HIGH Fantastic combat system that is both modern and an homage to classic RPGs.

LOW Sluggish pacing in the middle chapters.

WTF “How about a hundred smacks on the ass?”

About a month ago I started seeing buzz online for Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter.

The Trails/Legend of Heroes series, despite its vast library, is one I knew very little about, but this remake of the first in the series seemed to check a lot of personal boxes — realtime combat that transitions into turn-based, a captivating art style, and a high fantasy setting harkening back to classic JRPGs. So, I booted up the free demo, and by the end of its generous eight-hour playtime, I was completely hooked and thirsty for more. Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is a beautiful RPG with top-notch combat, memorable characters, and also serves as a perfect entry point into the long-running Trails series.

1st Chapter follows the story of sixteen-year-old Estelle and her adopted brother Joshua as they aim to become top notch Bracers — people who help protect the citizens of Liberl from monsters, thieves, and any threats to the kingdom. Over the course of their journey, they will travel across the kingdom to aid as many people as possible while balancing each other out perfectly — Estelle is captivatingly optimistic and reactionary, while Joshua is more reserved and calculated. As they blossom into powerful bracers, so do their feelings for one and other.

The story Falcom weaves is a complex one commencing with Estelle and Joshua’s hunt for their missing father, which eventually matures into a struggle for military power, treason from within the government, and other powerful forces at work behind the scenes. When firing on all cylinders, Trails is captivating and engrossing, simultaneously balancing the intimate and personal story of two kids trying to find their dad, and the larger, more sophisticated political drama. However, I found myself disengaged in the middle chapters because the focus shifted off both these potent storylines, and more into side characters that are ultimately important to the overall plot, though they feel gratuitous during their runtimes. 

Besides the sluggish middle section, another issue is that each chapter tends to focus on two characters that will join in battle with Estelle and Joshua, but their residence in the party is short-lived as they always depart at the end of each chapter, leaving Estelle and Joshua effectively starting from scratch. Each of these side characters are memorable — from over-the-top traveling musician Olivier, to the mysteriously powerful swordsman Agate, the cast is top notch. However, it felt like just as soon as I got to know the characters on a deeper level, they would set off on their own journey.

That said, all of the intermittent party members reappear in an epically-bombastic final act that ties everyone’s stories together quite well, but the thickness of the middle chapters does lessen the overall experience. Also puzzling was that some of these itinerant characters have voice acting while Estelle and Joshua do not, which did occasionally pull me out of the immersion. 

What does remain engaging throughout 1st Chapter’s runtime is the phenomenal combat system. When approaching wandering enemies, players can enter into a basic, but effective real-time battle complete with normal attacks, dodges, and a special meter that charges over time. Once the enemy’s stun meter is full, the player will have a huge advantage when they enter into turn-based combat, which they can slickly switch into with the press of a button.

In the turn-based combat, characters will have a range of options at their disposal, with different resources for each. The key to successful battles is knowing how to balance spells and abilities, and also knowing how to correctly position party members. For example, some buffs and healing spells are only effective when party members are positioned near each other, but certain enemies might abuse this proximity with powerful AOE attacks. Understanding both party strengths and enemy attack patterns is crucial. 

In addition to a traditional level-up system and equipment management, Trails adds a deeper level of preparation to combat with the orbment system. Each playable character has the ability to equip an elemental quart into a total of six slots. Depending on the element of the quartz and its proximity to other quartz, the character can obtain varying spells to use in battle. For example, equipping a water-based HP quartz will give the character healing spells, while a water-based mind quartz will give the character an offensive aqua attack. As the adventure progresses, players will obtain more powerful quartz to create incredibly powerful offensive and defensive spells. The level of customization here is high, and finding the correct quartz for each character is enticing. (There’s is also an auto-equip for those who want to enjoy battles without too much experimentation.) 

The world of Liberl is one brimming with history — it’s filled with collectable books that outline how the kingdom came to be, and mysterious towers hint at the many wars and struggles the country has endured. Trails does a great job at making the land feel lived-in and real, though I do wish the environments were a little more varied when exploring. The sun is always shining brightly over the samey-looking rolling meadows, with the occasional cave or forest thrown in.

