New Game Rush checked out Tales of Beseria:

Tales of Berseria - Review (PC) - A Tales Game You Need to Play

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If you're going to play only one Tales game, you should start with Tales of Berseria. RPG fans should not hesitate to check out this game, and in this review, I'll explain why. If Tales of Arise, being released next year, builds upon the successes of its predecessor, it's bound to be one of the last great RPGs of this console generation.

Niche Gamer has reviewed Tales of Berseria:

Tales of Berseria Review – Sometimes It’s Good To Be Bad

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Which brings us to Tales of Berseria, a prequel to Zestiria that, other than creating a badass female lead, was meant to build upon and improve the changes set forth in its predecessor. Initially – even as a fan – I was highly skeptical that much would change, especially for the better. I loved the first Tales of Xillia, but like its own quickly pumped-out sequel, it lacked the original’s impact.

Systems were unnecessarily dragged out, the new character roleplayed a coma victim through over half the game, and 90% of the world was just copy-pasted from the previous title. Call me pessimistic if you wish, but I was confident the same fate would befall Tales of Berseria. Thankfully, I’m starting to get used to being wrong about a lot of things.

Before I get into the most impressive changes in Berseria, let’s talk about its most shocking: The story.

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With such an outstanding story, great characters, a blistering fast (And addictively fun to exploit) combat system, a “less messy” weapon upgrade mechanic and the best visuals in the entire series, I feel comfortable calling this my new favorite “Tales of” game…or at the very least, tied with Graces f.

What’s great about Berseria is that unlike most Tales of games, it acts as a wonderful jumping-in point for new players. Combine this with its ease-of-use and flashy combat designed to accommodate more tactical, veteran players and you have one of the most complete JRPGs you’re likely to find on the current generation’s systems. Tales of Berseria is a must play for any and all JRPG fans.

The Verdict 9.5

The Good

• Great visuals/framerate (even on console)
• Easy to learn systems & combat
• Engrossing story & characters
• Lots of new environments, very little copied over from Zestiria
• Feels like a true “next-gen” Tales game
• Battles are highly exploitable if you know what you’re doing

The Bad

• Some mild backtracking, which can get tiring
• Battles are highly exploitable…which may be a turn off to some

GiN has reviewed the J-RPG Tales of Berseria:

Tales of Berseria Delivers a Darker, Deeper RPG Adventure

Tales of Berseria is the sixteenth entry in the main series of Tales games, and breaks a lot of the storied traditions of the franchise. Berseria boasts the very first female main protagonist of the series, as well as a plot bordering on darker aspects than Tales of Graces’, “Power of friendship” storytelling vehicle. Berseria is a prequel to 2015’s Tales of Zestiria, which is actually a relative first for the series as this game takes place in the same world as Zestiria but at a significantly early point in time. Berseria boasts a high emotion revenge plot with a protagonist that self-destructively follows a path of perdition rather than righteousness. So, does Berseria soar above other entries in its own series, or does it have sententious flaws like Symphonia: Dawn of the New World, Xillia 2, or even Zestiria? Let’s find out.

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Overall, Tales of Berseria is an extremely strong entry in a very storied franchise. It’s a tale of characters that normally would never have the spotlight in this kind of series and their fight on the wrong side of history, which makes the plot exceedingly fascinating. The combat is fine-tuned and robust, with difficulty options that allow hardcore Tales fans to ramp up the difficulty, or allow a more inexperienced action RPG player to still enjoy the whole of the game. Berseria is certainly not a game that should be missed by Tales fans or RPG fans in general.

411Mania has reviewed Tales of Berseria:

Tales of Berseria (PC) Review

I’ve had somewhat of a storied relationship with the Tales series. I first got into Vesperia but about halfway through it I got overwhelmed by all the side content and lost track of what I was supposed to be doing. I played about 7 hours of Zestiria but just kind of lost interest in it. Now here I am with Berseria, a prequel to Zestiria. I did manage to beat this game but it took a while and there are a few issues that crop up.

