Tales of Arisestands apart from other entries in the franchise because of its darker, Westernized story, all while retaining its identity in storytelling and combat. The result is one of thebest-reviewed ‘Tales of’gamesin the franchise, and Bandai Namco has seen fit to expand that experience with the Beyond the Dawn expansion.
Tales of Arise’s Beyond the Dawn DLC tells a new story set in a world on edge. It takes place one year after the base game, with the party reuniting to deal with some lingering aftermath effects from the merging ofRena and Dahna. However, that more grandiose element of the story takes a backseat when the party meets Nazamil, the daughter of a Renan Lord and a Dahnan. Because of her lineage, she faces prejudice among both the Renans and the Dahnans, and what follows is a more intimate and emotional story about prejudice, what it means to be a person, what it means to be a hero, and what it means to be true to one’s self.
On the one hand, it’s nice to see the DLC take a step back from the galactic catastrophe-level event that the base game focused on, though that’s not to say the DLC doesn’t involveAlphen and his party memberssaving the world again. It’s just much smaller in scope and different in tone. On the other hand, having this sort of plot tied into the more personal elements of the story does create some issues. There is a lot of back and forth, especially early on, where it feels like players are effectively running in circles and accomplishing nothing. Given its shorter playtime thanTales of Arise’s base game, any and all meandering is much more noticeable, and it’s certainly there as the game tries to introduce Nazamil to the party. This expands into an odd pacing issue not really experienced in the first game.
It takes at least30-35 hours to beatTales of Arise, and that’s not considering if players spend any time doing subquests. This allows the game to slowly ramp up its narrative and its combat, so the lengthier combat segments fit right into the overarching narrative by the end. This means longer combat sections, but it feels justified given how big the threat is and what all built up to it. However, the story inTales of Arise’s Beyond the Dawn DLC does not have this longevity, but it attempts to ramp up the narrative along a similar curve, as well as the combat.Tales of Arise’s combat is not any more difficult in the Beyond the Dawn DLC, and at times it feels much simpler and as if each enemy is less of a threat. That doesn’t stop it from having some of the longest combat sequences in the whole game.
As with manyJRPGs includingTales of Arise, there is a long dungeon run at the end of the game. Many of the boss enemies it presents are even optional, but regardless of how many players fight, there will be mandatory boss battles that easily take 5-10 minutes each. The final few bosses are longer than that, taking 20-30 minutes to defeat, but with no real threat of failure. The enemies feel like damage sponges, while all players can do is continue attacking, usingTales of Arise’s various Artes, and grinding it out until the enemy inevitably falls. Between the early meandering and the late game curve,Tales of Arise’s Beyond the Dawn DLC makes its short story still feel drawn out. It definitely has plenty of highs in the middle hours, but both the start and the end feel at odds with everything established to that point.
It’s no real surprise thatTales of Arise’s skitsand dungeons return too. In the main story, players will encounter three dungeons and each is distinct from the next. They don’t necessarily break the mold, but they are a lot of fun. There’s a fine balance between combat, puzzles, and exploration to be had, and running through them is a fun experience. The same can be said of the skits. They are nothing new, but they do meet the base game in terms of quality, including Shionne’s obsession with food. With more story comes more skits, and fans are in for a treat with many of these. Indeed, everything fans love from the base game is present in Beyond the Dawn, and the standard features hit the same bars established by the main story.
Generally speaking, the combat ofTales of Arisedoes not change much, but the DLC does introduce some new weapons and costumes that players can use to their liking. It’s very much an “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it” approach, and that’s probably for the best. Outside the stretched-out final boss battles, the combat is as fun and engaging as the base game, while also continuing to give fans the auto-battle option should they so choose. Meanwhile, the DLC also introduces plenty of new subquests to complete.
Many of these are basic fetch quests or “kill these Zeugles in this area” quests, but Beyond the Dawn introduces a new subquest type called Reconstruction quests where players can rebuild areas in the aftermath of the worlds merging. Having a palpable impact on the presentation in the world is a nice touch, but they carry about as much weight as the base game’s subquests. It’s ultimately a mixed bag, but anyone who enjoyed completing all ofTales of Arise’s subquestswill find the DLC’s offerings equally engaging, and those who’d prefer to skip won’t lose much all the same.
It’s also worth noting that it’s entirely possible to start the DLC from the menu without having completed the base game, with Beyond the Dawn providing players with pre-generated party members. However, this would be the worst way to experience the DLC. A lot of familiar faces return, the events of the base game are not ignored but are instead prevalent throughout the narrative, and there are constant references that fans who did not beatTales of Arisewould not understand. It’s a nice option, but it’s not one that should really be considered if someone wants the full experience.
Ultimately,Tales of Arise’s Beyond the Dawn DLCtries to distill everything great about the base game into a new story and smaller runtime. It succeeds for the most part and fans are rewarded with an emotional narrative, but it does fall a little short of the base game when comparing stories and gameplay. That said, anyone wanting moreTales of Arisein their life can’t go wrong with the Beyond the Dawn DLC expansion.
Tales of Arise
WHERE TO PLAY
A world of nature drawn with the “Atmospheric Shader”We are introducing a new graphics shader, inspired by anime and watercolor painting. Characters with attractive designs travel among backgrounds filled with beautiful and delicate visuals.Explore a world that feels aliveExplore the world of Dahna, where a mix of unique, natural environments change in appearance based on the time of day. Climb over the rocky terrain, swim in rivers, gather around the campfire, cook food, head to the next town, defeat the master of an alien planet, and liberate the people!Stylish action and battlesThrough the new system “Boost Strike”, you may now chain combos of powerful attacks together with your party members. Chain Artes, Boost Attacks, and Boost Strike combos to take down your enemies!Experience the story of the divided Renan and Dahnan peopleThe protagonists who will determine the fate of these two worlds are Alphen and Shionne. They will overcome hardships and grow together with their unique group of friends. Gorgeous animation by ufotable is inserted at key points in the story, adding more color to our protagonists’ journey.
Tales of Arise: Beyond the Dawnis available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Game Rant was provided a PS5 code for the purposes of this review.
