- Exceptional characters and protagonist drive the story
- Improved graphics and animations enhance visuals
- Fresh direction for the series, new setting
- Innovative hybrid combat system, but simplistic
- Bloated and slow-paced story progression
- Not new player friendly, mixed series entry
Emotions
Players are highly satisfied with the game's overall quality, including its compelling story, well-developed characters, and engaging combat system. Many feel it's a strong return to form for the series, offering significant improvements in graphics, gameplay mechanics, and a refreshing new protagonist and setting. The game's accessibility for newcomers while still providing depth for veterans also contributes to high satisfaction.
Disappointment stems primarily from perceived weaknesses in the story, including generic plots, weak villains, and a disappointing ending. Players also express dissatisfaction with the music, lack of new or fresh elements, and simplified gameplay mechanics, such as the absence of beloved mini-games like fishing and an overly easy difficulty even on higher settings.
Frustration is frequently caused by the game's pacing, particularly long cutscenes, excessive dialogue, and slow story progression, which can make the game feel like a chore. Other sources of frustration include technical issues like crashes, confusing UI, inconsistent voice acting, and a perceived lack of challenge or depth in certain gameplay systems.
Players express excitement for the game's innovative combat system, mature themes, and compelling new cast of characters. The game is often seen as a strong start to a new arc, generating anticipation for future installments and a desire to continue playing the series due to its overall high quality and ability to surprise.
Enjoyment is derived from the game's overall experience, including its engaging story, likable characters, and fluid combat system. Players appreciate the improved graphics, good soundtrack, and the unique concept of the protagonist, which collectively contribute to a fun and immersive gameplay experience.
Verdict
Mostly positive
Summary
Positive 82% Ā· Negative 18%. Score: 18 / 100
Positives:
- Players overwhelmingly praise the game's characters, highlighting their likability, strong interactions, and depth. The new protagonist, Van, is particularly well-received for his mature, morally ambiguous, and refreshing personality, which stands out from previous series leads. This strong character focus significantly enhances the overall narrative and player engagement.
- Players note a significant improvement in the game's visual presentation, including enhanced graphics, character designs, and animations. This graphical leap, attributed to a new engine, contributes to a more immersive and aesthetically pleasing experience compared to previous titles in the series.
- The game is widely considered a significant step forward for the series, offering a fresh start with a more mature tone, higher stakes, and improved storytelling. It successfully balances new innovations with the core essence of the Trails series, making it an excellent entry point for newcomers while still rewarding long-time fans.
- The revamped combat system, which seamlessly blends real-time action with strategic turn-based mechanics, is highly praised. Players appreciate the ability to quickly dispatch weaker enemies in real-time and transition smoothly into turn-based combat for more challenging encounters, making battles more dynamic and less monotonous.
- The story is consistently described as engaging, well-paced, and more mature than previous entries, featuring compelling twists and deeper themes. Its self-contained nature and focus on character development are also highlighted as strong points.
Negatives:
- Players consistently report that the story, especially in later chapters, suffers from excessive length, slow pacing, and repetitive or uninteresting content. This includes bloated dialogue, mandatory but dull side quests, and a lack of meaningful progression, leading to tedium and a feeling of the game dragging on.
- The combat system, particularly the new action-based elements and Grendel combat, is frequently criticized for being too easy, simplistic, and repetitive. Players find it lacks depth and challenge, even on higher difficulties, leading to monotonous encounters.
- The antagonists are widely considered weak, lacking compelling motivations, depth, and nuance. Many players found them uninteresting, underdeveloped, and often felt their presence overstayed its welcome, detracting from the overall narrative.
- The new orbment and quartz systems are seen as a step backward, reducing customization options and build variety. Players find them cumbersome, less interesting, and often just lead to simple stat boosts rather than meaningful gameplay changes.
- The game is not recommended for new players due to its heavy reliance on prior series knowledge, frequent references to past events, and returning characters without sufficient context. This creates a high barrier to entry and can lead to confusion and a lack of emotional connection for newcomers.
Gameplay:
- The game introduces a revamped character customization system centered around Orbments, Holo Cores, and Arts Drivers. This allows for deep character building through quartz combinations that unlock passive 'shard skills' and determine available arts. While offering significant freedom, the system can be complex for new players to fully grasp initially.
- The S-Craft system has been significantly re-worked, now requiring S-Boosts and a fixed 100 CP for activation. This change makes S-Crafts more accessible but also impacts game balance, with some players finding the game too easy due to their frequent use.
- The game offers substantial content, including a lengthy main story (around 50-100 hours for completion) and numerous side quests. The gameplay loop involves progressing through story chapters, completing side quests, and engaging in bonding events, providing a rich and expansive experience.
- A new alignment system has been introduced, tracking player choices across Law, Gray, and Chaos. This system influences the game based on moral decisions made during quests.
- This game is the eleventh installment in The Legend of Heroes (Trails) series and marks the beginning of a new arc set in the Calvard Republic with a new protagonist.
Performance:
- Players report that the game is well-optimized across various PC hardware, including high-end desktops, older laptops, and especially the Steam Deck, where it maintains stable frame rates (40-60fps). Crashes are rare, indicating high overall stability.
- There's a perception among some players that the game utilizes an outdated engine, with one reviewer comparing it to a PlayStation 4 era engine.
- Some players have noted that the loading screens within the game are excessively long, which can disrupt the flow of gameplay.
- A specific technical issue reported is a noticeable delay between character dubbing and their corresponding animations, which can affect immersion.
- One player experienced screen tearing when V-sync was disabled, indicating a potential visual artifact issue for some configurations.
Recommendations:
- There's mixed feedback on whether this game serves as a good starting point for new players. Some recommend it as an accessible entry, while others strongly advise starting with earlier titles like 'Trails in the Sky' due to story continuity and spoilers.
- Many players found the game to be a good or great JRPG experience, often recommending it to fans of the genre or the series. While some found it to be a solid entry, others considered it one of the best in the series.
- Fans of the 'Trails' series are highly encouraged to play this game, as it's seen as a worthy continuation. Many players expressed excitement for future installments and intend to continue with the series.
- The game's battle system alone is not considered strong enough to carry the game, and it is not recommended for players seeking an action RPG.
- The English localization is generally acceptable, but players who prefer Japanese voice acting and have some language knowledge might find the CLE version superior.
Miscellaneous:
- Players highly praise the game's world-building, character development, and dialogue, considering it a strong entry and fresh start for the series. The new setting and cast are particularly well-received after previous arcs.
- While many find the story engaging and well-executed, some players found it bland or formulaic, especially if they hadn't played previous games. There's a mixed sentiment regarding its pacing and twists.
- There is significant anticipation for the sequel, Daybreak 2, with many players eagerly awaiting its release, especially the English localization. Some are waiting for price drops or official patches.
- Some players expressed personal preferences regarding gameplay mechanics (like turn-based combat or Brave Order system) or the protagonist, but these are isolated opinions and not widespread issues.
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