Tales of Berseria takes place hundreds of years in the land of Midgrand and places you in the shoes of Velvet Crowe. The first hour or two introduces you to Velvet’s brother, Laphicet, and her brother in law, Arthur, as you live a fairly simple village life. Then one day, you awaken to find demons have overwhelmed the town and that Arthur is sacrificing Laphicet to a red moon. You attempt to stop it but your arm gets corrupted by the Demonblight, which turns people into demons. You get thrown in jail due to your demonic arm, which can essentially eat demons, and three years later you escape with revenge on Arthur, now calling himself Artorius, as the head of a new Abbey that is bent on purging the world of demons.

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I enjoyed my time playing Tales of Berseria as the cast of characters and twisted story make it a petty memorable game. The nuts and bolts of the game though could have used some work though, and the entire thing feels slightly undercooked and very tedious. If you like Tales game, it is certainly another one, but I’d wager that only fans of the JRPG genre, that really want to sink time into a game should venture here.

Score: 7/10 - Good

The New York Daily News has reviewed Tales of Beseria:

Tales of Berseria moves series in new-ish direction : video game review

On the surface, it seems like just another Tales game, another Japanese role-playing game from Namco that’s about a diverse band of characters using their artes to real-time combat their way to a better tomorrow. And in so many ways, that’s how this Tales game actually is.

Except the more time you spend with Tales of Berseria, the more you realize how it’s different. Developer Bandai Namco isn’t quite ready to take the venerable RPG franchise in a wholly new direction yet (even though we’re getting close to that time), but for the first time in years, it is willing to experiment and diversify a little.

And the result is the best Tales title in years, a game that doesn’t fully reinvent but does feel fresh throughout its duration. Tales of Berseria is the series at its most polished, cinematic height, with a story that feels original helping to offset another round of tried-and-true gameplay mechanics.

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Here's a review roundup for Tales of Berseria:

God is a Geek - 9/10

Wccftech - 8.3/10

Like most recent entries in the Tales series, Tales of Berseria is an epic adventure packed with stuff to do. There are mini-games to play, cosmetic items to collect, food to cook and treasures to uncover. Those goofy fun trappings are draped across a much more serious whole this time around, offering welcome respite from a tale that's not afraid to take its memorable characters to some very dark places.

The J-RPG Tales of Beseria will be released today:

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In Tales of Berseria, players embark on a journey of self-discovery as they assume the role of Velvet, a young woman whose once kind demeanor has been replaced and overcome with a festering anger and hatred after a traumatic experience three years prior to the events within Tales of Berseria. Velvet will join a crew of pirates as they sail across the sea and visit the many islands that make up the sacred kingdom of Midgand in an all-new adventure developed by the celebrated team behind the Tales of series. Veteran Tales of character designer Mutsumi Inomata has personally designed Velvet and famous Japanese animation studio, ufotable, returns to animate the game’s breathtaking cutscenes; delivering truly epic and emotional storytelling in their unique style.

GamesPresso checked out the Tales of Berseria demo:

Tales of Berseria Demo Impressions

Bandai Namco’s flagship RPG, colloquially known as the Tales series, started in 1995 with Tales of Phantasia for the Super Famicom. The Tales franchise has presented gamers with a steady stream of games, and the upcoming Tales of Berseria is the 16th and latest in the main series. Unlike most main games in the Tales franchise, Tales of Berseria takes place in the same world as, and is the prequel to, Tales of Zestiria. Moreover, Tales of Berseria is one of the few Tales games to receive a demo prior to release, giving fans and newcomers a chance to see what the new title is all about and what changes it brings to the Tales franchise. Sadly, these changes are less than impressive.

When the demo starts, players are given the option to listen to the original Japanese audio or English dub. Gameplay is then split into two modes: scenario mode and battle mode, both of which give players access to all the main characters: the half-daemons Velvet and Rukurou, the spirits (i.e., Malak) Laphicet and Eizen, and the humans Magilou and Eleanor. In the demo, Eleanor is portrayed as very compassionate if a little overbearing, especially towards Laphicet, who is as innocent as his appearance. Most of the other characters treat Laphicet as if he’s a little child, especially Eleanor. Eizen is the exact opposite of Laphicet, despite also being a Malak. Eizen is serious throughout the demo and shows no emotion other than the stereotypical anime tough-guy scowl, even when he is genuinely being friendly. Sadly. Velvet has an inconsistent personality, switching between rage-filled in battle and downright vapid outside of battle.

