29.4.2019

This is a port of the PC version of Trails of Cold Steel to the PS4 (It was originally a PS3/Vita game). It comes with some nice extras, slightly better visuals (I'll emphasize, slightly) a lot more voice acting, (dual audio for the Japanese voice acting as well) A Turbio mode to speed up running from place to place or to speed up battle animations etc. It's essentially the optimal version of the game. If you've played it before the new additions are great, if you haven't then now is the time to jump in to one of my favorite Japanese role playing game series, especially with Cold Steel II and III coming out this year too.As for the actual game, here is my original PS3 review (In short,it's great despite it's outdated visuals):Originally released in Japan in September 2013 Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel has finally made it westward over two years later. Developed by a small Japanese company Falcom, the Legend of Heroes series has been going for many years. Trails of Cold Steel is a spin off to the Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky Playstation portable/PC games but no need to worry as it's completely stand alone so you don't need to play the previous titles to enjoy it.Cold Steel is centred around Thors Military Academy in the Erebonian Empire. You play the role of Rean Schwarzer, a new student at the academy that has been placed into a brand new experimental class known as class VII. This class mixes both commoners and nobles, an unheard of action in the extreme class based society of Erebonia. These students have been chosen based on their ability with a new form of technology called ARCUS units they will be testing and most overcome their different backgrounds and learn about the instability of the Empire while trying to get through their studies.The story is actually surprisingly excellent though it is a bit slow at first. You get to play as all the members of class VII at different points in the game where they are slowly fleshed out. There are a few Japanese role playing character tropes such as the smart girl with glasses, the emotionless character etc but you get to spend a surprising amount of time with them so each become a lot more than they seem at first. Your playable characters aren't the only ones worth talking to though, almost every student at THORS academy between missions has their own mini story arc worth exploring, these are completely optional but some of the events and dialogue are genuinely interesting or funny and the more you find out about them you add notes about their character in your note book which is a nice incentive.Combat while out on your field studies in different towns, cities and countrysides feels a little bit like the RPG series Grandia for those who played it. For those who haven't it's turn based combat with a party of up to four characters set in an arena sized area. Turn order is based on character and enemy speed. During a characters turn you can select from several typical options such as attack, run, use item etc. Each character has a certain movement range so if you select attack they will move and attack if it's within their range to do so. You can move manually to set yourself up to attack or avoid incoming attacks if need be though.Outside of the basics there are also several abilities to be used, each character has "crafts" and super powered "S-crafts" which are unique attacks or skills only they can use, then there are "Arts" which are magic attacks or spells that can be equipped before battle. It's a really nice system I like as you can mould characters how you want with a mixture of equipment and arts. There are buff spells and crafts to boost attack, evasion, speed or ways to have your attack lower enemy stats, spells that effect various areas to hit several enemies etc. It's a flexible system.To add to this you can have link attacks that have pairs of your party link together so if one of them uses a weapon type an enemy is weak to, their partner can get a free follow up attack. Each linked pair of characters has a link level that increases as you play unlocking new potential bonus effects such as a free heal, taking a hit for your partner etc. These link levels aren't just increased by combat but also by bonding events similar to Persona's social aspect for fans of those games. At certain times in the game you get bonding points to use to see unique events with your classmates, you never have enough for all the characters though so must pick and choose, these events give you a big boost of experience towards your link level.On the presentation side of things Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel is a little more mixed however. Being both a two year old game and a cross platform release for the Playstation 3 and Playstation Vita it isn't going to blow anyone away graphically. Not that it's bad, artistically it's both colourful, varied and fun but it isn't especially detailed. Sound quality is another matter, the voice acting for the characters is very good. Not just class VII, but the whole game has a great cast, I don't think there was a voice actor I didn't like. To top it off the music is brilliant. (I especially like the boss track "Risking Everything, here we stand") The music is pretty fast based and by the end of the game I was still bouncing along to it happily.By the time I'd finished my first playthrough the clock had over 100 hours on it but I was speaking to everybody and looking for everything so I imagine a normal person could complete it in maybe 30 hours pretty easily. There is a lot of game even without all the optional content with many towns, areas, bosses, and missions to complete. After beating the game you can play on new game+ carrying over your levels, equipment and notes collected first time through (I have done this and started on the Nightmare difficulty to get the other trophies) so this game is certainly great value for money.To sum up I had a fantastic time with this game, the social aspects are great, the combat is fast and fun, I liked the cast and loved the music.Recommended.+ Characters are genuinely interesting.+ Bonding events add depth.+ Combat is fast with plenty of options.+ Music and voice acting are excellent.+ Decent value for money.

