Board 8 > Trails to Azure beated, AMA

(+) Yeah! (+)

Sometime back in 2020, ToCS3 got announced for a US release on the Nintendo Switch, and seeing all the hype around it, I finally decided "huh maybe I should check this series out". For years, you guys here on B8 have been raving about the Trails series, and I really digged the music I heard from it in VGMC. This video here ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkSIxrYmnBI ) was actually what got me to pick up the first game in the series during a Steam sale. (also PSA to anyone on the fence about getting started on this series, play the games in release order and don't skip any)

And it turns out, you guys were right! I was a bit worried that these games wouldn't live up to the mountain of hype, but midway through Sky FC, I went ahead a grabbed SC too! After Sky 3rd, I took a break and played a couple other RPGs on my backlog (just long enough for the Geofront translations to be finished), but two years and many hiatuses later, I've finally finished both the Sky and Crossbell arcs.

I guess B8 in general just has good taste in games. A lot of the stuff that gets recommended here specifically (e.g. Trails/Umineko/Utawarerumono) just so happens to be the exact kind of stuff I'm looking for games, so uhhh thanks!

What I loved most about these games was how in-depth the worldbuilding is, and how every single NPC in the game has a developed backstory. The characters would usually have deeper motives behind their actions, and larger scale forces would shape the plot rather than just leaving everything to powerlevel cliches deciding everything like you'd see in a lot of other anime/JRPGs. There's definitely the feeling of all the characters growing as the story progresses and I found myself surprised at just how much I liked basically everyone in these games. Kinda an interesting choice in that the series very rarely actually kills characters off, but it doesn't really need to with how dark it gets at points.

So yeah, I just wanted to talk about how much I LOVE this series, to the point where it's my new favorite RPG franchise. I already have the first three Cold Steel games sitting in my Steam library, but I may choose to play something else in the meantime so that I don't get burnt out.

spoilers for the first five games after this post I guess

What's your favorite song from the game?

Best trails game

Hbthebattle posted...

What's your favorite song from the game?

Sky FC: Hollow Light of the Sealed Land
Sky SC: Fateful Confrontation (HM to Liber Ark)
Sky 3rd: Dreamy and Boisterous Holy Land (HM to the entire soundtrack)
Zero: Arrival Existence (THOSE BELLS)
Azure: Unfathomed Force Evolution ver. (HMs to The Truth of the Rainy Day and Silence in the Sunlight Filtering Through Trees)

My favorite overall keeps changing, but right now I'm really felling Unfathomed Force

ninkendo posted...

Best trails game

Sky SC, but 3rd has really grown on me since playing it and letting it all sit in, so that's a close second

Best trails game

Who is your favorite SSS member and why is it Elie

_stingers_ posted...

Who is your favorite SSS member and why is it Elie

cup size

_stingers_ posted...

Who is your favorite SSS member and why is it Elie

spark die'n

Elie actually is my favorite SSS member! Not sure why she isn't more popular in the fandom.

ninkendo posted...

cup size

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/1/2/4/AAOGRhAACtnU.png

Elie is fantastic and I love her

Lloyd > Randy > Tio > Elie

Elie is great she's just less interesting than the other 3 OG SSS members

Also Tio is best girl in the entire franchise soooo

Tio is great she's just less interesting than the other 3 OG SSS members

ninkendo posted...

cup size

i think rixia and sara have her beat. and whoever that annoying eyepatch lady is in cs2

Rixia is actual best girl

The chemistry between the SSS members was the best part of the Crossbell arc, the whole team complimented each other great

also I've realized that Zero/Azure is about four meddling kids and their talking dog driving around town and solving mysteries

it's literally Scooby-Doo

Randy > Tio > Wazy > Noel > Rixia > Lloyd > Elie

FL81 posted...

but 3rd has really grown on me since playing it and letting it all sit in

I'm im the same boat, 3rd might actually be my favorite at this point

3rd gang rise up

3rd gang rise up

what was your favorite moment you reacted to with "bruh" in the game

Leonhart4 posted...

Lloyd > Randy > Tio > Elie

Elie > Randy > Tio > Lloyd

tcaz2 posted...

Also Tio is best girl in the entire franchise soooo

forgetting someone?
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/6/4/1/AAOGRhAACtvZ.png

MZero posted...

