Tales of Xillia Remastered [REVIEW] – An Impressive Revival of a PS3 Classic

Tales of Xillia had been locked to the PlayStation 3 for far too long, but given Bandai Namco’s ongoing push to preserve and update the series’ legacy, it felt like its release was inevitable. And now, after the success of Tales of Graces F Remastered earlier in the year, it has now made its way to modern platforms, making Tales of Xillia easier than ever to play and with quality of life updates that make it a more enjoyable experience.

Check out some screenshots down below:

Tales of Xillia’s story is set in Rieze Maxia, a world powered by mana and shaped by the coexistence of humans and spirits, with it following an unlikely partnership between Milla Maxwell, the self-proclaimed incarnation of the ‘Lord of Spirits’, and Jude Mathis, a young medical student. What begins as a chance encounter at a military facility slowly spirals into a much larger plot involving political tensions, spiritual imbalance, and the ambitions of rival nations, with the fate of the world at stake… the classic Tales of formula then, but I mean that in a good way.

The dual-protagonist system remains an interesting touch in Tales of Xillia, with players choosing between Jude and Milla as the main character at the start of the game. Whilst their journeys do intertwine, their contrasting perspectives add a fresh sense of flavour to key scenes, and whilst Jude’s route offers a grounded and emotional take on their journey, Milla’s focuses more on the spiritual side of the conflict. The differences aren’t too dramatic (I wouldn’t say you have to beat the game as both to get the full story if you don’t want to), but the concept adds replay value and helps give the storytelling of Tales of Xillia a subtle extra layer.

“Tales of Xillia Remastered shows just how well this adventure has held up over the years, especially with its modern polish and convenient quality of life upgrades that make it better than ever to play.”

Where Tales of Xillia really shines is in its characters. Jude and Milla form a compelling duo by themselves, with their contrasting personalities bouncing off each other in ways that feel natural, engaging, and endearing, whilst the supporting cast is equally memorable, bringing plenty of humour, warmth, and even the occasional conflict to the party dynamic across their personalities. The skit system elevates this even further with countless bite-sized conversations that help strengthen the narrative and bonds between characters without ever being intrusive to the pacing, with it hard not to grow attached to this group by the time the credits roll. It’s definitely one of my favourite parties of heroes across the Tales of franchise, with the mismatched group of heroes proving lovable throughout.

Combat is another area where the game still stands tall, with the Dual Raid Linear Motion Battle System still fast, responsive, and satisfying. Linking characters to perform co-ordinated Artes gives every encounter an exciting and rhythmic flow, and when the Overlimit gauge kicks in, things escalate into flashy chains of linked abilities with no downtime – these moments capture combat at its most explosive and stylish, and it shows that there’s plenty of pizzazz to be found in battling. I was really impressed with just how good it felt, and whilst you could argue that it doesn’t quite reach the heights seen in some of the more modern titles in the Tales of franchise, it still holds up really, really well.

Check out some screenshots down below:

As a remaster, Tales of Xillia doesn’t overhaul the original game too much, but the enhancements add meaningful polish that still help it shine fourteen-years on from its original release – the visuals are sharper and more colourful than before, whilst the smooth 60fps performance makes battles look and feel better than ever. Of course, this was a PlayStation 3 game, so there is some stiffness in animations and some textures do look a little outdated, but it’s impressive just how good the game manages to look. The quality-of-life improvements go a long way in making this the definitive Tales of Xillia experience too, with the likes of autosave, sprinting, encounter toggles to ease off battles, improved map markers, and skippable cutscenes all making the experience far more streamlined more modern than before. Much like the other remastered in the Tales of series, Bandai Namco have put a lot of care and effort into making this the best way to experience the game.

That being said, whilst I do have a lot of praise for Tales of Xillia, there are areas where it can show its age. Some environments can get a little samey over time, whilst the dungeon design can lack in imagination too. The side quests can also feel a formulaic, whilst there can be a few hits in the pacing where everything slows down a little. Nothing too bad at all, but just little signs that whilst the core experience does hold up, this is still very much an RPG from the 2010s.

Developer: DokiDoki Groove Works
Publisher: Bandai Namco
Platform(s): PC (Reviewed), PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch
Website: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2246670/Tales_of_Xillia_Remastered/