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With the release of The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak 2, it is now time to reflect on this incredibly underappreciated JRPG series. It is up there as my favorite video game franchise of all time, and for a good reason. There is no world or lore quite as extensive and well done as this one. But what is the best The Legend of Heroes and Trails game of all time?

Siliconera Speaks Up: Best Trails Game 5w5w6

This may be controversial, but my favorite and personal pick for the overall best The Legend of Heroes game is Trails of Cold Steel III. To me, this is where the series found the perfect balance of story, characters, lore, world, gameplay, and exploration. It is so rich with a massive adventure full of some of the most meaningful side quests. You get to know every member of the small town of Thors Branch Academy, plus the main cast is arguably better than the previous two titles. Then there is the story, which is the strongest for me due to character arcs for Ash, Juna, and others. This is hands down one of my favorite games of all time.

That said, the original Trails in the Sky, Trails from Zero, and the first Trails of Cold Steel are close runner-ups for me in that particular order. Trails in the Sky was my first in the series and it still remains one of the greatest fantasy RPGs ever made. I can’t wait for the remake, which will hopefully recapture the feel of exploring Liberl. Then there is the first Crossbell title, which introduced us to what I consider to be the best city ever made in a video game. Of course, I adore Cold Steel as well for introducing the Persona-like high school concept, which paved the way for my favorite title in the series. -- Cody

The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak 2 is now available for Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, and PC.

The post What’s the Best The Legend of Heroes Trails Game? appeared first on Siliconera.

Nihon Falcom opened a new webpage to mark the 20th anniversary of the Trails RPG series, which is originally known in Japan as Kiseki, and the company has also revealed a new lineup of merchandise. All of the new products feature characters from the series to celebrate the major anniversary milestone.

The Trails series 20th anniversary merchandise lineup ranges from tin badges to tote bags. The company sells the items through its own Falcom Shop website, and it also s international orders. People living outside Japan can pay with MasterCard, Visa, or UC credit cards. Falcom can deliver the items to almost all countries and regions worldwide covered by Japan Post's EMS, with an exception for APO and FPO addresses.

Here is the list of new merchandise available on Falcom Shop, along with their prices in Japanese yen:

• Mamesara plates: ￥6,050 for each 3-in-1 set
• B2-sized tapestry: ￥3,850
• Canvas art: ￥2,970
• Big tote bag: ￥2,860
• Mini tote bag: ￥1,760
• Acrylic stand: ￥1,320
• Mouse pad: ￥1,650
• Bandanna handkerchief: ￥1,320
• Tin badges: ￥510 individually or ￥3,000 for a 6-in-1 set

In addition, Falcom is also offering free bonus items for people who make purchases of over ￥5,000 yen on its web store, while stocks last. The company will add a random illustration card based on one of the five major sub-series and a promotion card of either Estelle or Joshua from the Trails Trading Card Game.

The 20th anniversary of the Trails series falls on June 24, 2024. It marks exactly 20 years since Nihon Falcom released the first Trails in the Sky for PC in Japan on June 24, 2004.

The post Trails 20th Anniversary Website Opens With New Merchandise appeared first on Siliconera.

Nihon Falcom has reportedly set the Japanese release date for The Legend of Heroes: Kai no Kiseki -Farewell, O Zemuria- for September 26, 2024. The game will appear for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. [Thanks, ryokutya2089!]

Leaker ryokutya2089 reported the release date, as well as confirming various party that will return to the RPG. These characters are Feri Al-Fayed, Aaron Wei, Risette Twining, Quatre Salision, and Judith Ranster.

Additionally, the game will include a new combat system called “ZOC.” The new system allows for players to accelerate turns and attack with various characters in quick succession. While this system is active, enemies will slow down, and attack power and stun damage dealt will increase. The Dual Arts introduced in Kuro no Kiseki II will also return in Kai No Kiseki, and new arts have been added.

As a reminder, Nihon Falcom recently confirmed that Van Arkride, Agnes Claudel, and Bergard Zeman will be the protagonists of the The Legend of Heroes: Kai No Kiseki, as well as introducing the B.L.T.Z. system (pronounced Blitz.) Alongside this information, Nihon Falcom also revealed that Feri and Risette would return in new screenshots.

The Japanese release date for The Legend of Heroes: Kai no Kiseki -Farewell, O Zemuria- is set for September 26, 2024, and the game will appear on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5.

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Nihon Falcom has revealed the main characters and new gameplay features in The Legend of Heroes: Kai no Kiseki -Farewell, O Zemuria-. Van Arkride and Agnes Claudel, the protagonist and heroine of the Kuro no Kiseki (also known in the West as Trails Through Daybreak) series, will retain their respective spots in this new title. Bergard Zeman, who was missing from the pre-release promotions for Kuro no Kiseki II, will also appear as the third main character. [Thanks, 4Gamer!]

Other than the characters, Nihon Falcom also unveiled two new gameplay features that it will add to this RPG title. The first one will be the Awakening system. Characters with special abilities, such as Van's Grendel transformation and the Dominions' Stigma, will be able to trigger their respective powers during field battles by spending the Boost Gauge.

