320 Reviews liked by doof
I’ve been thinking a lot about storytelling in video games lately. Well, storytelling as a whole actually. What exactly makes a fictional world feel compelling to me? How should you best spin a yarn as to make the characters breathe, their struggles resonate, and their victories triumphant? Most importantly, if a writer did have the vision and the wherewithal to execute said vision, then how could they best convince their audience that their vision was worth their time?
This week, I might have come a step closer to realizing those answers by revisiting an old favorite of mine.
428: Shibuya Scramble is not just your ordinary traditional visual novel. It’s a crime thriller, a romantic comedy, and an investigative journalism drama all rolled into one. That description alone could sell the game, but the crazy part is that the narrative is just the icing on top of this deceptively layered and charismatic tale. The game's greatest strength is not just what it has to say, but rather how it says it.
As I've discussed previously, many story-heavy games have difficulty marrying their storytelling and their gameplay, often choosing to stratify their game into separate sections of explicit narrative and explicit gameplay. 428 Shibuya Scramble does not struggle with this whatsoever, for the interaction with the narrative is the gameplay and it presents its story in such a way where every detail matters. You see, 428: Shibuya Scramble operates in hourly time slots with several protagonists at once. The goal is to guide each protagonist on their separate storyline and ensure that every protagonist makes it to the end of each hour by making the correct decisions and avoiding untimely demise through bad ends. However, there’s a catch. Protagonists can reach bad ends on their own paths even if every decision they make within their contained storyline is “correct.” This is because these different storylines intersect one another in various ways, and decisions made with one character will ultimately echo throughout the hour, affecting the other protagonists in unforeseen ways.
As such, the player isn’t doing anything mechanically complex aside from reading text and picking the right options most of the time, which means that like the best detective games, 428 is really about the game outside of the game. The player has to figure out how the butterfly effect ripples across each hour, even as characters often impact one another without ever coming face to face. For example, one of the characters can become incapacitated by consuming a potent energy drink on the job; you can avoid this bad end by making sure an earlier character fails to provide his detective partner with the lethal sample. While the nature of these intersections is often unclear, 428 revels in this uncertainty. It’s not content with simply using its bad ends as punishments; rather, it grasps these bad ends as opportunities to inject additional lore and guide the player towards the truth. These bad ends are often light-hearted and comedic just as they are valuable learning opportunities, and somehow the game walks the tightrope between solemnity and levity without ever losing sincerity. Simply put, most story-heavy games are constantly asking the five Ws, but 428 Shibuya Scramble is one of the rare whimsical games that dares ask “What if?”
On a similar note, a lot of players tend to get frustrated by 428’s habit of barricading individual protagonist paths with “KEEP OUT” banners, but I find this mechanic to be a stroke of genius. In order to clear these barricades, players are forced to traverse other protagonists’ stories in the meanwhile and search for a “JUMP” point linking them back to the original blocked protagonist. By doing so, they’re often hopping around the hour and viewing events from multiple parallel perspectives, gathering more information to better grasp how the timelines intertwine. Moreover, the game fully commits to this idea of rounding out its narrative by even hiding JUMP points behind certain decisions that would otherwise have no bearing upon story events (i.e. “flavor text questions/decisions”) and certain TIPs (blue colored text that when selected, provides additional background). This keeps the player vigilant, as they’re constantly on the prowl for connections while soaking in every detail and considering every possibility to push the plot forward.
Of course, this is not to take away from the game’s multitude of other strengths. For instance, consider the game’s sound design. From hurried footsteps and screeching cars in high-speed chases to distant explosions and sirens spelling imminent doom, Chunsoft knew just how to punctuate every moment with appropriate sound effects. Another obvious selling point is 428’s reliance upon live action stills and full motion video, which aside from standing out from other sketched and animated visual novels, provides the game a sense of immersion and realism that interestingly often contrasts with the game’s over-the-top sense of humor. Finally, the actors do a great job emoting and infusing their lines with personality despite the lack of voice acting. Alongside the phenomenal character design, written in such a way where every character has obvious flaws yet remain every bit relatable, there’s a certain charm to 428 Shibuya Scramble that many of its peers fail to imitate. As a complete and tightly-knit package, its artistic decisions and gameplay mechanics do not simply capture Shibuya; they perpetuate the energy of the city, enthralling and surprising the player at every turn.
I’m often reluctant to revisit beloved titles. More often than not, giving old favorites another spin with a more critical eye or even thinking about them for too long causes them to deteriorate somewhat in my mind, forcing me to confront my prior nostalgia. It’s never a great feeling to question yourself if something you once loved was really all that great to begin with. 428 is the exact opposite of this. Don’t get me wrong; the game does have some rough points. The inability to adjust text speed and skip previously read text can be a huge ask for players with limited time (though if you’re playing on PC, the unofficial text speed patch alleviates this somewhat), and I find myself agreeing with others in that the true ending leaves something to be desired. I won’t deny that I had some apprehensions upon replaying yet another memorable classic.
Yet somehow, this game has lived rent-free in my head for over half a decade. I had intended to replay it for just an hour or two to refresh my palette, as I had already 100%ed it and wanted to move onto newer and grander adventures. In spite of that, I found myself with the exact opposite problem. I simply could not put the game down. 428 Shibuya Scramble is the rare example of a game that to me, never stops getting better. Playing through it again immediately reminded me of why I fell in love with video games to begin with, and it didn’t matter that I had seen the destination already; the thrill of the journey was enough to make me return. I’m sure that I could ponder more areas of improvement and potential fixes, though honestly, I can’t bring myself to care. There aren’t many games that I unabashedly adore and wish for more, but there are even fewer games that manage to spark my Imagination and leave me content with what I have. At the end of the day, 428: Shibuya Scramble is not just a triumph of the medium; it's a triumph of human inevitability, gathering momentum until coincidence and fate become reality. I may have become more cynical over time, but it's moments like these that prove that sometimes, it really does pay to believe.
This week, I might have come a step closer to realizing those answers by revisiting an old favorite of mine.
428: Shibuya Scramble is not just your ordinary traditional visual novel. It’s a crime thriller, a romantic comedy, and an investigative journalism drama all rolled into one. That description alone could sell the game, but the crazy part is that the narrative is just the icing on top of this deceptively layered and charismatic tale. The game's greatest strength is not just what it has to say, but rather how it says it.
As I've discussed previously, many story-heavy games have difficulty marrying their storytelling and their gameplay, often choosing to stratify their game into separate sections of explicit narrative and explicit gameplay. 428 Shibuya Scramble does not struggle with this whatsoever, for the interaction with the narrative is the gameplay and it presents its story in such a way where every detail matters. You see, 428: Shibuya Scramble operates in hourly time slots with several protagonists at once. The goal is to guide each protagonist on their separate storyline and ensure that every protagonist makes it to the end of each hour by making the correct decisions and avoiding untimely demise through bad ends. However, there’s a catch. Protagonists can reach bad ends on their own paths even if every decision they make within their contained storyline is “correct.” This is because these different storylines intersect one another in various ways, and decisions made with one character will ultimately echo throughout the hour, affecting the other protagonists in unforeseen ways.
As such, the player isn’t doing anything mechanically complex aside from reading text and picking the right options most of the time, which means that like the best detective games, 428 is really about the game outside of the game. The player has to figure out how the butterfly effect ripples across each hour, even as characters often impact one another without ever coming face to face. For example, one of the characters can become incapacitated by consuming a potent energy drink on the job; you can avoid this bad end by making sure an earlier character fails to provide his detective partner with the lethal sample. While the nature of these intersections is often unclear, 428 revels in this uncertainty. It’s not content with simply using its bad ends as punishments; rather, it grasps these bad ends as opportunities to inject additional lore and guide the player towards the truth. These bad ends are often light-hearted and comedic just as they are valuable learning opportunities, and somehow the game walks the tightrope between solemnity and levity without ever losing sincerity. Simply put, most story-heavy games are constantly asking the five Ws, but 428 Shibuya Scramble is one of the rare whimsical games that dares ask “What if?”
On a similar note, a lot of players tend to get frustrated by 428’s habit of barricading individual protagonist paths with “KEEP OUT” banners, but I find this mechanic to be a stroke of genius. In order to clear these barricades, players are forced to traverse other protagonists’ stories in the meanwhile and search for a “JUMP” point linking them back to the original blocked protagonist. By doing so, they’re often hopping around the hour and viewing events from multiple parallel perspectives, gathering more information to better grasp how the timelines intertwine. Moreover, the game fully commits to this idea of rounding out its narrative by even hiding JUMP points behind certain decisions that would otherwise have no bearing upon story events (i.e. “flavor text questions/decisions”) and certain TIPs (blue colored text that when selected, provides additional background). This keeps the player vigilant, as they’re constantly on the prowl for connections while soaking in every detail and considering every possibility to push the plot forward.
