Tales of Innocence
Encyclopedia
is the ninth mothership title in the Tales series for the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...

. The game was developed by Alfa System
Alfa System
Alfa System is a Japanese game development company that plans, develops and markets game software for consoles and personal computers. Alfa System is based out of Kumamoto City, Kyūshū...

, and was released on December 6, 2007 in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. Tales of Innocence's characteristic genre name is . The game has not been released outside of Japan although there is a full fan translation for the title. The character designs are by Mutsumi Inomata
Mutsumi Inomata
is a Japanese illustrator and animator.-Biography:An anime fan, Inomata began her career as an animator with Toei Animation, soon after graduating from her senior year at high school...

. The opening movie was made by Production I.G.
Production I.G.
is a Japanese anime studio and production enterprise, which was founded on December 15, 1987 by Mitsuhisa Ishikawa. It is headquartered in Kokubunji, Tokyo, Japan....

. The opening song is "Follow the Nightingale
Follow the Nightingale
"Follow the Nightingale" is a song by Kokia, released as her 18th single on November 21, 2007. The song, along with the single's B-side "Say Goodbye & Good Day," were used as the opening and ending theme songs for the Nintendo DS game Tales of Innocence....

," and the ending song is "Say Goodbye & Good Day", both of which are by Kokia
Kokia (singer)
is a Japanese singer-songwriter, who performs under the stage name Kokia . She is best known for her songs and "The Power of Smile." She is also recognised for her numerous contributions to anime/game soundtracks, the most notable being "Ai no Melody/Chōwa Oto " for the film...

. The music in this game was composed by Kaz Nakamura. The game is in full 3D. The battle system used is the Dimension Stride Linear Motion Battle System, which contains elements of Tales of the Abyss
Tales of the Abyss
is a console role-playing game developed by Namco Tales Studio and published by Namco in Japan and Namco Bandai Games in North America. Tales of the Abyss's characteristic genre name is The Meaning Of Birth RPG . It is the eighth mothership title in the Tales series, and was released for the...

s Flex Range Linear Motion Battle System and Tales of Destiny (PS2)
Tales of Destiny (PS2)
is a video game remake in the RPG genre published for the PlayStation 2 console by Namco Bandai Games on November 30, 2006 in Japan.It is a remake of the second game in the Tales series, the original PlayStation Tales of Destiny, which was released on December 23, 1997.Tales of Destiny 's...

's Aerial Linear Motion Battle System.

A remake, called Tales of Innocence R for the PlayStation Vita was announced in the September issue of VJump. It contains various upgrades such as a complete overhaul in graphics, a new opening and opening song sang by Kokia, two new playable characters, new gameplay elements, redone scenarios and areas as well as numerous new anime cutscenes produced by Production I.G.
Production I.G.
is a Japanese anime studio and production enterprise, which was founded on December 15, 1987 by Mitsuhisa Ishikawa. It is headquartered in Kokubunji, Tokyo, Japan....

.

Story

The Imperial Capital of Regnum kept itself in peace during the long-lasting world war. Slowly, people with a "special power" began to appear. Feared by normal people, Regnum set out a law to capture all people with special powers. One day, Ruca, the son of a merchant in Regnum, realizes the special power within him...

Battle system

Tales of Innocence uses the "Dimension Stride Linear Motion Battle System" (DS-LMBS). Combining the battle systems of Tales of the Abyss and the PS2 port of Tales of Destiny
Tales of Destiny (PS2)
is a video game remake in the RPG genre published for the PlayStation 2 console by Namco Bandai Games on November 30, 2006 in Japan.It is a remake of the second game in the Tales series, the original PlayStation Tales of Destiny, which was released on December 23, 1997.Tales of Destiny 's...

, it allows players to move around the field in full 3D movement and use attacks and skills in mid-air.

Tales of Innocence includes many classic trademarks of the series, such as Gald, GRADE, Hi-Ougi, and items, and many new changes, such as Gald and items being picked up from the ground after an enemy is defeated, and a lettered score depending on performance in battle. The game also significantly changes the AI system. Instead of just basic commands, players can assign AI-controlled characters five specific commands, each with its own priority level. Players can create and switch between five different AI combinations to fit different situations.

