Teen (13+)

Beauty plunged into darkness

HIGH The beautiful art style and incredible palate of color.

LOW Simplistic gameplay that fails to provide a challenge.

WTF Why is Elika encumbering this game?

Lightsabers can cut through 20cm thick metal, but a stick? That's too much.

HIGH Force-throwing and crushing things is a blast.

LOW Camera severely hampers you in several areas, especially in small spaces.

WTF How does a stormtrooper with a stick block a lightsaber?

Falling off buildings in a single bound

HIGH The exhilaration of fluidly navigating across multiple rooftops.

LOW Harsh gameplay that frequently brings the action to a screeching halt.

WTF Being attacked by a former wrestler named Ropeburn.

Confessions of an RPG Nerd

HIGH Finding an RPG hero and villain who aren't exactly like every other RPG hero and villain in video game history.

LOW Non-skippable cut-scenes. Really, should I have to watch five minutes of dialogue again just because I suck and died on a boss?

WTF There is a dog in your party. A dog who fights with a knife and smokes a pipe.

Game Description: A new generation of tales unfolds! A power struggle begins in a civilization dependent on an ancient technology, the blastia, and the Empire that controls it. The fates of two friends traveling separate paths intertwine in an epic adventure that threatens the existence of all. Tales of Vesperia marks the first Tales RPG release in HD with detail and graphics never before seen in the series. Now, real-time battles are more exciting than ever with over limits, the ability to unleash fatal strikes, combinations and burst artes. The next evolution of the revered role-playing series comes to the Xbox 360.

Playground of Tedium

HIGH Blowing up people and vehicles from inside the safety of a helicopter never gets old, does it?

LOW Actually, it does. And surprisingly quickly, at that.

WTF For some reason EA refused to include any licensed characters as a fun secondary skin. Sure, they don't have access to Lucasfilm characters the way the first game did, but aren't they making a James Bond game right now? Meanwhile, the Sean Connery skin is just lying around in a mainframe somewhere, gathering dust.