Of course, this is not to take away from the game’s multitude of other strengths. For instance, consider the game’s sound design. From hurried footsteps and screeching cars in high-speed chases to distant explosions and sirens spelling imminent doom, Chunsoft knew just how to punctuate every moment with appropriate sound effects. Another obvious selling point is 428’s reliance upon live action stills and full motion video, which aside from standing out from other sketched and animated visual novels, provides the game a sense of immersion and realism that interestingly often contrasts with the game’s over-the-top sense of humor. Finally, the actors do a great job emoting and infusing their lines with personality despite the lack of voice acting. Alongside the phenomenal character design, written in such a way where every character has obvious flaws yet remain every bit relatable, there’s a certain charm to 428 Shibuya Scramble that many of its peers fail to imitate. As a complete and tightly-knit package, its artistic decisions and gameplay mechanics do not simply capture Shibuya; they perpetuate the energy of the city, enthralling and surprising the player at every turn.
I’m often reluctant to revisit beloved titles. More often than not, giving old favorites another spin with a more critical eye or even thinking about them for too long causes them to deteriorate somewhat in my mind, forcing me to confront my prior nostalgia. It’s never a great feeling to question yourself if something you once loved was really all that great to begin with. 428 is the exact opposite of this. Don’t get me wrong; the game does have some rough points. The inability to adjust text speed and skip previously read text can be a huge ask for players with limited time (though if you’re playing on PC, the unofficial text speed patch alleviates this somewhat), and I find myself agreeing with others in that the true ending leaves something to be desired. I won’t deny that I had some apprehensions upon replaying yet another memorable classic.
Yet somehow, this game has lived rent-free in my head for over half a decade. I had intended to replay it for just an hour or two to refresh my palette, as I had already 100%ed it and wanted to move onto newer and grander adventures. In spite of that, I found myself with the exact opposite problem. I simply could not put the game down. 428 Shibuya Scramble is the rare example of a game that to me, never stops getting better. Playing through it again immediately reminded me of why I fell in love with video games to begin with, and it didn’t matter that I had seen the destination already; the thrill of the journey was enough to make me return. I’m sure that I could ponder more areas of improvement and potential fixes, though honestly, I can’t bring myself to care. There aren’t many games that I unabashedly adore and wish for more, but there are even fewer games that manage to spark my Imagination and leave me content with what I have. At the end of the day, 428: Shibuya Scramble is not just a triumph of the medium; it's a triumph of human inevitability, gathering momentum until coincidence and fate become reality. I may have become more cynical over time, but it's moments like these that prove that sometimes, it really does pay to believe.
Disappointing installment in the Trails franchise. Doesn’t have progress the story in any meaningful way and doesn’t Rean or the cool motorcyclist guy, what the fuck
Mid game - terrible port.
What was something I was just going to bother with on Game Pass became a birthday gift from a close friend, meaning I tried quite hard to see something in this game and finish it. Sadly, Boltgun is almost everything you shouldn't do in a modern "boomer shooter;" borrowing all the worst ideas from the genre's past and delivering a poor PC port on top of it all.
There is no nice way to say that Boltgun is boring, but it's really boring. Map designs are samey mazes with little visual distinction in either color or structure, leading to the player traversing the same rocky cliffs and military bases over and over again. While the enemies offer a decent variety, the AI pathing is stupid and almost every enemy either stands in place to get blown to bits, or rush you like they have no reason to live, anymore. Spending hours running around the same-looking corridors and cliffs, fighting the same enemies over and over again, all in these giant mazes I get lost in half the time is not my idea of a good time.
Guns are largely a non-starter, either, with no weapon I picked up in my six-hours of playtime grabbing me like anything from QUAKE, DUSK, AMID EVIL, Ion Fury, etc. The drip-feed of weapons is solely that: a drip-feed. There is nowhere near enough variety in the weapons to begin with, but having still not unlocked all weapons at over six-hours of playtime is frustrating for a game like this. I understand the idea of slowly delivering all the surprises, as you don't want to "blow your load early," but it leads to Boltgun feeling like there are no substantial rewards for exploring or just playing normally. This issue is typified with Boltgun not offering any new weapons for nearly three-hours, then giving me two back-to-back; you really couldn't have spaced those out? I would never say I could design/create a game better than this, but I want to know the thought process on the genius who thought that up.
Lastly, I will just be complaining about the PC port, because it's one thing to be playing a "mid" shooter, but to have it run as poorly as it does on PCs that blow far past system recommended specs is unforgivable. As is usual with Unreal 4/5 games, Boltgun suffers from obnoxious stutter struggle with massive frame hitching and performance dips in both predictable and completely random locations. While I am not running a "top of the line rig" by any stretch of the word, my PC should be running this game better than the goddamn Nintendo Switch.
What was something I was just going to bother with on Game Pass became a birthday gift from a close friend, meaning I tried quite hard to see something in this game and finish it. Sadly, Boltgun is almost everything you shouldn't do in a modern "boomer shooter;" borrowing all the worst ideas from the genre's past and delivering a poor PC port on top of it all.
There is no nice way to say that Boltgun is boring, but it's really boring. Map designs are samey mazes with little visual distinction in either color or structure, leading to the player traversing the same rocky cliffs and military bases over and over again. While the enemies offer a decent variety, the AI pathing is stupid and almost every enemy either stands in place to get blown to bits, or rush you like they have no reason to live, anymore. Spending hours running around the same-looking corridors and cliffs, fighting the same enemies over and over again, all in these giant mazes I get lost in half the time is not my idea of a good time.
Guns are largely a non-starter, either, with no weapon I picked up in my six-hours of playtime grabbing me like anything from QUAKE, DUSK, AMID EVIL, Ion Fury, etc. The drip-feed of weapons is solely that: a drip-feed. There is nowhere near enough variety in the weapons to begin with, but having still not unlocked all weapons at over six-hours of playtime is frustrating for a game like this. I understand the idea of slowly delivering all the surprises, as you don't want to "blow your load early," but it leads to Boltgun feeling like there are no substantial rewards for exploring or just playing normally. This issue is typified with Boltgun not offering any new weapons for nearly three-hours, then giving me two back-to-back; you really couldn't have spaced those out? I would never say I could design/create a game better than this, but I want to know the thought process on the genius who thought that up.
Lastly, I will just be complaining about the PC port, because it's one thing to be playing a "mid" shooter, but to have it run as poorly as it does on PCs that blow far past system recommended specs is unforgivable. As is usual with Unreal 4/5 games, Boltgun suffers from obnoxious stutter struggle with massive frame hitching and performance dips in both predictable and completely random locations. While I am not running a "top of the line rig" by any stretch of the word, my PC should be running this game better than the goddamn Nintendo Switch.
What is this game?
You start by boarding a ship. Then get called back to the boat that you got there on, because your luggage is too heavy. You grab a log book and a compass from the luggage and enter the ship.
The log book has all the information given to you.
It seems you are an insurance investigator, who has to board the ship and figure out what has happened to the crew. Your report will be basis for any claims or rewards on the crew and their estates.
So... Detective work. Cool.
I get a map of travel, a picture of crew festivitas, a picture of asian passengers and a picture of a firing squad (these are 3 pictures that were drawn during the voyage and serve as visual aid for your work)
Also a complete crew manifest is available.
All the following pages are chapters of the voyage. Empty pages though. What happened? You must figure it out.
On the ship deck not much is present. Very little can be done. Only 1 passenger cabin can be accessed, empty, and 1 body present. Everything else is locked off.
I walk up to the dead body outside the captains quarters and the compass appears to tell me something can be done.
I press the left mouse button.
Woosh... And in to the rabbit hole I began the journey.
Chapter X, The End
Blank screen... People talking. 2 men wants to enter the captains quarters and are willing to do whatever it seems. But a uppety english voice tell them that this is not going to happen. BANG... a shot goes off.
This is done by sound, only aided with the voiced subtitles. Oh I am hooked.
Then a still image appears... I see the dead guy with a bullet pearcing his body, a crew member at his side, and a guy standing in underwear in the captains quarters with a gun pointed directly at the shot guy.
I can move. OHHHH I get to look at this still image in 3D.... I am so into this already!!!!
After 30-odd seconds, the vision fades. You are back on the deck with the remains of the shot man. But now the door to the Captain's quarters is open. I can enter, and I see dead people...
Who are these men? Why is this happening? How on earth am I going to figure this out? 60-ish crew on the manifest and I need to find them and figure out their fates? Will I ever be able to get on with my normal life before finishing this game? Questions that are vital and the primary basis for my existence from now on.
