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As with all Tales games, Mystic Artes are very important in Tales of Arise. They are a way to maximize damage and enjoy a fun scene while at it. Notably, however, while each and every character’s Boost Attack gets a dedicated tutorial, Mystic Artes do not in Tales of Arise.

As such, it’s entirely possible to play through a significant portion of the game without realizing they're possible until an NPC performs one. This is partially because utilizing one of Tales of Arise’s Mystic Artes is designed to be intentional; it is highly unlikely to perform once on accident. As such, for those looking to maximize damage output, here’s how they work.

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There are three steps of varying degrees to performing one of these attacks. First, the Tales of Arise character must be in the Overlimit State. Second, they must hit an enemy with an Artes attack. Then, they must finally enter a combination of face buttons to trigger the Mystic Artes attack.

Tales of Arise: How to Enter Overlimit State

While in Overlimit, players don’t use up their charges when performing skills or artes. It’s also easily recognizable in the game, as not only will players received a visual cue that they are in Overlimit, but they will glow and have a bar over their health indicating how much time in Overlimit is left. Trigger Overlimit comes down to dealing tons of damage or performing perfect evasions; once enough of these are accumulated, any Tales of Arise character such as Kisara, Dohalim, or so on will enter the state.

Tales of Arise Mystic Artes

It should be noted that there are several Overlimit skills available on the Panel. These range from making Overlimit easier to enter to making it last longer; they should be picked up as soon as possible to make Mystic Artes easier to perform.

Tales of Arise: How to Use Mystic Artes

Once in Overlimit, players should be mindful of how fast their bar depletes during combat in Tales of Arise. They also need to keep in mind that, after performing the Mystic Arte, Overlimit will end. As such, players should keep up the onslaught, use regular artes, and wait for the bar to deplete before using the Mystic Arte. Players also have to keep in mind how the enemy operates, as an enemy that moves around a lot may require the player to use a Mystic Arte sooner.

Once players are ready to do so, they will need to hit the enemy with a regular arte. During its animation, PS5 players need to hold down TWO of the following face buttons: Triangle, X, or Square—anything but the jump button, O. For Xbox Series X players, this would translate to holding down two of the following: A, X, or Y

Once that is done, players can sit back, enjoy the cinematic, and see the damage rack up.

Tales of Arise releases September 10 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.

MORE: Tales of Arise's Focus on Character Interactions Separates It From Other JRPGs