The second feature will be titled B.L.T.Z. (read: Blitz). During the Command Battle mode, a sub-party member will be able to add a B.L.T.Z. Chain attack. They can also add damage enhancements or healing effects to an active member's crafts and arts with B.L.T.Z. .

Some of the screenshots that show this new feature also confirm that several Kuro no Kiseki key characters like Feri Al-Fayed and Risette Twinings will be available again as party in Kai no Kiseki.

The Legend of Heroes: Kai no Kiseki -Farewell, O Zemuria- will be available in Japan in 2024. Nihon Falcom has still yet to announce the RPG's platforms as of this update.

The post Kai no Kiseki Main Characters and New Features Revealed appeared first on Siliconera.

Kotobukiya will produce and release a new figure modeled after Renne Bright from Nihon Falcom's The Legend of Heroes series. The company has yet to show a prototype of the character, who debuted in Trails in the Sky SC. However, it used Renne's image from Trails Into Reverie when it made the announcement.

Renne Bright will be the fifth character from Nihon Falcom's Trails series to have a figure made by Kotobukiya. The company has previously released figures of Altina Orion and Rean Schwarzer from the Trails of Cold Steel series. In February 2022, it announced new figures based on Rixia Mao and Crow Armbrust's appearances in Trails Into Reverie.

The announcement page for the Renne Bright figure also shows new images of unpainted prototypes for Rixia's and Crow's figures. One of the images of Crow's figure puts him side-by-side with a finished Rean Schwarzer figure.

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Trails Into Reverie is a story-driven RPG that primarily features characters from prior series entries, such as the Trails of Cold Steel series and the Crossbell titles Zero and Azure. Reverie is already available in Japan with the title Hajimari no Kiseki. NIS America will release the English localization of Trails Into Reverie on PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC in 2023.

Kotobukiya's figures of Renne Bright, Rixia Mao, and Crow Armbrust from The Legend of Heroes: Trails Into Reverie are currently under production. The company has yet to announce their release windows as of this writing.

The post Kotobukiya Will Release Renne Bright Figure From the Trails Series appeared first on Siliconera.

Clouded Leopard Entertainment and Nihon Falcom will hold the Falcom jdk Band Live 2022 concert on February 12, 2022. The concert will take place through an online live stream. People from all around the world will be able to watch it on KKTIX. Tickets for the stream are immediately available for purchase at 699 New Taiwan Dollars (roughly $25) until February 19, 2022.

The band will mostly perform music from the Trails and Ys series in this concert. The show will also feature a live reading session performed by Daisuke Ono and Yui Ishikawa, the voice actors of Kuro no Kiseki's Van Arkride and Risette Twinings.

Here is the full setlist for the Falcom jdk Band Live 2022 concert:

1. "The Pulse Towards Tomorrow" from Trails of Cold Steel
2. "Where the Light Flashes" from Trails of Cold Steel II
3. "I'll you" from Trails of Cold Steel II
4. "Step Ahead" from Trails of Cold Steel III
5. "Love Poem" from Trails of Cold Steel IV
6. "Wild Beat" from Kuro no Kiseki
7. "Sunshine Coastline" from Ys VIII
8. "Cloaca Maxima" from Ys IX
9. "End of the Nameless Nightmare" from Kuro no Kiseki
10. "Nayuta no Hoshi no Monogatari" from The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails

The Falcom jdk Band Live 2022 concert will take place exclusively online on February 12, 2022. It will also celebrate the Korean and Traditional Chinese releases of The Legend of Heroes: Kuro no Kiseki for PlayStation 4 in East Asia on February 10, 2022.

The post Falcom jdk Band Live 2022 Concert Will Take Place in February appeared first on Siliconera.

After several years, fan localization group The Geofront has released its English-language patch for The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure. Players will need a legal, Chinese copy of the game to install the patch. Also known as Ao no Kiseki, Trails to Azure originally released on the PlayStation Portable in Japan on September 29, 2011.

The Geofront updated its website detailing the patch's release and how to install it. The project has been several years in the making. Additionally, the team worked on the Trails from Zero fan localization, rounding out the Crossbell arc in The Legend of Heroes' universe of games.

Fans can the patch now, but to play the game, they will need one of the following: a copy of the title from Joyoland in Chinese, a previous installation of the game without the Geofront mod, or a physical copy of the title released in China, Taiwan, or Hong Kong. The Geofront strongly discourages piracy, and it even has a post explaining how fans can purchase the title on Joyoland's website. After running the full installation process on PC, s can even add the game to their Steam or GOG library.

In May 2020, The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure received an updated Kai release on PlayStation 4. The Nintendo Switch also saw a port of the game in Asian territories in April 2021. Both releases only had for Asian languages like Japanese, Chinese, and Korean. That said, Nihon Falcom President Toshihiro Kondo gave us some hope for an official western launch in our interview with him back in August 2019.

Fans can The Geofront fan localization English patch for Trails to Azure now.

The post Trails to Azure English Fan Localization By Geofront Out Now appeared first on Siliconera.