This game is not holding your hand in any way. You are going to have to love adventuring if you want to be happy about playing this game.
Absolutely only basics are given to you from the get go. Information on solving puzzles are given, but only what is absolutely needed and only when you may need the information. Until then all you do is deduce.
So basically you get a compass that can tell you the last scene of a dead persons life, accompanied by 10-30 seconds of audio prior to that snapshot of death.
The first scene you get is always the last scene of a chapter, and then the game unlocks another dead body that gives you the scene before that scene, until the entire chapter has been unlocked.
During the adventuring of the scenes you must observe and listen. You will be getting subtle and not so subtle hints. You must then use whatever knowledge you get to give each crew member a name/rank and a cause of death and if applicable the culprit.
You must use everything, from how people look to how they speak or what they say, to deduce what has happened.
After finishing this game I am awestruck by how good this game is. I am also finding it difficult to point out issues with it.
Well I could pound on the steep learning curve and no hint system if you get "lost". But then again, this is exactly why I loved this game. It was not too easy. I had to pay attention to every detail in every scene. Some scenes would give you information that has nothing to do with a person that died, but just subtle information on who a person was
I must admit that I failed my first playthrough. I got stuck. I put it down for a very long time, and just recently picked it up again. This time I sure was going to pull myself together. This second run I learned how to use the log books cross reference system, which I believe helped me tremendously.
I do believe that all the mechanics in this game are important and needed. How many games can you say that about them? I do not believe to have played that game.
If stripped down to basics, the game is very simple. But it is put so well together with a very catchy story that you just do not care.
The audio in this game is sublime. Some hints are audio only. So it is important that the audio is good. Reasearch into langauges, hiring of voice actors that can speak those languages and with correct accents IMO. I am from Denmark myself so even the dane and swede was spot on.
The graphics you could easily be critical off as it is VERY simple. 1-bit colours in an 8-bit resolution, or something approximating that. Many might give this game horrible grahics score, but not me. This was exactly the graphics that were needed for the gameplay. Some hints were VERY hard to see, and therefore made the deducing harder. Was that a knife he is stabbing that dude with or does he have another tool? If the graphics had been in full blown Unreal Engine with all the bells and whistles then I believe that many hints would have been easier. Also the charm of 19th century ship would have been gone. It seemed fitting for the times that we are in to have poor tools available for deducing.
The music score is also an awesome part of the game. It really pumps you up. Strings and brass, with pumping sounds that entice you to look around and take in whatever scene you are in. Sometimes I felt the still images of scenes to be alive because of the audio.
If you like adventures and puzzles, and you do not mind to think for yourself without a game serving the solution on a silver platter, then this game should be a must have.
This game made by 1 man? Really? Graphics design, programming, mechanics, storyboard AND music composer? Look, I could compose something too, but I will be the first to admit that it would not be at the same level as other things I can do. But Lucas Pope does all the parts so well. Is there anything he can't do?
I will surely look out for more from Lucas Pope...
You start by boarding a ship. Then get called back to the boat that you got there on, because your luggage is too heavy. You grab a log book and a compass from the luggage and enter the ship.
The log book has all the information given to you.
It seems you are an insurance investigator, who has to board the ship and figure out what has happened to the crew. Your report will be basis for any claims or rewards on the crew and their estates.
So... Detective work. Cool.
I get a map of travel, a picture of crew festivitas, a picture of asian passengers and a picture of a firing squad (these are 3 pictures that were drawn during the voyage and serve as visual aid for your work)
Also a complete crew manifest is available.
All the following pages are chapters of the voyage. Empty pages though. What happened? You must figure it out.
On the ship deck not much is present. Very little can be done. Only 1 passenger cabin can be accessed, empty, and 1 body present. Everything else is locked off.
I walk up to the dead body outside the captains quarters and the compass appears to tell me something can be done.
I press the left mouse button.
Woosh... And in to the rabbit hole I began the journey.
Chapter X, The End
Blank screen... People talking. 2 men wants to enter the captains quarters and are willing to do whatever it seems. But a uppety english voice tell them that this is not going to happen. BANG... a shot goes off.
This is done by sound, only aided with the voiced subtitles. Oh I am hooked.
Then a still image appears... I see the dead guy with a bullet pearcing his body, a crew member at his side, and a guy standing in underwear in the captains quarters with a gun pointed directly at the shot guy.
I can move. OHHHH I get to look at this still image in 3D.... I am so into this already!!!!
After 30-odd seconds, the vision fades. You are back on the deck with the remains of the shot man. But now the door to the Captain's quarters is open. I can enter, and I see dead people...
Who are these men? Why is this happening? How on earth am I going to figure this out? 60-ish crew on the manifest and I need to find them and figure out their fates? Will I ever be able to get on with my normal life before finishing this game? Questions that are vital and the primary basis for my existence from now on.
This game is not holding your hand in any way. You are going to have to love adventuring if you want to be happy about playing this game.
Absolutely only basics are given to you from the get go. Information on solving puzzles are given, but only what is absolutely needed and only when you may need the information. Until then all you do is deduce.
So basically you get a compass that can tell you the last scene of a dead persons life, accompanied by 10-30 seconds of audio prior to that snapshot of death.
The first scene you get is always the last scene of a chapter, and then the game unlocks another dead body that gives you the scene before that scene, until the entire chapter has been unlocked.
During the adventuring of the scenes you must observe and listen. You will be getting subtle and not so subtle hints. You must then use whatever knowledge you get to give each crew member a name/rank and a cause of death and if applicable the culprit.
You must use everything, from how people look to how they speak or what they say, to deduce what has happened.
After finishing this game I am awestruck by how good this game is. I am also finding it difficult to point out issues with it.
Well I could pound on the steep learning curve and no hint system if you get "lost". But then again, this is exactly why I loved this game. It was not too easy. I had to pay attention to every detail in every scene. Some scenes would give you information that has nothing to do with a person that died, but just subtle information on who a person was
I must admit that I failed my first playthrough. I got stuck. I put it down for a very long time, and just recently picked it up again. This time I sure was going to pull myself together. This second run I learned how to use the log books cross reference system, which I believe helped me tremendously.
I do believe that all the mechanics in this game are important and needed. How many games can you say that about them? I do not believe to have played that game.
If stripped down to basics, the game is very simple. But it is put so well together with a very catchy story that you just do not care.
The audio in this game is sublime. Some hints are audio only. So it is important that the audio is good. Reasearch into langauges, hiring of voice actors that can speak those languages and with correct accents IMO. I am from Denmark myself so even the dane and swede was spot on.
The graphics you could easily be critical off as it is VERY simple. 1-bit colours in an 8-bit resolution, or something approximating that. Many might give this game horrible grahics score, but not me. This was exactly the graphics that were needed for the gameplay. Some hints were VERY hard to see, and therefore made the deducing harder. Was that a knife he is stabbing that dude with or does he have another tool? If the graphics had been in full blown Unreal Engine with all the bells and whistles then I believe that many hints would have been easier. Also the charm of 19th century ship would have been gone. It seemed fitting for the times that we are in to have poor tools available for deducing.
The music score is also an awesome part of the game. It really pumps you up. Strings and brass, with pumping sounds that entice you to look around and take in whatever scene you are in. Sometimes I felt the still images of scenes to be alive because of the audio.
If you like adventures and puzzles, and you do not mind to think for yourself without a game serving the solution on a silver platter, then this game should be a must have.
This game made by 1 man? Really? Graphics design, programming, mechanics, storyboard AND music composer? Look, I could compose something too, but I will be the first to admit that it would not be at the same level as other things I can do. But Lucas Pope does all the parts so well. Is there anything he can't do?
I will surely look out for more from Lucas Pope...
This review contains spoilers
More peak Crossbell. Trails to Azure is the sequel to the highly regarded Trails from Zero (I'm the one highly regarding it). More characters, more banger music, more locations, more lore, more enemies, more everything! Although not personally one of my favourites, it probably lies in the middle of Trails games for me, and now let's start with the story.
To put it simply, this game has the highest of highs, but the lowest of lows. Let's start with the highs. I think the raid on Crossbell city just represents how contested and corrupt Crossbell truly is, and the fact that the IBC building gets completely obliterated shows exactly this. The turf war between the Red Constellation and Heiyue is great. I think Azure end-game is really strong, and I love how we had the cavalry dealing with the aions in the Liberl crew, Kevin and Ries, it just was the cherry on top for the Liberl arc. The West Zemuria Trade Conference was also great, showing the brutality of Giliath Osborne in response to terrorists. The first dungeon is cool, having a party of Lloyd, Noel, Dudley, and Arios, and then shortly after gaining Elie and Wazy. It was slightly annoying that two of the fan favourites from Zero were locked till the ends of Chapters 1 and 2, but it made the SSS reunion even more great. However, this game has certain things that really kill the payoff at the end. Ian Grimwood being the surprise 'villain' was okay, it seemed random but I was so sure that it would have a good pay-off. Turns out Lloyd's speech was able to quickly get him to defect.. Are you kidding me? That made no sense and it just really kills the finale for me. They honestly should've just honed in on Mariabelle being the main antagonist of the game, but nope. Honestly, other than that moment, I don't think there were any other misses in Azure that completely come to mind. Maybe KeA being manipulated by Mariabelle, but it makes sense considering she's essentially a child.
