Even if you happen to’re a longtime fan of Falcom’s Kiseki or Trails collection, there’s a lot to consolidate with every new entry. You possibly can ignore its roots in Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes from 1989, which had a sequel and a whole trilogy earlier than even embarking on the present timeline of titles set in Zemuria, and nonetheless be confused. Don’t even get me began on how The Legend of Nayuta suits into all this. Even for these with a passing curiosity within the collection, the Erebonian saga, Crossbell arc and Trails into Reverie are nearly a should.
That’s why The Legend of Heroes: Trails by way of Dawn arrives at such a pivotal level. It’s not a reset – removed from it – and doesn’t shrink back from the various, many connections to earlier Trails titles. Nonetheless, it’s a clear slate when it comes to the setting, characters and conflicts, setting the groundwork for a brand new story current throughout the higher framework of the franchise. There’s additionally the brand new engine, lastly bringing the collection right into a extra modern graphical period (circa 2021), and revamped fight that includes real-time motion into the standard turn-based instructions with some twists and turns.
“These world-threatening circumstances that the collection is thought for will emerge, however Dawn does an incredible job setting the muse, making you care about its new characters, and telling its story.”
Whereas it’s not going to fully change your thoughts on all the pieces you want and even dislike in regards to the collection, Trails by way of Dawn is a brand new frontier, yet one more grounded and initially much less epic than its predecessors. With a splash of Kamen Rider, historical mysteries within the palms of youngsters and Cyber Elf-like beings, after all.
The story picks up two years after the Nice Twilight and Operation Jormungandr. The Erebonian Empire, Crossbell State and the Calvard Republic are at relative peace with one another, with the latter particularly thriving beneath the newly elected president Roy Gramheart. The underbelly of Edith, Calvard’s capital, is a very completely different environment, swelling with illicit offers, mafiosos and murders.
In the meantime, Aramis Excessive Faculty scholar Agnes Claudel arrives at Arkride Options Workplace to enlist the assistance of a Spriggan, Van Arkride, to recuperate her late nice grandfather’s lacking orbment. In contrast to the Bracer Guild or police, Spriggans typically skirt the sting of the regulation to get issues finished. Van is very noteworthy because of his manifold connections (in each the Guild and authorities, no much less) however is in any other case easygoing. Issues take a flip, nevertheless, when he embodies the highly effective type of Grendel, and he chooses to “bear the Nightmare” on the behest of his AI, Mare, who mysteriously involves life.
I’m glossing over many different plot factors to keep away from spoilers, however Trails by way of Dawn takes a gentle method with the pacing. Edith and its inhabitants, like Van’s landlord and “diva” of the Montmart diner Paulette to CID agent René Kincaid, who shares a historical past with Van, are launched and obtain sufficient time to shine with out bogging down the lead forged. The final setting and its present occasions progress evenly, permitting gamers to be taught extra in regards to the world with out fully overwhelming them.
“There’s an altogether completely different dynamic between Van and Agnes – half business-minded, half camaraderie, and it actually feels refreshing in comparison with what we’ve seen earlier than.”
The temper can really feel slice-of-life earlier than deftly switching to political intrigue and crime drama. Don’t get me incorrect – these world-threatening circumstances that the collection is thought for will emerge, however Dawn does an incredible job setting the muse, making you care about its new characters, and telling its story. The truth that it’s doing all this whereas slotting in returning characters and advancing the general plot of the franchise is very noteworthy.
A lot of this wouldn’t have been potential with out sturdy leads, and Falcom has kind of knocked it out of the park. Van has his previous, like Joshua Shiny, however lives within the second and proceeds with a cooler, extra tactical method than, say, Rean Schwarzer (with sure, much less motivational speeches). Agnes is equally compelling, because the in-over-her-head-teenager with a robust will to pursue her great-grandfather’s legacy.
Whereas nowhere close to Estelle Shiny, her manners (which belies her pushy conduct) and dedication in the end assist her stand out. There’s an altogether completely different dynamic between Van and Agnes – half business-minded, half camaraderie, and it actually feels refreshing in comparison with what we’ve seen earlier than. After all, the sturdy performances by Damien Haas and Amanda Lee reinforce the characters all of the extra.