All playable characters have a "Tension Gauge" which when filled lets that character enter the "Awakening" state, similar to Tales of Symphonia
Tales of Symphonia
is a video game first released for the Nintendo GameCube and later for the PlayStation 2 in Japan. It debuted in Japan on August 29, 2003, selling 953,000 copies, in Canada and the United States on July 13, 2004, and in Europe on November 19, 2004. The game received a Japanese-only PlayStation 2...

 and Tales of the Abyss's "Overlimit". Movement speed and attack power are increased, and TP consumption and chanting time are decreased, allowing for more powerful attacks and longer combos. If a party member is in the Awakening state, "Infinity Jam" can be activated, which lets players create a long combination of attacks for a short time, and switch between the three characters used in the battle freely for better connection of attacks, similar to Tales of Symphonia's "Unison Attack" and Tales of Legendia
Tales of Legendia
, is a role-playing game that was developed and published by Namco for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It was released in Japan on August 25, 2005 and in the United States on February 7, 2006. Tales of Legendia's characteristic genre name is . It is the seventh mothership title in the Tales...

's "Climax Mode".

Ability system

Characters in Tales of Innocence are able to have their own "Style". Players are able to equip a style to a character, and each style gives that character increases in stats. The styles also level up, and when that style has leveled up enough that character gets abilities for use in battle or on the field. In weapon shops around the world, players can also add abilities to weapons with materials found throughout the game, allowing the creation of custom weapons different from those normally bought in shops, with abilities like poison or paralysis.

Guild

Returning from Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology
Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology
is a spin-off of the Tales action role-playing game series for the PlayStation Portable. Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology's characteristic genre name is . Like some of the previous games that bear Tales of the World in their title, this game is a crossover title featuring characters from...

, Innocence uses a "Guild", a place that players can go to accept requests, quests, or favors in return for Gald, Grade, and various other rewards. Dungeons have randomly generated maps to challenge players in each quest. When a quest is cleared, the player earns Guild Points. When the player earns enough Guild Points, their Guild Rank rises, allowing them to accept tougher quests, and possibly earn better rewards.

Characters

Protagonists

Ruca Milda (ルカ・ミルダ)

The game's male protagonist. He lives in the Imperial capital of Regnum with his parents who wants him to take over the family's mercantile business. He is a callow boy who's shy and often gets bullied by his classmates. At the beginning of the game, Ruca has been having dreams about his past life as the mighty Devalokian general Asras, whom he admires and wants to be as brave as him. Then one day he meets Iria Animi, a fellow Fallen, and wants to protect her as she is being chased by a group of people. His choice of weapon is a two-handed sword (which he cannot wield without Asras's help) and he specializes in powerhouse melee skills and fire magic.

Iria Animi (イリア・アニーミ)

The game's female protagonist. A spirited and short-tempered girl who ran away from her hometown Sania Village because she was being chased by a mysterious group. She meets Ruca by chance as he was going back from the shop while carrying food and he ends up giving the food to her. She travels with a strange animal called Coda. Her past life is Inanna, Asras's lover, and someone of high-class from the Ratio. Her weapon of choice are dual guns and she specializes in healing and water magic.

Spada Belforma (スパーダ・ベルフォーマ)

Spada is a delinquent that was arrested after causing a fight upon awakening to his powers as a Fallen. He is the reincarnation of Asras's sentient blade Durandal. Though he originally intimidates Ruca, he becomes one of his staunchest allies. This is because he was raised as a knight as the youngest child in a powerful family, and has been instilled with values that emphasize honor and loyalty. He fights with two swords and specializes in quick attacks and lightning magic.

Ange Serena (アンジュ・セレナ)

Ange is a kind girl considered a "Holy Maiden" by many due to her healing powers. Though primarily a healer, she also has several useful thieving skills. She fights with a pair of daggers. Her past life was Orifiel, the brilliant tactician of Ratio who defected to Asura's side after being out-flanked.

Ricardo Soldato (リカード・ソルダト)

A laconic sniper, Ricardo is the reincarnation of one of Asura's most powerful adversaries, Hypnos the Reaper. As such, he has a rivalry with Ruca, though it fades with time. Though he initially appears as a cold-hearted mercenary, he's actually quite wise and rational. He fights using his powerful rifles and specializes in earth magic.

Hermana Larmo (エルマーナ・ラルモ)

A feisty street orphan, Hermana is a powerful fighter despite her young age and short stature. She fights using a pair of knuckledusters and has no specific elemental specialization, using a variation of many in her magic. She is the reincarnation of Vrtra, the great and powerful dragon who raised Asura as her own.

Coda (コーダ)

A Muse (a small, rat-like creature who lives in the west) who tagged along with Iria after she left Sania Village.
Antagonists

Mathias (マティウス)

A powerful woman whose past life was Asura, the Overlord of Sensus. She is the leader of Arca, an organization of Avatars who strive to create utopia while living peacefully, unafraid of the Rehabilitation Program that most Avatars live in fear of.

Oswald (オズワルド)

A powerful old general, nicknamed 'Pigwald' by the protagonists due to his fat belly, who helps the Privy Council of Regnum in obtaining the Manifest. However, he decides he wants to become a god instead, and forgoes their orders at the Tower of Dawn.

