Just as we're approaching PS3 exclusive Tales of Xillia's European release on August 9th, news has come in from the game's developer Namco Bandai that the follow up, unsurprisingly titled Tales of Xillia 2 will see a Western release in 2014, having already been well received in Japan last year. We've covered Tales of Xillia in the past, and we're fans of the Tales series in general as we love a good role player, so confirmation that the next chapter will be hitting these shores is great news.
Tales of Xillia 2 is a direct sequel, taking place one year after the events of the first game, and features a variety of new and returning anime-styled characters and a story that apparently spans multiple dimensions. According to the brief synopsis provided by Namco, 'Players assume the role of Ludger Kresnik, a young man with a zest for cooking who lives with his older brother and his cat named Rollo'. Arguably not the most thrilling of setups, perhaps, but it likely won't take too long before Ludger is propelled on a typically colourful and exciting quest filled with battles and exploration. It seems that a run-in with a girl named Elle Marta is the catalyst for this new adventure, but that's all we'll reveal in terms of the plot which is probably just as well as the first Tales of Xillia is still a month away from release here.
Ludger Kresnik, our hero and snappy dresser.
Gameplay in Tales of Xillia 2 is similar to the previous title, although there are some enhancements that tweak the experience slightly. The game's core theme is 'choice', so expect a storyline tailored by your decisions, as it branches off depending on your actions. You can influence the direction the story takes by choosing from a selection of dialogue options, similar to adventure games like Telltale's The Walking Dead for example. There's a new battle mechanic too, the fantastically-named 'Cross Dual Raid Linear Motion Battle System' which essentially allows you to link a series of characters together to perform special linked attacks (or 'Artes' as they're known in-game). It's been announced that players who have save files from Tales of Xillia and series stablemate Tales of Graces F on their systems will be able to unlock bonus content in the new game.
Companion Elle and Ludger's cat Rollo. Any adventure is enhanced by adding a cat.
Tales of Xillia 2 will be released in Europe and Australasia sometime in 2014, presumably once again exclusive to PS3, which should give us just enough time to get stuck into the first chapter. Why not check out some screens from the game below in the meantime?
