Tales of Arise is set to launch on 10 September this year, and in addition to the previously-announced PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC versions, it’s now coming to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S as well. This will be the new-generation debut for Bandai Namco’s long-running JRPG series, and the first new game since 2016’s Tales of Berseria.
Tales of Arise tells the story of an uprising against the iron-fisted rulers of the planet Dahna, which has been under the thumb of the neighbouring planet Rena for 300 years. Through the eyes of Alphen, a Dahnan rebel leader, and Shionne, a young Renan woman on the run from her own people, Arise traces the Dahnan people’s fight for freedom.
“We want Tales of Arise to represent a new milestone for the Tales of franchise,” said Yusuke Tomizawa, Producer on Tales of Arise. “The game has a new artistic direction, making the most out of the Unreal Engine and our newly developed ‘Atmospheric Shader’ to push the graphics quality, and make players feel like they are in a painting. With a story that is more mature and hits on more essential themes than previous games we hope players will be fully immersed in Alphen and Shionne’s journey. We can’t wait for you to be able to play the game later this year.”
Bandai Namco also says Tales of Arise has a more evolved combat system that adds “more direct effects and attacks, to provide a better sense of spectacle and more direct player feedback based upon their actions.” You can catch a glimpse of this combat system in action in the seven-minute gameplay demo, below, that accompanied the release date announcement.
And finally, Bandai Namco unveiled pre-order bonuses and a few different special editions. All pre-orders come with a new costume for Alphen and Shionne, as well as outfits accessories and new cooking recipes and ingredients. As well as the regular edition, there’s a digital-only Deluxe Edition and Ultimate Edition, and a physical Collector Edition and Hootle Edition.
Here’s what comes with each of them:
- Deluxe Edition
- Premium Item Pack, containing gold, cooking items and Boosts
- Premium Costume Pack, including 8 full costumes and 6 accessories
- Premium Travel Pack, allowing for better cooking and crafting abilities as well as discounts in shops
- Ultimate Edition
- Everything in the Deluxe Edition
- Additional costumes, including collaborations with other Bandai Namco games
- Collector Edition
- Everything from the Ultimate Edition
- exclusive figurine
- Steelbook
- art book
- soundtrack
- Hootle Edition (exclusive to Bandai Namco Store)
- a 15 cm Hootle plush with four accessories
- Hootle DLC
- metal case
- art book
- soundtrack
- sticker set
- three art prints
Tales of Arise launches 10 September 2021 for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC. Players who buy the PlayStation 4 version will be able to upgrade to PlayStation 5 for free, and for Xbox, the Cross Generation Double Pack will include both the Xbox One and Series X|S versions.
