Tales of Eternia Remastered is the Tales of Destiny II we never got

Bandai Namco cannot quite agree with itself on how old Tales of Eternia is. The publisher's US site for Tales of Eternia Remastered says the game was "originally released in 2001." The European launch announcement calls it a "beloved 2006 action RPG." Both are right, and that tiny mismatch explains the whole remaster better than any trailer. Tales of Eternia Remastered is out now on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC, developed by TOSE and published by Bandai Namco.

Timing note for PC players: the official launch guide unlocked the Steam version at midnight CEST on October 16, which is mid-afternoon October 15 on the US West Coast, so the Steam page lists an October 15 date. Console versions went live at midnight local time on the 16th. Steam has the standard edition at $29.99 and a $24.99 Deluxe Upgrade Pack. In Europe the Deluxe Edition is a digital-only €49.99 bundle with a Battle BGM Pack of classic Tales battle themes, a digital artbook and soundtrack, and a Super Growth Support item set.

Why the dates do not match

The game has lived several lives. Per its release history, it came out on the original PlayStation in Japan in November 2000, then reached North America in September 2001 under the name Tales of Destiny II. A PSP port followed in Japan in March 2005, and that port is what finally brought the game to Europe in February 2006. So the American page is counting from the PS1 release Americans got, and the European page is counting from the PSP release Europeans got.

That lineage matters, because Shacknews' review says the remaster appears to be built on the PSP port, the one North America never got, with its zoomed-in framing blown up for modern screens. The good news for anyone who played Tales of Destiny II in 2001 is that the skits, the little character conversations the series is known for, are back after being cut from that North American release. The original Japanese opening song and title card are restored too. Shacknews is not kind about the rest. It calls the machine-upscaled anime intro and the smeared "Remastered" visual filter a fumble, while praising the new English dub, the 60fps target on PC, and quality-of-life additions like retries and New Game+.

American players finally get the skits that were cut in 2001. That alone makes this the version of Tales of Destiny II we never had.

What the remaster adds

The launch guide lists the changes clearly. A Graphics Mode and SFX Mode let you swap between remastered and original visuals and sounds at any time. There are destination icons, a high-speed mode during auto battles, the option to switch off random encounters, a Boost feature for experience and encounter rate, Battle Retry, and Quick Recovery. Extreme difficulty is available from the start, and a new Unknown difficulty unlocks after you finish. English and Japanese voice tracks are both included. Critics are mostly warm on the package: Metacritic has it at 76 from 13 reviews and OpenCritic at 77 from 18.

Which version to buy, and what to change on first boot

RPG Site's port comparison tested both Switch versions, Steam Deck, and ROG Ally, and its findings are worth putting in one place. This is my distillation of their testing, not my own hands-on time.

• Switch 2, digital: buy the native Switch 2 version. RPG Site says it runs at a higher resolution docked and handheld, loads fast, and adds optional mouse controls in some mini-games.
• Switch 2, want a real cartridge: RPG Site says the Switch 2 physical release is a Game Key Card in some regions, so the Switch 1 cart played on Switch 2 is the way to own it, especially if you mostly play handheld with boost mode.
• Original Switch: expect long load times and some minor slowdown.
• Any Switch: use the d-pad. RPG Site found the analog stick snapping to straight lines when you try to move diagonally.
• Steam Deck OLED or a high refresh PC monitor: cap the display at 60Hz (or 120). The game is locked to 60fps and movement feels off otherwise.
• Steam Deck docked: the game locks to 720p. RPG Site's fix is the launch option SteamDeck=0 %command%.
• Everyone: try Original graphics mode first. RPG Site recommends it, and Shacknews has no kind words for the filtered Remastered look.

Retro collections have been the best news on the Gaming desk this month. Our Toy Story: Retro Roundup piece looked at a collection that treated old handheld versions with care, and our Dynasty Warriors 3 Remastered launch note covered another PS2-era revival. For another multiplatform reissue of a PlayStation-era favorite, our Kingdom Hearts Collection brief is a good comparison.

My take: the toggle is the most important feature in this release, and it is the reason I am not angrier about the filter. As long as I can flip to Original mode and keep the raw sprites, the remaster is a better way to own Tales of Eternia than tracking down a Tales of Destiny II disc that never had the skits in the first place. The animated intro is a different story, because you cannot toggle your way out of a damaged video file. Bandai Namco has a day-one patch out already. I would love to see the intro restored in a later one. Until then, buy it on the platform that fits how you play, switch to Original mode, and enjoy a 2000 RPG that finally arrives complete in English.

How we made this: researched and drafted with AI assistance. Sources are linked in the piece.