Now the characters, I loved the development Randy got during the raid on Mainz, probably sky-rocketed to one of my favourites. Finding Olivier in the Downtown District during the West Zemuria Trade Conference was great, and I loved how Kloe, Olivier, and the SSS got to talk aboard the Arseille, it reminded me of SC. Noel and Wazy were great additions to the SSS, and Lloyd telling Noel that she's his was probably peak Lloyd banter and being blissfully unaware of what was coming out of his mouth. Probably unpopular opinion, but I probably love Lloyd as much as I love Estelle, maybe even a little more? I can't exactly put my finger on it but I think he's exactly the leader that the SSS needs, calm-headed but also tough when he needs to be. Elie still seems pretty meh to me, I wish they explored her relationship with Mariabell more and her turn-coating on them. Shizuku and KeA must be protected at all costs, they're too precious. However, while there are a lot of characters I love, there are probably two that are complete misses in my book. Wald and Shirley. Wald just makes no sense to me, he wants to be strong enough to beat Wazy, sure I see why he became a monster because Wazy has been holding back this entire time. I just don't understand why he attacks his gang members and just randomly trauma dumps on us? Maybe I'm biased because my favourite character in the game is Wazy but idk, I just don't get him. I don't know about others but Shirley sexually and physically assaulting everyone was just a huge red flag, do people actually like her? Now, I want to talk about Wazy. It was interesting that he joined the SSS. Being a member of the Gralsritter was definitely a surprise, but now that I think about it, his gang was literally called 'The Testaments,' clearly I'm blind to the obvious. I love hiw witty banter with Randy and Lloyd. Doesn't help that he was a beast in combat for me. Overall, loved the characters in this game.
Gameplay wise, I love the inclusion of Master Quartz, made building people even better. I was finally able to make Wazy the ATS Nuke that he was always meant to be. Other than combo crafts between the new members of the SSS, there really wasn't much of a change. I do want to say however that the fight with the Silver Maiden is probably the most dope thing ever, solely because of the fact that her helmet had it's own HP bar. The fact I had to drag her into a corner with Lloyd's craft and spam arts against her on Nightmare really speaks to her strength.
Music, it's peak. I say this everytime, but it's true. The big standout for me is definitely the Thaumaturgical Sector theme, it's just such a bop. Others are great, but that was probably the one that stood out to me the most.
Final thoughts: Don't let people hyping a game up get to your head, it probably sours your experience if you don't agree. Personally, it's middle of the road for me, but it definitely has a strong case going for it as a fan favourite.
Alas, it has Wazy Hemisphere, so I feel that I'm obligated to give this game 5 stars anyways. Who's kidding, it's a trails game, so it's automatically getting 5 stars.
To put it simply, this game has the highest of highs, but the lowest of lows. Let's start with the highs. I think the raid on Crossbell city just represents how contested and corrupt Crossbell truly is, and the fact that the IBC building gets completely obliterated shows exactly this. The turf war between the Red Constellation and Heiyue is great. I think Azure end-game is really strong, and I love how we had the cavalry dealing with the aions in the Liberl crew, Kevin and Ries, it just was the cherry on top for the Liberl arc. The West Zemuria Trade Conference was also great, showing the brutality of Giliath Osborne in response to terrorists. The first dungeon is cool, having a party of Lloyd, Noel, Dudley, and Arios, and then shortly after gaining Elie and Wazy. It was slightly annoying that two of the fan favourites from Zero were locked till the ends of Chapters 1 and 2, but it made the SSS reunion even more great. However, this game has certain things that really kill the payoff at the end. Ian Grimwood being the surprise 'villain' was okay, it seemed random but I was so sure that it would have a good pay-off. Turns out Lloyd's speech was able to quickly get him to defect.. Are you kidding me? That made no sense and it just really kills the finale for me. They honestly should've just honed in on Mariabelle being the main antagonist of the game, but nope. Honestly, other than that moment, I don't think there were any other misses in Azure that completely come to mind. Maybe KeA being manipulated by Mariabelle, but it makes sense considering she's essentially a child.
Now the characters, I loved the development Randy got during the raid on Mainz, probably sky-rocketed to one of my favourites. Finding Olivier in the Downtown District during the West Zemuria Trade Conference was great, and I loved how Kloe, Olivier, and the SSS got to talk aboard the Arseille, it reminded me of SC. Noel and Wazy were great additions to the SSS, and Lloyd telling Noel that she's his was probably peak Lloyd banter and being blissfully unaware of what was coming out of his mouth. Probably unpopular opinion, but I probably love Lloyd as much as I love Estelle, maybe even a little more? I can't exactly put my finger on it but I think he's exactly the leader that the SSS needs, calm-headed but also tough when he needs to be. Elie still seems pretty meh to me, I wish they explored her relationship with Mariabell more and her turn-coating on them. Shizuku and KeA must be protected at all costs, they're too precious. However, while there are a lot of characters I love, there are probably two that are complete misses in my book. Wald and Shirley. Wald just makes no sense to me, he wants to be strong enough to beat Wazy, sure I see why he became a monster because Wazy has been holding back this entire time. I just don't understand why he attacks his gang members and just randomly trauma dumps on us? Maybe I'm biased because my favourite character in the game is Wazy but idk, I just don't get him. I don't know about others but Shirley sexually and physically assaulting everyone was just a huge red flag, do people actually like her? Now, I want to talk about Wazy. It was interesting that he joined the SSS. Being a member of the Gralsritter was definitely a surprise, but now that I think about it, his gang was literally called 'The Testaments,' clearly I'm blind to the obvious. I love hiw witty banter with Randy and Lloyd. Doesn't help that he was a beast in combat for me. Overall, loved the characters in this game.
Gameplay wise, I love the inclusion of Master Quartz, made building people even better. I was finally able to make Wazy the ATS Nuke that he was always meant to be. Other than combo crafts between the new members of the SSS, there really wasn't much of a change. I do want to say however that the fight with the Silver Maiden is probably the most dope thing ever, solely because of the fact that her helmet had it's own HP bar. The fact I had to drag her into a corner with Lloyd's craft and spam arts against her on Nightmare really speaks to her strength.
Music, it's peak. I say this everytime, but it's true. The big standout for me is definitely the Thaumaturgical Sector theme, it's just such a bop. Others are great, but that was probably the one that stood out to me the most.
Final thoughts: Don't let people hyping a game up get to your head, it probably sours your experience if you don't agree. Personally, it's middle of the road for me, but it definitely has a strong case going for it as a fan favourite.
Alas, it has Wazy Hemisphere, so I feel that I'm obligated to give this game 5 stars anyways. Who's kidding, it's a trails game, so it's automatically getting 5 stars.
Honestly, I understand why people say Crossbell is peak because this duology probably has the best two games overall in the series.
I just love everything about Crossbell. I initially played this game wih the horrid translation, but still enjoyed my time with it. It wasn't until last year where I actually got to play it with a real translation in my Trails marathon, and my opinions on it definitely changed for the better.
Honestly, I think I prefer Crossbell as a setting much more to Liberl, not to say that Liberl is bad per se. Crossbell is just that good. I just love talking to each NPC in each Crossbell District after every story interaction and seeing how their dialogue changes. I also love walking along the highways (or taking the bus) and visiting the more remote locations of Crossbell like Mainz and Armorica. Crossbell is just the perfect setting for this game, especially when they explore the dark sides of Crossbell, like the Mafia. I just found it interesting how after Liberl, we were sent not to Erebonia, but to Crossbell of all places. A highly contested autonomous state between two major superpowers in Erebonia and Calvard. Crossbell is definitely my favourite country worldbuilding wise because of how much it has to even further paint the world of Zemuria. If you couldn't tell already I think Trails is the only game series ever to actually get me interested in its political structure and world.
