Well, Trails has finally truly impressed me. This is definitely my kinda series after all.

3rd has decent pacing of things happening the entire time, though that is partially helped by its shorter length. The dungeon structure is preferable to FC's and SC's for me, and there is way less backtracking. It has a complex main character and a personal character-driven story. The combat system is mostly similar to FC and SC, but the way it ties into the story here more often is cool. Most of the 3rd music is the best in the series so far for me, especially the final boss theme and the OP.

Every problem I had with FC and SC have been fixed. Nobody is annoying anymore; a lot of the story is a love letter to the Sky games in general. Hell, some characters are better in this game than the previous ones. I even care more about Joshua and Estelle in 3rd than I did in FC and SC.

It's also got the majority of the emotional and dark moments (especially that one door) of Trails in the Sky. I genuinely cried to a few of them, which hasn't happened with Trails so far.

I will be continuing onto Crossbell with high expectations.

I genuinely have no words. This game has become my favourite video game of all time, with the exception of a single visual novel. It set a new standard that I think I'll have to readjust quite a few of my ratings now. It's honestly difficult to even begin describing how I feel about this game, but I'll try.

Reverie is both a love letter and epilogue to the first three arcs of Trails, as well as the prologue to what comes next.

From the homely Liberl, to Crossbell's history of oppression and melting pot of a culture, to Erebonia's oppressive yet fascinating existence. From Estelle and Joshua's journey, to Lloyd's unyielding determination, to Rean's saga. All of that was already settled in Cold Steel IV, but unlike the bombastic, massive battles where everyone (well, almost — sorry, Kevin) from every possible side joined to end the conflict once and for all, Reverie decides to focus on a smaller amount of characters and make them go through incredible character development. That's not to say the stakes are low, though — this is still a JRPG. And so, the game, before the finale is split into three routes (actually just POV chapters but whatever), between which you can usually switch at will.

Lloyd's route, despite being the weakest of the three, is something that his character definitely benefits from. We have seen the SSS fight tooth and nail for Crossbell so many times that they, and other people, have forced expectations onto them. The land of Crossbell has been under constant threat of dictatorship and occupation by multiple parties. They just don't want to leave them alone. In spite of that, though, our guy Lloyd, who would face down the sun falling from the sky onto him and would still get back up, is still Lloyd, and it's hard not to love him for it.

Rean's route is a fitting after-story for the completion of his arc in CS4. While that arc may have ended, having doubts after everything is said and done is natural. It feels very organic and fitting as a character study.

C is a newcomer protagonist, and compared to the other two in this game, is more morally questionable. As someone with a dark past, he bonds with other misfits with complicated backgrounds. It's honestly really difficult to talk about this any further without spoilers, so I won't. But I'll just say that he's incredible.

Making a shorter Trails game split into three routes does wonders for this story's pacing, while at the same time having a wealth of side content. This is probably the best paced Trails game since Azure, and possible ever.

Falcom is at its peak with the technical (or at least until Daybreak/Kuro, wow that game is phenomenal), visual and sound aspects here. This is a very stylised game, with probably my favourite Trails soundtrack, which is saying a lot. Every route gets their own battle themes in a fitting style, such as having the spiritual sequel to Zero's Get Over the Barrier! and Azure's Seize the Truth! in Lloyd's route and Crossbell, as well as C's route's tracks, which blew me away. Not to mention the wonderful OP track. The gameplay is pretty much the same as CS4, but no complaints at that front either, especially since I enjoyed the fights in this one more. Trails was already my favourite JRPG turn-based combat of all time, and this just further cemented it.

While playing this series I was wondering what about it works so well for me. Before starting Trails, I was wondering if a 500+ hour series can even be worth it. Seemed like a series that would not be amazing enough to justify such a lengthy commitment over shorter, yet acclaimed JRPGs.

Trails, when it wants to be, is a masterclass on what you can achieve with characters and world building in a JRPG. Well, of course the several hundred hour long series would have good world building, but it is impressive nonetheless, especially if you're a completionist. I'm not one myself, but it would be a perfect fit if I was. The amount of dialogue NPCs have after any given story event is crazy. And then there's the in-story lore and world. The regions in every game feel completely different, and if you go back to a previous region in a future game, it feels like coming home. Different musical styles, viewpoints, vibes, etc. It's not like Falcom made a carbon copy of Tolkien's world or something — to me, Zemuria is one of a kind. This variety extends to the characters, too. The protagonists of the games so far (Estelle, Kevin, Lloyd, Rean, C) couldn't be more different. Despite being a series with plenty of tropes, it has enough diversity to feel fresh every time. That includes thematically. It's impossible for me not to look forward to what they'll show me next, especially with this behemoth of a buildup. Trails is just special to me. This review I'm writing is longer than my usual ones, but it feels like I can always say more.

It's also impressive but kind of funny how this game doubles as damage control for people's issues with CS4. If you liked CS4, there's little doubt you'll like this a lot. And if you hated CS4, you will probably enjoys this a lot more. This game is as much Cold Steel 5 as it is Crossbell 3, and as someone who's greatly enjoyed both sagas, I couldn't be happier. I will probably do some side content in this game for some time, or maybe I'll take a break. Or maybe I'll just boot up Kuro 1 (Daybreak 1) ASAP. Who knows.