Overall, I truly enjoyed my time with Estelle, Joshua, and their many companions in their quest to become senior bracers. Falcom does a commendable job creating a world and story that feels real for the majority of its runtime, despite a few occasional stumbles. As a newcomer to the series, the combat system captivated me from the first battle and never let me go. Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter feels like a classic JRPG I might have grown up playing, yet produced in a modern and nuanced way at the same time. Thanks to the obvious pride and care put into this remake, consider me the newest fan of the Trails series. 

Rating: 8 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by Nihon Falcom & Nihon Falcom Corporation and published by GungHo Online Entertainment America, Inc. It is currently available on Switch/Switch 2, XBX/S, PS5 and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PS5. Approximately 39 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. There is no multiplayer mode.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated T and contains Blood, Fantasy Violence, Language, Suggestive Themes, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco. The official description reads: Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is rated T for Teen by the ESRB with Blood, Fantasy Violence, Language, Suggestive Themes, and Use of Alcohol and Tobacco. This is an action role-playing game in which players assume the roles of adopted siblings searching for their missing father. From a third-person perspective, players explore a kingdom, interact with characters, complete missions, and engage in battle with human and fantastical enemies (e.g., plants, robots, soldiers). Players use swords, staffs, guns, and magic spells to attack enemies. Players can use special moves that depict brief cutscenes of the attacks. Combat is highlighted by colorful light effects and impact sounds. Still-images sometimes depict bloodstains near bodies and on characters’ faces/clothing. One female character is designed with a somewhat revealing outfit (e.g., deep cleavage) and breast-jiggling effects; some camera angles focus on her chest. Story elements also allude to a romantic relationship between adopted siblings (e.g., struggling with their feelings, kissing). One scene depicts two characters under the influence of alcohol (e.g., flushed faces, slurred speech), with accompanying dialogue (e.g., “Come and drink with your big sister. You drink or I bring the whole place down”; “Wow, I really drank. Feels like it’s been forever since I last got to cut loose.”) One character is seen smoking a cigarette, and a side mission involves finding stolen cigarettes. The words “sh*t” and “a*sholes” appear in the game.

Colorblind Modes: There is no colorblind mode.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles, though they are not resizable. Audio cues are not needed for progression, making the game fully accessible. 

Remappable Controls: Yes, the game’s controls are remappable.

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HIGH Blasting enemies in the back with a shotgun to initiate encounters.

LOW Missable, unposted sidequests. Nggggh.

WTF Is BLADE the least interesting card game ever devised? Quite possibly.

In Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel players are plopped into the role of Rean Schwarzer–one of those absurdly kind and polite protagonists that only exist in the JRPG genre. As the story begins, it's learned that he's a new student to the prestigious Thors Military Academy and quickly assigned to the newly-established social experiment Class VII. Once in, he's handed a special type of battle Orbment known as an ARCUS.

Ah, there's nothing quite like standard military training.

Like other Trails games, it's a bit of a slow burn. Rean and chums don't exactly hop into action and save the world every five minutes since there's a ton of worldbuilding and slow escalation. Most of the initial conflicts deal with social class–those darn nobles stare down their noses at the common rabble, all poor and dirty and stuff, while the commoners generally find these uppity jerkbags about as tolerable as boils on their backsides. There's definitely some resentment circulating among the populace.

Both the storyline and the gameplay revolve around Class VII's day-to-day activities within the academy, as well as the various tasks they're stuck with–from menial jobs like delivering packages to faculty members, to investigating an ominous dungeon within the school grounds that continually reshuffles its layout and just happens to be filled with vicious monsters. They also get sent out on a bunch of field expeditions which allow them to check out the world at large and usually fix a few problems along the way.

The cast themselves are a pretty likeable bunch, even if they're initially little more than a bunch of stereotypes. Machias is a commoner with a chip on his shoulder, Jusis is a noble who sets himself apart from the rest, Alice is a traditional tsundere, Laura's a dignified swordswoman who carries a blade that can cleave a stagecoach in half… Oh, and their instructor is lazy, workshy and frequently portrayed as borderline alcoholic. She's great. It's all a bit too standard at first, but it works out given that the writing is solid and the underlying story is fleshed out.

