Legend of Heroes The Legend of Heroes Series

[王小小]

In anticipation of the impending Steam summer release of Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky SC (hopefully by late September at the latest), I just wanted to create this topic to generate some discussion about the series. Feel free to discuss any of the games in the series!

As for myself, I've only played the Trails in the Sky trilogy and Crossbell duology. I was wondering if anyone has played the Simplified Chinese versions of SC, the 3rd, Zero, and Ao? (I'm assuming most players who were impatient like me went directly to the Japanese version.) I'm also curious of what your opinions are on the Chinese translation? For me I noticed that the translators maintained a Japanese flavor in terms of diction and phrasing. E.g. 初次见面， 请多多关照。 vs 初めまして、どうぞよろしくお愿いします。In any case, I was able to enjoy the story, and I look forward to seeing how Xseed handles the localization of SC.

I'd rank the games in the following order:

Ao>SC>FC>Zero>3rd

[Junk]

i've been playing FC. Great game. One of the few JRPGS I love in a genre that I generally don't enjoy. I plan to play SC when i finish FC and when it comes out. After that i will probably wait many years to play cold steel 1/2 since I want to play the zero/ao no kiseki. I've heard ao and SC are good but that cold steel 1 is just meh.

I am also interested in the ghargharv trilogy (in the original japanese which uh maybe i'll learn someday). i've heard from some that it is even better than the kiseki games, particularly LOH 3 white witch. It has been said that the ghargharv games have a very poetic quality in the original japanese and that the stories are sublime.

[eclipse]

Er. . .

LoH 3 is Song of the Ocean, IIRC. The one with the witch is LoH 2. LoH 1 has hilarious bad translation, but the story shines through anyway. Ahem. . .

I want SC to hurryap into my Steam library! FC was one of the few love stories I actually liked!

[Junk]

Er. . .

LoH 3 is Song of the Ocean, IIRC. The one with the witch is LoH 2. LoH 1 has hilarious bad translation, but the story shines through anyway. Ahem. . .

I want SC to hurryap into my Steam library! FC was one of the few love stories I actually liked!

nope it goes this way

Eiyū Densetsu III Shiroki Majo

The Legend of Heroes IV: Akai Shizuku

The Legend of Heroes V: Umi no Oriuta

This was the original japanese release order for the PC-98. Bandai changed the numbers.

also FC is a love story? not sure how to feel about that since i typically find love stories kind of boring.

[eclipse]

Somewhat.

There's an overarching story, and another one between Estelle and Joshua.

Stateside, what you listed was released as 2, 1, and 3, respectively. I don't know why the order was scrambled so, as A Tear of Vermillion sorta stood on its own, IMO.

[Aretty]

I played FC and Sen 1/Sen 2. I love this series. I am very hyped for SC. VERY.

[Junk]

Somewhat.

There's an overarching story, and another one between Estelle and Joshua.

Stateside, what you listed was released as 2, 1, and 3, respectively. I don't know why the order was scrambled so, as A Tear of Vermillion sorta stood on its own, IMO.

i've heard that tear of vermillion and white witch can be played separately without spoiling the other game but cagesong of the ocean must be played last. I've heard that the president of falcom has expressed interest in remaking these games with a new translation so i am hyped indeed.

Hmm well i like estelle and joshua (and the characters in general, they are making the game for me), maybe i'll end up enjoying the romance.

[B.Leu]

Never. Ever. Played. Any. Of. Those games. Heck, I never even seen a let's play.

The only thing I know about this series is that it have awesome musics.

[王小小]

Never. Ever. Played. Any. Of. Those games. Heck, I never even seen a let's play.

The only thing I know about this series is that it have awesome musics.

Well, there are LP's on Youtube like this and this(both Taiwanese versions), but yeah most of them are not in English since only FC from the Trails arc was translated (as of now). Actually there's an incomplete LP for Zero no Kiseki with English subs here. The translation can take liberties at times, but it's pretty good overall.

[TheEnd]

I've been following the Trails series (though I haven't touched the Ghargav trilogy). In fact, SC was one the motives why I decided to actually study Japanese.

By the way, it seems we'll be getting not only SC (best game in the series imo), but also Trails of Cold Steel this year... though I kinda doubt XSEED will be able to deliver ToCS so quickly. Maybe the fact it isn't a port will allow them to meet their deadline? Time will tell.

As for a random personal ranking, I'd say:

SC > ToCS2 > Zero > 3rd > FC > Ao > ToCS1

I'm super salty about Ao's nerfs, especially since I played it right after finishing Zero

was wondering if anyone has played the Simplified Chinese versions of SC, the 3rd, Zero, and Ao?

