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The Legend Of Heroes: Trails Of Cold Steel review – warm welcome


The Legend Of Heroes: Trails Of Cold Steel (PS4) – think Persona but you’re in the army

The first entry in Falcom’s fan favourite trilogy of role-players comes to PlayStation 4 and proves a surprisingly accessible and fun experience.

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Japanese developer Falcom are celebrating their 38th anniversary this month. That’s an impressive achievement for any games company, least of a small Japanese studio that most Western gamers have probably never heard of. They’ve lasted this long by knowing their audience and ensuring that if the only thing they do is role-playing games then they make sure they do them damn well.

One reason for Falcom’s Western obscurity is that for the longest time they only made games for personal computers that were not widely used outside of Japan. That means that key titles such as 1984’s Dragon Slayer, which went on to become a major influence on The Legend Of Zelda, are almost unknown outside of their home country. Much like how most Americans and Japanese have never heard of the classics of the Sinclair Spectrum.

Falcom’s Ys franchise is slowly becoming better known in the West but The Legend Of Heroes is technically a spin-off from Dragon Slayer, with this sub-series being the first part of a trilogy [a tetralogy actually, as we’ve just been corrected by a fan]. Trails Of Cold Steel originally came out in Japan in 2013, on the PlayStation 3 and PS Vita, but with the third entry being a PlayStation 4 exclusive the first two games are being ported over the to the format as well – with the intention that the first three will all be available in the West, on PlayStation 4, this year.

Despite how well respected they are amongst fans of the genre there’s nothing shockingly unique or original about Falcom’s games, in terms of either story or gameplay. Trails Of Cold Steel takes place at a military academy, focusing on the only class where the country’s aristocracy mix with the hoi polloi. You can probably imagine how the story evolves from there, especially as there’s a social link element, where, much like Persona, becoming better friends with people improves your efficiency on the battlefield.

The setting is not just an excuse for love-across-boundaries melodrama though, and the wider plot deals with a burgeoning working class revolt and… giant robots. All that is fine, but as is common with the series the storytelling moves at a snail’s pace, as the game constantly gets distracted with relatively trivial sub-plots.

Thankfully the combat is better paced, even though at heart it’s a very traditional turn-based affair. There are still some interestingly unique elements though, with up to four party members in play at once and the ability to sub in any of two support characters whenever you want.

You can also move characters around the battlefield in order to get them out of the way of incoming attacks, which has the disadvantage of limiting their ability to cast spells and use items across the whole group. A complex system of counters and the ability to use various techniques to take your go before it’s your turn means there’s rarely a dull battle; especially as the game is good enough to auto-resolve fights with weaker enemies that are not worth your bother.

The Legend Of Heroes: Trails Of Cold Steel (PS4) – complex but accessible

There are also no random battles, so you can actually see enemies moving around and attempt to avoid them if you’re not in the mood. Plus, a scaling system for opponents means there’s surprisingly little need for level grinding. The game even offers to swap enemies out with weaker ones if you get stuck at a key point.

Making purposefully old school gameplay as accessible as possible is very much Falcom’s speciality and for fans of the genre this is manna from heaven. But even though the story does drag on a bit the game is also extremely enjoyable for everyone else, with a fun battle system and a forgiving difficulty level that seems pleased you gave it a try – instead of trying to scare you off the minute you start.

In terms of this PlayStation 4 version, it really is more a port than a remaster and although the resolution and frame rate have been increased the texture work and object models betray its last gen origins. The attractive art design compensates for this to a degree though, and the game does include all the previous DLC, as well as the original Japanese voiceover track and an expanded English dub.

Trails Of Cold Steel was never going to change the world, even the ossified one of Japanese role-playing games. But it’s confident enough in its charms that it never feels the need to, and there’s something very appealing in that no matter what your history is with the genre.



The Legend Of Heroes: Trails Of Cold Steel

In Short: An ashamedly old school role-player that nevertheless does its best to attract new players and entertain existing fans.

Pros: A great balance between genre conventions and more accessible, modern concepts. Fun, fast-paced, battle system and the Persona influence works well.

Cons: The plot often dawdles and prevaricates rather than moving forward. Battle system, and indeed the rest of the game, can be a little too familiar.

Score: 7/10

Formats: PlayStation 4
Publisher: Marvelous Games
Developer: Falcom
Release Date: 29th March 2019
Age Rating: 12

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