I'm im the same boat, 3rd might actually be my favorite at this point

the notion that 3rd is somehow skippable is the worst take in the Trails fandom that refuses to die

NFUN posted...

what was your favorite moment you reacted to with "bruh" in the game

If the ending to Azure ain't a bruh moment, then I don't know what is.

actually wait no, it's the ending to Sky FC

I would probably die before saying 3rd wasn't skippable. It added nothing

I liked it, but if you want the plot, it's entirely forgettable

Now I'm only on CS2 so maybe theres more nuance later that I'm missing? But given my knowledge of the series I doubt it

FL81 posted...

the notion that 3rd is somehow skippable is the worst take in the Trails fandom that refuses to die

yes

How would you rank the endings of the games?

How much do you like the gameplay, and how much does it improve/decline over the course of the series?

Rixia is close to my favorite character in the series tbqh. Easily top three.

Anyway Azure is probably my favorite Trails game but idk. It's close between that and Sky SC/3rd

Actually there's a question nobody asked--who are your favorite characters in the series overall?

Mac Arrowny posted...

How would you rank the endings of the games?

Sky FC > Sky 3rd > Sky SC >> Zero >>>>>> Azure

FC's ending was a kick in the teeth, but I respect Falcom for actually going through with it. Literally started playing SC the next morning after that cliffhanger. Azure's ending was kinda dumb.

banananor posted...

How much do you like the gameplay, and how much does it improve/decline over the course of the series?

Played normal difficulty on every game and it's pretty standard as far as JRPG gameplay goes. It took me until the end of Sky FC to really figure out how the orbment system worked, but I like that the fight against unmasked Lorence was basically the point where it tests you on whether or not you know what you're doing. It gets kinda easy when you figure out that every game has a specific meta that totally breaks everything though.

pyresword posted...

Actually there's a question nobody asked--who are your favorite characters in the series overall?

I debated doing one of those tierlist makers for characters, but I didn't want to somehow spoil myself. Anyway, the top tier would comprise Estelle, Kevin, Cassius, Loewe, Renne, and Joshua

pretty much every character is great, which is kinda rare, found at least some level of enjoyment for each of the characters

underrated sleeper picks in Lechter, Kilika, Anelace, Richard, probably a bunch of others

wasn't a fan of Wald, Shirley, or Josette

FL81 posted...

underrated sleeper picks in... Anelace

wasn't a fan Josette

Good taste

Anelace is the absolute best.

did you get BTFO'd by Demiurgous's "fuck you" attack?

Wald easily the worst character in the series.

I liked Lechter before the Cold Steel games D:

Anelace an underrated sleeper pick LOL good joke

I feel like a lot more people here like Anelace compared to other places I've talked about the series

Lechter is so cool I wish he was in CS more. I guess he'll start appearing after 2 maybe since he has been in Crossbell this whole time

NFUN posted...

did you get BTFO'd by Demiurgous's "fuck you" attack?

Honestly the fight I had the most trouble with in all of Azure was the giant robot atop the tower

I couldn't just abuse Tio's S-Craft and have Lloyd corner the boss in at the edge of the map for that one >_>

I miraculously somehow beat the Steel Maiden on my first try. One weird thing about that whole segment though was how one of her underlings just casually mentions her strength rivals that of the Bladelord, only to just peace out immediately after her fight never to be heard again. Kinda figured someone that strong would be more important than that <_< otherwise the powerlevel scaling stayed within reason

the attack i refer to is one that vanishes your whole party and goes through guard and is uncancelable, so if you didn't realize you had to blow every orb and s-craft you had immediately, you were just fucked (you could live with vanish... at the expense of possibly soft-locking your game)

next question: are you busy? do you have five minutes?

NFUN posted...

the attack i refer to is one that vanishes your whole party and goes through guard and is uncancelable, so if you didn't realize you had to blow every orb and s-craft you had immediately, you were just fucked (you could live with vanish... at the expense of possibly soft-locking your game)

nah I just nuked him with spark dyne and w/e the all-target mirage art was

edit: also helped that I saved up all my zeram capsules

NFUN posted...

next question: are you busy? do you have five minutes?

other than listening to the chill song in the VGMGG discord, not busy

smh

yeah Azure probably had the easiest final boss, but that might just be my party being super busted by the end of the game/luck

every game always had that one boss right before the final boss who was harder to beat than the actual final boss