VIDEO GAME REVIEW While story lacks originality, 'Symphonia' is still fun to play

A cel-shading visual technique gives characters an animated look.
By JUSTIN HOEGER
SACRAMENTO BEE
Well, look at this. The GameCube has its very own exclusive role-playing game.
For whatever reason, this genre has been slighted by Nintendo's little machine, save for a slightly gussied-up version of the Sega Dreamcast game "Skies of Arcadia" a while back.
But that game was already a couple of years old at the time; "Tales of Symphonia" is brand-new, and it looks nice. It also plays very well, thanks to an unusual battle system.
The story's pretty basic. The world is dying, and a young girl, Colette, is the Chosen One, the key to its salvation. She travels with a band of friends, including the main character, Lloyd, on a quest to save the world.
Along the way there are some plot twists and many foes, most notably the wicked Desians, half-elves who are determined to stop the world's regeneration and who command advanced technology.
The story's not very original, but the game's a lot of fun to play, thanks to that battle system.
A hand in the action
Here's the reason: "Tales of Symphonia" gives players a more direct hand in the action than most role-playing games. Instead of selecting options from a menu, the player controls one character's (usually Lloyd) every action, while the rest of the party fights automatically. It's a good system, and it makes battles more involving.
This sort of thing has been done before, such as in the PlayStation game "Star Ocean 2," but in this game the computerized allies are pretty effective, which has rarely been the case before. Also, though the battles take place on a three-dimensional field, Lloyd can only move back and forth relative to his current targeted enemy.
To fight, Lloyd must move close to an enemy and hack at it with his swords. He can string together devastating combinations with the right button presses, and throw in special techniques for added damage and to keep the combo string going.
While the player controls Lloyd, the rest of the characters fight according to guidelines the player sets, such as to battle defensively, focus on healing the wounded, charge headlong into the fray and so on. These orders can be changed as the battle rages, and the player can also freeze the action and give specific commands to these fighters.
The system is simple, but the action-oriented way that battles unfold helps stave off the boredom that often comes after too many hours selecting actions from a menu and passively watching them unfold, as in most RPGs.
Some flaws
That's not to say it's perfect. Since only one character is directly controlled, the others sometimes get caught in powerful attacks that otherwise would be avoidable. This can be remedied by inviting a few friends over to play; up to four players can each control a character in battle, lending a rare multiplayer wrinkle to the proceedings.
Outside of the battles, the game play is fairly straightforward. The party travels from town to dungeon to town, meeting new people and fighting new foes. Dungeons are littered with puzzles, and the main tool for solving them is the Sorcerer's Ring, a magical band that exhibits different powers when energized properly.
"Tales of Symphonia" makes use of the once-ubiquitous cel-shading visual technique; the characters all look like animated drawings. The backgrounds are gorgeous, with a soft, almost watercolor look. The character designs are distinctive and colorful, as are the monsters.
The sound doesn't fare quite as well. While the music is inoffensive, if not memorable, the sound effects are a bit weak and the voice acting becomes grating.
X"Tales of Symphonia," by Namco for Nintendo GameCube, is for teen gamers and older.