The battle system is excellent. It's reasonably tactical, surprisingly punchy despite being turn-based, and one of the few JRPGs where I feel they've made character buffs not only integral to the combat, but actually enjoyable to use.

There are a bunch of options available, from smashing enemy groups apart with area-of-effect attacks to interrupting their arts while they're still charging them up. Other factors spice things up, like how characters that get on well with one another will leap to each other's aid while granting extended attack combos, or how super attacks can be initiated any time (even outside a character's turn) so long as they have the necessary juice to be performed.

What I really appreciated about Trails of Cold Steel, though, was how user-friendly the whole thing is. Fast travel can be done from anywhere in the city, with multiple destinations to choose from. Saving's as simple as heading into a menu and choosing it, with no hunting down save points necessary. The squad's health can be replenished and settings tinkered with prior to nearly any serious encounter. And if a boss turns out to be too difficult for an under-leveled party? The retry menu allows for said boss to be weakened appropriately. A positive user experience is something Falcom is clearly invested in.

There are a few quibbles I have, mind. One problem is that some of the available quests during each chapter aren't advertised in any way and have a limited window of opportunity to be done, so they're easily missed by accident while following the main storyline. It's painful to play through games with a guide at my side in case I miss anything, yet my completionist nature practically demands it here. It's annoying, and such secretive content is typical of the JRPG genre as a whole.

Also, while it looks pretty decent on Vita, the performance isn't perfect. Busy scenes can have some framerate issues and the loading times can occasionally get a little lengthy. They're minor issues, but issues nonetheless.

Ultimately, while Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel is a solid JRPG sure to be enjoyed by fans of the genre, it must be said that it doesn't break any new ground. Genre vets will be instantly familiar with what's here, but those looking for a fresh take should look elsewhere. However, it nails everything that it attempts to do almost perfectly. The plot may need a little patience from its audience before it really gets rolling, but those in the market for a top-class JRPG should know that this one comes highly recommended. Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Disclosures: This game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Vita. Approximately 75 hours of play was devoted to single-player modes (completed 1 times) and there are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game contains blood, language, mild suggestive themes, use of alcohol and tobacco and violence. Not much else to add, teens can easily play and enjoy this without fear of being scarred for life.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing: Pretty much everything is subtitled, and I can't recall any instances where being unable to hear sound would affect someone's ability to play the game.

Remappable Controls: Certain functions are remappable, though the ability to change things around is limited–things like which buttons are used to zoom in, change character, and so on can be altered, but otherwise there aren't many reconfig options..

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available in the options.

The post The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel Review appeared first on Gamecritics.com.

HIGH Configuring my Orbment to get access to a powerful area-effect spell in the first chapter of the game.

LOW At least half of the game's playtime is spent with only two party members of a potential four.

WTF The budding relationship between Estelle and her adopted brother Joshua is weird enough, but was it necessary for nearly every NPC to peer-pressure them into it?

One thing I enjoy about a new role-playing game (RPG) is being introduced to a new world. RPG settings are themselves characters as important as any party member, and their development continues long after the heroes have been fully fleshed out. The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky is no exception to this trend. The world is emphasized to such a degree that it could be argued that the game's nation of Liberl is itself the star of the adventure. Considering this emphasis on setting, it's a shame that Liberl is so boring.

Trails in the Sky centers on the travels of Estelle and Joshua, ambitious new members of The Bracer Guild–a friendly neighborhood mercenary outfit–who are tripping across Liberl in an effort to reach the organization's senior ranks. With the game's primary conflict almost invisible for the lion's share of the game, the primary focus of Trails in the Sky is on this Liberlian grand tour.

Falcom desperately wants players to believe that Liberl is a wonderful place full of beauty and history. When arriving in each new region, party members will fawn over extraordinary new landmarks such as a drawbridge or an escalator, as if encouraging me to join in their excitement. Unfortunately, I've played so many RPGs that if I didn't see another character gasp at the sight of an airship it would be too soon. It doesn't help matters that aside from some central buildings–in one case a communal market, in another a high-tech factory–the regions of Liberl feel identical. The same cobblestone houses populate small-town Rolent and the industrial center of Zeiss. It's not enough for the game to tell me these places are culturally diverse; I need to see it.

