The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky

I really enjoyed the story. It starts off slow but is good once it gets going.

I'm not a fan of missable content, so the fact that a lot of things can be missed is a con for me.

The battle system was fun and I didn't feel the need to grind at all. It also made the game a bit more challenging at some points, but thats not necessarily a bad thing.

Definately work picking up.

The Trails series is the gold standard of worldbuilding, and as the first game of the long running series this game is both the best entry point to a liner series (obviously) but it's also dated. If you're looking to try this series, also take a look at Trails of Cold Steel 1 for a more modern introduction to the series. You should return to this if you like Cold Steel 1

It's an RPG from 2004, in the final years of CRT TVs for reference, and you can feel it in the nuances of how the game plays and presents itself. But it was also a very good 2004 RPG. The combat system has remained largely unchanged, and is at it's simplest here. It's fun to play around with the orbment and elemental value system (There's a screenshot of the page) to get the skills you want, without being so difficult to have you stare at the orbment screen for too long. Placing your team formation takes some practice to utilize but lets you experiment with specialized builds. The delay system is my favorite aspect of the combat, letting a "quick and nimble" character actually feel it as they get more turns than your heavy hitters, and that flexibility is powerful. (it also makes speed your most important stat. Later games have worked to balance the other stats)

In case you were confused, there is no voiced dialog. Characters have some quips when performing actions during combat, but all text on screen is not voiced. The English translation is very good. Estelle and her big stick are a joy and everyone else is just as good. They all have distinct and consistent personalities to go along with their motivations.

Your opponents and allies always have coherent and defined reasons for doing what they are, and the series is consistently great at slowly dripping information to you so you can piece together more of what's happening and why as the story continues. A battle of wits is happening, and you don't even know who all the players are, and trying to piece it all together is the most engaging aspect of this series.

slow story progress being first of trilogy.

outdated battle system even with turbo mode
Non existent level balancing that requires a retry offset mode to save this game from being unenjoyable.
The battle encounter still a pretty abysmal experience.

Good game to introduce Falcom's Legend of Heroes story telling game design.
But quest design is outdated, especially the one involving finding stuff that wont be at the location until you trigger search of other places first - simply dumb.

Just watch on youtube maybe? And it's too expensive even on sale. Doesn't matter how much qol is added when compared to modern gaming design pholisophy.

All in all, you are playing a game originally released in 2004. This is a no voiceover all reading kind of experience.

10 hours in, it's very fun very cool thanks Hart for glazing the series so hard I got this game
Playing alongside a guide makes it a bit better of an experience cause I'm kinda stupid and would totally miss a lot of gameplay elements otherwise lol

A solid introduction to the Trails Series. Estelle is still one of my favorite protagonist to date. Her and her wonderful supporting cast do a fantastic job of welcoming you to their world and the story they wish to tell.

one of best jrpg games ever
Pros:
1- great story line .
2-having fun whole the time cant stop playin it.
3-one of the best jrpg mechanism fight. you will never regret.
4- this is old game but have much more than whole new games nowadays.

cons:
nothing ( literally nothing )

( highly recommanded )

a vlassic turn-based rpg, also gateway into a beloved franchise. recommend if you love world building, fun stories and characters.

Liked it so much I bought the sequel the day after. Likeable characters, great music and locations, fun quests and good overall story.

Start is a little slow, but the story, characters and dialogue are top-tier. Strongly recommended for those who love a good adventure and don't mind playing a game from an era when games didn't hold your hand and didn't care about your feelings when it came to convenience.

INSTALL THE SKYINSTALLER AND APPLY THE VOICE MODS FOR THE 3 GAMES TRUST ME
This game was peak from start to finish, gladd I ended up finding about the SkyInstaller with the voice mods as having voice acting during such amazing scenes really helped drive the emotion.
OST is fantastic 10/10
Story was fantastic and the twist at the end with it ending on such a cliffhanger to get you excited for SC 10/10
DO YOURSELF A FAVOR ANDD PLAY THE ORIGINAL BEFORE PLAYING THE REMAKE WHEN THAT RELEASE PLEASEEEEEE

This game is insane.

Combat - Turn-based with a real-time element & formations. (No Random Battles)

Turn-Based: Turn order is shown on a bar to the left. There's no ATB gauge one needs to wait on before acting. Turns have a chance to have a random boon such as +HP / Attack Power / Etc. that's active for characters and monsters.

Real-Time: Each character has an "S-Break" that gradually fills in combat. Once full, it's used to perform a powerful attack at any time on any turn. This attack puts that action at the top of the turn-list letting a player steal turn boons a monster would otherwise have.