For a few years now, XSEED and NIS America have been delivering localizations for Falcom's The Legend of Heroes series. But there's still a sizable backlog of untranslated games, and fans have been plugging away at those holes for just as long. A group of fans recently took on a peculiar project in the library, a crossover fighting game between the Ys and Trails in the Sky universes. Originally Ys vs Sora no Kiseki, the project is now Ys vs Trails in the Sky: Alternative Saga. The project was independent at first, but today the team behind it announced it has ed The Geofront, a group behind a new effort to create official localization-quality fan projects.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2Wr21arjDA

The new team s The Geofront as "V Sector," which means these folks are still operating as their own team. However, being part of Geofront gives V Sector access to the existing team (C Sector) which gives them access to advice, technical assistance, and perhaps most importantly a style guide. This is only the second Geofront project, but being under this brand is a bigger deal than that fact implies.

Geofront's first project was a retranslation of sorts of Trails from Zero, the first game in the series' Crossbell storyline. This game had already seen a fan translation project on the PSP, which also includes the sequel. Geofront built on that foundation, and used it to create a new version for the PC, with updates largely focused on bringing the style closer to the official localizations and polishing the previous group's work.

Ys vs Trails in the Sky: Alternative Saga appeared on the PlayStation Portable in Japan in 2010.

The post Ys vs Trails in the Sky Fan Translation Is ‘Officially’ a Geofront Project appeared first on Siliconera.

Ys IX releases tomorrow in Japan and the latest issue of Dengeki has a lot of story spoilers, but Falcom president Toshihiro Kondo did share some tidbits on the Ys and Trails series moving forward.

The post Falcom President Wants To See A Young And Inexperienced Adol Again; More On Ys And Trails Series appeared first on Siliconera.

During the livestream celebrating the Trails series’ 15th anniversary, Falcom's Toshihiro Kondo was present to talk about the series and reveal the first screenshots of the latest game in development.

The post The First New Trails Series Game Screenshots Reveal Some Familiar Characters appeared first on Siliconera.

The Trails series is celebrating its 15th anniversary with a special live stream from Dengeki on June 29, 2019. The broadcast will feature company president Toshihiro Kondo and maybe a new Trails game reveal.

The post Trails Series 15th Anniversary & New Title Start Broadcast Announced For June 29, 2019 appeared first on Siliconera.

Falcom president Toshihiro Kondo recently shared an updated sales number for the Trails series as well as its latest for Trails of Cold Steel in the company’s 2nd quarter financial results briefing.

The post Falcom’s Trails Series Reaches 3.5 Million And Trails of Cold Steel Subseries Hits 1.3 Million In Sales appeared first on Siliconera.

Falcom with help from Kadokawa Games and Char-Ani brought The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Zero and The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Blue to PlayStation Vita under the Evolution series. The Vita ports had enhanced graphics, full voice acting, and extended story sequences.

A new project in the Evolution series is in the works. More details about it will be revealed soon. Since Falcom already brought all three Trails in the Sky games to PlayStation 3, maybe Trails of Nayuta, a story driven action RPG, will get a PlayStation Vita port.

The post New Legend Of Heroes Evolution Project In Development appeared first on Siliconera.

This year’s PlayStation Awards event is drawing near, and Sony’s Play Community website recently spoke with Falcom president Toshihiro Kondo about the future of the company’s two main franchises: Ys and Legend of Heroes.

The talk about the franchise’s future starts out with Ys and what we can expect from it in the near future.

“Thanks to all you fans, Ys will be celebrating its 26th anniversary this year,” starts Kondo. “We’d like to keep spreading the ‘Ys-ism’ that our staff have created, and I believe we’ll continue evolving it while staying true to the series. We haven’t reached a point where I can tell you much about the next game, but for now, I can tell you that we’re definitely looking to introduce new elements to the series.”

“With new hardware and network structure, the way games are made is different nowadays, so we’re currently in the midst of deciding what to do next,” he continues. “We’ve had great reception regarding the PlayStation Vita’s touch screen features from those who’ve played Ys: Memories of Celceta, so I believe we’ll be working even harder to further evolve the Ys series.”

Play Community follows up by asking Kondo if he could share any information on the future of the Legend of Heroes series.

“With Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Flash, we went from PSP to a multi-platform release of PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita, from a top-down view to 3D graphics, a big system change, and detailed towns and fields, giving it a voluminous RPG feeling that is represented in 3D. The story takes place in new lands to go with new protagonists, and I believe we made it into a title that even newer RPG fans can enjoy.”

“Again, the Trails series will be entering its 10 year anniversary next year,” Kondo reiterates. “The development team is continuously working hard to start a new project with an eye on the anniversary as an objective, so please look forward to our next announcement.”

The post Falcom President Teases New Legend Of Heroes And Ys Projects In The Works appeared first on Siliconera.

Falcom's JDK Band is going digital. Fans of The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky can now purchase soundtracks from Trails of Zero, Trails of Blue, and Ys vs. Trails in the Sky: Alternative Saga from iTunes.

The post The Legend Of Heroes: Trails In The Sky Series Soundtracks Now On iTunes appeared first on Siliconera.