VincentASM has played those, yeah.

Though he hasn't played ToCS because he doesn't have a PS3... and to think they have actual mage girls, too.

Edited July 22, 2015 by TravelingElder

[VincentASM]

I played the Traditional Chinese versions; they seemed competent enough to me. It helps that Chinese and Japanese are somewhat similar languages, so it's harder to screw up the translation. Although I do understand what you mean by retaining a "Japanese" flavour.

By the way, it seems we'll be getting not only SC (best game in the series imo), but also Trails of Cold Steel this year... though I kinda doubt XSEED will be able to deliver ToCS so quickly. Maybe the fact it isn't a port will allow them to meet their deadline? Time will tell.

From what I've read, it sounds like Trails of Cold Steel is pretty far ahead in terms of completion, so I'm pretty confident it'll release during the timeframe they specified. That said, Steam FC and SC had their fair share of delays, so who knows : P

Oh yeah, obligatory plug since I'm changing my signature soon.

[TheEnd]

From what I've read, it sounds like Trails of Cold Steel is pretty far ahead in terms of completion, so I'm pretty confident it'll release during the timeframe they specified. That said, Steam FC and SC had their fair share of delays, so who knows : P

I believe they were going to start dubbing? Or something. If they decide to add dual audio or any other features, I can see issues popping up during testing and postponing the game to 2016.

Not to mention that releasing ToCS before SC probably is (or at least should be) out of consideration, so SC's delays will likely affect it too. ToCS's cliffhanger is worse than FC's, releasing it early could be a disaster...

Oh yeah, obligatory plug since I'm changing my signature soon.

Noooooo

[王小小]

I've been following the Trails series (though I haven't touched the Ghargav trilogy). In fact, SC was one the motives why I decided to actually study Japanese.

Yeah I hope I can replay SC in Japanese someday. I did play through Berwick Saga in Japanese, but I had to skip a lot of story related stuff, and I ended up reading the translation on ChinaFE to make sense of what was going on.

As for a random personal ranking, I'd say:

SC > ToCS2 > Zero > 3rd > FC > Ao > ToCS1

I'm surprised you have the 3rd above FC. Although the 3rd had better gameplay mechanics, I felt that too many areas were recycled and the last few areas got pretty grindy. I still enjoyed all the little sidestories though.

Richard's S crafts were so broken in the 3rd hehe.

I'm super salty about Ao's nerfs, especially since I played it right after finishing Zero

I abused Randy's crafts so hard in Zero, but he wasn't as useful in Ao due to those nerfs you mentioned :( However,

I enjoyed pummeling enemies with Rixia and Lloyd's OP combo craft in Ao.

Edited July 23, 2015 by 王小小

[Dotty]

I've only played FC but I thought it was wonderful and I've been eagerly waiting for SC for a long time now!

I don't know anything about the other games besides that they all are like little mini-series within the overarching plot (maybe?), so it's a little confusing to me where they all fall chronologically, and which games have spoilers for others, etc. etc.

[Pull My Devil Trigger]

Only played FC but i've been checking for news everyday in await for SC

thankfully it was just sometime this year that i finished the game

pls xseed gimme august release so i canz waste my vacation on SC

anyone know how the vita versions for Sen I and II are i heard conflicting opinions on them and I having something other than Celceta on it could make me consider getting one

also Vincent needs to bring the Trails badges back

and add a Ys one to make up for removing them

Edited July 23, 2015 by Tonton

[TheEnd]

Yeah I hope I can replay SC in Japanese someday. I did play through Berwick Saga in Japanese, but I had to skip a lot of story related stuff, and I ended up reading the translation on ChinaFE to make sense of what was going on.

I'm surprised you have the 3rd above FC. Although the 3rd had better gameplay mechanics, I felt that too many areas were recycled and the last few areas got pretty grindy. I still enjoyed all the little sidestories though.

Richard's S crafts were so broken in the 3rd hehe.

Eh, they're pretty close in my book, really. 3rd is very much a fanservice pack, you really play it for the sidestories and whatnot.

Just the S-crafts? Try regular crafts. And orbment setup. Dude's insane.

I abused Randy's crafts so hard in Zero, but he wasn't as useful in Ao due to those nerfs you mentioned :( However,

I enjoyed pummeling enemies with Rixia and Lloyd's OP combo craft in Ao.

Them 70+% status ailments.

Almost every single craft from Zero got nerfed in Ao, even when you consider their upgraded versions. And then there's what they did with arts... thankfully they found a middle ground in ToCS2.

I've only played FC but I thought it was wonderful and I've been eagerly waiting for SC for a long time now!