Formations: On Hard and Nightmare difficulties, formations become important later. If defeated, one can try again and switch up formations before re-attempting. These will affect the characters' starting location.


Difficulty - The combat systems shine on Normal & Hard. Nightmare is for the masochistic.

Orbments & Quartz are the primary mechanics governing player power outside of levels & gear. These are very unique systems so it's difficult to draw comparisons with. It directly ties into what magic a character can use as well, and there are a lot of combinations to mess with. "Magic Legos that also give stats"

Story - Cozy, doesn't take itself too seriously, mysterious lore serves as a spine, through-lines all made sense and felt organic.

Soundtrack - Banger.

Sidenote: Best JRPG KB&M controls I've played.

Such a great beginning to a great series! So happy to have all three games in one place.

What an ending. How can you not continue after that?! Awesome game, very good story. Combat a bit meh, but it's 2004, so it's whatever for me. 9/10

It took five tries and ten years to actually get past the Prologue. I regret to inform you that it is, in fact, peak

This well-written, heartwarming JRPG combines a great story with charming characters and fascinating lore. Trust me, you must experience this game at least once in your life 🥹

Outstanding JRPG with a compelling story and an excellent soundtrack. Highly recommended and I'm excited to play the rest of the series!

Check out https://store.steampowered.com/curator/41559946 for more recommendations!

Wonderful game with great story, setting and memorable characters. The localization is excellent. Falcom brings something unique to RPGs compared to the likes of Squeenix or Namco.

It does show its age in places, specially in the last dungeon, but overall the experience remains outstanding.

Trails in the Sky 1 (FC) is the first game in my favorite video game series, yet it is also a difficult game to recommend. Games in the Trails (Kiseki) Series are all very long and slow, requiring a lot of reading. Sky 1 is perhaps the slowest in the series as well with some people even describing the first game as a prologue (which they are not wrong). However, what makes the games good is that they are very well written and have the best world-building that I have ever seen in a video game and nothing even comes close.

One spot where the series shines, in addition to the writing, is with the art direction. While the games have never been graphical powerhouses, they have been well crafted and still hold up quite well.

Another plus to the series is its excellent music. The soundtracks are some of my personal favorites and I continue to listen to many of the tracks regularly.

The last point I will discuss is the combat. Trails in the Sky 1 has a fairly mediocre combat system; however, it is not a bad system and it continues to improve throughout the whole series with the latest entries having some of the best turn based combat that I have seen in an RPG. I just wish that they had higher difficulty settings for the newer games.

The series itself is also quite long. There are 13 games so far with more likely to be on the way. The series can also be divided up into chronological(mostly) arcs that continue to build off of each other. The order is: Sky 1-3, Crossbell 1-2 (Zero + Azure), Cold Steel 1-4, Reverie (an epilogue to Crossbell/Cold Steel), Daybreak 1-2 (or 3?).

Overall, Trails in the Sky 1 itself is a good game, but it is mostly just the starting point for a large series.

PS: I highly recommend installing the Evo Voice Mod for the first 5 games in the series which adds a bunch of Japanese Voice Acting to the dialogue and helps to convey the emotions of the characters (there is no English option). It is also highly recommended to play Sky 1-2 (and maybe 3?) on Normal difficulty as the harder difficulties are not properly tuned. The prologue to Sky 2 on Nightmare is one of the hardest spots in the entire series (and not in a good way).

This game changed my personality.

Altered the chemistry of my brain.

It made me who i am today.

Trails in the Sky is the biggest brainrot inducing game that will make you binge other 10+ games one after another. I'm not tired of recommending it specially for people who want to be addicted like me. I just can't stop thinking about Kiseki. I've played ALOT of RPGs, but nothing reached me like Kiseki does.

The real Kiseki is the friends we'll make along the way while playing this game, like the characters we spent so much time investing and loving. Not just the main characters but I can spend HOURS reading random NPC dialogues. Anton is the man. He's my goat fr.

Play Trails, it's fun.

Can't even get past training. Orbments make some sense, but i don't know what it wants me to do. YT and gamefaqs walkthroughs only confused me more.

great gamee, wish this would be part of my childhood game T_T

Jumping into the first game for the kiseki series, I can say that so far the first game is really good.

Standard jrpg stuff. Some grinding required, if you are to face late game enemies and bosses. If you are into jrpgs this is a good game with good story, characters and mechanics.

Fun and interesting combat. A varied cast of characters and an interesting world building that leaves you wanting to learn more. The side quests felt too long sometimes, and the dialogues are a bit too long and overly explanatory. It didn't hook me to the series that much.

