Tales of Arise Gets New Developer Commentary Video Discussing Battle Mechanics and Art Direction

Bandai Namco has released the second developer message video for Tales of Arise. Producer Yusuke Tomizawa, director Hirokazu Kagawa, and art director Minoru Iwamoto discuss some of the title’s intricacies, such as the details of the battle system and the effort it took to make the cast as wonderfully expressive as they are.

Kagawa mentions how the desire to create innovations with the battle system and increased complexity goes hand in hand with each new installment in the Tales series. With Tales of Arise, the team aims to make “an action RPG that can be enjoyed by everybody.”

The “Counter Edge” mechanic is briefly mentioned, allowing players to dodge enemies at the right time to perform satisfying counterattacks. “Boost Attack” and “Boost Strike” are also featured and, while not thoroughly explained, are stated to provide a pleasing rhythm to battles with their ease to use during combos.

Iwamoto mentions how facial and body movements were primary focuses with the art direction. The team utilized motion capture and facial capture to portray emotions as vividly as they could. The subtlety with how character expressions formed and changed were at the forefront of making them appealing as well. Idle animations were keenly paid attention to, a relieving detail to hear.

Tales of Arise is launching worldwide on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, and PC on September 10, 2021.

Check out 12-minutes of raw gameplay from the Japanese build and Alphen’s character trailer if you missed it.

You can view the Tales of Arise Developer Message #2 in full below: