The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel

The basic gameplay is similar to the previous Trails in the Sky titles with some changes. The biggest change to the battle system and also counting as a brand new feature is the "Tactical Link System", which allow players to follow up with three different kinds of link attacks, dealing additional damage and providing various other benefits. Tactical Links becomes a more useful asset to the player as the story progress and characters level up their "Link Levels" with other characters.

In December 2012, it was announced the game would have a new battle system called the Tactic Link System, designed for commands in fights to be selected at a faster rate. A free camera was also added, and the ability to hear voices and conversations when walking by other characters in town.[2] In May 2013, a new combat feature that paired up partners for tag attacks was announced. It maintained the AT (Action Time) battle system, which displayed ally versus enemy turns on a bar on the screen. The New Tactic Link Function let party members be linked together to cooperate on attacks.[3]

Another change is the Orbment system. Trails of Cold Steel inherits the "Master Quartz" system from Ao no Kiseki. The game features 360 degree camera control, fully 3D character models, and voiced conversations between characters during major story moments, all of which were new features to The Legend of Heroes series.

Players can also transfer save data between the PlayStation 3, Vita, and PlayStation 4 versions using the cross-save function.

The game is set in the Erebonian Empire and takes place after the Trails in the Sky series of games and during the same time period as the Crossbell duology. The story follows two warring groups - the aristocratic "Four Great Houses," and the Reformists. The Nobles, on one hand, wish to maintain their power by keeping control over their own private armies. The Reformists, on the other hand, want to disband the Nobles' armies and centralize all power under the Prime Minister. After a failed arbitration attempt by the Emperor, tensions continue to increase.[4]

The game's plot is centered around Rean Schwarzer and his fellow "Class VII" at Thors Military Academy, which is a newly formed class composed of both Erebonian nobility and commoners, being the only one at the entire academy that does not segregate based on social class.

The game follows Class VII throughout the school year from March to October, primarily focusing on their field studies that takes them to various cities and areas across Erebonia. The primary purpose of doing so is for the class to witness first hand the reality of the Empire, as the power struggle between the aristocratic Nobles and the working class Reformists led by Chancellor Giliath Osborne threatens to lead to civil war. At the same time the students increasingly come into conflict with a terrorist group later known as the Imperial Liberation Front, led by the masked but charismatic leader known only as "C".

During their time at the academy, Class VII also are tasked with investigating the "Old Schoolhouse", an unused mysterious building on campus that changes its internal layout monthly. At the bottom of the seventh and final floor, they discover an ancient mecha known as Valimar, the Ashen Knight.

The day after the Old Schoolhouse is fully explored, an Aion controlled by Crossbell, which has declared independence, destroys Garrelia Fortress, the military base on the Crossbell border,[5] leading to national panic. During a speech announcing his intended response, implied to be an invasion of Crossbell, Osborne is assassinated by the terrorist "C", who is revealed to be fellow Class VII student Crow Armbrust. Alongside the assassination, a coup by the Noble Alliance results in Thors being occupied by forces led by Crow piloting his own mecha, Ordine, the Azure Knight. Unable to fight it with normal means, Rean calls Valimar in order to fight Crow with it one on one, in which Rean is defeated, leading directly into Trails of Cold Steel II.

The story focuses on students at the prestigious Thors Military Academy.[6] There are nine students at Thors Academy in the game that are playable.[7] The game's main protagonist is Rean Schwarzer, a 17 year old student who uses a Tachi. His classmates include Alisa Reinford, another 17 year old who keeps her background hidden and uses a bow; Elliot Craig, a 16 year old who is kind and wields a staff; Laura S. Arseid, a 17 year old practitioner of the Arseid sword school who wields a great sword; Emma Millstein, who serves as class president and is a dorm-mate of Alisa and Rean; Jusis Albarea, who is the son of one of the four great noble households; Machias Regnitz, whose father works for the government; Millium Orion, who works for the Intelligence Division; Gaius Worzel, who hails from the Nord Highlands; Crow Armbrust, a 2nd year student who joins the class for unknown reasons; and Fie Claussell, a younger character, who was raised as a child jaeger.[8][9]

