The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie Review

The Legend of Heroes series is perhaps one of my favourite RPG franchises of all time. It’s crammed full of interesting characters, a fleshed-out world, and a layered battle system that never grew stale. Oh, and mechs. Big, shiny mechs. But every story must come to an end (for now, at least) and this one is no different, as The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie feels almost like an epilogue. That isn’t to say it’s short or light on content; this is just as big of a game as the previous titles, but tying up all the loose ends and lingering questions unanswered from Trails of Cold Steel IV.

It should come as no surprise to fans of the series that Trails into Reverie’s story is fantastic. What began all the way back in 2004 with Trails in the Sky, is still going strong today. But what we have here is definitely not newcomer friendly, despite some very detailed summaries of all the previous titles in the Trails saga. You could dive right in with this instalment and read up on who’s who and what’s been going on, but when the previous nine games are so well-loved, it’s definitely worth playing through them all first.

So, taking place sometime after the conclusion of Trails of Cold Steel IV, our heroes have gone their separate ways to live in peace. Of course, this doesn’t last too long, and the SSS and Class VII will once again be called upon to save the world. For the first time in the series, we play through three different stories, each with their own main characters; Rean Schwarzer, Lloyd Bannings, and a mysterious masked individual known as “C”.

Starting out, you're thrust into the capable shoes of Lloyd as he and the SSS mop up the remaining forces that occupied Crossbell in Cold Steel IV. This doesn’t go quite as smoothly, as it isn’t long before the terrorists — now led by a familiar face — return to attack the city. In our second story, things are a little less hectic in Erebonia, but only just. Rean and friends are tasked with locating both the missing Prince Olivert and his wife, who have mysteriously vanished on their honeymoon. Finally, we move on to C, a character with a rather ambiguous agenda but one that’s vital to the plot of the narrative overall. Without spoiling anything, it doesn’t take long for things to really ramp up!

After the initial prologue, you’re able to tackle the stories in any order, thanks to the Cross Story system. You won’t be able to fully complete one character's tale before starting on another, but I liked being able to pause one for a while whilst I went to see what someone else was up to. Since the game is split across three different narratives, it overall feels more linear than previous games. The stories are understandably shorter than before, though this leads to very little downtime and perhaps the best-paced game of the bunch. Overall, it’s a great send-off for this huge cast of characters fans have grown to know and love, and it left me with a feeling of wanting more time with them, despite the finality of the game's ending.

Trails into Reverie is certainly the best-looking of the 3D iterations of the series; however, it’s far from superb. There’s been little improvement since the last games, with recycled animations and the same average textures found throughout. On a positive note, special attacks and the like are just as exciting to watch as ever, and there are some noticeable improvements with party member’s models; just don’t expect this to look like a true “next-gen” Legend of Heroes game.

Akin to the titles that have come before, Trails into Reverie is not fully voice-acted, although the majority of the more important story scenes are, so it isn’t a major issue. As for the music? Well, it’s a Trails game, so of course it’s good. It’s a perfect mix of intense orchestra pieces during action set pieces, combined with tranquil melodies during moments of respite. The battle themes are also bangers, as per usual.

From a technical standpoint, the game ran consistently smooth throughout my playtime. Even the battles — with their constant barrage of flashy attacks and explosive combos — ran like a dream, and I was impressed at how far the series has come technically. It overall feels more polished than any previous title, and the refreshed user interface is perhaps the best I’ve seen from the series, but maybe don’t jump into this one soon after beating IV, as it’s very likely you’ll get burnt out due to the fairly similar design and mechanics.

Whilst Trails into Reverie doesn’t redefine the series’ core mechanics, this is definitely the best it’s ever played. Battles aren’t too dissimilar from previous entries, although the Valiant Rage system does a lot to add to an already great combat system. It ties in with the Assault Gauge first introduced in Trails of Cold Steel III, allowing you to perform a special attack as you engage with enemies to give your party an advantage going into the combat encounter. But as long as you have at least five members in your team, you can now use this in-battle to either heal your party, unleash a magic Art, or a physical attack on unsuspecting enemies. This also grants you more BP, allowing for more uses of the always-useful stat-boosting Brave Orders.

Apart from Valiant Rage, though, the combat is more or less the same as in Trails of Cold Steel IV, but that’s by no means a bad thing! It’s a turn-based RPG where you issue commands to party members to execute once their turn comes. As always, you can use a standard attack, the magical Orbal Arts, or the ever-flashy Craft skills. You’ll also have to keep on the defensive, as whilst not overly difficult, certain enemies can lay waste to your party very quickly. One of my favourite aspects of the series, the turn order bar, is always an essential tool for planning out attacks. Random bonuses, such as zero Craft cost or HP heal, will crop up now and again, and it quickly becomes a puzzle of using certain moves to alter the turn order or to focus on defeating one enemy before they get a buff that allows them to one-hit kill a party member.

Whilst battles are a large chunk of what makes up Trails into Reverie’s gameplay, you’ll also be exploring cities and monster-strewn dungeons on the path to peace. Again, there’s nothing different here that we haven’t seen before, but it’s always nice to take a walk around Crossbell or take in the sights of Erebonia’s countryside as you move towards your next objective.

One such area is the True Reverie Corridor. Once unlocked early on, you’re able to explore this dungeon at almost any point in the game. Every character, and then some, from the three stories unite in this unknown realm to tackle randomly generated floors full of ghouls and goodies. This brings with it an almost unlimited combination of teams to go exploring with. Each of the 51 (yes, really!) playable characters can be mixed and matched to create your absolute Trails dream team, and there’s a very rewarding gameplay loop as you’re constantly unlocking new characters, weapons, mini-games, and side stories. I’m not usually a fan of those optional post-game dungeons, usually found in RPGs, but as the True Reverie Corridor is integrated with the main game and with so many rewards to find, I spent many, many hours searching its hidden depths.

Trails into Reverie is a tightly-paced RPG brimming with content, and although not everyone in the huge cast of characters gets enough screen time, the more focused, shorter storylines are some of the more engaging ones in the series. Whilst not being newcomer-friendly, fans will delight in this final chapter and the chance to wrap everything up once and for all.

In closing, The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie is a really wonderful game and serves as a great close to the Erebonia and Crossbell arcs. Whilst nothing is added to make the experience completely fresh, those that have stuck with the series and want one final adventure with Rean, Lloyd, and the rest will find more of what they know and love.