Thitose Cxarma (チトセ)

A quiet girl from Ashihara who joined Arca after learning Mathias was the Overlord in her past life. Her past life was Sakuya. Sakuya's love for Asras is still strong, and Chitose continuously pleads for Ruca to join Arca, as well as having an intense rivalry with Iria.

Chien (チアン)

A young boy from Galpos who has two brothers, Cer and Ber, both of which are dogs. He was shunned by the village when he was born due to them, and joined Arca in hopes of creating a utopia where everyone is equal. His past life was Cerberus, the Guardian of the Manifest.

Hasta Ekstremi (ハスタ)

A psychopathic young man who has no concept of friend or foe; he just loves killing. His past life was the demon spear Gae Bolg.
Past Life

Asras (アスラ)

The Arch-Demon General of Sensus, as well as, in secret, its Overlord. He commanded great armies and is both Ruca Milda's and Mathias' past life. He wielded the sentient sword, Durandal, and wanted to reunite Devaloka and Naraka. His hatred and despair make up Mathias, while his doubt makes up Ruca.

Inanna (イナンナ)

Asras's lover and a high-born demoness from Ratio. She is Iria Animi's past life and one of Asras's betrayers.

Durandal (デュランダル)

Asras's most trusted weapon, a sentient broadsword. He was forged by the blacksmith Vulcan in hopes of creating peace, rather than war, unlike the spear which had been forged before. He is Spada Belforma's past life as well as Asras's other betrayer.

Hypnos (ヒュプノス)

A powerful reaper from Ratio. His brother was Thanatos, a god who descended to Naraka of his own free-will due to the love her had for its people and its beauty. He is Ricardo Soldato's past life.

Orifiel (オリフィエル)

A brilliant strategist from Ratio who grew close to Asras after his command had been defeated. He often gave advice to Asras, as well as shedding light on others, and his student was Himmel, a Pillar of Devaloka. He is Ange Serena's past life.

Vrtra (ヴリトラ)

A dragon who raised Asura. She flew the skies after Devaloka fell and died alone. She is Hermana Larmo's past life.

Gae Bolg (ゲイボルグ)

A demonic spear forged by the blacksmith Vulcan. He enjoys killing and bloodshed, having no concept of friend or foe. He was defeated by Durandal and Asura personally, and was reborn as Hasta Esktremi.

Sakuya (サクヤ)

A quiet demoness who stayed loyally by Asras's side out of love, despite the fact he turned a blind eye to them. She is Thitose Cxarma's past life.

Thanatos (タナトス)

A powerful reaper and older brother of Hypnos. He descended to Naraka of his own will and lived for thousands of years, far past the fall of Devaloka. He is the father of the Grigori and took on a new name when he left Devaloka - Gardel.

Cerberus (ケルベロス)

A small, three-headed dog who guarded the Manifest before the Fall of Devaloka. Every time he died, he was reborn at the Manifest in order to protect it. He is the past life of Chien and his two dog-brothers, Cer and Ber.

Tales of Innocence R

Tales of Innocence R is an upcoming remake
Remake
A remake is a piece of media based primarily on an earlier work of the same medium.-Film:The term "remake" is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source...

 of the game for the PlayStation Vita platform, set to be released on January 26, 2012 in Japan. No North American release has been announced. The game will be "re-imagined" with scenarios, battle system and areas within the game being revamped. The game will also feature new graphics, new artwork for the characters, new music tracks including a new opening song, "New Day, New Life" by Kokia, as well as new extensive new anime cutscenes including an entirely new opening video for the game made by Production I.G.
Production I.G.
is a Japanese anime studio and production enterprise, which was founded on December 15, 1987 by Mitsuhisa Ishikawa. It is headquartered in Kokubunji, Tokyo, Japan....

 who have been longtime animators for the series with the exception of the recently released, Tales of Xillia. The game will also see the introduction of two new playable characters in the story, both of which were not present in the original game. The two characters are Kongwai Tao (voiced by Kenji Nojima
Kenji Nojima
is a Japanese seiyū who was born in Tokyo. He is employed by Japanese voice talent agency Aoni Production. He is the son of veteran seiyū Akio Nojima and is the younger brother of seiyū Hirofumi Nojima...

) and QQ Selesneva (voiced by Saki Fujita
Saki Fujita
is a female Japanese voice actress from Tokyo, Japan, represented by Arts Vision. She sang the ending theme to the anime Tokimeki Memorial Only Love, "Kiseki no Kakera", along with Yuki Makishima and Yukako Yoshikawa as well as the opening of Working!!, Coolish Walk, with Kana Asumi and Eri Kitamura...