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Optimization issues aside, the Tales of Berseria demo is a good barometer by which players can measure their interest in the game. The demo gives gamers a healthy dose of the combat system, gameplay mechanics, and characters. While the demo demonstrates a spoiler-free sample of the story, some players might feel lost and confused, especially by the use of terms such as “Malak” that are never explained in the demo. While not all the changes to the Tales game formula land quite as well, the demo itself still demonstrates the changes clearly, leaving the door open for the game itself to develop and capitalize on the them to a greater degree.

The Tales of Berseria demo is currently available for the PlayStation 4 and PC via Steam, and the full game is scheduled to release January 26th for the PC, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4.

Gamespew thinks that Tales of Beseria will be one of the best entries in the Tales of... series:

Tales of Berseria Looks Set to be One of the Series’ Best

I love a good revenge story. It may be one of the most base character motivations out there, but it’s one that is believable and somewhat relatable. In Tales of Berseria, the newest entry into the Tales of series that’s come to the west, revenge is what motivates the protagonist to head out on her quest. And judging by my time spent with the title up to now, it proves to be a gripping premise.

A human who’s become part daemon after a catastrophic event, Velvet is a woman hell-bent on killing the Exorcist who sacrificed her younger brother to save the world. That very world has now become overrun with Exorcists during the three years that Velvet has been incarcerated, building up her powers by feasting on the blood of other daemons. After an unexpected visitor drops by, however, she is finally able to escape and take action. Already you should be able to tell that Tales of Berseria’s yarn is quite the departure from the usual Tales of series’ goody two shoes protagonists heading out to save the world, and it’s greatly welcome. Sometimes it feels good to be bad. But then, it’s all a matter of perspective anyway.

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I’ve still got much to play of Tales of Berseria, but at this early stage I can safely say that it has left me very impressed indeed. I look forward to making more progress in the coming weeks, so watch out for a full review nearer to release.

The latest update for Tales of Berseria answers some burning questions for the community. There is a good range of graphics tweaking you can do, the game will have denuvo drm and there will be a demo available on Jan 10.

Details about the PC version

10 January - Kimundi
Dear Tales of fans,

We have had a lot of request to know more about the PC version of the game and what options it will offer. First and foremost, let's recap the requirements for the game.

MINIMUM:

OS: Windows 7, 8, 10 (64-bit)
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3.0GHz or AMD Phenom II X2 550, 3.1GHz
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Graphics: GeForce 9800 GTX or AMD Radeon HD 4850
DirectX: Version 9.0c
Storage: 15 GB available space
Sound Card: DirectX 11 compatible

RECOMMENDED:

OS: Windows 7, 8, 10 (64-bit)
Processor: Intel Core i5-750, 2.66GHz or AMD Phenom II X4 965, 3.2GHz
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Graphics: GeForce GTX 560 or Radeon HD 7870
DirectX: Version 9.0c
Storage: 15 GB available space
Sound Card: DirectX 11 compatible

While they haven't nailed down a release date yet, Bandai Namco has shared some details about Tales of Berseria, the upcoming installment to the Tales series.

Tales of Berseria is still a ways off (it doesn't even have a release date in Japan yet, though a localization has been confirmed), but that hasn't stopped Namco Bandai from sharing some new information. Apparently the theme will be "emotion and reason," as the story centralizes around Velvet, who comes across people who only act on reason, abandoning the concept of emotion. It'll also center around a disease called "Goma," which morphs humans into monsters -- strangely, Velvet's left hand can transform into an inhuman appendage, which will probably work into the Goma concept at some point.

It will debut with the Linear Motion Battle System (LMBS), which features free-running, and Artes, which are abilities mapped to each face button -- they've altered this from past setups, so the player can use the left stick entirely for movement, and two additional face buttons for Artes (sounds good).

More information.