I don't know anything about the other games besides that they all are like little mini-series within the overarching plot (maybe?), so it's a little confusing to me where they all fall chronologically, and which games have spoilers for others, etc. etc.

FC -> SC -> 3rd -> Zero -> Ao

And then ToCS1/2 happens during Zero/Ao, so you can play either duology (though apparently there will be more ToCS games) first.

Only played FC but i've been checking for news everyday in await for SC

thankfully it was just sometime this year that i finished the game

pls xseed gimme august release so i canz waste my vacation on SC

Abandon all hope Tontão

anyone know how the vita versions for Sen I and II are i heard conflicting opinions on them and I having something other than Celceta on it could make me consider getting one

Weren't you gonna get a PS3 Edited July 23, 2015 by TravelingElder

[Junk]

One of you should play the ghargharv trilogy in japanese and write a script for it.

i've heard that third is a pretty important bridge to zero/ao? I've heard that if you play just zero you will be fun but when ao comes up you need the 3rd.

[S_Cero]

FC was fun, I enjoyed it. Felt a little too incomplete as a game for me though (it didn't feel satisfying). The gameplay was also a little slow making random battles kind of tedious (and King Penguin was hell). I'll be picking up SC.

[TheEnd]

One of you should play the ghargharv trilogy in japanese and write a script for it.

i've heard that third is a pretty important bridge to zero/ao? I've heard that if you play just zero you will be fun but when ao comes up you need the 3rd.

I'll leave that to Eclipse

While the main story of Zero is pretty much independent from the previous games, there are indeed a few pieces that will definitely feel off without playing 3rd.

Now, the following logic applies to both Ao and ToCS2: the first game (Zero/ToCS1) introduces a new cast, region and story, and can be pretty much played independently with little loss (though Zero has more meaningful references than ToCS), while the second puts them into the bigger picture of the series.

[Junk]

I'll leave that to Eclipse

While the main story of Zero is pretty much independent from the previous games, there are indeed a few pieces that will definitely feel off without playing 3rd.

Now, the following logic applies to both Ao and ToCS2: the first game (Zero/ToCS1) introduces a new cast, region and story, and can be pretty much played independently with little loss (though Zero has more meaningful references than ToCS), while the second puts them into the bigger picture of the series.

oh okay that's cool. At least I can pick up cold steel 1 when it comes out.

[eclipse]

I'll leave that to Eclipse

And how much will you pay me?

I've got the English versions of all three games, but I haven't had time to play Midnight Prophecy (I THINK that's how it was localized?). My foot into the series was Song of the Ocean, and despite the fact that the subplots were cheesy, I stuck it out. Then I got Trails in the Sky FC, and have been converted for real ever since!

I'm excited for ToCS, but I want SC first!

[TheEnd]

And how much will you pay me?

The same they've been paying me

I've got the English versions of all three games, but I haven't had time to play Midnight Prophecy (I THINK that's how it was localized?). My foot into the series was Song of the Ocean, and despite the fact that the subplots were cheesy, I stuck it out. Then I got Trails in the Sky FC, and have been converted for real ever since!

I'm excited for ToCS, but I want SC first!

Not to mention that ToCS has a couple SC spoilers, too.

Personally I found ToCS the worst game in the series, though. But you need it for ToCS2, which I found pretty solid, so...

[Junk]

And how much will you pay me?

I've got the English versions of all three games, but I haven't had time to play Midnight Prophecy (I THINK that's how it was localized?). My foot into the series was Song of the Ocean, and despite the fact that the subplots were cheesy, I stuck it out. Then I got Trails in the Sky FC, and have been converted for real ever since!

I'm excited for ToCS, but I want SC first!

I can give away my alignment in mafia and i'll try to make you win if you ever join an eimm

I'm amazed that SC is twice as long as FC. Isn't it considered the longest game in the whole series?

[王小小]

I'm amazed that SC is twice as long as FC. Isn't it considered the longest game in the whole series?

I think it's either that or Ao for the longest game in the series, judging by the script size at least. The scenario books at Falcom's website have SC at 800 pages and Ao at 768 pages. FC is 488, 3rd is 628, Zero is 672, and ToCS is 704. I don't see the ToCS 2 scenario book there but I'd wager it's nearly as big as SC and Ao. For what it's worth, it took me 87 hours to beat SC and 79 to beat Ao.

[Aretty]

I honestly can't wait to play the 3rd, since it has backstories on some characters and such. Also it opens the way to the Crossbell series. Zero and Ao are great yes. And i actually quite enjoyed ToCS. (Despite not understanding japanese) ToCS2 was good too. But of course i'd be able to enjoy them more in english. It'll be ages until zero/ao is translated, and they're both good. ;-;