I didn’t believe this day would come.
Until last year’s announcement, that is.
NIS America did what many had thought impossible, and personally I could not be happier.
The Legends of Heroes: Trails from Zero review
My own journey with Trails began in 2020.
Yet, I’d struggle to name a bad entry.
I’d argue no entry better exemplifies that than Trails from Zero.
With each nation claiming sovereignty over Crossbell, that intriguing worldbuilding’s at play from the get-go.
However, Crossbell’s biggest charm is, undeniably, itself.
Unsurprisingly, this holds plenty of optional side requests, selected from your team’s PC.
Soon as you’re ready to advance, start tackling the mandatory request.
There’s no random encounters, you might easily avoid enemies when exploring if you’re not feeling it.
Or, you could strike them unaware to gain an advantage.
Just don’t let them sneak up behind you, since the reverse is also true.
Once initiated, fights shift into turn-based combat with grid-based movement.
However, Arts take longer to cast and cost EP, so use them wisely.
Some enemies have elemental resistances and weaknesses, though foes are scannable to learn those crucial details.
It requires a strategic approach, careful consideration, and combat is tactically quite satisfying.
Each party member also has Crafts that use a seperate CP metre which builds up over combat.
Alongside a standard equipment system, using Quartz isn’t limited to just giving you more attacks.
Some provide stat boosts like increased defence, movement per turn, evasion, or increased HP/EP, too.
Fair warning though, several quests are hidden and won’t be mentioned on the PC.
Still, this does little to detract from Zero overall.
But once you get there, once it clicks, I didn’t want to stop.
By placing you at the heart of its struggles, I became invested in its future.
I dare not spoil the specifics here but I was certainly moved.
That said, it’s not all serious business.
Thanks to a good sense of humour, Zero never takes itself too seriously, either.
The music’s still just as catchy as ever, Zero’s theme song being a particular favourite.
Unfortunately, these changes are absent from the PS4 version but I don’t consider this a dealbreaker.
Zero never looked bad and having also tried it on PS4, that still holds true.
It’s just that little bit cleaner elsewhere.