Now let's actually start this review. From a story standpoint alone, I think this is the best game that the series has to offer (so far). I say that because, yeah, the game does start extremely slow, but I think that's valid because the Special Support Section are a new section of the Crossbell Police Department, and haven't earned the trust of locals, like the Bracer Guild has. The group has only been functioning for a little while and they're already trying to deal with Mafioso's and threat letters to celebrities. The Arc en Ciel part of Chapter 2 got me hooked into the story, exposing Mayor MacDowell's secretary and apprehending him. Chapter 3 was probably the most hype I've ever been. You got the anniversary festival with high highs with Estelle, Joshua, Wald, Wazy, and Randy. You also got the auction where you get more interested in Wazy, Mariebelle, and Lechter as characters. This chapter introduces you to KeA, who's just the ray of sunshine that the SSS needed to feel complete. The boss for Chapter 3 after stealing one of their prized posessions from the auction is probably the highlight for me. It's just so badass. I love the little intermission that gives us a little glimpse into the life of the SSS with KeA being added to their numbers. Also, storming a mafia base is just badass, and mkaes me love Chapter 4 as well.
I think the finale deserves it's own little section. Everything just hits the roof. The army and mafia have been drugged with Gnosis, and we find out one of the doctors at the hospital is the leader of a cult. The raid on the SSS and the IBC was great, but I hate how side characters like Grace and Cao were just commenting on us fighting hordes of enemies, like bro, help us? Anyways, I love the badass driving scene with Sergei and Noel, and we get to use Joshua and Estelle in the final dungeon. The final dungeon was creepy, stupid D:G cult. Honestly, the final dungeon felt rather underwhelming till the Garcia boss, and then the final boss, Joachim. Dude just downed a bunch of pills and became a demon. If not for Renne, it would of been curtains for everyone. The final boss dies, and the Brights finally adopt Renne which made me shed a tear not going to lie, it's been a three game journey for them. Overall, a very epic story, and personally one of my favourites.
Character wise, there's a bunch that stick out to me: Randy, Tio, Wazy, Fran, Jona, etc. Randy is interesting because on the surface he's all silly, but he's actually very serious. I just love and adore Tio and Fran. Jona just makes me laugh with his silly shenanigans, and Wazy is probably my favourite because he's just so mysterious and intrigues me and makes me want to know more. I actually thought Lloyd improved over time, and is a great protagonist. I know people don't really like Lloyd, but I just like how he's supportive of the entire group, and you can really tell that he cares for the entirety of the SSS, even in the little time that they spent together. Elie, I'm a bit iffy on, because I don't know what exactly she brings to the story, but maybe that's just me. Overall, this game has really good characters.
Battling, there's not much that's different from Sky, besides new Arts. At least they kept the orbment system, which I adore. I also enjoyed the addition of Evasion. Evasion Builds are just so fun in any game. Yeah, not much to say with battling, it is mostly the same.
The music. slaps. so. hard. The crossbell main theme, the highway themes, the Mainz theme, the Revache theme, the Stargazer Tower theme, the Ancient Battlefield theme, it's all just such a bop. I actually think I might prefer the Zero battle theme to Sophisticated Fight from Sky, idk it just hits differently. But yeah, the music slaps.
Some extremely minor gripes. I hate how the translators treat Lloyd like a playboy and oblivious, idk it just grates me for some reason. Also, I do not understand Wald as a character at all, he actually might be my least favourite in the series so far. That's about it for the gripes.
Overall, the game is extremely enjoyable, and I would honestly love to redo it all and experience it all again. It was that enjoyable.
I just love everything about Crossbell. I initially played this game wih the horrid translation, but still enjoyed my time with it. It wasn't until last year where I actually got to play it with a real translation in my Trails marathon, and my opinions on it definitely changed for the better.
Honestly, I think I prefer Crossbell as a setting much more to Liberl, not to say that Liberl is bad per se. Crossbell is just that good. I just love talking to each NPC in each Crossbell District after every story interaction and seeing how their dialogue changes. I also love walking along the highways (or taking the bus) and visiting the more remote locations of Crossbell like Mainz and Armorica. Crossbell is just the perfect setting for this game, especially when they explore the dark sides of Crossbell, like the Mafia. I just found it interesting how after Liberl, we were sent not to Erebonia, but to Crossbell of all places. A highly contested autonomous state between two major superpowers in Erebonia and Calvard. Crossbell is definitely my favourite country worldbuilding wise because of how much it has to even further paint the world of Zemuria. If you couldn't tell already I think Trails is the only game series ever to actually get me interested in its political structure and world.
Now let's actually start this review. From a story standpoint alone, I think this is the best game that the series has to offer (so far). I say that because, yeah, the game does start extremely slow, but I think that's valid because the Special Support Section are a new section of the Crossbell Police Department, and haven't earned the trust of locals, like the Bracer Guild has. The group has only been functioning for a little while and they're already trying to deal with Mafioso's and threat letters to celebrities. The Arc en Ciel part of Chapter 2 got me hooked into the story, exposing Mayor MacDowell's secretary and apprehending him. Chapter 3 was probably the most hype I've ever been. You got the anniversary festival with high highs with Estelle, Joshua, Wald, Wazy, and Randy. You also got the auction where you get more interested in Wazy, Mariebelle, and Lechter as characters. This chapter introduces you to KeA, who's just the ray of sunshine that the SSS needed to feel complete. The boss for Chapter 3 after stealing one of their prized posessions from the auction is probably the highlight for me. It's just so badass. I love the little intermission that gives us a little glimpse into the life of the SSS with KeA being added to their numbers. Also, storming a mafia base is just badass, and mkaes me love Chapter 4 as well.
I think the finale deserves it's own little section. Everything just hits the roof. The army and mafia have been drugged with Gnosis, and we find out one of the doctors at the hospital is the leader of a cult. The raid on the SSS and the IBC was great, but I hate how side characters like Grace and Cao were just commenting on us fighting hordes of enemies, like bro, help us? Anyways, I love the badass driving scene with Sergei and Noel, and we get to use Joshua and Estelle in the final dungeon. The final dungeon was creepy, stupid D:G cult. Honestly, the final dungeon felt rather underwhelming till the Garcia boss, and then the final boss, Joachim. Dude just downed a bunch of pills and became a demon. If not for Renne, it would of been curtains for everyone. The final boss dies, and the Brights finally adopt Renne which made me shed a tear not going to lie, it's been a three game journey for them. Overall, a very epic story, and personally one of my favourites.
Character wise, there's a bunch that stick out to me: Randy, Tio, Wazy, Fran, Jona, etc. Randy is interesting because on the surface he's all silly, but he's actually very serious. I just love and adore Tio and Fran. Jona just makes me laugh with his silly shenanigans, and Wazy is probably my favourite because he's just so mysterious and intrigues me and makes me want to know more. I actually thought Lloyd improved over time, and is a great protagonist. I know people don't really like Lloyd, but I just like how he's supportive of the entire group, and you can really tell that he cares for the entirety of the SSS, even in the little time that they spent together. Elie, I'm a bit iffy on, because I don't know what exactly she brings to the story, but maybe that's just me. Overall, this game has really good characters.
Battling, there's not much that's different from Sky, besides new Arts. At least they kept the orbment system, which I adore. I also enjoyed the addition of Evasion. Evasion Builds are just so fun in any game. Yeah, not much to say with battling, it is mostly the same.
The music. slaps. so. hard. The crossbell main theme, the highway themes, the Mainz theme, the Revache theme, the Stargazer Tower theme, the Ancient Battlefield theme, it's all just such a bop. I actually think I might prefer the Zero battle theme to Sophisticated Fight from Sky, idk it just hits differently. But yeah, the music slaps.
Some extremely minor gripes. I hate how the translators treat Lloyd like a playboy and oblivious, idk it just grates me for some reason. Also, I do not understand Wald as a character at all, he actually might be my least favourite in the series so far. That's about it for the gripes.
Overall, the game is extremely enjoyable, and I would honestly love to redo it all and experience it all again. It was that enjoyable.
Oh my god this is so peak. Storytelling, art style, music are all so so soo good! It took me a little bit to adjust to the combat part of the game, but when I came to it, it was so satisfying obliterating hordes of enemies. Definitely ranks highly as a game for me.
This review contains spoilers
Kevin Grahame and Ries Argent are PEAK. PEAK I SAY.
Trails in the Sky the 3rd is a great game, I don't know why people dislike it? Kevin is probably unironically my favourite protagonist and probably in my top 4 characters in the Liberl arc.
Let's start with world building. This is absolutely peak. It sets up so much things for future games. The Star, Moon, and Sun doors all help with this of course, and I thoroughly enjoyed them. Star Doors 13, 14, and 15 are probably the best of them all. 13 sets up lore for Cold Steel, 14 also sets up the lore for Ouroboros, and introduces us to the Phantasmal Blaze Plan. Star Door 15 got me all types of messed up. I don't even want to recall it because it messed me up that badly. I also enjoyed the minigames in the Sun Doors, the fishing minigame had peak music.