The opposite occasion members, from the tenacious Jaeger Feri Al-Fayed to the innocuous however scheming Aaron Wei, additionally add to the environment. Then you could have the likes of varied factions, whether or not it’s Elaine Auclair of the Bracer Guild or Shizuna Rem Misurugi of Ikaruga (maybe among the best new characters). After all, you even have all of the returning characters, from the villainous Walter the Direwolf from Ouroboros to Fie, Zin and Rixia Mao. This mixture of recent and previous characters intertwining by way of the plot makes it all of the extra compelling, and whereas there are nonetheless moments the place characters could repeat particulars, they’re a lot fewer than what the worst of Chilly Metal has provided.
“Whereas the fight has made important strides over earlier titles, the dungeon design nonetheless leaves one thing to be desired.”
The opposite main facet of Trails by way of Dawn is fight. For the primary time within the collection, gamers can assault enemies in real-time, rolling out of the best way and completely dodging sure strikes to retaliate. You possibly can shift to turn-based command battles and again to real-time at any time, offering extra impetus to mainline completely different characters throughout exploration since sure enemies are susceptible to particular harm sorts. It’s not fairly as fluid as, say, the modern Ys video games, but it surely works properly, even when extra choices would have been nice.
It’s value touchdown some blows earlier than shifting to a command battle to make the most of the brand new Shards. These are passive results that come into play in the course of the command battles, from an opportunity so as to add elemental harm to assaults to forged a barrier to closely cut back harm from some hits. The consequences differ primarily based on the Quartz slotted into the Xipha orbment, which additionally impacts the completely different Arts you’ll be able to forged. It’s a singular method that provides extra depth to your general builds, accentuating the brand new circulation to fight with out fully ripping away all the pieces that makes Trails’ battles distinctive.
There are additionally mechanics like Increase, in which you’ll be able to expend factors to quickly strengthen a celebration member, and occasion members in proximity can profit from buffs and follow-up assaults. Nonetheless, you additionally need to take your positioning into consideration.
Will you stick near any ally for these buffs and probably danger each characters receiving the brunt of AoE assaults? Or reposition to mitigate the harm? That you could transfer round in real-time throughout fight (albeit inside a restricted radius) can also be a game-changer for extra dynamic methods. Then there’s Grendel, who can chain a number of assaults in a sequence for flashy combos, offering an additional harmful layer to the already compelling fight.
Whereas the fight has made important strides over earlier titles, the dungeon design nonetheless leaves one thing to be desired. They’re serviceable general, however the circulation and design don’t really feel like a serious step up, particularly when traversing sewers or underground areas. The sector areas are higher general, however I’d have appreciated one thing extra complicated for the pivotal story-focused ranges.
“In the event you loved the earlier titles but yearned for one thing contemporary however acquainted, Dawn offers this in spades whereas increasing upon the overarching world and venturing in compelling new instructions.”
On the intense aspect, at the least the requests and general decision-making are spruced up due to the LGC Alignment system, which permits for teaming up with completely different allies primarily based in your decisions. It doesn’t make any important distinction to the plot however offers some good variance whereas becoming all of the conflicting factions operating round.
Presentation-wise, The Legend of Heroes: Trails by way of Dawn isn’t going to compete together with your Remaining Fantasy 7 Rebirths – not that it has to anyway, given Falcom’s funds and sources. The brand new visuals are nonetheless noteworthy, particularly in the course of the extra refined actions in cutscenes, and the artwork fashion feels devoted to the collection as an entire whereas establishing its personal identification.
The efficiency can also be stable throughout, although there have been some odd body price drops when exploring underground. I’m a bit blended on the soundtrack, having fun with the music from wandering round Edith Outdated City and fight (particularly when Grendel awakens for the primary time), whereas the primary theme is great. It’s not my favourite Trails soundtrack by a mile, however the general vibe remains to be good.
Whether or not The Legend of Heroes: Trails by way of Dawn ought to be in your radar will depend on many issues, however that’s nothing new for the collection. Maybe the most effective praise is that it’s not overwhelming for newcomers, embracing a extra private narrative whereas not sustaining its connections with previous video games. Nonetheless, if you happen to loved the earlier titles but yearned for one thing contemporary however acquainted, Dawn offers this in spades whereas increasing upon the overarching world and venturing in compelling new instructions.
This recreation was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.
