Tales of Arise is a dramatic game with a serious story behind it. Alphen is a slave of the Renan Empire, which has not only enslaved his region but his entire planet. When he meets Shionne, a Renan Rebel, Alphen decides to fight back.
This unlikely duo has goals that align, so they team up in order to overthrow this empire to set the slaves free. While the subject matter in Tales of Arise is not to be taken lightly, the game also knows how to have a good time. There is extra side dialogue called Skits that can help boost morale. Memes, via fans, are also a way to boost morale in this otherwise dramatic game.
10 The Knights Return
There is a point in the game wherein Alphen and his party starts to watch a TV broadcast. It’s a dramatic scene so this meme lightens up the mood by revealing Knights of the Old Republic’s remake instead.
It is one of the most celebrated Star Wars games of all time, and got fans everywhere excited when it was announced. As an RPG itself, it’s funny to imagine the Tales of Arise gang getting excited about this classic.
9 Falcon Punch!
Once players defeat Lord Ganabelt in battle, there will be a cutscene featuring Law. He lands the final blow sending Lord Ganabelt flying into the fake sun he created.
It’s an epic scene that showcases how well done the action choreography is in the game. It’s funny to imagine Law making a reference to Captain Falcon’s 'Falcon Punch' move from the Super Smash Bros. franchise. It’s a classic meme to fall back on.
8 Sephiroth Crosses Over
Alphen’s party comes across a graveyard of freshly dispatched monsters early on in Tales of Arise. The man behind it all is a mysterious swordsman cloaked in black. Who this is will not be spoiled.
It's funny to liken this stranger to Sephiroth from Final Fantasy 7 as they both have similar clothes and giant blades. Having Alphen and Shionne look shocked at the sight of him is like icing on the cake. Is Sephiroth hopping worlds?
7 Tales Of Souls
The Tales series is one of Bandai Namco’s oldest and most beloved RPG franchises since the 90s. A more modern classic of theirs is Dark Souls.
It’s hard not to splice the two together in a meme especially when one of the core mechanics in Tales of Arise centers around campfires just like in Dark Souls. It would be funny to see a knight from that series appear randomly as a secret Easter egg.
6 Alphen’s Iron Mask
The knights of Rena that are suppressing the people of Dahna wear nearly-identical armor. When they talk their voices are muffled which is nice attention to detail as voices should be distorted inside a metal suit.
However, the game is inconsistent because Alphen’s mask covers his entire head but his voice is crystal clear. The reason is obvious as to why: he is the main character. It’s still fun to poke fun at.
5 The Ultimate Enemy: Ledges
Characters in battle can perform near god-tier levels of feats, like jumping so high it looks like they are flying. Why then can’t characters like Alphen be as acrobatic in the field as they are in a battle?
To make this point clearer, players can buy skills for characters to give them a double jump ability to use only in battle. When this unlocks at first, why doesn’t the game let players use it while exploring?
4 Legendary Armor Replacements
This is a classic RPG trope that has persisted for generations now. Video games make big deals about ultimate weapons as if there will never be anything as powerful in comparison. This black armor is one example of that in Tales of Arise.
Once this black armor is acquired, there is better gear an hour or two away. This is just one in many examples of how gear in games can be inconsistent between gameplay and the story.
3 Swimming In Armor
Armor also presents a question on practically in RPGs. How can Alphen swim around with heavy armor like that and not be weighed down? In the game, he makes a comment at one point that it is lighters than it looks but it can’t be that light.
Another gear issue comes up whenever the cold is involved. How can Shionne and Rinwell not be freezing when they are wearing dresses in the frigid regions of Rinwell’s homeland?
2 Inventory Limits
The Tales series has had some weird issues with inventory limits that don’t make a lot of sense. For example, the party can carry 15 apple gels which is the earliest healing item players can get in the game. This was seemingly done to make the game more difficult as to not allow players to spam healing items while in battle.
However, there is already a safeguard for this as items run on cooldowns. The bigger issue here is that the party can carry tons of pieces of armor and weapons without being weighed down, but they can only carry 15 tiny apple gels.
1 Costumes Break Logic
Costumes are a great iconic mechanic in this series. It allows players to customize characters at their leisure to make them look as cool or as goofy as possible. This presents a challenge when trying to maintain the game’s lore.
For example, Alphen can take his mask off early on if the right costume is downloaded. No one says anything even though it’s supposed to remain on for the first few hours of the game. It’s not terrible to know this inconsistency. It’s just a fun and silly thing to point out.