Tales of Vesperia Ships Today for Xbox 360

“Tales of Vesperia represents the culmination of a decade of Tales role-playing innovation and perfectly punctuates the series’ 10 year anniversary in North America,” said Todd Thorson, Director of Marketing and Public Relations with NAMCO BANDAI Games America, Inc. “With all-new gameplay additions, nods to previous entries in the series and incredible HD graphics, there has never been a better time for gamers to experience this incredible role-playing series.”

You can find it in stores today. Hit the jump for the press release.

NAMCO BANDAI GAMES SHIPS TALES OF VESPERIA™ FOR XBOX 360®

Leading Role-Playing Series Makes High-Definition Debut with Incredible Anime-Inspired Graphics, Action-Packed Battles and New Gameplay Features

SANTA CLARA, Calif., (August 26, 2008) – NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. today announced that Tales of Vesperia™ has shipped to retail stores throughout North America for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. Highlighting the 10th anniversary of the legendary Tales role-playing series, Tales of Vesperia delivers majestic storytelling and compelling gameplay on a massive scale as players embark on a grand adventure of discovery and intrigue. Recently released in Japan, Tales of Vesperia holds the mark for the highest first-week sales of any game ever released for Xbox 360 in that territory.

In Tales of Vesperia, the world of Terca Lumireis is in transition. Ten years of peace have led to an uneasy truce between the Empire and independent groups of citizens known as guilds, which desire to live by their own rules. Controlling the ancient technology known as “blastia,” the Empire has provided safety and prosperity to its citizens, but dissent remains high as the people grow uneasy with the heavy hand of their government. As former Imperial Knight Yuri Lowell, players will explore the complex relationship between blastia, the government and its people, setting foot outside the safe confines of the cities to explore a mysterious and dangerous world.

The first high-definition installment of the Tales role-playing series, Tales of Vesperia brings a decade of gameplay heritage and storytelling pedigree to Xbox 360. Featuring an action-packed real-time battle system, players can chain together powerful attacks to create combos on the fly and give detailed commands to the rest of their party to create cohesive battle strategies. All-new battle features such as Fatal Strikes, Burst Artes and a multi-stage Over Limit provide more tactical depth to each encounter, while series traditions such as cooking and skits return with new twists to delight longtime fans.

“Tales of Vesperia represents the culmination of a decade of Tales role-playing innovation and perfectly punctuates the series’ 10 year anniversary in North America,” said Todd Thorson, Director of Marketing and Public Relations with NAMCO BANDAI Games America, Inc. “With all-new gameplay additions, nods to previous entries in the series and incredible HD graphics, there has never been a better time for gamers to experience this incredible role-playing series.”

Tales of Vesperia for Xbox 360 carries a suggested retail price of $59.99 and is rated “T” for Teen by the ESRB. A Special Edition of the game is also available, packaged in a SteelBook case with a 10th anniversary soundtrack with music from a decade of Tales history for a suggested retail price of $69.99. For more information on the Tales series, please visit www.namcobandaigames.com