The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III Review
Release Date: October 22, 2019
Publisher/Developer: Falcom/NIS America
Platform: PlayStation 4
Price: $59.99 for the base digital edition, $59.99 for “Early Enrollment” physical including a soundtrack and artbook, $79.99 for the Digital Deluxe Edition including “DLC Costumes and Premium Cosmetic Bundle”, $99.99 for the “Thor’s Academy” edition featuring loads of goodies including music, a steelbook, and a plushie
The “Trails of” series has been a popular RPG series for several years and with the migration to PlayStation 4, gamers have been introduced to updated versions of Cold Steel 1 and 2 over the course of the past year in preparation for this title, Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III. The first officially created from the ground up for PS4, ToCS3 takes lessons learned from previous entries in the series, mixes them with modern improvements and a new sheen of polish thanks to the system upgrade. The original two titles were crafted with intent to be transferable between PS3 and Vita, both of which aren’t as powerful as the new console. Character renders are more detailed, with flowing outfits, shadows and the like making the world feel more lived in. Also, I like how quickly the game moves. Transitioning between areas when exploring or in and out of battle are a lot faster, and I can see battles appear to take place in the exact area you run into the enemy in the field.
From what I’ve researched (these games are LOOONG and I’ve yet to finish ToCS2 on my own) the last entry tied up just about everything with a satisfactory ending. Trails of Cold Steel 1 ended on a major cliffhanger and gamers were able to load a file from 1 to effect scenarios in 2, but this is not necessary between 2 and 3. Starting fresh, our hero Rean has graduated from Thors Military Academy and is now a teacher at the Branch Campus. The storyline begins with beats from ToCS1, except this time Rean has the teacher’s viewpoint rather than one of a student. At the beginning of the game (either from foreknowledge or reading of the comprehensive storylines curated in detailed text in the Options menu from 1 and 2) we learn that Rean’s tight circle of friends that made up the original Class VII have gone their separate ways, and Rean is now in charge of a whole new Class VII at the branch campus. This allows us to introduce new friends whilst often referencing back to the original crew.
Players new to the series are going to be a bit lost, as each entry is a direct sequel as opposed to the self-contained Final Fantasy games, but the previously mentioned reviews, as well as well-placed storyline references, should keep you up to date. Fans of the previous games are going to appreciate those links a lot more, and with recent re-releases of the first two on PS4 as well, there’s no excuse to not start from the beginning. From what I have been reading on reviews from when the game came out originally (it’s of course been out for a while in it’s native language) ToCS3 actually has links to the original Trails in the Sky Series.
ToCS3 streamlines a lot of gameplay elements that improve Quality of Life. My favorite would be the new battle system. By and large there are eight main categories to the turn-based menu. Instead of placing them in a selectable order, each category is delegated to a face button or directional arrow, allowing quick access to exactly what you want to do. Story and combat seem to be compartmentalized, with the first half of chapters feeling like the “school life” sections of Fire Emblem: Three Houses followed by the major action areas. Other new additions to the combat include new ways to buff your characters using BP as well as multi-mech battles. Rean gains access to a mecha at the end of Trails of Cold Steel 1 and utilizes it throughout 2, but 3 lets other party members get their own giant robots for huge battles.
Trails of Cold Steel is an awesome RPG series that lives with an “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” attitude. Cold Steel 3 has refined it down to a science, though the balance between battle and storyline is skewed a bit heavily toward exposition. With all the fully voiced characters and dramatic story sections, you will spend a lot of gaming sessions reading and listening rather than strategizing and levelling. The series is ready for it’s final entry, with Trails of Cold Steel 4: The End of Saga just releasing in Japan and on it’s way to other countries soon. If you’re already a fan of the series, this is a no brainer. If you are looking for a new JRPG series you’d better get started: you’ve got a lot of excellent game to get through before the finale hits local shores.
Pros:
-Fully streamlined gameplay system makes the game fast and exciting
-Series is fully crafted for PS4 and takes advantage of updating graphics and processing speed
-A great series with plenty of hours of fun gameplay for a JRPG lover
Cons:
-Combination of reliance on old stories and trying to create it’s own makes it tough to start from this entry
-Heavy exposition is great for storyline lovers, hard for people wanting a taste of extreme combat in the first few hours
-Series as a whole does lean on traditional anime tropes
Special thanks to Falcom and NIS America for providing a download copy of the title to review!