Among non-playable characters are figures in the Heimdallr capital, for example the industrialist Chancellor Giliath Osborne, the studious Imperial Governor Carl Regnitz, the opera singer Vita Clotilde, Anton, and the families of several students.[10]

In December 2012, Nihon Falcom announced a new game to be titled The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Flash for Playstation 3 and Playstation Vita.[1] It was developed using the PhyreEngine game engine.[11]

Katsumi Enami was the character illustrator for the images, as with other works in the series after Trails of Zero.[12] In May 2013, it was reported that the players would be dress-able in Lawson convenience store employee outfits, similar to many other video games around that time like Dynasty Warriors 8.[7] A number of videos about the development process were released prior to the video game release as Kondo's "Trails of Production" series.[13]

It was first released in September 2013 for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita in Japan, titled The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Flash.[14] In December 2013, a producer of the series stated "when the series was mainly on PC, the average player ages was in the 30s, whereas Trails in the Flash has an average of fans in their teens to early 20s."[12] In December 2013, it was announced that Trails in the Flash would have a sequel released in 2014, to take place in the same locale.[15]

In January 2014, it was announced that Cold Steel, or The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Flash and its sequel would also be localized into Chinese and Korean with the assistance of Sony Computer Entertainment Japan Asia.[14][16] At the time, it was unknown if there would be an English release.[14]

It was released in English on December 22, 2015, for PS3 or Vita,[17] as The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel, or Sen no Kiseki I. The English localization was handled by Xseed Games.[18] Xseed published Trails in Cold Steel in North America, and European publishing was overseen by NIS America.[19] In a 2016 review of the English localization, RPGSite noted that there hadn't been English versions of the two prior titles Zero no Kiseki and Ao no Kiseki, arguing that the gap made it more difficult for players of the English version to fully grasp the narrative.[20] The English version was also ported to Microsoft Windows on August 2, 2017,[21] with the latter including additional voice acting not seen in the original release.[22]

A remastered version for the PlayStation 4, The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel I: Kai -Thors Military Academy 1204-, was released in Japan in March 2018. It includes many features seen in the PC release, such as support for 4k resolution and a "high speed skip" combat feature.[23] It was released for PS4 in North America on March 26, 2019[24] and Europe on March 29.[25] A port for Nintendo Switch is set to release in Japan in 2021.[26]

Among other awards, the game was named in Japan Game Awards 2013 during the Tokyo Game Show by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association, as one of eleven titles within the Future Division winners.[39]

The game received a "generally positive" reception, according to review aggregator Metacritic.[27][28][29] In Japan, Famitsu gave both versions a review score of 34/40.[32] PlayStation LifeStyle said it is "a role-playing masterpiece with all the right stuff: Xseed’s superior localization, which bypasses anime cliches in favor of real depth; an addictive set of life-sim mechanics, from bonding with the lovable cast to cooking a bevy of dishes; and a combat system that rewards customization and cooperation between party members."[36] Hardcore Gamer said it "is hands down the best JRPG this year" and that if "this is what’s in store for us with future Legend of Heroes titles, it’s safe to say that the JRPG genre has a bright future ahead of it."[34] Kimberley Wallace of Game Informer stated that, with "fun combat, interesting twists, and a cool social system, Trails of Cold Steel is one of my favorite recent RPGs".[33] Adriaan den Ouden of RPGamer said it is his favorite RPG of 2015.[35] Multiplayer.it said it is "complex, deep and varied, and sports surprisingly realistic and mature storyline and setting" and an "unforgettable cast of characters."[40] Destructoid said it "follows a lot of classic JRPG conventions" and "doesn't do a whole lot of things that haven't been done before" but concluded "the combat system still holds up, and the characters are charming enough to see the story through until the end."[31]

• Official website