Battling! I enjoyed that Estelle and Joshua were no longer required party members, and instead Kevin and Ries were (but weren't for some chapters). Even though I say that, I still used Joshua on my team because why the heck not. I loved the additions of Richard and Renne to the playable cast, not much so for Josette because of how insanely bad her kit is. I've never seen such a horrible orbment and crafts. My main team was a mix of Kevin, Ries, Renne, Joshua, Kloe, and Olivier. I played the game on Nightmare, and I firmly believe that this trilogy was not made for the Nightmare difficulty because of how unforgiving the games are.
Story wise, I love how we got Kevin's backstory and we looked a little bit into the Gralsritter. I cried at the Aster House part and the reveal that Kevin killed Rufina. And to top it all off, Ries and Kevin got dragged into hell, which was really interesting, and to top it all off, we got to off Weissman once again. I don't think there was anything they could've done differently chapter wise, considering Phantasma was kind of restricting. I enjoyed the Grancel chapter, as well as the Golden and Silver Road chapters. But Chapter 7 was peak because you got to go to the Glorious, Jenis Academy, Leiston Fortress, and Ourboros' base. We finally got Cassius as a boss fight and that was seriously unforgiving. Also the triple enforcer fight was so annoying. Overall, I enjoyed the story, but it really got my heart strings at the end, when they were all leaving through the gate. Especially hurt when Renne didn't know what to do and ran off. Can't really make a child that's been traumatised make a decision like that yet.
Overall, great game and a great end to the trilogy. Excited for Crossbell and Erebonia!
Trails in the Sky the 3rd is a great game, I don't know why people dislike it? Kevin is probably unironically my favourite protagonist and probably in my top 4 characters in the Liberl arc.
Let's start with world building. This is absolutely peak. It sets up so much things for future games. The Star, Moon, and Sun doors all help with this of course, and I thoroughly enjoyed them. Star Doors 13, 14, and 15 are probably the best of them all. 13 sets up lore for Cold Steel, 14 also sets up the lore for Ouroboros, and introduces us to the Phantasmal Blaze Plan. Star Door 15 got me all types of messed up. I don't even want to recall it because it messed me up that badly. I also enjoyed the minigames in the Sun Doors, the fishing minigame had peak music.
Battling! I enjoyed that Estelle and Joshua were no longer required party members, and instead Kevin and Ries were (but weren't for some chapters). Even though I say that, I still used Joshua on my team because why the heck not. I loved the additions of Richard and Renne to the playable cast, not much so for Josette because of how insanely bad her kit is. I've never seen such a horrible orbment and crafts. My main team was a mix of Kevin, Ries, Renne, Joshua, Kloe, and Olivier. I played the game on Nightmare, and I firmly believe that this trilogy was not made for the Nightmare difficulty because of how unforgiving the games are.
Story wise, I love how we got Kevin's backstory and we looked a little bit into the Gralsritter. I cried at the Aster House part and the reveal that Kevin killed Rufina. And to top it all off, Ries and Kevin got dragged into hell, which was really interesting, and to top it all off, we got to off Weissman once again. I don't think there was anything they could've done differently chapter wise, considering Phantasma was kind of restricting. I enjoyed the Grancel chapter, as well as the Golden and Silver Road chapters. But Chapter 7 was peak because you got to go to the Glorious, Jenis Academy, Leiston Fortress, and Ourboros' base. We finally got Cassius as a boss fight and that was seriously unforgiving. Also the triple enforcer fight was so annoying. Overall, I enjoyed the story, but it really got my heart strings at the end, when they were all leaving through the gate. Especially hurt when Renne didn't know what to do and ran off. Can't really make a child that's been traumatised make a decision like that yet.
Overall, great game and a great end to the trilogy. Excited for Crossbell and Erebonia!
This review contains spoilers
All I have to say is that this game is PEAK PEAK PEAK.
Anyways second Trails game review. I didn't know what I was getting myself into after the cliffhanger of the first game but I definitely needed to play this game for some closure.
I'll actually talk about the gameplay first. Maybe I'm just an idiot but I actually decided to use the food we cook in recipes for this game! Especially the food where you can use it to damage enemies in battle. Also, I'm glad that they finally incorporated actual attack arts for space, I was really annoyed that the first game didn't have any. Most of the gameplay remains the same, but they incorporated Chain Crafts (I think that's what they were called, it's been a while since I played this game). Now coming from someone who completed this game on Nightmare, I didn't really use them (maybe I should've, might've made this game way more forgiving on the hardest difficulty), just never really saw the need to when most of my characters had no CP to use anyways. But EP will always be king in these games.
Like I said in my last review, the worldbuilding is phenomenal, and only continues to get better in this game. The grave importance of the Non-Aggression Pact between Liberl, Erebonia and Calvard made the situation all the more tense. On top of all of that, you had Ouroboros being snakes around the entirety of Liberl and trying to cause chaos, and they're just really weird. And Hamel, that stuff got my blood boiling when I found out about it. I think if a game is truly able to get my blood boiling for fictional content, I may as well just resign myself to the entire series, it's seriously that great.
I love love love the story in this game. Estelle goes on a double mission, to gather intel on Ouroboros, and to find Joshua. Dammit Joshua, why'd you have to leave, you carried me in the previous game. Anyways, I enjoyed going back to each city in different order, as well as being able to use the old squad, but also new characters like Anelace and Kevin. I enjoyed getting to discover the different Enforcers of Ouroboros, with many having relationships with other party members. Ouroboros in a whole is just mysterious, but I think it's better that way, as we aren't really meant to know how they operate. Oh yeah, did I ever mention how much I hate Weissman? Well, I hate him, he sucks. The one part of the game that I disliked was where you had to climb the four Tetracyclic Towers, it felt so repetitive, but I enjoyed each of the boss fights (even if I had to restart on each of them a bunch of times until I figured out a strategy). Now, the endgame was truly when this game became peak. Olivier being royalty, yeah sort of saw that coming, but the Liber Ark and how they essentially just eliminated our orbments for part of the final chapter. Brilliant incorporation of the story into the gameplay, even if it was annoying to deal with. The Liber Ark felt like a true boss rush, fighting some of the strongest members of Ouroboros to stop their Gospel plan. The Joshua and Loewe scene kind of got me near the end there. The final boss, honestly not that memorable, all I remember is Weissman summoning a bunch of ads that just kept deleting my Earth Wall.
Kevin killing Weissman was the cherry on top, and really got me interested in Kevin's character and backstory. I felt that Estelle and Joshua's arc was handled great, and I just love a lot of things about this game. That last part of the game where Joshua and Estelle are about to 'die' didn't have as much of an emotional impact on me, as I knew they would survive due to there being another game after this one, but nonetheless, it still did hit me. And of course, Cassius had to ride in on his dragon and rescue us.
A great game, and a great game to end Estelle and Joshua's story, but only beginning their adventures as senior bracers.
BLORF.
Anyways second Trails game review. I didn't know what I was getting myself into after the cliffhanger of the first game but I definitely needed to play this game for some closure.
I'll actually talk about the gameplay first. Maybe I'm just an idiot but I actually decided to use the food we cook in recipes for this game! Especially the food where you can use it to damage enemies in battle. Also, I'm glad that they finally incorporated actual attack arts for space, I was really annoyed that the first game didn't have any. Most of the gameplay remains the same, but they incorporated Chain Crafts (I think that's what they were called, it's been a while since I played this game). Now coming from someone who completed this game on Nightmare, I didn't really use them (maybe I should've, might've made this game way more forgiving on the hardest difficulty), just never really saw the need to when most of my characters had no CP to use anyways. But EP will always be king in these games.
Like I said in my last review, the worldbuilding is phenomenal, and only continues to get better in this game. The grave importance of the Non-Aggression Pact between Liberl, Erebonia and Calvard made the situation all the more tense. On top of all of that, you had Ouroboros being snakes around the entirety of Liberl and trying to cause chaos, and they're just really weird. And Hamel, that stuff got my blood boiling when I found out about it. I think if a game is truly able to get my blood boiling for fictional content, I may as well just resign myself to the entire series, it's seriously that great.
