Tales of Symphonia

The characters develop not only through cut-scenes, many of which feature voice acting, but through what the game calls “skits”. These "skits" however, do not feature voice acting like the in-game cut-scenes. A warning is displayed on the bottom left hand side of the screen when a skit becomes available, it can then be activated by pressing Z. The Skit generally features two or more of the characters interacting. They will react to what is said and depending on the characters and the situation the results can be anywhere from comic to tragic. This system allows one to understand the feelings of each character.

Special features of the game include: Ex-Spheres, Strategy and Cooking. Ex-Spheres are special objects which enhance a character's abilities or may even grant new ones. These abilities can affect battle or have an effect outside of battle. Each Ex-Sphere will have a level of 1-4 each with more powerful abilities; up to four Ex-Spheres can be attached to each character. Strategy can be applied to CPU controlled players, for example making spell-casters attack a specific enemy or ordering them to stay behind the front-lines. An alternate way to heal characters is to cook. This is based on the specific character's skill to cook and the ingredients used.