Tales of the World: Summoner's Lineage
Encyclopedia
is a tactical role-playing game
developed and published by Namco
and released exclusively in Japan
for the Game Boy Advance
on March 7, 2003. Tales of the World: Summoner's Lineage's characteristic genre name is . As part of the Tales RPG series, it retains several familiar features while adding a good deal of new ones.
The game acts as a follow-up to the events of Tales of Phantasia
, with the main character, Fulein Lester, actually being a descendant of the character Claus Lester from the aforementioned title. It is the second sequel
to Tales of Phantasia, after Tales of Phantasia: Narikiri Dungeon
.
These differences in structure can be attributed to the fact that Summoner's Lineage is actually a gameplay sequel to a little known Japanese Namco Game Boy Color
game called Pocket King, a sequel to the 1988 Famicom
title King of Kings (featured in Namco Anthology 2).
In addition to the principal characters of Tales of Phantasia, the player can also utilize Fulein's ability to summon several different kinds of creatures to aid in battle. These monsters, like any other character, have their own unique statistics and attacks, as well as their own ways of approaching combat.
Tactical role-playing game
A tactical role-playing game is a type of video game which incorporates elements of traditional role-playing video games and strategy games. In Japan these games are known as , a designation which might seem peculiar to native English speakers...
developed and published by Namco
Namco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
and released exclusively in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
for the Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
on March 7, 2003. Tales of the World: Summoner's Lineage's characteristic genre name is . As part of the Tales RPG series, it retains several familiar features while adding a good deal of new ones.
The game acts as a follow-up to the events of Tales of Phantasia
Tales of Phantasia
is a Super Nintendo game in the RPG genre published by Namco and released in Japan in 1995, selling 212,000 copies. It is the first mothership title in the Tales RPG series and was later remade/re-released on the PlayStation, Game Boy Advance and PlayStation Portable...
, with the main character, Fulein Lester, actually being a descendant of the character Claus Lester from the aforementioned title. It is the second sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
to Tales of Phantasia, after Tales of Phantasia: Narikiri Dungeon
Tales of Phantasia: Narikiri Dungeon
is an RPG for the Game Boy Color released by Namco on November 10, 2000, selling 136,000 copies. Tales of Phantasia: Narikiri Dungeon's characteristic genre name is . It is the first sequel in the Tales series, which normally does not have connected storylines...
.
Story
Summoner's Lineage takes place in the same world as Tales of Phantasia, in the year 4765 by the Aselia Calendar (411 years after ToP's future). As a young summoning apprentice, Fulein K. Lester and his sprite-like companion Macaron are studying the principles of calling upon magical beasts into the physical world. However, their exploits are cut short when a significant number of monsters and other beasts begin to appear within their world, threatening the stability of their long-peaceful nation. It is decided that in order to combat these creatures, the legendary Heroes of Time (the name given to the main characters of Tales of Phantasia after their adventures across several centuries in the previous title) would have to be called upon. It is then that Cress, Claus, Mint, Suzu, Arche, and Chester make their appearance, and with their combined skills, along with the help of some new faces, they will hopefully rid the world of this new crisis.Gameplay
Though structurally quite different from the usually Tales games, Summoner's Lineage features items and enemies that were seen in other titles. In this game, characters are moved across a grid-like board, only going into combat once they have moved themselves close enough to an enemy. It is then that they will enter combat and be able to issue various commands such as physical attacks and magic spells in order to defeat their opponent. Each character and enemy is given an elemental alignment that determines which attacks will be best suited to defeating them (a "fire" character would take more damage from a water-based attack, for instance).These differences in structure can be attributed to the fact that Summoner's Lineage is actually a gameplay sequel to a little known Japanese Namco Game Boy Color
Game Boy Color
The is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than...
game called Pocket King, a sequel to the 1988 Famicom
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
title King of Kings (featured in Namco Anthology 2).
In addition to the principal characters of Tales of Phantasia, the player can also utilize Fulein's ability to summon several different kinds of creatures to aid in battle. These monsters, like any other character, have their own unique statistics and attacks, as well as their own ways of approaching combat.
Characters
- Fulein K. Lester (age 15): Summoner class character. The main character of the game who, like his ancestor Claus F. Lester, is studying the principles of summoning magic. Though his knowledge on the subject still has a way to go, and his work ethic is questionable, he shows significant potential and is able to summon a large variety of creatures even at his novice state. In battle he is responsible for fortifying the player's army with additional units, and can even change his elemental alignment given the situation. He is constantly followed by his fairyFairyA fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural.Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term...
-like friend Macaron (actually an android of magitechnology), who gives him advice along the way. - Mark/Myra Ginihle (age 15): Fighter class character. Mark (later revealed as a female named Myra), although not skilled with magic, can fight considerably well with a pair of longswords. Mark's brash personality and courageous nature are somewhat of a foil to Fulein's usually reserved mannerisms, and in battle serves more as a frontline fighter. She initially has the "fire" elemental attribute.
- Velga Montor (age 13): Monk class character. An uptight and hotheaded girl who has trained herself over the years to become an agile fighter, preferring to use her fists and feet as weapons. Alongside her twinTwinA twin is one of two offspring produced in the same pregnancy. Twins can either be monozygotic , meaning that they develop from one zygote that splits and forms two embryos, or dizygotic because they develop from two separate eggs that are fertilized by two separate sperm.In contrast, a fetus...
brother Volga, she is determined to assist Fulein in his journey to become a master summoner. - Volga Montor (age 13): Wizard class character. Velga's twin brother who, unlike his sister, is often very quiet and less prone to making rash decisions. As a student of the magic arts, Volga is able to call upon the very elements of the world to aid him in battle.