a hero in the making
Cless never asked to be a hero, but when his entire village was destroyed and all its inhabitants were murdered because of the pendant he wore, it became difficult to continue his quiet life. When push comes to shove, Cless takes up his sword and embarks on a journey through time.
Tales of Phantasia
Cless is the main character in the Namco role-playing game Tales of Phantasia, which was originally released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1994 in Japan, though for some reason people keep calling it the Super Famicon, which I guess is its name too. Anyway, ToP was never brought to America since Namco (foolishly) thought it wouldn't make enough of a splash. It was remade for the PSX in 1998 (and, again, was not localized for the US) and again for the GBA in 2003. The GBA port of ToP finally landed in the United States in 2006. The game was remade for the PSP (and released only in Japan AGAIN) later that year as Tales of Phantasia ~ Full Voice Edition. Seriously, I really want them to bring the PSP port to the US, but if they don't I am so importing it because PSP games are region-free. (Though I need a new PSP since I lost mine but that's another story.)
ToP was also made into a four-episode anime by... some animation group, I don't know whom. The anime is amazing — you can get a taste of it at Fantasy Anime, though you should totally buy the DVD if you like it. There's nothing quite like seeing video game characters in full animation.
Ingame
Cless is the player you fight with. The others are all (mainly) AI-controlled (following the guidelines you set). He has basic attacks, but the real fun is in the skills.
| Skill | DeJap | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Demon Fang | Psion Bolt | Attack enemy by firing sword force. |
| Swallow Dance | Dual Kick | Combo that starts with a double kick and ends with a thrust. |
| Lightning Tiger Blade | Lightning Bolt | Strike surrounding enemies with lightning. |
| Sword Rain | Blade Storm | Cut enemy to pieces with endless thrusts. |
| Tiger Blade | Tiger Teeth | Two-stage attack slashes enemy like the fangs of a tiger striking its prey. |
| Focus | Focus | Temporarily increase Accuracy by focusing the mind. |
| Rising Phoenix | Phoenix | Envelop body in a Phoenix aura and shoot into the sky to strike enemy. |
| Aegis Strike | Gale Shield | Thrust weapon into the ground to create a wall of light that keeps enemies out. |
| Omega Tempest | Fury Slash | Create a tempest and slash enemies. |
| Inspiration | Eir's Love | Recover HP by drawing atmospheric power into the body. |
| Beast | Lionheart | Blow enemies away by pounding them wtih attack power. |
| Coil | Focus More | Temporarily increase Attack by focusing the mind. |
| Light Spear | Mamga Rift | Spinning thrust that lifts attack power high into the air. |
| Hell Pyre | Firebrand | Incinerate enemy by throwing a weapon enveloped in flaming attack power. |
| Chaos Blade | Soul Wave | One of the space-time attacks. Cuts enemy to pieces with intense attack power. |
| Lunge | Teleport | One of the space-time attacks. Instantly move to enemy and unleash a combo. |
| Distortion Blade | Soul Edge | One of the space-time attacks. Divide and conquer enemies by distorting space-time. |
| Tiger Combo Blast | (?) | An eight-step attack from top to bottom. |
I did have the TP cost and level learned, but it was a headache to get it to work in the table, so I just said forget it. ^^; And now for the combos!
| Combo | DeJap | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Demonic Swallow Kick | Psion Kick | Demon Fang + Swallow Dance |
| Demonic Tiger Blade | Mecha Blade | Demon Fang + Tiger Blade |
| Demonic Sword Rain | Psion Storm | Demon Fang + Sword Rain |
| Demon Spear | Magma Bolt | Demon Fang + Light Spear |
| Beast Swallow Kick | Lion Lunge | Beast + Swallow Dance |
| Beast Blade | Lion Teeth | Beast + Tiger Blade |
| Beast Sword Rain | Lion Claws | Beast + Sword Rain |
| Beast Spear | Lion Flare | Beast + Light Spear |
| Lightning Swallow Kick | Bolt Crash | Lightning Tiger Blade + Swallow Dance |
| Lightning Tiger Blast | Thor's Wrath | Lightning Tiger Blade + Tiger Blade |
| Lightning Tiger Thrust | Tempest | Lightning Tiger Blade + Sword Rain |
| Lightning Tiger Spear | Earth's Rage | Lightning Tiger Blade + Light Spear |
| Phoenix Dance | Flare Talon | Rising Phoenix + Swallow Dance |
| Phoenix Blade | Odin's Wrath | Rising Phoenix + Tiger Blade |
| Phoenix Sword Rain | Burning Soul | Rising Phoenix + Sword Rain |
| Phoenix Spear | Cinder Hawk | Rising Phoenix + Light Spear |
| Chaos Distortion Blade | Soul Forge | Chaos Blade + Distortion Blade |
| Chaos Lunge | Soul Strike | Chaos Blade + Lunge |
| Dark Blade | (?) | Desperation attack |
I don't know about you, but I like the DeJap combo names much more. o.o;
More?
I fully intend to make this a proper shrine. ^_^; I just don't have time. This is, however, a much more spiffy about page than I usually make, so... mwee. :D