Tales of Xillia Remastered Beginner’s Guide | Gameplay Tips & Tricks

Tales of Xillia Remastered revives the dual-protagonist system and real-time combat of the original, with better visuals and mechanics. This guide covers character choices, side quests, combat, progression, and shop management for a smoother first playthrough.

Play as Jude

At the start of Tales of Xillia, you can choose between Jude Mathis and Milla Maxwell, each offering a different perspective. Milla, the Lord of Spirits with elemental powers, seems like the natural lead but isn't recommended for a first run in Tales of Xillia Remastered.

About 70% of the way through the story, she temporarily leaves, causing her route to be limited and missing key events, which makes the middle feel disconnected. Jude’s story is more complete, with consistent pacing and full-party interactions. 

For a single playthrough, choosing Jude makes the world and story simpler, while later exploring Milla enhances the experience.

Side Quests

Paying attention to the main story's pace might be appealing, but you could miss important details if you do. Side quests in Tales of Xillia aren't just extras; they add to the story, give you prizes, and help your character grow.

Pay attention to skits, which improve relationships through brief dialogues. Many side quests are missable; progressing too far can cause NPCs to disappear, making quests inaccessible. 

To avoid this, talk to everyone, explore thoroughly, and use a side quest guide. The remastered version also adds a map indicator, making quest tracking easier in Tales of Xillia Remastered.

Character and Link Abilities

The Tales of Xillia battle system becomes more complex as you learn character mechanics and the Link System. Early battles rely on simple combos, but understanding each member's functions improves control.

Jude’s Snap Pivot enables precise sidestepping and counters. Leia juggles enemies midair with her staff. Alvin’s Charge boosts arts for more damage, and Milla’s Spirit Shift alters spell effects.

Link Abilities add depth—linking grants effects like Alvin’s Breaker, which destroys enemy guard, or Leia’s Item Steal for gathering materials. Drain recovers HP and TP, and Item Steal is useful in boss fights.

Link combos can be experimented with in various ways, making the system dynamic and strategic. Each fight is different. When you get good at these skills, fighting becomes more fun, moving from repetitive inputs to skilled, strategic play.

Expand Lilium Orb

The Lilium Orb is Tales of Xillia's character system. It's like the Sphere Grid in Final Fantasy X. As your character grows up, these nodes open up new stats, arts, and skills. Don't fill the inner nodes by mistake; instead, focus on reaching the outer bands first.

When you unlock nodes on the outside of the rim, you can get to more advanced skills faster, especially key nodes that have unique ring designs. In Tales of Xillia Remastered, connecting three outer nodes makes the orb bigger, which lets you get better bonuses.

By providing more early grants, individuals can develop their skills in the arts, statistics, and other areas more quickly, thereby balancing growth. Distribute points immediately; don't save them up for later. Adjust your approach to grow in offense, defense, or support. Combat and progress will proceed more smoothly if early expansion is executed effectively.

Shop Upgrades

Tales of Xillia's Shop Upgrade system allows you to enhance equipment and inventory by donating materials or Gald. However, using Gald is inefficient early on due to its scarcity. 

Giving materials to shops that need them will help them level up, especially during 3x boosts, which make shops level up quickly and let you get better gear and deals.

Use Leia's Item Steal on harder monsters in Flood Meadow to get rare drops once you get to Nia Khera. In Tales of Xillia Remastered, keeping track of materials helps you keep Gald for big purchases and enables you to make steady progress on upgrades. This balances resources with fight readiness.

Also, check our Tales of Xillia Remastered Review.