I love love love the story in this game. Estelle goes on a double mission, to gather intel on Ouroboros, and to find Joshua. Dammit Joshua, why'd you have to leave, you carried me in the previous game. Anyways, I enjoyed going back to each city in different order, as well as being able to use the old squad, but also new characters like Anelace and Kevin. I enjoyed getting to discover the different Enforcers of Ouroboros, with many having relationships with other party members. Ouroboros in a whole is just mysterious, but I think it's better that way, as we aren't really meant to know how they operate. Oh yeah, did I ever mention how much I hate Weissman? Well, I hate him, he sucks. The one part of the game that I disliked was where you had to climb the four Tetracyclic Towers, it felt so repetitive, but I enjoyed each of the boss fights (even if I had to restart on each of them a bunch of times until I figured out a strategy). Now, the endgame was truly when this game became peak. Olivier being royalty, yeah sort of saw that coming, but the Liber Ark and how they essentially just eliminated our orbments for part of the final chapter. Brilliant incorporation of the story into the gameplay, even if it was annoying to deal with. The Liber Ark felt like a true boss rush, fighting some of the strongest members of Ouroboros to stop their Gospel plan. The Joshua and Loewe scene kind of got me near the end there. The final boss, honestly not that memorable, all I remember is Weissman summoning a bunch of ads that just kept deleting my Earth Wall.
Kevin killing Weissman was the cherry on top, and really got me interested in Kevin's character and backstory. I felt that Estelle and Joshua's arc was handled great, and I just love a lot of things about this game. That last part of the game where Joshua and Estelle are about to 'die' didn't have as much of an emotional impact on me, as I knew they would survive due to there being another game after this one, but nonetheless, it still did hit me. And of course, Cassius had to ride in on his dragon and rescue us.
A great game, and a great game to end Estelle and Joshua's story, but only beginning their adventures as senior bracers.
BLORF.
This review contains spoilers
It was the summer of 2020, it was in the middle of the pandemic, and I see a game on sale on the steam store titled 'The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III'. Yeah, not what you were expecting me to say, but let me tell you, when I first saw the gameplay and trailer for that game, I think that's when I became a trails degenerate and decided to go to the beginning of the series, with Trails in the Sky.
Honestly, I don't even know where to begin. The main thing that got me hooked into the series was the wordbuilding of Zemuria, I just thought of it as being so sick and cool and I needed more.
The beginning of the game was pretty slow and chill, sure, but I loved it. I'm also used to these types of games so that didn't really kill it for me. Estelle and Joshua bounce off of each other so well that I started to fall in love with them as a duo, Joshua especially. I could tell they were going to plot something with Joshua, just wasn't sure what it was going to evolve into. The rest of the cast is also pretty cool, with the main highlight in my opinion being Olivier. You can't top Olivier in terms of personality I'm afraid. As far as I'm concerned, HE'S PEAK!
The battle system also drew me in and probably became one of my most favourite battle systems ever. Idk there's just something that hits different about being able to interrupt the turn order and steal bonuses, guess it's just a rush. I love the orbment system and the different types of arts you could cast with the different quartz setups.
Regarding the plot, it felt like we were going on an adventure around Liberl (well that's what it was literally so I guess they hit another bullseye). I enjoyed how after every chapter we would rotate characters and be introduced to new ones. The chemistry between some of the party members was amazing. You got Estelle and Scherazard, Estelle and Agate, Estelle and Joshua, Estelle and Tita, honestly Estelle just bounces off of everyone really well. The party dynamics and chemistry was amazing and it just made the game that much more enjoyable. Honestly kind of lit how a pair of two teenagers had to put a stop to a coup that could've potentially toppled the entire kingdom. Overall, I was satisfied with the entire plot, and the Joshua plot reveal was probably the best part of the game imo. It definitely got me interested in Ouroboros as an organization, and judging by the fact that this is only the first game in like a twelve, soon to be thirteen, game series, I am beyond excited for how they expand on them.
Great game, would recommend, will be replaying it. Just play it please and give it a chance, you'll love it, unless you don't, then that's also an opinion!
Honestly, I don't even know where to begin. The main thing that got me hooked into the series was the wordbuilding of Zemuria, I just thought of it as being so sick and cool and I needed more.
The beginning of the game was pretty slow and chill, sure, but I loved it. I'm also used to these types of games so that didn't really kill it for me. Estelle and Joshua bounce off of each other so well that I started to fall in love with them as a duo, Joshua especially. I could tell they were going to plot something with Joshua, just wasn't sure what it was going to evolve into. The rest of the cast is also pretty cool, with the main highlight in my opinion being Olivier. You can't top Olivier in terms of personality I'm afraid. As far as I'm concerned, HE'S PEAK!
The battle system also drew me in and probably became one of my most favourite battle systems ever. Idk there's just something that hits different about being able to interrupt the turn order and steal bonuses, guess it's just a rush. I love the orbment system and the different types of arts you could cast with the different quartz setups.
Regarding the plot, it felt like we were going on an adventure around Liberl (well that's what it was literally so I guess they hit another bullseye). I enjoyed how after every chapter we would rotate characters and be introduced to new ones. The chemistry between some of the party members was amazing. You got Estelle and Scherazard, Estelle and Agate, Estelle and Joshua, Estelle and Tita, honestly Estelle just bounces off of everyone really well. The party dynamics and chemistry was amazing and it just made the game that much more enjoyable. Honestly kind of lit how a pair of two teenagers had to put a stop to a coup that could've potentially toppled the entire kingdom. Overall, I was satisfied with the entire plot, and the Joshua plot reveal was probably the best part of the game imo. It definitely got me interested in Ouroboros as an organization, and judging by the fact that this is only the first game in like a twelve, soon to be thirteen, game series, I am beyond excited for how they expand on them.
Great game, would recommend, will be replaying it. Just play it please and give it a chance, you'll love it, unless you don't, then that's also an opinion!
War has changed.
Metal Gear Solid 4 is an achievement in fiction not just as a game or "movie" as some would describe it, but as a work of transformative art made only possible by a man as intricate and fascinating as Hideo Kojima. What Guns of the Patriots is able to do is close a chapter on the world of a franchise born in the eighties, with poignant and predictive storytelling truly ahead of its time. There is nothing like Metal Gear Solid in media today, there was nothing like it before, and there may be nothing like it after. The way MGS and Kojima were able to weave meta commentary on politics, war, and sociocultural impact is nothing short of miraculous. Touching on this story without devolving into spoilers is rather difficult, but I will say to anyone willing to embark on this incredible journey, it is worth it. This is the first time in a long time that I am truly speechless and having a tough time writing my post gameplay review. They almost always flow naturally from my fingertips, written as if they were a stream of consciousness... but alas Kojima has checkmated anything I could put to proverbial paper.
Metal Gear Solid 4 is a conjunction of MGS2/3's sneaking playstyle and the storytelling of a feature film. There's countless moments where you as the player are invited to put down your controller and watch a narrative maestro at work, carefully weaving together histories and plotlines that developed fifty years before this game takes place. In a way Chekov's gun reigns true, as KojiPro was able to close almost every conceivable plotline and moment from the series in this title alone in the way of convenient plot elements and character monologues/soliloquy. The story that began with the hero known as Snake aka Big Boss, Zero, Ocelot, and Eva all comes to a halt as does the hatred that drove them and the world all apart. The control of information and the puppetering of the war economy become a driving force for the antagonists as they steer humanity into a dark age of conformance. Can Solid Snake, Otacon, and their crew of problematic miscreants save the world in a myserious war against their psyches? The answer is provided in Guns of the Patriots, and it will take you and your creative whimsy into a previously untapped locale of media.
With the recent news of the revival of MGS for modern platforms, I am cautiously optimistic for a new generation of gamers to encounter (heh) the incredible world that Metal Gear truly is. I hope they are able to dissect the commentary that is written in about our future and our past from the game they are playing. I hope they can laugh in one moment to ponder the existence of memetics as a cultural driving force in the next.
Shine on Big Boss, Solid Snake, Otacon, and Hideo Kojima.
War has changed.
Metal Gear Solid 4 is an achievement in fiction not just as a game or "movie" as some would describe it, but as a work of transformative art made only possible by a man as intricate and fascinating as Hideo Kojima. What Guns of the Patriots is able to do is close a chapter on the world of a franchise born in the eighties, with poignant and predictive storytelling truly ahead of its time. There is nothing like Metal Gear Solid in media today, there was nothing like it before, and there may be nothing like it after. The way MGS and Kojima were able to weave meta commentary on politics, war, and sociocultural impact is nothing short of miraculous. Touching on this story without devolving into spoilers is rather difficult, but I will say to anyone willing to embark on this incredible journey, it is worth it. This is the first time in a long time that I am truly speechless and having a tough time writing my post gameplay review. They almost always flow naturally from my fingertips, written as if they were a stream of consciousness... but alas Kojima has checkmated anything I could put to proverbial paper.
