Side Quests and Elusive Sub-plots
Did you know that Tales of Symphonia has a plethora (that means a whole bunch) of little side quest and sub plots that rely wholly on being in the right place at the right time after you've done the right twelve things? It's amazing how much you can miss.
For example, the first time my brothers and I played through the game we saw the false chosen party once. It was that first time in Palmacosta where you can't avoid them. I always wondered what happened to them. But if you hit the right towns at the right times the false chosen will appear up to four or five times (and often the town is far from the event that triggered their appearance there...)! They even save you at one point!
Also, there is a cut scene in the Triet Inn if you stay there the first night that you can that involves someone sneaking into Colette's room. I don't know if they ever say who it was because... we never saw it, but then, the second time we played the game we never even got that scene, so who knows?
And, I've read that you can have morning training sessions with Kratos. But they will only happen if you sleep at four specific inns, in the correct order...
How is anybody supposed to find all this stuff without cheating (or playing twenty times and taking twenty years each time.)?
In the end, you would have to visit every city and sleep in every inn, and shop at every shop, and talk to every person, in every place, after single thing everything you did (and sometimes in a certain order) to catch all of those things. Doesn't that bite? But it does add to "replay-ability", arrrrrrrrrgh!!! (see previous rant ^_^)