Big Hair Game

I got a GameCube for Christmas in 2003 along with a few different games. My parents actually messed up a bit on Christmas morning—they wanted me to open any and all non-GameCube-related presents first, then the system, and then the games; however, they’d forgotten which presents had what wrapping paper, so they ended up having me open Luigi’s Mansion before anything else related to the GameCube. I knew immediately that they wouldn’t have bought the game without buying the system, and I was ecstatic. I’d been wanting one ever since it first came out over two years earlier. That was something my parents were always intentional about—they never bought new technology right when it came out so that my brother and I would learn to be patient and be grateful for what we had.

However, I after the initial excitement of getting a new system wore off, it was really a bit disappointing. There really weren’t that many good games for it, and I still played my Nintendo 64 and occasionally my Sega Genesis even though I had it. But then my brother discovered Tales of Symphonia via Nintendo Power, and everything changed. Tales of Symphonia was a more traditional role-playing game than Fire Emblem, with quests and side-quests as well as free roaming capabilities rather than a strict progression from one chapter to the next. It focused on a central cast of nine characters. Lloyd Irving, the main hero, was very book-dumb but possessed very good instincts. Genis Sage was a half-elf boy genius and Lloyd’s best friend. Colette Brunel was a dumb blonde, a close friend of Lloyd, and the Chosen One for the regeneration of the world of Sylvarant. Kratos Aurion was [SPOILERS] Lloyd’s father and a 4,000-year-old angel. Professor Raine Sage was Genis’s half-elf older sister and served as a sort of mother figure for the entire party. Sheena Fujibayashi, a glamorous female ninja and summoner, was originally sent over from the world of Tethe’alla to assassinate Colette, but her compassionate nature prevented her from completing her mission. Presea Combatir was [SPOILERS] a 28-year-old woman who was the subject of a 16-year experiment that stopped her aging process and subdued her emotions. Zelos Wilder was the womanizing Chosen One of Tethe’alla who hid his true intelligence, cynicism, and self-loathing beneath layers of false carefree attitude and artificial self-absorbedness. Regal Bryant was [SPOILERS] the president of a large company as well as a remorseful prisoner who was forced to kill the woman he loved, Presea’s younger sister, after an experiment turned her into a monster.

Tales of Symphonia was the first game since Jet Force Gemini for the Nintendo 64 in which my brother and I could cooperate in the main part of the game, so we did. The first time we played through the game, I was content to let him roam around the over-world, towns, and dungeons, and only have to worry about the battles for my part. However, after the first time, I don’t think my brother and I ever played through the whole thing together again. After the first time, I wanted to be Player 1. My brother never wanted to be Player 2 for me, so I was on my own. I ended up liking it so much that I didn’t mind playing by myself. I’ve played through the whole game over and over, at least 15 times all the way through.

At various points while I was playing through it, my dad walked by and commented on it, calling it “Big Hair Game” because six of the nine main characters and many of the non-player characters have remarkable styles and/or colors of hair. He seemed vaguely interested, so one time I asked him if he’d like to play it, and he said yes. I guided him through it, and he has since played through it at least twice with minimal assistance. After my dad played through it, my mom decided she wanted to play, too, and I guided her all the way through it. This makes Tales of Symphonia the only serious video game (Mario Party, Mario Tennis, Mario Kart, and the multiplayer mode of Donkey Kong 64 don’t count) to be played by my parents. Now we all call it "Big Hair Game," and we occasionally make references to it at home.