This game marks the end of one thing, but the beginning of another. Liberlian Bracers, Kevin, the SSS, Class VII, it's been a pleasure to witness your journeys. This is goodbye for now, but I'm sure I'll see you again... Someday, somewhere.

This game is FUCKING CRAZY. I was skeptical over whether they'd top Sky the 3rd yet they somehow did.

I don't know how they did it, they somehow made three back-to-back 5-star, 10/10 games. This has NEVER happened to me in another series, even my favourites.

It's extremely emotional, the artstyle is awesome, it's fun to play (the small gameplay additions compared to Zero are appreciated), the characters are all awesome, they throw so many twists at you, the likes of which I haven't been this affected by since finishing my top 10 favourites across all media, that you can't help but binge. The backtracking is some of the least tedious in the entire genre from what I've seen. This is one of the closest things I've seen to perfection, from concept to execution, in my life. My only actual complaint is that the difficulty curve is kind of unreasonable in the last few fights of the game, but who cares, it was really hype.

And oh my GOD, the music... Trails already secured its place as #1 in terms of OST, beating Umineko, but this is on a whole other level. You have so many bangers, like the Azure Arbitrator or Mystic Core, but they're far from the only ones.

In terms of favourites, I'd place it around Utawarerumono 3. It's just that good.

I will be slowing down with my Trails binging and going through Cold Steel at a more leisurely pace so that I don't burn out but... wow, I'm definitely a fan.

Cold Steel I is a game that almost doesn't feel like Trails. It's 3D now, the MC is more anime than all the others (the entire female cast wants him + Persona dating social links), a vast majority of the plot is episodic city exploration that bloats the narrative more than the previous games ever did. But the high points, especially the last part, redeem it.

The music is great (an obvious statement about a Trails game, but noteworthy nonetheless), the combat system is a step up from Crossbell's, and it just feels fun to play, with even its duller moments being pretty comfy. It doesn't have Sky's comfortable and homely vibe, it doesn't have Sky 3rd's level of themes and character writing, it doesn't have Crossbell's consistency and high points overall writing wise, but it does have one thing that it crushes the previous games in — the rule of cool.

Rean (as of this game) is no Kevin, but his struggles are quite compelling, and more importantly, he has a katana, which is the coolest weapon a Trails MC has had yet. He is a cool swordsman. And Cold Steel is very cool when it wants to be. The last act some real hype moments that rarely work for me in videogames, and they were done creatively. I immediately booted up the beginning of CS2 because I just couldn't wait.

Despite at times looking like an obvious lower budget JRPG (why replace 2D character portraits with 3D models..? it took some time to get used to), and having a worse (IMO) art style than Crossbell, CS1 definitely has a nice visual style. Despite being the first 3D Trails game, once you get used to how it looks, it's really nice seeing environments that would have been previously seen from a 2.5D, top-down view in their full glory.

Overall, it's a heavily flawed, inconsistent, almost messy (you could even say it sucks sometimes) game, but when it hits, it's very exciting, and leaves you wanting more. I can't wait to see more of this journey.

So, I was sick in bed these past few days and have been going through this. At times it was the perfect thing to distract me as I got better, and at other times I genuinely think it gave me a worse migraine and fatigue than being sick ever did.

CS2 is weird because its peaks are higher than CS1's right from the beginning with its awesome premise, but it meanders more than CS1 or any of the Sky games ever did. You have so many similar dungeons that go on and on and on, with the game often involving repetition of slightly similar events or places in other areas in the middle of the game, as well as its later portion. Also, the game seems to never want to end, there's an epilogue after the credits to the finale, and then the intermission before the actual finale. I didn't mind it that much though because I really liked the Intermission and Divertissement chapters, but the actual last chapter being that long was unjustified. At least it was pretty emotional near the end, and the point it was trying to deliver was interesting. Rean's rival of sorts is pretty nice too, but I wish they had more screen time.

Overall a fun game, I'd put it above CS1. It is more ambitious than CS1, but more flawed for sure. I did play the intro to CS3 and the graphical upgrades that come with Falcom moving on from the PS Vita and years of technical advancement, as well as the improved gameplay and insane music have me very excited to play more.

It's definitely flawed, I can definitely see where the complaints come from, but honestly, it's been a blast for me, and a major step up from CS1 and CS2. Definitely one of the better first parts of Trails arcs, not just graphically and with gameplay, but in terms of raw enjoyment and pacing. I might be in the minority with some of these, though.

A lot of first parts in Trails arcs are about exploration and character interaction, and I think the mentor/student dynamic in a school setting really helps with that. The more militaristic and sci-fi-ish setting really works for me. The field trips have some of the most fun episodic Trails content for me, and some of the cast being from Crossbell really brings an interesting dynamic to a cast that is for the most part from Erebonia. I also really like Rean in this one.