Wonderful story, love the characters, and cool combat system

Trails in the Sky FC is a very special RPG experience that starts off as an incredibly slow burn, but the world building is worth it. It was refreshing to see how many NPCs have multiple dialogue lines that even change with events, making everything feel so real. Everyone has their own story. The only thing I have to caution is that there is a LOT of reading. That's where this game shines, so if you hate reading, then it's not for you. Some of the battles can be challenging and require a bit of strategy, but it's not too hard.

I've only been playing for 8 hours and I'm already in love with this world and these characters. If you enjoy classic, turn-based JRPGs you will not be disappointed in this one. It's different enough from the classic turn-based system to keep things interesting, but it's similar enough for those who enjoy that style of combat to still have a good time. All of the characters I've met so far are likeable enough that I can't wait to keep playing to see where their stories go.

This is one of the best games I've ever played, even if it's just a prologue of whats to come. I LOVED IT! I can't believe I've waited this long to play and actually finish this game. PLEASE everyone that hasn't given this game a chance, try it.

You have to go in knowing that this is a game that is going to take it's time, lavish in banter between the likable cast, and know that it isn't going to match the RPG combat balance of something like, say, an Atlus RPG. But if you go in open to a game that starts chill and gradually ramps up, staying totally enjoyable throughout, you'll enjoy it. This is a *comfortable* JRPG, and I had a wonderful time with it.
Now... time to play the rest of the series...

The beginning of the series that started it all. Set in the vast world of Zemuria, Trails in the Sky (otherwise known as FC) follows Estelle Bright, the protagonist, and her adoptive brother from five years ago, Joshua Bright. Together, they become Junior Bracers and explore their homeland of the Kingdom of Liberl in hopes of becoming Senior Bracers, and unravelling a plot that unfolds in the darkness.

The Trails series spans 12 games at the time of this review, with a 13th on the horizon for it's 20th Anniversary, and soon, a remake of this very game. This game is made in 2004, so do keep in mind the age of it's mechanics and balancing, but the game play is sufficient for this games approximate 30 hour runtime.

What should be noted is that Trails is notorious for it's missables, that do get more lenient midway through the Cold Steel arc- But until then, you're going to be talking to everyone or following a guide for completion. That's not to say getting everything is the only reason to talk to everyone everywhere- A large majority of NPCs are named and has their own story to follow, allowing one to immerse themselves in the vast world building that only Trails has managed to accomplish.

That said, following along such stories is not for everyone. Find a spoiler free guide if you wish to see all the 'major' content these games have to offer, and save frequently. These games provide a vast amount of save slots, along with these early games having a good amount of auto saves, allowing you to back up in case something was missed or messed up.

To not end on a weak note, these early games may have had a rough localization process, but the fruits of their labor shows in the extremely tightly knit written dialogue, possibly one of the strongest localizations for it's time. Reading, out loud or in your head, is an enjoyable experience.

Though this may be the weakest in the series in my opinion, this was also the only way such a grand series could have started, and for that, I give this game a good 7.5/10, when standing alone. When combined with it's other half, the sequel to this game, this duology is effectively a 9/10.

Just finished this gem and lemme tell ya, what a fantastic experience.
I'm not a big JRPG fan but decided to try this one out after my friends recommended it so emphatically.

From the very beginning you can tell how much love has been poured in this game. Despite having dated graphics, you can see how much attention to detail Nihon Falcom paid in order to build a world bustling with information and content. You'll get attached to the characters from the get go. The soundtrack ranges from soothing to being an absolute blast, specially the boss battle theme (my favorite). The story is good and manages to snare you with a tale that takes you along for the ride instead of just being presented to you on a tray. It's basically like playing an anime, all in all.

There are some problems, however. Some dungeons are a bit confusing to navigate without a minimap or a compass, and maybe that was the intention of the devs but this is just my perspective. The difficulty factor could be better explored, because as simple as the battles are, they could've made it more challenging instead of just spiking it up near the end. I played on Normal difficulty and barely had any problems blazing past the enemies during the entire run, and I'm not even a JRPG player. Another thing is that the story can be sometimes slow, but that comes with the journey. You'll be presented with a lot of loose ends and unanswered questions that sometimes is difficult to keep track, sometimes I like a more straightforward approach. Well, you know how them japs like their JRPGs...

The thing is, the game is so good there's something in there for everyone. You can play it just to enjoy the story, play it on harder difficulties to be owned in the very tutorial of the game... you name it. I had a blast playing on Normal, though I wanted to face harder battles, but at the same time I was so enthralled by the story and the protagonists' journey that I could barely wait to get to the next major plot point.