Although Falcom didn't succeed in creating a unique setting, there was one aspect of world-building that I appreciated. In Trails in the Sky almost every NPC, no matter how unimportant, has a name and established relationships. If one looked hard enough, it is possible to recognize minor characters from the early game putting in appearances much later on. What made this more impressive is that if the party had interacted with these individuals, they would remember. I'd often take on a new assignment from the Bracer Guild, and be surprised the client recognized me from a chat on the street. It's a small touch that imparts a genuine feel of consistency. Considering how seriously RPGs take their settings, I'm surprised–pleasantly–that Trails in the Sky was the first I've played to make this effort.

Apart from Liberl itself, Trails in the Sky still has plenty of attention to give to its human characters. However, it's unfortunate that even cloaked in clever writing, these characters are naked cliches. The spunky tomboy, the badass with a heart of gold, and–spoiler!–the princess in disguise are all accounted for, and most of the supporting cast (with one exception) isn't any better.

A strong story could have gone a long way toward covering for these deficiencies, and the tale in Trails in the Sky seemed promising enough early on. The problem is that the game continuously delays the payoff until its final chapter. For example, in any encounter where a mysterious foe might impart some narrative illumination, the boss unfailingly escapes. The inevitable egression of these bosses became so routine that I felt no more excited for critical battles than I did for random fights. The final chapter denouement is satisfying even considering the cliffhanger ending, but there is no reason all of this narrative momentum had to be reserved for the last few hours.

As indulgent as Trails in the Sky is regarding its world and characters, it is unexpectedly conscientious with its battle and skill development systems. Trails in the Sky strikes an excellent balance between combat and conversation, and yet Falcom still gave players almost full discretion on how much fighting will take place. In an increasingly popular (and welcome) RPG trend, every encounter is visible on the field and thus can be avoided, and once joined nearly every fight can be fled immediately. Being bogged down with endless encounters never happened in this game because I could literally pick my battles. In a bizarre reversal for RPGs, I found myself hunting the next encounter, instead of dreading it.

When combat does take place it's standard RPG fare, but with just a whisper of strategy to keep it fresh. Characters are free to move about the field, and many attacks have an area of effect. The difficulty is far from that of a proper strategy game; grinding out levels and snoozing on the X button can work, but it's much more fun to utilize movement and positioning to prevail. Trails in the Sky hits a finely-tuned sweet spot where basic tactical thinking yields obvious benefits, but new obstacles never feel overwhelming or tiresome.

The skill customization system has a similarly perfect level of depth. Each character has a unique orbment (a skill layout) and combining quartz in different ratios on these orbments decides what skills can be accessed. It's not necessary to spend 30 minutes calibrating quartz every time a new party member arrives, but it's certainly entertaining. The modest difficulty of Trails in the Sky is once again a boon; well-constructed setups had its incentives, but I never felt railroaded into using specific quartz or skills.

As the first entry in a planned trilogy, The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky has technically done its job. The game has built my anticipation for the next installment, in spite of itself. Granting that, I'm not interested in a rerun. A clever battle system can distract for only so long, and the value of semi-persistent society is limited by the appeal of the world in which it exists. I'm sure that it's hard for creators to not fall in love with the product of their labor, but navel-gazing is only entertaining for the owner of said navel. For the sequel to succeed, Falcom must deliver the narrative meat that was mostly hinted at in this introductory installment. Rating: 6.0 out of 10.

Disclosures: This game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PSP. Approximately 46 hours of play was devoted to single-player mode (completed 1 time).

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game contains animated blood, drug reference, fantasy violence, language, suggestive themes, use of alcohol and is rated T for Teen. It might look like a lot, but all of these are present in very small quantities. The most common of these is probably the suggestive themes, but most of the double entendre will likely fly right over the heads of younger players.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing: There are no significant auditory cues, and the only spoken dialog exists in the form of short battle cries ("Let's go!") during combat, and even those are often subtitled.

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