Tales (universe)

The Tales universe refers to the Smash Flash series' collection of characters, stages, and properties that hail from Namco's series of console role-playing games. Similar to many Japanese role-playing games in a series, most games or media of the series are unrelated to each other beyond certain elements. Widely known for its heavy influence by anime and Japanese culture, the series often makes use of popular manga artists or illustrators, and animated cutscenes produced by Production I.G.

Franchise description
Near 1995, Namco created a series of fantasy RPG-video games involving magical lands and creatures. The first game, Tales of Phantasia, was originally released in that year in Japan for the Super Famicom. Later it was ported to the PlayStation, Gameboy Advance, and Playstation Portable systems. Tales of Eternia, the third entry, was the first game to have English voices and was the first game to have an anime adaption. Tales of Destiny 2, the fourth entry in the series, became the first to be released on the PlayStation 2 when it was released in 2002. The fifth entry, Tales of Symphonia was released in 2003 and is the only game in the series to be released on the Nintendo Gamecube.

Celebrating the series tenth anniversary, the eighth entry in the series, Tales of the Abyss, was released in 2005. This was followed by the series' first Mothership Title made for a handheld, Tales of Innocence, in 2007. The tenth Mothership Title in the Series, Tales of Vesperia, was released on the Xbox 360 in 2008 (which is currently the most sold Xbox 360 in Japan), with an enhanced PlayStation 3 port containing new content released in September 2009. The eleventh Mothership Title in the series and the second Mothership Title on a handheld, Tales of Hearts, was released in 2008. The twelfth game of the series, Tales of Graces, is slated for release on the Wii in December 2009.

In addition to the main games of the series, there are several "Escort Titles" which are side-stories and spin-off games linked to the series. The first of these titles, Tales of Phantasia: Narikiri Dungeon, was released for the Game Boy Color in 2000 as a sequel to Tales of Phantasia. The game that most of the sprites in Super Smash Flash comes from is Tales of the World: Narikiri Dungeon 3. Five games in the "Tales of the World" subseries have been released for hand-held systems.

A Fan Disk for the series, Tales of Fandom Vol.1 was released for the Playstation in 2002. The second volume, Tales of Fandom Vol.2 was released for the PlayStation 2 in 2007. Currently the fan disks are only released as the last Tales game for that current (console) generation. Tales of the Tempest, released for the Nintendo DS in 2006, is currently the only Escort Title with an original plot and cast.

Six games have also been released under the "Tales of Mobile" sub-series, for playing on cell phone systems. The first, Tales of Tactics, was released for the DoCoMo, FOMA, au, and WIN services in 2004. None of these titles are available outside of Japan.

The latest Escort Title in the series is called Tales of VS. for the Playstation Portable it features a different gameplay from other titles in the series with gameplay resembling Final Fantasy: Dissidia. It is the second Tales games of 2009 to be released (the first was Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World, a sequel to Tales of Symphonia.), it was released on August 6, 2009. The game features a total of 35 characters from past Mothership and Escort Titles in the Tales Series.

Four anime series have been produced and released in Japan based on games in the series. The first, Tales of Eternia: The Animation, is loosely based on Tales of Eternia and was released in 2001. The next two anime series were released as original video animations, Tales of Phantasia: The Animation being released from 2004-2006, and Tales of Symphonia: The Animation being released in 2008, with the second half currently in production. Tales of the Abyss was adapted into a full 26-episode television anime series that was first broadcasted from October 3, 2008 through March 20, 2009.

The first theatrical anime film of the series is in production, based on Tales of Vesperia. It is slated to be released in Japan in 2009. It is called Tales of Vesperia: The First Strike and will be a prequel to the game.

In Super Smash Flash
As with many franchises in the first Super Smash Flash, the Tales franchise appears as a bonus franchise represented by only one playable character hailing from the game Tales of Symphonia.

Character

 * Lloyd Irving: An irresponsible, and brash young man, but also a gentle idealist who wishes for peace in the world; he is Tales of Symphonia's protagonist. Orphaned as a child, he was adopted and raised by a dwarf, Dirk, just outside the village of Iselia. Lloyd is a person who wants to save the world without sacrificing any lives. Though his intellect is somewhat limited, Lloyd is very strong-hearted and adheres unwaveringly to his morals of racial equality and altruism. As a unlockable fighter in SSF, Lloyd wields two swords: the fire sword Flamberge, and the ice sword Vorpal Sword. He can perform attacks like Tempest or Rising Falcon, and can also launch small projectiles with the move Demon Fang.

In Super Smash Flash 2
The Tales franchise was expanded in Super Smash Flash 2, however the franchise is still represented only by a veteran fighter and one newcomer.

Characters

 * Lloyd Irving: The protagonist of Tales of Symphonia returns but this time as a starter fighter. Lloyd was one of the few veteran characters that didn't received a sprite change or Brawlification to his return in SSF2. Lloyd has a moveset similar to the moveset he had in SSF. He like many others, received a Final Smash, the Falcon's Crest. Lloyd pokes his ice sword to trap his opponents. If he connects correctly, Lloyd's swords will merge to create the Eternal Sword which is then used to create two explosions. Both explosions can also harm opponents that aren't trapped by Lloyd's ice sword.


 * Kratos Aurion: He is a mysterious mercenary who is hired to accompany Colette on her journey. Though he accompanies the party for quite some time, it is later revealed that Kratos is a high-ranking angel, one of Mithos Yggdrasill's companions from the Ancient Kharlan War, and a spy for Cruxis who was sent to ensure that Colette completed her task. He betrays the party in the Tower of Salvation, but his true motives remain unclear until much later, when it is revealed that he is actually Lloyd's father and has been searching for a way for a human to wield the Eternal Sword. As a fighter, he poses attacks similar to the ones Lloyd has, however he is not a clone. For example, unlike Lloyd's Demon Fang, he can preform the move Fierce Demon Fang which is a close range attack but has a sweetspot that makes it more powerful. His Final Smash is called Judgement, in which Kratos summons beams of light from the sky that rain down on the stage, damaging the characters that touch them.