The most obvious change in Tales of Symphonia is the extremely gorgeous 3D cel-shaded graphic engine. Cel shading has become the "in" thing as of late, but when it's done extremely well, it's truly a site to behold. Some might initially be turned off by the more cartoony look of the visuals, but after seeing the game in motion, those naysayers will be silenced. The graphical style harkens back to the days of classic SNES RPGs, with an extremely wide color palate employed, and locations that are decidedly not "realistic" (although no less beautiful).

The storyline puts gamers in the role of young Lloyd Irving, as he unravels a surprisingly complex plot. The world of Silvaland has been experiencing a severe mana shortage, and if the problem remains unresolved, life itself will cease to exist. The twist Irving discovers is that Silvaland is bound to an alternate world, which has been eating up all of the precious mana. When one world prospers, the other slowly dies. Of course it's up to Lloyd and his band of inexperienced adventurers to help strike a balance and save the world, through battling many, many monsters.

The real-time action is the series' primary claim to fame. Rather than the good and bad guys lining up and taking turns hitting each other, gamers can run around the 3D plane attacking at will, while the AI controls your teammates. Better yet, grab some extra controllers, and have your friends take over the roles of your teammates. The standard arsenal of attacking and defensive maneuvers will be available, not to mention spells. All told, the game features over 100 special attacks, spells, and combos. This makes for a much more frantic and less cerebral experience than most all other RPGs. Rather than trying to estimate the damage your Fire3 spell will do and whether you should heal this turn or next, you'll be too busy dodging enemy attacks and whacking away.

Besides combat, Symphonia features some Zelda-style puzzle solving. It's mostly the traditional block pushing/pulling or avoid-the-spikes fair, but it's a nice way to break up the gameplay nonetheless.

The developers were kind enough to include a whole bucket-load of extras and mini-games as well, ensuring the title will have ample replay value. There will also be side-quests for the intrepid explorer to seek out, should they want to break off from the beaten path for a time. Some even reward gamers with snappy bonuses, such as alternate costumes for their characters. Namco is promising over 80 hours of gameplay, and although a more accurate prediction hasn't been made, the quest is indeed shaping up to be long enough to satisfy even hardcore RPG fans.

Although Tales of Symphonia appears to have all the basic trappings of a great RPG, it's the little things that often help make or break a game. To help gamers keep track of the frequently twisting and turning plot, there is a "scenario" option, allowing them to get a recap of what has happened up to that point. The game also features a relatively loose character development system, allowing the player to guide their characters' growth as they see fit. Characters also develop dynamic relationships with one another through conversations, which can then affect the storyline of the game itself.

Although it is true that part of Symphonia's high level of hype is because it's a RPG appearing on a console largely devoid of the genre, there's certainly more to the story. With an extremely attractive visual style, an engaging and fast-paced battle system, and a deep, complicated storyline, Tales of Symphonia is shaping up to be one of the best RPG releases of the year.