting is so much fun in this game I found myself grinding without needing it at all, unlocking Soma skills is also a great way to customize characters. There are real dungeons with puzzles, a lot of nice cities and lesser quests and an overworld map that lately is sorely missing from many jrpgs. I think this could end up being my fav jrpg on Vita and overall one of my fav Vita games.

Good, solid RPG mechanics. The game looks absolutely stunning on the VITA. My issues with ToHR are that the game is extremely slow to start. Once it gets going it isn't too difficult to get into the story. My concern is that because of how simple and slow the story is, there is little replay value. I also personally do not like microtransactions. While microtransactions are integral to the game, I don't like the "pay2win" model that seems to be plaguing the gaming industry as of late. In short, there are some great RPG elements like exploration and customization, but ultimately the limited story, microtransactions and dungeons that feel like busywork rather than progress, left me with an average experience.