New Tales of Tempest video available
Okay, so we originally guessed the title incorrectly, but the fact of the matter is that Tales of Tempest is blowing towards the DS, something which is sure to excite fans of Namco's flagship RPG series. Games Are Fun have scored the first video of the game in action, although it is clear that the video was either taken by an extremely nervous fellow or during an unexpected earthquake.
Regardless, you can still gather quite a few things from it. There are spiky-haired kids in it, happily wielding dangerous weapons as they unusually get roped into saving the world from an ancient evil. Probably. And as is common with RPGs, taking a stroll down the road has you being attacked by every single creature in the nearby vicinity, the consolation of which is the copious amounts of gold you can loot from their cold, dead bodies afterwards. The battle system seems similar to Tales of Symphonia in that it's confined to a 3D plane and that the actions take place in real-time. The cel-shaded graphics look quite appealing too, though the series has always presented some great character designs as well.
The top screen displays your status and the map (I know, I'm just as shocked as you are) and the bottom displays your party and the world they inhabit. It's unclear how the touch screen is involved, but I'd expect some sort of slashing motions would be required at some point. You can't expect to defeat ancient evil without stylus driven slashing motions, now can you? Some friends would also be beneficial, especially if they were playing co-op with you via Wi-Fi.