17.2.2016

Originally released in Japan in September 2013 Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel has finally made it westward over two years later. Developed by a small Japanese company Falcom, the Legend of Heroes series has been going for many years. Trails of Cold Steel is a spin off to the Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky Playstation portable games but no need to worry as it's completely stand alone so you don't need to play the previous titles to enjoy it.Cold Steel is centred around Thors Military Academy in the Erebonian Empire. You play the role of Rean Schwarzer, a new student at the academy that has been placed into a brand new experimental class known as class VII. This class mixes both commoners and nobles,an unheard of action in the extreme class based society of Erebonia. These students have been chosen based on their ability with a new form of technology called ARCUS units they will be testing and most overcome their different backgrounds and learn about the instability of the Empire while trying to get through their studies.The story is actually surprisingly excellent though it is a bit slow at first. You get to play as all the members of class VII at different points in the game where they are slowly fleshed out. There are a few Japanese role playing character tropes such as the smart girl with glasses, the emotionless character etc but you get to spend a surprising amount of time with them so each become a lot more than they seem at first. Your playable characters aren't the only ones worth talking to though, almost every student at THORS academy between missions has their own mini story arc worth exploring, these are completely optional but some of the events and dialogue are genuinely interesting or funny and the more you find out about them you add notes about their character in your note book which is a nice incentive.Combat while out on your field studies in different towns, cities and countrysides feels a little bit like the RPG series Grandia for those who played it. For those who haven't it's turn based combat with a party of up to four characters set in an arena sized area. Turn order is based on character and enemy speed. During a characters turn you can select from several typical options such as attack, run, use item etc. Each character has a certain movement range so if you select attack they will move and attack if it's within their range to do so. You can move manually to set yourself up to attack or avoid incoming attacks if need be though.Outside of the basics there are also several abilities to be used, each character has "crafts" and super powered "S-crafts" which are unique attacks or skills only they can use, then there are "Arts" which are magic attacks or spells that can be equipped before battle. It's a really nice system I like as you can mould characters how you want with a mixture of equipment and arts. There are buff spells and crafts to boost attack, evasion, speed or ways to have your attack lower enemy stats, spells that effect various areas to hit several enemies etc. It's a flexible system.To add to this you can have link attacks that have pairs of your party link together so if one of them uses a weapon type an enemy is weak to, their partner can get a free follow up attack. Each linked pair of characters has a link level that increases as you play unlocking new potential bonus effects such as a free heal, taking a hit for your partner etc. These link levels aren't just increased by combat but also by bonding events similar to Persona's social aspect for fans of those games. At certain times in the game you get bonding points to use to see unique events with your classmates, you never have enough for all the characters though so must pick and choose, these events give you a big boost of experience towards your link level.On the presentation side of things Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel is a little more mixed however. Being both a two year old game and a cross platform release for the Playstation 3 and Playstation Vita it isn't going to blow anyone away graphically. Not that it's bad, artistically it's both colourful, varied and fun but it isn't especially detailed. Sound quality is another matter, the voice acting for the characters is very good. Not just class VII, but the whole game has a great cast, I don't think there was a voice actor I didn't like. To top it off the music is brilliant. (I especially like the boss track "Risking Everything, here we stand") The music is pretty fast based and by the end of the game I was still bouncing along to it happily.By the time I'd finished my first playthrough the clock had over 100 hours on it but I was speaking to everybody and looking for everything so I imagine a normal person could complete it in maybe 30 hours pretty easily. There is a lot of game even without all the optional content with many towns, areas, bosses, and missions to complete. After beating the game you can play on new game+ carrying over your levels, equipment and notes collected first time through (I have done this and started on the Nightmare difficulty to get the other trophies) so this game is certainly great value for money.To sum up I had a fantastic time with this game, the social aspects are great, the combat is fast and fun, I liked the cast and loved the music. The one bonus of this game taking two years to reach these shores is that it's sequel Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II should also arrive here this year (Xseed are localising it now) and I really can't wait. The ending was crazy!Recommended.+ Characters are genuinely interesting.+ Bonding events add depth.+ Combat is fast with plenty of options.+ Music and voice acting are excellent.+ Decent value for money.

