Tales Of Vesperia

Like many Japanese RPG franchises, the Tales Of games may not light up the charts with each release, but they still show a strong performance thanks to a loyal fanbase that is always expanding. To grow this audience further the latest instalment, Tales Of Vesperia, has set out to win over RPG-starved Xbox 360 gamers.

Vesperia maintains the anime visual style, which now looks better than ever thanks to Microsoft’s hardware. In fact, this is the first high-definition entry in the franchise. Also present is the intense real-time combat system that elevates the Tales Of games above their turn-based rivals and ensures players find every battle engaging.

As with previous Tales Of titles, the main draw will be the rich narrative. Vesperia is set in Terca Lumireis, where the citizens are growing uneasy with the Empire that protects them.

“Part of the popular and long-standing Tales Of series, Vesperia is considered to be the best so far and was Japan’s best-selling 360 game in 2008,” says Atari’s UK product manager Lauren Bradley. “We see this game appealing to RPG fans and those into more hardcore games looking for something different. It’s received some great review scores  with an average Metacritic rating of 81.”

STING IN THE TALE
Given the rarity of RPGs on Xbox 360, Atari has worked hard to raise awareness of Tales Of Vesperia’s arrival in order to draw out fans of both the series and the genre. This began with full page print ads appearing in both gaming magazines and specialist press, such as anime magazine Neo.

Online marketing includes banners and MPUs on the Giant Realm network’s anime and gaming communities. Trailers and artwork have also appeared across a range of social media and series fan sites. Tales Of Vesperia was on display at the MCM Expo in May, too.