Death By Exposure - Trails of Cold Steel

Death by Exposure is a new semiregular column where I will explore RPG experiences most RPGWatch readers might not normally be exposed to.  I hope to entertain you and give you a good look at games you might miss otherwise.

Please note that this is not currently a PC release, so if you aren't interested, you may not wish to read any further. -A

You can't like Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel if you're a "real" Legend of Heroes fan.  At least, that's the way it's been implied by veterans of the series.  If that's true, call me a poser, because Trails of Cold Steel was one of my favorite RPGs of 2015.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel is the third volume in the widely-acclaimed Legend of Heroes series.  That makes it an odd place for NIS to go, since they haven't launched the second volume (the "Crossbell" story arc) for a western audience.  Still, Trails of Cold Steel is a standalone game; playing the second story arc helps your understanding of what's going on, but it's definitely not required.  Cold Steel is a solid RPG that can very much be enjoyed on its own.

Trails of Cold Steel takes you to the Erebonian Empire and enrolls you as a student of the prestigious Thors Military Academy.  As a member of the newly-formed Class VII, you'll complete tasks to help the student council, all while building relationships with your classmates that will translate into bonuses in combat.  The questing system will look familiar if you enjoyed Trails in the Sky; you're presented with a log and the game keeps track of the quests you finish and the ones you ignore.  That log will also tease your inner completionist, since it keeps track of the books and newspapers you've read, as well as the recipes you've collected.

Cooking is done with the help of a classmate. That classmate's skill will determine how well the food turns out.

As part of your curriculum, your teacher often sends you to different parts of the empire to help locals with problems, much like the Bracers did in Trails in the Sky.  You will alternate between these trips and forays into the "old school", the foreboding medieval building on the Academy grounds.  When the school's principal sends you down there, you'll come to find that the basement changes all the time, giving you a different dungeon experience with each trip.

The story centers around a young man named Rean Schwarzer, who becomes a sort of leader for Class VII.  Erebonia's harsh class differences can be seen at Thors, since all of the school's other classes are divided based on whether someone is nobility or common.  Class VII is unique in that it includes students from every social background and draws no distinction between them.  Rean himself serves as a bridge between the embattled social strata, and in that light, embodies Class VII.

Combat and Familiar Themes

Like Trails in the Sky, Cold Steel features turn-based combat, but it introduces some flavorful additions.

You'll definitely recognize the familiar arts system, with a slight twist.  Members of Class VII have access to a new piece of technology called an ARCUS.  Each student's ARCUS is unique and gives them access to orbal arts.  The system inherits the "master quartz" system from the previous volume, giving each student a unique orb.  The newest modification is the "combat link" system.  From the wiki: "It allows allies in combat to ‘resonate’ with each other and perform powerful attacks together. [It also] increases the effectiveness of abilities between individuals with strong ties to each other."  So you'll definitely want to pay attention to building good relationships between characters on your free days.

The combat link system adds a fun new aspect to battles.

The ARCUS system isn't all that different from the orbment system of Trails in the Sky.

The only problem I have is with the game's difficulty settings.  I started the game on normal difficulty - I wanted to experience the game as it was meant to be played.  I was disappointed, though, when battles dragged out into slogfests.  The problem wasn't in the difficulty per se...it was in how that difficulty was implemented.  It felt like enemies were simply given higher defense and more hit points, so each fight felt tiring instead of giving me the challenge I had anticipated.  Turning the difficulty back down to easy made battles more enjoyable and gave me the stamina to fight my way through dungeons and outdoor areas, but left me craving a bit more "edge" to fights.

The turn-based combat will feel familiar to fans of the series.

Look and Feel

Trails of Cold Steel is a massive step up for the series in terms of visuals.  The interface is crisp, clean, and modern.  It's a classy game to look at.  In my opinion, though, the game's biggest improvement over earlier entries in its music.  Trails of Cold Steel's music is harder and somehow...steelier.  It's almost a little reminiscent of Ys with its metal influences, and it lends the game an air of grim seriousness that the more whimsical Trails in the Sky lacked.  It makes you feel like more is at stake here, and its energy powers you through battles to see what's on the other side.  It's still able to give you softer music for towns, enabling you to sit back and take in the scenery at your leisure.  It feels like the soundtrack is more accomplished, mature, and sophisticated this time, no matter the zone or mood.

Conclusion

Like I said before, Trails of Cold Steel was one of my favorite RPGs of last year; it hit all the right notes for me.  Since I know most of you won't be playing the Vita version, I hope this game gets a PC release, for your sake.  It definitely deserves one.

I've given it a solid 86%.

Pros

Excellent music

Clean visuals

Link system adds a fun new dimension to combat

Long game

Cons

Difficulty increases feel lazy in implementation