That ending really hit for me, as well. No idea how people waited an entire year for CS4 to come out like this. I immediately opened up CS4 and played the prologue, which blew me away, as well. The hundreds of hours invested into the series are definitely paying off. I will have high expectations for it and Reverie now. Let's hope that I end up being one of the people for whom CS4 really works, since I see extreme opinions on it more than anyone calling it mediocre or just okay.

Small edit: Rating changed to 4.5/5 because this game is fun as hell despite being very stupid at times

Wow, what a journey.

I'm not surprised this one is polarising, with people most often either yelling "peak fiction" or seeing this game as the one that messed up Cold Steel, or even Kiseki so far, right at the end. This game is a bit more difficult to write about than the other Trails games for me because it's so inconsistent. You have genuinely the worst padding in the series at times, and a lot of time wasted on stuff that doesn't amount to anything. On the other hand, you have some of the most hype stuff you'll ever see in a JRPG, and plenty of emotional moments.

On one hand you have MCU-level "Avengers moments" as opposed to the more organic ones in Zero to Cold Steel III (in CS4 they try to include everyone, so as opposed to something like Zero or CS3, they sometimes say/do their one thing then take a break from being in the story for a while relatively often), on the other hand you have some of the coolest stuff you'd dream to see in a connected universe that is only possible on this scale in Trails, such as 5-team dungeon raids and boss fights while old dungeon themes play in the OST. I am into so many long series with connected universes whose fans would salivate at the idea of even a fraction of this amount of crossover-ness.

It was difficult to decide whether to give this a 4/5 or 4.5/5, but I ultimately went with the more generous option since I enjoyed this more than CS3. It's definitely one of the coolest and most fun JRPGs out there, just heavily flawed and inconsistent, with both extremely tropey and generic ideas, as well as very creative ones that you don't see often.

Really looking forward to Reverie, I played the prologue and it's everything I've ever wanted. The best start to a video game I've ever seen, it has potential to be my favourite game of all time.

This is a review for Muv-Luv Unlimited TDA as a whole. There are no spoilers for any Muv-Luv content in this.

The Day After is a kind of what-if scenario of sorts based on Muv-Luv Unlimited (you know what the divergence might be if you've read the trilogy). Despite this, one should still read this after Muv-Luv and Muv-Luv Alternative, due to the trilogy needing to be experienced as a complete product, this having a different writer, Resonative not being out, and outright Alternative spoilers or expectations spoilers here.

With that out of the way, I'll go over some trivia in regards to TDA. TDA was made by an ex-fanfic writer, Wei Luxin, who wrote Chicken Divers (which became canonised, you can read it in Photonflowers), among other works. Calling TDA and his other works simply "officialised fanfics" has a bit of a negative connotation, and does not show respect to how fantastic of a writer he is.

Despite featuring a lot of fanservice for fans of the franchise, with both lore and having characters from other entries appear, it does it in a way that does not feel forced, and instead feels natural. It is not just a cashgrab to follow up on Alternative's success as one might initially assume, same with all the other entries in the series. It only adds, it doesn't cheapen existing material. The original ML/MLA already had several âge characters appear, but here characters from various parts of the franchise take active roles rather than just being cameos or mere references.

The geopolitical landscape, the world around the characters, the technology, the contrasting cultures and lives, as well as topics that were not covered in the original like an international refugee crisis and child soldiers. Unlike the original where a lot of the worldbuilding is communicated to us through exposition by another character (and it worked for the setting of ML/MLA), we are more often than not going to different places, and also seeing various POVs of different characters.

And speaking of the characters, this probably has the most balanced cast in the entire series. I cannot think of a single character in the main cast that is not well-written.

It adds to your understanding of the original and the world of Muv-Luv as a whole in a way (drastically shifting quite a few things about that world in this one that changes the dynamic completely) that isn't just this author's headcanon, but is very consistent with everything we know. We've even got those classic Muv-Luv chibis, an awesome OP song and JAM PROJECT songs! The artstyle, too, while not quite on the level of the original, looks good, which is helped by this being as vibrant and dynamic visually, if not more, than Alternative. Additionally, I am very glad that Muv-Luv has moved away from erotic content after the 2000s. We don't even have stuff like the cadet suits from Unlimited here. ML has always worked better as an all-ages series to me, IMO.

Kouki, the author of the original Muv-Luv and Muv-Luv Alternative, is coming back to write Muv-Luv Resonative, the sequel to TDA, but since there will be a large timeskip after TDA to it, you can read this now and have no trouble waiting (assuming Resonative ever comes out, and if it doesn't, the franchise is at a good enough stopping point for everyone). Also, read the Last Divers short story prequel and Last Divers itself before 03. They're not very long and will increase your enjoyment. You will also recognise some references from Photonflowers, Photonmelodies and Total Eclipse if you read those first, but it's fine either way. The Muv-Luv "order" isn't very strict, you can pretty much read anything you want in pretty much any order after you read ML and MLA.

Overall, I'd say that outside of the emotional aspect, TDA is straight up better than Alternative in most aspects, hence why you'll sometimes meet people that prefer TDA to Alt. For me, Alternative impacted me greatly, and I liked the worldbuilding as it was there, so it is still my #1, but this comes close.