Metal Gear Solid 4 is a conjunction of MGS2/3's sneaking playstyle and the storytelling of a feature film. There's countless moments where you as the player are invited to put down your controller and watch a narrative maestro at work, carefully weaving together histories and plotlines that developed fifty years before this game takes place. In a way Chekov's gun reigns true, as KojiPro was able to close almost every conceivable plotline and moment from the series in this title alone in the way of convenient plot elements and character monologues/soliloquy. The story that began with the hero known as Snake aka Big Boss, Zero, Ocelot, and Eva all comes to a halt as does the hatred that drove them and the world all apart. The control of information and the puppetering of the war economy become a driving force for the antagonists as they steer humanity into a dark age of conformance. Can Solid Snake, Otacon, and their crew of problematic miscreants save the world in a myserious war against their psyches? The answer is provided in Guns of the Patriots, and it will take you and your creative whimsy into a previously untapped locale of media.
With the recent news of the revival of MGS for modern platforms, I am cautiously optimistic for a new generation of gamers to encounter (heh) the incredible world that Metal Gear truly is. I hope they are able to dissect the commentary that is written in about our future and our past from the game they are playing. I hope they can laugh in one moment to ponder the existence of memetics as a cultural driving force in the next.
Shine on Big Boss, Solid Snake, Otacon, and Hideo Kojima.
War has changed.
Ratchet & Clank
2002
This is my fav game!!! I just really love the levels you explore in, theyre really colorful and interesting to look at and the weapons are really cool. All of them are cool in their own way even if some aren’t useful. and the writing is pretty funny too. Idk why the replaced ratchets voice in the 2nd game he sounds really nice here, but that aside although ratchet and clanks conflict arc came out sort of out of nowhere and it does seem a bit random i still really like it because theses two have to learn to work together. the music is great and i just have more of a nostalgic bias for this game :P
*This is coming from a guy who beat all Trails games after the Liberl arc and its the final arc that still need to be played.
Trails in the Sky FC is a slow-burn, but a pretty solid game. As the very first story to tell in Zemuria, the story was extremely character driven with it doing the job of introducing the settings and concepts that'll stick with the series until the end of the series's storyline. However, because of those introductory elements, FC suffers on a very slow start with the pacing being slow paced and low-staked. While I carried through due to my experience with the future arcs, I had to admit the story was pretty slow despite me liking the characters from the get go. I'll honestly say it took until Ruan for me to fully be invested in it. Despite the story stakes being slow and low stakes, the character moments definitely makes up for it with its strong writing and developments. Estelle Bright is indeed Bestelle (though Kloe was personal favorite). Gameplay is pretty simple, with the quartz system being the factor of making the game entertaining for anyone. Despite how initially confusing it looks, the quartz system is simple and with the right art setup can snowball your characters into winning any fights since arts are king in the game in terms of damage output. Despite that, you'll only stick with usually two same characters as you traverse Liberl, you get shuffling character that fit for any story moment in each location. For the most part, you only really need to worry about equipping gear your two main character being Estelle and Joshua Bright. The system is extremely simple, but its a recipe for it to get better. Visually, while it looks a bit dated, the 3-Dish sprites are charming and the cities are all distinctly different. Music is great with my favorites being Ruan, Zeiss, and Silver Will. Finally, talking to the named NPCS were just fun as some have small development over the course of story events. It shows the attention to detail Falcom gave to the game (which they continue to do for every future game). Overall, recommend it as the excellent starting point since it's the first chronological story of a long series. However, understand it is more character-focused so come in the game with that in the mind.
Trails in the Sky FC is a slow-burn, but a pretty solid game. As the very first story to tell in Zemuria, the story was extremely character driven with it doing the job of introducing the settings and concepts that'll stick with the series until the end of the series's storyline. However, because of those introductory elements, FC suffers on a very slow start with the pacing being slow paced and low-staked. While I carried through due to my experience with the future arcs, I had to admit the story was pretty slow despite me liking the characters from the get go. I'll honestly say it took until Ruan for me to fully be invested in it. Despite the story stakes being slow and low stakes, the character moments definitely makes up for it with its strong writing and developments. Estelle Bright is indeed Bestelle (though Kloe was personal favorite). Gameplay is pretty simple, with the quartz system being the factor of making the game entertaining for anyone. Despite how initially confusing it looks, the quartz system is simple and with the right art setup can snowball your characters into winning any fights since arts are king in the game in terms of damage output. Despite that, you'll only stick with usually two same characters as you traverse Liberl, you get shuffling character that fit for any story moment in each location. For the most part, you only really need to worry about equipping gear your two main character being Estelle and Joshua Bright. The system is extremely simple, but its a recipe for it to get better. Visually, while it looks a bit dated, the 3-Dish sprites are charming and the cities are all distinctly different. Music is great with my favorites being Ruan, Zeiss, and Silver Will. Finally, talking to the named NPCS were just fun as some have small development over the course of story events. It shows the attention to detail Falcom gave to the game (which they continue to do for every future game). Overall, recommend it as the excellent starting point since it's the first chronological story of a long series. However, understand it is more character-focused so come in the game with that in the mind.
Ys I Chronicles+
2013
*I played the PSP version as I had problems with black screen occurring in my files for Ys I.
Ys I is a pretty fun game for about 75% of the time. The bumb combat system that was created due to the lack of an action button was weird, but easy to get used to. Exploring Esteria felt fun due to how quick it was and the banging ost from Falcom Sound Team. While it had some crypticness in terms of finding the next objective, there were clues that did hint on what you were supposed to be doing. The only part that was definitely cryptic was at the last part of the game. Also, the game was cryptic in the items not being usable in boss battles. While the plot and characters are simple, the lore and mysteries in Esteria were intincing enough and the upgraded art does give some characters to shine. The biggest flaw of the game were the bosses. Most of them were inoffensive to mildly annoying t best. However, a peculiar bat boss and the final boss were the most frustrating parts of the game. Especially the final boss as his fireballs and destroying floors were terrible game design. I salute all players whom beat him on PC as his fire balls are faster than on PSP. Just for those two bosses alone, the game falls to a 3.5/5. Despite those bumbs, the game is still fun and short to beat (if you know what you're doing). Easy recommendation for anyone trying out Ys for the first time.
Ys I is a pretty fun game for about 75% of the time. The bumb combat system that was created due to the lack of an action button was weird, but easy to get used to. Exploring Esteria felt fun due to how quick it was and the banging ost from Falcom Sound Team. While it had some crypticness in terms of finding the next objective, there were clues that did hint on what you were supposed to be doing. The only part that was definitely cryptic was at the last part of the game. Also, the game was cryptic in the items not being usable in boss battles. While the plot and characters are simple, the lore and mysteries in Esteria were intincing enough and the upgraded art does give some characters to shine. The biggest flaw of the game were the bosses. Most of them were inoffensive to mildly annoying t best. However, a peculiar bat boss and the final boss were the most frustrating parts of the game. Especially the final boss as his fireballs and destroying floors were terrible game design. I salute all players whom beat him on PC as his fire balls are faster than on PSP. Just for those two bosses alone, the game falls to a 3.5/5. Despite those bumbs, the game is still fun and short to beat (if you know what you're doing). Easy recommendation for anyone trying out Ys for the first time.
Ys II Chronicles+
2013
*I finished Ys II on PSP due to my PC causing the textboxes to disappear.
Ys II is straight-up an upgrade to what Ys I was. Having the same bump system, Ys II polishes some of the annoyances that Ys I suffered with a satisfying conclusion to the adventures in Esteria. The combat felt smoother as I felt I was hitting the enemies more than the enemies hitting me on accident. Magic is introduced and while basic - was fun to use. Exploring the flying island of Ys was still fun with a banger ost and the direction for the most part was easy to figure out. While the bosses aren't still that great, none of them were as frustrating as the bosses from Ys I. The only negative I had was that some clues of your next quest were obtused and the final dungeon was a bit too long in comparison to Darm Tower from Ys I. I also would say the final bosses was too easy, but considering Ys I's final boss's terrible game design, I can excuse it as a final victory lap. Overall, Ys II improves Ys I's combat and is simply a solid fun game. Easy recommend for those that just finished Ys I. 4/5.
Ys II is straight-up an upgrade to what Ys I was. Having the same bump system, Ys II polishes some of the annoyances that Ys I suffered with a satisfying conclusion to the adventures in Esteria. The combat felt smoother as I felt I was hitting the enemies more than the enemies hitting me on accident. Magic is introduced and while basic - was fun to use. Exploring the flying island of Ys was still fun with a banger ost and the direction for the most part was easy to figure out. While the bosses aren't still that great, none of them were as frustrating as the bosses from Ys I. The only negative I had was that some clues of your next quest were obtused and the final dungeon was a bit too long in comparison to Darm Tower from Ys I. I also would say the final bosses was too easy, but considering Ys I's final boss's terrible game design, I can excuse it as a final victory lap. Overall, Ys II improves Ys I's combat and is simply a solid fun game. Easy recommend for those that just finished Ys I. 4/5.