Recent reviews by Kyle G

As a Trails game, it fufills all the things we enjoy about the Cold Steel arc of games. It's a 100 + hour story with tons of politically-driven + slice-of -life elements, extremely detailed world building, and a quick to grasp combat system with many game breaking mechanics to play around with.

Gameplay: If you don't mind many of the game's mechanics being overpowered to the point of being too easy, you will have a fun time playing around with all the neat ways you can defeat enemies in just a few turns, or even one hit. However, it's also the biggest criticism because alot of the game's depth feels less rewarding when you don't have any challenges to complement that depth.

Story: This is a continuation of Cold Steel 1 and 2, so please play those games before this one, or else you won't understand the plot at all. As expected of a Trails game: super detailed lore, lots of dialogue, etc. However, these games are what would be described as "Story RPG's", meaning most of the game is almost like a visual novel, with 80% of the game being long stretches of dialogue, with some combat in between. It isn't for everyone, but if story is your priority, you'll enjoy Trails games. Cold Steel 3 is no exception. Contains a mixture of sci-fi, fantasy, politics, and slice-of-life; all with a relatively "anime" flavor to it.

Tbh as much as I like this game, it feels really outdated for the year it came out. I know it's supposed to be a faithful throwback to old-school Kunio/River City games, but there is a lack of dyamicism and speed, annnnd....depth I guess? You know, some things modern anime games of this genre have that this game doesn't. Actually, 3rd Strike was faster and more dynamic compared to this. And was 2 decades ago. To me it feels like an updated version of the older Kunio games, with some added things you couldn't do in those games. But...I need more??? XD

Besides the art style, the fact it doesn't feel like 100 percent of this era does contribute alot to my personal disappointment. As much as I don't like to admit that. I like old-school homages. Buuuut...

Instead of framing their mindset as "make it a homage to old-school beat em up/Kunio games while spicing things up" they should've went for the mentality of "just make the coolest most stylish beat em up ever". At least that's what it felt like what they were thinking to me as I played the game. Felt like being faithful to the series that spawned it is part of what held back this game's potential... Yet, I guess this game wasn't catered towards me in the first place. I'm less interested in homage and more interested in making things as cool looking as possible.


Connecting attacks to the enemy doesn't feel as impactful or satisfying as I would hope. I at least wanted a big crunching/smashing sound effect for when you land your punches and kicks. It has a great art style, but the gameplay doesn't match that energy. I was expecting something more fluid and dynamic where the animations are super fast, and the attacks are super hard hitting and make a cool noises when you hit the opponent. Again, maybe setting my expectations too high.

The story feels "empty" and too eventless. Not enough meaning and motivation in the characters you meet. They went for a purely comedic approach to the narrative, I get that, but it would've made it funner and more engaging to have characters with a compelling purpose that moves the plot along. Not to mention the game is too short, but that's a given I guess.

However, I'm still quick to commend the game simply because it was done on what I suspect to be a limited budget, and I think alot of the game's flaws stem from that. Wayforward did the best they can, and at the most they created a charming and funny game that's a good quick time killer....


Honestly I was putting my expectations too high, and setting myself for disappointment when I read "Arc System Works" in the opening logos. I like River City Girls for showing off Wayforward's strengths as a developer, and their ability to create a charming and visually appealing title. But not the true modern anime beat em up I was expecting with Arc System Works' name attached to it. Maybe if they make a River City Girls sequel, I expect to see improvements given Wayforward has definitely accumulated more knowledge and skills to make an even better beat em up in the future. I know they can.

The niche but well-regarded JRPG title, once exclusive to Japan, was finally ported and localized in the US in the form of a PSP release by XSEED games. It told the story of Estelle Bright and her adopted borther Joshua, as the two sought to become full time bracers as well as uncovering a mysterious conspiracy that would send their kingdom into chaos. The sequel to Trails in The Sky, SC(Second Chapter), after years of waiting and an additional year long delay, had had many fans hungry for a continuation of the story; a burning desire to return to its immersive world, and the incredibly charming old-school RPG gameplay surrounding it. SC finally arrived in 2015 of October for PSP, Vita, and PC for digital download. It is a awesome and satisfying sequel to the first chapter. One thing I was disappointed about SC was that it takes place mostly in Liberl (again), and it felt repetitive to revissit the same places over again, just with replaced dialogue and cutscenes. But it didnt worry me too much, as the game does the most with what recycled resources there are.

Speaking of dialogue, this is perhaps my favorite part of the game: XSEED's awesome localization of the script. I dont know if the characters actually spoke like this in the original Japanese, but the way they speak in English is chock full of personality, quirkiness, and humor. The English version does a fantastic job of making each character's personality distinct. Just through their dialogue alone you could tell which character is which without looking at their portrait. Credit goes to both Andrew Dice and Jessica Chavez (and other people probably whose names arent mentioned), for pouring hundreds of hours translating the massive gigantic story. Trust me, this game is GIGANTIC.

To go off on a short tangent here, XSEED is a small but passionate Japanese localization company that does its best to bring awesome but not very well known franchises outside Japan to overshore. Because of the low sales of the games they localize, they are financially shaky. Not to mention they are translating the Legend of Heroes series' giant amounts of dialogue with little financial benefit in the end. I can not say this enough. PLEASE support the official releases of these titles in North America or elsewhere. We want XSEED to get credit where it's due. They are a tiny company but passionate about what they do, and they deserve whatever rewards they can muster. It's because of them we get to play this gorgeous series in English, with awesome personality-filled dialogue.

Trails in the Sky SC has an awesome story. Though a little on the cliche side, you will fall in love with almost every character. Gameplay allows for very personal customization options suited to your preferred playstyle for each character. It's fun immerse yourself in the world and go exploring. It's everything the traiditonal RPG purist or casual player will have fun with. Would I reccomend this game? Yes.

10/10 Best game ever.