TALES OF BERSERIA
Less Little Red Riding Hood, more Big Bad She-Wolf
Two children run through a dark forest. Behind them? A village engulfed in flames. Above? A moon as red as blood. Ahead? Their brother-in-law, who picks them up and carries them to the hollow of a tree. “You hide here, Velvet,” he says, before handing the girl and her kid brother two shiny apples. “They’ll give you the courage you need to survive.” And with that he departs, an eerie silence falling over the woods. Sinister stuff… Daemons, death, human sacrifice – Tales of Berseria is no fairytale. It’s a horror story; one presented in a wrapper of chiselled anime-style artwork as sharp as the characterisation of its heroine. Reminiscent of Underworld protagonist Selene, Velvet is a lethal death dealer with a tragic human past. But where many games might settle for showing her backstory through flashbacks, Berseria lets you play through her hellish transformation step by painful step.
From porridge-prepping country girl to ragclad prisoner to revenge-seeking swashbuckler stirring up the seven seas, Velvet’s is a voyage that demands to be felt. It’s visceral, and that’s a quality that lends itself very well to combat. Performing combos left, right and centre is as easy as qr e, while unleashing Velvet’s daemon arm to do the dirty work is just an i triggersqueeze away. ‘Act now, think later’ is the nature of Berseria’s beast, a battle system that thrives on heat-of-the-moment muscle memory and snappy knee-jerk reactions.
SOUL SEARCHING
It’s not all button-bashing, though. Following in the paw prints of its Tales predecessors, mini-games and side activities abound. My personal favourite? Collecting the Katz Spirits – floating, glowing orbs belonging to a group of magic cats who ate a feast so meowvelous their souls flew right out of their bodies… Oh, Tales, how I’ve missed your whimsy! Scattered across the world, Katz Spirits can be used to open pink, cat-eared chests containing costume accessories and cute kitties. Dream. Come. True.
Oh, and those light-hearted slapstick skits Tales is known for? Well, they’re back too, and this time they take centre stage. Want to learn more about witchy drama queen Magilou or Eizen the coin-flipping pirate? Just tap w when you spy that party chat prompt and you’ll get all the goss.
Now, don’t get me wrong – Berseria isn’t perfect. Heck, it’s not even close, with the latest entry retaining many of the grizzly bugbears Tales fans have tolerated for years: too much to-ing and fro-ing without a sprint option; too many wordy pop-up tutorials; treasure chests that remain defiantly marked on the map even after you’ve pillaged them blind. And yet… it has it. Yes, it – that special something, that je ne sais quoi, that inimitable fun factor that will have you hitting New Game+ before you can even say “Apple Gel, ahoy!”
VERDICT
“DAEMONS, DEATH, HUMAN SACRIFICE – NO FAIRYTALE, THIS IS A HORROR STORY.”
Long-time Tales fan? Zestiria’s prequel is a must-play. Crisp characterisation and a battle system with real-time bite? Thar she most certainly does not blow. Jenny Baker