Long story short, this game had me at the first sight. I felt like I was back in my Playstation 1 days, enjoying a laid back RPG after school, this is the vibe that defines this game. So much love was poured on this game. You'll love to accompany the protagonists on their journey and enjoying all that this world has to offer, all while enjoying some great tunes, extremely charismatic characters and an even better layered story that has no rush in presenting itself, but that will reward those that stick around. I can't wait to start the sequel and I'm already dreading the day I'll finish the last game of this trilogy and have no more Estelle and Joshua to accompany in their travels.

9/10

For a 40 hour prologue, i really enjoyed my time with the characters and storytelling. Characters and NPCs are unique and have theyre own story and dialogue, nothing cut and paste. And the story while a slow burn gets interesting and the characters really carry the game in the 1st chapter.

I was surprised how much I liked it. And the cliffhanger at the end. Oh boy.

Nice little adventure and a great setup for Second Chaper

I decided to try and work through the Trails series. I heard all the games are interconnected stories so figured I had put it off for a while. The game is 20 years old but I am enjoying it. Story is easy to follow and they ease you in to the world politics so you don't feel overwhelmed. It is a relaxing RPG; Combat is a turn based grid, not too hard. They just announced today they are remaking this game.

I was recommended the Trails series by a good few friends, and I decided to give it a shot. However, quite unfortunately, it's nowhere near as enjoyable as they had all made it out to be.

My biggest and main gripe with it is if you do not speak with every single NPC after every single cutscene, or return to the Bracer's Guild at every possible moment, you have an incredibly high chance of permanently missing a collectable or entire sidequest. Which, sure, whatever - games have missable things all the time, right?

My problem with that stems from the fact that the window you have to get some of these - which, mind you, isn't made clear most of the time - could be a single room transition. There's a moment very early in the game where you need to speak with a General. At that location, you need to speak with a specific NPC only after someone asks to join you, before you speak with the General. For me, that window was about 30 seconds, as the General is one room over from where the person asks to join you.

The combat, as well, is nothing engaging. I played on normal at the suggestion of my friends, as this game apparently is horribly balanced for the higher difficulties. While I wouldn't call it a slog, I would hesitate to say I enjoyed it as well. There is a good bit of customisation through the Quartz system influencing what Arts you can cast, which I quite liked, but I rarely found myself using them because just the basic attack was enough to win me most battles. Even during boss fights, I use maybe one or two Arts, possibly some Crafts depending on enemy positioning, and just...basic attack. Over and over and over.

This was upsetting, as I tend to adore turn-based combat - Final Fantasy X was one of my childhood games, and while yes, it is flawed and not the most difficult game out there, it required you to actively change your strategy for almost every mob encounter, with each party member being able to handle a specific type of enemy. I'd expected something similar, with some monsters being punching bags, and others requiring you to use certain Arts to be able to win.

Here, however, I sincerely could not differentiate Estelle, Joshua, nor any other party members that join, outside of Crafts I rarely used. Everyone was the same thing - the basic attack button. Enemy weak to every element? Basic attack kills them faster. Incredibly physically resistant enemy? Take one turn where you get hit, then your basic attacks have killed them. Boss? Use a few Arts for crowd control, then basic attack it to death. There's no reason for variety if the free option every character gets is just as effective.

I do have some praise for the game, however. While I didn't get far enough into the game for mysteries to begin unravelling, I can say with confidence that the direction it was going was engaging, and I adored the character writing and interactions everyone had. Unfortunately, it's nowhere near enough to counteract the fact that, as a game, I do not enjoy playing it.

I would, unfortunately, only be able to give this game a 4/10. If you can get past old game jank, then you may end up falling in love with this series. But for me, too many things weigh it down for me to be able to find it enjoyable.

I thoroughly enjoyed this JRPG! There is a lot of dialogue, so highly recommend to look up and apply the "voice patch" to add Japanese voices. It really enhances the experience and helps to pay attention. Can't wait to play the next one.

An incredible introduction and game in general to the Kiseki series. It does a wonderful job setting up the next game. Can't wait to continue the journey in SC!

Played this game in order to go through the series and reach Trails of Cold Steel 3 which I had enjoyed while trying the demo. I did end up playing CS3 down the line but didn't finish it. I didn't realize back then but Trails in the Sky FC is the best this series has to offer. The writing, the cast, the incredible music, lore, atmosphere. It's just an amazing experience full of life and small details, much more down to earth than the typical JRPG tropes and villains you see in the later games. People like to see this game as the slowburn before Trails in the Sky SC but for me it was the opposite. SC gave a nice conclusion but wasn't nearly as special as FC to me