To celebrate the Tales of 20th Anniversary, Namco Bandai has announced the latest title in the long-running JRPG series, Tales of Zestiria.
Confirmed at the Japanese reveal event last night, Tales of Zestiria will be the 15th core game in the series, with over 30 titles including all the spin-offs and sequels. By the looks of the quick in-game trailer that was shown, this PlayStation 3 exclusive (Japanese isn’t known for console hopping) will feature a male and female protagonist, much like in Tales of Xillia, will offer a more classic fantasy-inspired world (with dragons being a prime focus).
“Over the past few years the Tales of team has taken great strides to strengthen our relationship with players across North America and Europe,” said Tales of series producer Hideo Baba from Namco Bandai Studios Inc. “To respond to their love and support I am honoured to open a new chapter of the Tales of series together with Japanese and overseas fans.”2015 marks the 20th Anniversary for the Tales of franchise in Japan and I would like to thank all the fans who have supported us for the past two decades from the bottom of my heart,” said Mokoto Yoshizumi, Tales of Chief Producer from Namco Bandai Games Inc. “In recent years we have received anticipation for the series not only from Japan, but from overseas fans as well. Because of this I feel that the Tales of series has more potential than ever before. For this reason we are taking the opportunity to announce Tales of Zestiria as a worldwide title. This title will be going back to the roots of the series and boldly exclaim to the world ‘this is Tales of!'”
Confirmed for launch next year in Japan, North America will probably be seeing the game this time next year, but luckily we have big hitters like Tales of Xillia 2 (date TBA) and Tales of Symphonia Chronicles (February 25, 2014) to tide us over until the big day.So what are your thoughts about the newest game in the Tales of series? Let us know in the comments below!