), both of which will have a role to play in the game's storyline despite not being present in the original.

Gameplay Enhancements

The game will utilize the DI-LMBS for combat, which features several changes from the original battle system. Some of the new changes include the "Rave System", where each time the character successfully hits the enemy it fills their Rave Gauge. The Rave Gauge has four levels, and each level has a corresponding Rave Ability that is activated for each level. Players can customize which ability goes to which level and these abilities are purchased from the Grade Shop using Grade Points. At the highest most level it allows players to activate several Rave Abilities simultaneously to attack the enemy in combat. The game will also use a grid system for learning new abilities, which are learnt by spending Ability Points earned in battle. These abilities are arranged in a grid format, and players can only learn new abilities depending on what is permitted on the grid based on the amount of points earned. Each Ability has its own effects and bonuses. More Abilities are revealed as you progress through the game. Abilities are passive and are not to be confused with Artes, which are used actively in battles. It will also see the integration of the PlayStation Vita's touch screen capabilities whereby players can tap on the character's artwork at the bottom of the screen during battles to issue commands or activate artes.

Development

Tales of Innocence was announced in July in Famitsu
Famitsu
is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD...

 magazine, along with Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World
Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World
Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World, known in Japan as , is a console role-playing game developed by Namco Tales Studio and published by Namco Bandai for the Wii as a cross of spin-off and sequel to Tales of Symphonia for the Nintendo GameCube and PlayStation 2. Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of...

 for the Wii, a spin-off sequel to Tales of Symphonia, Tales of Destiny Director's Cut, a "Director's Cut" version of Tales of Destiny
Tales of Destiny (PS2)
is a video game remake in the RPG genre published for the PlayStation 2 console by Namco Bandai Games on November 30, 2006 in Japan.It is a remake of the second game in the Tales series, the original PlayStation Tales of Destiny, which was released on December 23, 1997.Tales of Destiny 's...

 for the PS2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...

, and a port of Tales of Rebirth
Tales of Rebirth
is the sixth mothership title in Namco's Tales RPG series. It was released on December 16, 2004 in Japan for the Sony PlayStation 2. Tales of Rebirth's characteristic genre name is . Tales of Rebirth has an anime introductory video accompanied by the song Good Night by Every Little Thing. Notably,...

 to the PSP
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...

. Tales of Innocence was used to present the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...

 as the series "lead platform," though producers have since explained that they simply meant this to apply to that year.

Later on, the game was added to Namco's official site for the Tales series, and updates for the game's features like Wireless play, Hi-ougis, Infinity Jam, and more came from it and magazine articles.

On November 6, Namco added the "Staff Voice", a blog in which the developers of the game can put information on the development and features of the game. The first large announcement was that the game would give you the choice of having a "model outline", a dark outline around the models that gives the game a cel-shaded look. Another announcement was that the "Voice Adventure DVD", the pre-order item for the game, was going to be an adventure in which you make decisions to continue, that can have good or bad consequences. Later it was shown that the bottom screen would be used for a map.

On September 14, 2011, days before the Tokyo Game Show
Tokyo Game Show
The , commonly known as TGS, is a video game expo / convention held annually in the Makuhari Messe, in Chiba, Japan. It is presented by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association and the Nikkei Business Publications, Inc...

 2011, Namco Bandai announced Tales of Innocence R a remake of the original game for the upcoming PlayStation Vita platform alongside Tales of Heroes: Twin Braves, a Dynasty Warriors
Dynasty Warriors
is a series of tactical action video games created by Omega Force and Koei. The award-winning series is a spin-off of Koei's turn-based strategy Romance of the Three Kingdoms series, based loosely around the Chinese classical novel of the same name. The first game titled Dynasty Warriors,...

-like spin-off of the series.

Reception

Tales of Innocence received a 9/9/9/8 (35/40) score from Famitsu
Famitsu
is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD...

. The game was the third best-selling title in Japan during its week of release at 104,000 copies. Media Create sales data shows that by the end of the following year, Tales of Innocence had sold 246,420 copies in Japan.

Manga

A manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 based on Tales of Innocence was drawn by Hiroyuki Kaido
Hiroyuki Kaido
Hiroyuki Kaidō 海童博行 is a manga artist and animation director.Her works include the artwork for the manga adaption of the video game Tales of Innocence, which is serialized in Jump SQ....

 and published in Japan by Shueisha
Shueisha
is a major publisher in Japan. The company was founded in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The following year, Shueisha became a separate, independent company. Magazines published by Shueisha include Weekly Shōnen Jump, Weekly Young Jump,...

on November 2, 2007. At January 2009, chapter 12 was released.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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