31.3.2017

As a fan of the 'Trails' series (playing a number of entries on the psp), I was thrilled to find the latest incarnation of the series available on the PS3.Fully 3D and almost totally voiced, Trails of Cold steel is an epic improvement graphically than the handheld predecessors.Taking place in a new location, but the same world as the prior series (Trails in the Sky), Trails of Cold Steel is set in the Erebonian Empire, which is a class based empire going through a vast cultural and political overhaul. Following the story of Rean Schwarzer, a student at a military academy, the player will see the struggles of the empire through the eyes of a diverse cast of young characters,

24.4.2020

I was expecting just another run-of-the-mill JRPG in this game, however I was very pleasantly surprised by what has been achieved in a game that is now fairly old.The game isn't new, so graphics are not going to blow any minds, however they serve their purpose and are very smooth and polished. The anime style found in many JRPGs works well here.The story is where this game is at. I've rarely seen such depth to a story in a game. It's always hard to talk about stories without spoiling them, so what I'll say is that this game creates a whole country with its own socio-political issues, broaching topics such as classism and politics. Having said that,

6.2.2016

I actually imported mine from America because I couldnt wait for the EU release. This game was amazing however, my first play through took me 95 hours and I did not get bored at all! there is a new game plus with many features and it is necessary for a platinum trophy. Graphically similar to the Persona series but expanding incredibe amounts in regards to gameplay. The game is definitely worth a buy, I havent been gripped by a handheld game since Persona 4 Golden.There are FPS drops at times, but apparently this happens in the PS3 version too. This is not all too surprising considering the graphical quality and length of the game and does not detract from the experience.

3.6.2019

This is really a great game for JRPG lovers. Good story and world, likeable characters and a great turn-based battle system makes it one of the best of the kind. It takes well over 80 hours to finish it, so it's a great value for money. Keep in mind that it is only a first of the four games in an arc, and that is also a part of a big 9-game story, so there is a plenty of playing if one want to know it all (Trails in the Sky series, Trails to Zero/Azure, Trails of the Cold Steel).

5.5.2019

waited a long time for this to be released on ps4 and it was worth the wait however now have to wait till June 7th for the 2nd game and I am impatient so have bought the 2nd for the vita to keep me happy till released on ps4 ?, it’s like £9 on the vita ps store which is a bargain ? also a long wait till September for the 3rd game and god knows when the 4th will be released, I would definitely recommend this series for RPG fans it is a must have game ?

6.6.2019

The first game in the Trails of Cold Steel tetralogy, this is the perfect place to start on a wonderful journey. It was originally a PS3/vita game and you can tell from the graphics, but the settings and characters are vibrant and well designed so it is never jarring to those who haven't played a last gen game in a while. Combat takes a little while to pick up, but is fun once you know what you're doing.

24.2.2019

Turn based JRPG with wonderful characters and solid game mechanics. The story takes a long time to unfold, but it holds your interest. The structure of the game is rather rigid with school projects determining how the game plays out, but within that the missions are beautifully done if a little formulaic.If you like JRPGs especially turn based one this is a good quality one.

7.7.2019

This game is, without a doubt, one of the best games I've ever played. The story, the characters, their development, the art style, they're all amazing. The only problem I had is that without the Turbo function the animations are really slow, both in and out of battle. I hope that it's fixed in the third game, as I don't know if it's a remake or a brand new game.

16.9.2019

Good game.Not as good as Persona 4/5 but this is to be expected from a lower budget developer.Voice acting is minimal but the characters are likeable for those that don’t mind the reading.It’s not the most modern RPG out there and those who don’t enjoy turn based battle need not apply.Also comes with a printed instruction manual and reversible cover.

20.5.2019

A must for fans of character based RPGs. It may be a remake of a PS3 game but when you look around you see the amount of love and little details that went into making the towns feel lived in and not just areas to complete quests. The story is very well written and fans of pseudo history, social class clashes and political intrigue will enjoy it.

20.4.2019

I don't usually play games like this but I took a chance on it and now it's safe to say it's one of my new favourites.The likeable characters, an engaging story and easy to grasp mechanics drew me in and I'm now eagerly awaiting the release of the next games so I can see what happened next!

26.6.2019

Good story line, with many interesting surprises within the story. Characters are interesting and battles give you plenty of scope to develop the character. The game is quite addictive and entertaining. Good graphics also.

13.6.2016

Only just started playing this game and so far I like it!! So glad I got it at a cheaper price from Amazon than what it's currently priced at (still not bad though) so wait until it goes back down

The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel - Reviews

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