While some of the larger story elements may require additional efforts to fully wrap one’s head around, each arc is well contained and players are made aware of all of the important details. Fortunately, this is something that Nihon Falcom is acutely aware of and - despite the fact there are eleven games telling the chronological, interconnected story of Zemuria - the developer has actively designed it to have multiple entry points. However, events in one place often have drastic and major influences on the goings-on elsewhere, leading to a complex assortment of groups, factions, and plot threads as numerous characters put in important appearances throughout.Ĭonsidering this, it’s certainly no surprise that any newcomer to the series would be intimidated by the sheer amount of lore and important people that they might have to catch up on. Trails in the Sky is set in the largely peaceful kingdom of Liberl, while the Trails of Cold Steel games take place in its domineering northern neighbour, the Erebonian Empire. Within Trails there are more sub-series of titles, each largely based within one of the nations or powers within Erebonia. The continent is currently in a place of upheaval somewhat reminiscent of the industrial revolution following the invention of Orbal technology, which is based on self-replenishing energy generated by gemstones called Septium. All of the mainline Trails games take place on the continent of Zemuria and, including the most recent Japanese release, they currently cover a period of around seven years. NIS America took over for Trails of Cold Steel III and all subsequent western releases, but has carried on where XSEED Games left off.Īt this point, The Legend of Heroes is synonymous with the Trails series, especially in the west, and Nihon Falcom doesn’t have any intention of changing that any time soon. This did come with some timing issues, as the incredible amount of text and the time needed to give it the full effort it deserved meant that by the time Trails in the Sky Second Chapter and Trails in the Sky the Third made it out in the west, the PSP had been fully replaced by the Vita. The localizations of the Trails in the Sky games were - and still are - a gold standard, bringing many fans on board and inspiring a new generation of localizers. Although all three Gagharv PSP remakes were localized, Bandai did such an atrocious job - more on this later - that it wouldn’t have been surprising if Nihon Falcom abandoned any future international release attempts.įortunately, XSEED Games came on board for Trails in the Sky and did exactly the opposite of Bandai. Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes did get a western release in 1992, but after that it took until 2004 and The Legend of Heroes: A Tear of Vermillion, a remake of the fifth game (and second entry in the Gagharv trilogy), for it to appear in the west again. One area that The Legend of Heroes is notable for is localizations. The first two games with the Legend of Heroes moniker - Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes and Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes II - are considered the sixth and seventh games of that series, though by that point they had already diverged from action combat to the turn-based systems fans are familiar with. Nihon Falcom’s The Legend of Heroes series is primarily known for its interconnected Trails/ Kiseki games, of which there are currently twelve titles, but its history runs all the way back to Dragon Slayer, a series touted as the forerunner of action JRPGs. Several of the staff members at RPGamer have put together their thoughts on the games and the different starting points for first-time players.īy Alex Fuller, Joshua Carpenter, Matt Masem, Luis Mauricio, and Elmon Dean Todd While we have already provided some insights on getting into the Ys series, a host of localized The Legend of Heroes releases currently planned for 20 affords us a nice opportunity to point players as to where they might start their adventures. Developer Nihon Falcom is well known by RPGamers for two long-running series: Ys and The Legend of Heroes.
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