Incredible start for a new arc in the series, and a true comeback after the uneven quality of the Erebonia arc.
What I liked:
+ Van Arkride is a fantastic MC, the main cast is great!
He has an edge to him while maintaining a sense of playfulness and compassion towards the people who surround him. Really hard to not cheer for Van as the story goes on.
The main cast is full of personality and chemistry with each other, and they complement Van perfectly as a team.
+ Calvard as a setting.
Calvard gives the writers an opportunity to touch on many interesting themes that have direct relation with real world issues. I think they did a good job on making the setting feel unique compared to other parts of the Zemurian continent, with some great political tension in the backdrop as always. Gotta praise the quality of the NPCs too!
+ The story is emotionally poignant and extremely rewarding for series veterans
Not gonna expand on this at all - just know I really loved the story overall and how it concluded.
+ Actually threatening villains
Given the focus on a more "mature" story, the stakes of the plot got increased as well, which resulted in a cast of villain that actually mean business - it was honestly refreshing to see actual palpable repercussions happening.
The main villain here is easily on the top tier of best villains in the franchise. It's impossible to get to the end of this game without hating his guts, which is all I've been asking from a villain in this series for a long time.
+ The alignment system is a fun gimmick
There isn't really any groundbreaking decisions that massively affect the direction of the main story, but the alignment choices provides another layer of role playing that makes the playthroughs feel more distinct than in past Trails games, even if just a little.
+ The combat system feels fresh!
I love the traditional Trails battle system, but it was about time to change things up. Kuro introduces a new flow to the battle system, with the field attacks being more involved than before. I liked how the shard skill system worked - it made building characters even more interesting.
+ The music is good (somewhat)
There's a good amount of excellent tracks in this game. Nothing on the same level as some of the past installments in the series, but I still put it as a overall W for the game.
What I didn't like:
- Chapter 3 as a whole
Not gonna expand on this as well, but it's an unfortunate stumble in a game that's overall very well written.
- Some old problems still persist to an extent
Some parts of the game feel padded/bloated in a way that didn't really feel necessary.
- Combat system has some rough edges
Not a big deal, but I really don't like how they chose to represent the turn timeline here in comparison to the older battle system - doesn't feel as intuitive visually. The lack of S-craft cut-ins is unfortunate as well, I miss them!
- The music feels uneven in some places
Boss Themes have never been worse in the series, except a few ones. There's also no effort in building a "motif" for the game, so the soundtrack ends up feeling like a collection of music that doesn't really speak with each other.
------------
Overall, I can't recommend this game enough if you like this series, or if you're a newcomer who wants to jump in (even tho some of the references will confuse you). Can't wait to play Kuro 2 someday!
What I liked:
+ Van Arkride is a fantastic MC, the main cast is great!
He has an edge to him while maintaining a sense of playfulness and compassion towards the people who surround him. Really hard to not cheer for Van as the story goes on.
The main cast is full of personality and chemistry with each other, and they complement Van perfectly as a team.
+ Calvard as a setting.
Calvard gives the writers an opportunity to touch on many interesting themes that have direct relation with real world issues. I think they did a good job on making the setting feel unique compared to other parts of the Zemurian continent, with some great political tension in the backdrop as always. Gotta praise the quality of the NPCs too!
+ The story is emotionally poignant and extremely rewarding for series veterans
Not gonna expand on this at all - just know I really loved the story overall and how it concluded.
+ Actually threatening villains
Given the focus on a more "mature" story, the stakes of the plot got increased as well, which resulted in a cast of villain that actually mean business - it was honestly refreshing to see actual palpable repercussions happening.
The main villain here is easily on the top tier of best villains in the franchise. It's impossible to get to the end of this game without hating his guts, which is all I've been asking from a villain in this series for a long time.
+ The alignment system is a fun gimmick
There isn't really any groundbreaking decisions that massively affect the direction of the main story, but the alignment choices provides another layer of role playing that makes the playthroughs feel more distinct than in past Trails games, even if just a little.
+ The combat system feels fresh!
I love the traditional Trails battle system, but it was about time to change things up. Kuro introduces a new flow to the battle system, with the field attacks being more involved than before. I liked how the shard skill system worked - it made building characters even more interesting.
+ The music is good (somewhat)
There's a good amount of excellent tracks in this game. Nothing on the same level as some of the past installments in the series, but I still put it as a overall W for the game.
What I didn't like:
- Chapter 3 as a whole
Not gonna expand on this as well, but it's an unfortunate stumble in a game that's overall very well written.
- Some old problems still persist to an extent
Some parts of the game feel padded/bloated in a way that didn't really feel necessary.
- Combat system has some rough edges
Not a big deal, but I really don't like how they chose to represent the turn timeline here in comparison to the older battle system - doesn't feel as intuitive visually. The lack of S-craft cut-ins is unfortunate as well, I miss them!
- The music feels uneven in some places
Boss Themes have never been worse in the series, except a few ones. There's also no effort in building a "motif" for the game, so the soundtrack ends up feeling like a collection of music that doesn't really speak with each other.
------------
Overall, I can't recommend this game enough if you like this series, or if you're a newcomer who wants to jump in (even tho some of the references will confuse you). Can't wait to play Kuro 2 someday!