There’s a point in nearly every JRPG when suddenly the entire world opens up and you’re overwhelmed with an overabundance of side quests, mini-games, and new locations. We like to call this the “Airship GET!” moment. It’s that “Aha!” when everything changes and the story takes a backseat to relentless plunder of goodies and secrets.

About 25 to 30 hours into Namco Bandai’s incredibly satisfying anime-styled romp, that Airship GET! moment occurs. The funny thing, though, is that as exhilarating as grabbing an airship is in Tales of Vesperia, you’re still absolutely compelled to chase down the loose ends of the story. The credit goes to Vesperia’s well-spun yarn about choice, responsibility, and the encroaching end of the world.

Granted, these themes are delivered for the most part in a lighthearted, goofy way with trademark JRPG slapstick humor, but each main character develops a wholly likeable personality. At its heart, the game focuses on raven-haired Yuri Lowell, a former Imperial Knight of the Empire who ditches the official gig to keep it real as a representative of the downtrodden, meting out justice his own way. And it’s Yuri’s journey through dark stretches that include vigilante murder — shocking, really, for an RPG with so much cuteness — that keeps Vesperia cracking.

The game even throws in an overarching ecomystery that’s ultimately a convoluted allegory about global warming, except with terrifi cally whacked terminology like “entelexeia,” “aer,” and “blastia.” Surprisingly, all of it’s pretty damn compelling, despite intermittent, head-scratching rough patches with the English translation and its reliance on such anime/RPG conventions as the soft-spoken, wide-eyed damsel in distress. Basically, Vesperia’s tale and range of characters have no right to be this involving and endearing — but thank god they are. Then again, the plot never nears Lost Odyssey’s infinitely more thinky “1,000 Years of Dreams” segments, so don’t expect Faulkner either.

Of course, a battle system is where a JRPG earns its stripes, and Vesperia is real-time–tastic. If you decide to control your character manually — rather than semi-auto or auto, which you can also do — you can actually execute combos, attacks, and special Artes at will. And this is where things get a little tricky. Sure, it’s thrilling to take part in real-deal fights, rather than pressing buttons and waiting your turn. But there are hiccups, like difficulty judging distance from enemies, targeting them, and navigating the often algebra-like chain combos needed against powerful boss characters. Mostly, it’s all button-mashing, then waiting until you get the prompt for a more powerful move to really get business done. The more subtle, sophisticated bits of battling may come easier for some, but we kinda doubt most players will truly exploit all the available combat options. They’re simply too space-age esoteric to grasp when a flurry of rabid-looking deer-type monsters are ramming their horns in your face.

But it’s Vesperia’s good looks and pure charm that win out over frustrations with the battle system’s more difficult-to-grasp fundamentals. And it’s not like you’ll ever die of boredom — you have a giant folder filled with jobs to do (from cooking to synthesizing items). You’ll have to roll up your sleeves to really get the most out of the game, but the 50-ish–hour journey is truly worth the effort.

On Xbox 360

+ Pretty anime-style visuals.

+ So many places to explore, mini-games to exploit, and things to do.

- Spatial distance can be hard to judge in battle

? Why do you suck so hard at making curry, Yuri? Grrr!

8.5