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I have followed the Legend of Heroes series (commonly known as the Trails series) for a long time. It is one of the more unique RPG franchises in that every separate subseries carries on the world’s history, just in a different country or part of the world. The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak kicks off a new story in the franchise and builds upon what came before.

In Trails Through Daybreak, you play as Van Arkride, a man who works as a Spriggan. His work is essentially a mix between a private detective and a mercenary for hire, doing jobs that regular law enforcement won’t do. When he gets hired to help a young woman find a family heirloom, a plot unfolds that is bigger than either of them could imagine.

On the gameplay side of things, Trails Through Daybreak changes things up a bit. There are quests and sub/side-quests like in previous games, but the end result of how you solve the quests feeds into an alignment system. Different organizations are tied with one of three alignments, and while the plot won’t be largely different, it will give you a chance to change certain aspects of the game’s ending hours.

This gives plenty of room for replay value, considering there won’t be enough alignment points to max out all the alignments in a single playthrough. It also gives you the opportunity to play through the game on more than one difficulty level.

In terms of combat, Trails Through Daybreak changes things up a little too. The series’ typical turn-based combat is still here. However, you can have a change of pace with a new real-time combat element that allows you to bypass the turn-based combat entirely with weaker enemies and soften up stronger enemies before initiating the turn-based combat.

Admittedly, I wasn’t sold on the new real-time combat element at first, but it did make grinding feel smoother and less arduous. Other franchise staples are also here, such as arts, S-Crafts, Crafts, etc. On the subject of Arts, it’s interesting that the developers have expanded how you can equip quartz (which has various benefits) yet streamlined how the arts system works.

I would say that while each new adjustment and alteration is a nice quality-of-life improvement, none of the adjustments are perfect. The changes to S-Crafts, for example, make them less overpowered by limiting how many characters can use them at once. This turns the usage of them into a weird resource management situation, which was already there in a way with the CP system.

None of this is to say that Trails Through Daybreak isn’t good. In fact, I would say that it is a very solid RPG. It focuses on a somewhat grittier cast of characters while also maintaining the humor and heart from the Trails of Cold Steel subseries as well as the other previous games.

Also, with it being the current latest point in the timeline (aside from Trails Through Daybreak II and the upcoming Trails Beyond the Horizon), it lets you see how certain characters from other games have grown and evolved. The modern history of the world of Zemuria unfolds before your eyes, and you can meet new characters at the same time.

Trails Through Daybreak also provides solid voice acting through most of its dialogue, aside from a little bit of side content. The soundtrack is gorgeous, and the visual design is both familiar and beautiful. While the game isn’t perfect, it has a lot to love here.

If you are a fan of the Trails franchise, this is a no-brainer. Even if you are new to the series, it is a great starting point since it sets up a new storyline. If you’re an RPG fan, Trails Through Daybreak will give you a solid experience, even if you don’t play through it multiple times.

A PC Review Copy of The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak was provided by NIS America for the purposes of this review

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The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak

$59.99

9.5

Score

9.5/10

Pros

• Great Storyline
• Fun New Gameplay Elements
• Solid Voice Acting and Soundtrack
• Tons of Content
• Great Starting Point for New Players

Cons

• Certain QOL Improvements Need Tweaking