Game:

The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky Second Chapter (2006)

Duration: 2:32:39

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Originally recorded: September 9, 2022 (Happy 23rd Birthday, Dreamcast!)
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I'm not going to lie: this was a big risk. I don't generally like the idea of recording BtLO on worknights, simply because I tend to go for longer sessions than one might expect... and well, I need a set amount of sleep to function properly. Granted, I guess I tend to be less sleepy and more emotionally/psychologically exhausted when it comes to my job. But adding sleep deprivation on top of that is definitely something I never want to risk.

Having said that, it all paid off in the end. I ended up beating the game in what may be one of the shortest Back the Log Off! sessions I've ever done, if not *the* shortest. I guess this proves that so long as I start early enough and set some hard limits on when I stop for the night, work nights are indeed a viable way to milk extra recordings out of my limited schedule. Considering the fact I'm going to be hyperfocused on streaming for the rest of this month and all of October, it's a good thing to keep in mind for my next (and final) game lined up for BtLO for the year. Should BtLO resurface in the future -- and honestly, I hope it does -- my schedule will probably be significantly more limited than it has been this year. I'm just dead set on finishing the Sky trilogy this year, which is why this project has taken priority over others.

Last time, I was incredibly demoralized after Loewe handed me my ass several times near the end of the stream. As such, I decided to see if I could find any "1337 gamer strats" for taking him down. Unfortunately, most of what I found just contradicted everything else I found. In the end, I was only really given three pieces of advice on how to fight Loewe: avoid taking damage, damage should always be avoided and always be not taking damage. Ironically, while I thought Kevin was going to be the weak link in my group, given just how much I'd neglected him, it turned out his S-Craft was crucial for victory. He just needed the right equipment to maximize his defensive capabilities. So, it was back to the Arseille to shuffle around some accessories and gems and I was ready to rock. Granted, I had to rely on the "continue" trick, which lowers the fight's difficulty ever-so-slightly. But considering the fact that the main change seemed to be a difference in how often Loewe spams his S-Crafts, I'm willing to cheese the game on that front.

The only other relevant piece of advice I saw online was that everything after Loewe is significantly easier. And it was. I mean, kudos to Falcom for using gameplay to get across just how powerful Loewe truly was. But even after losing Joshua to mind control, the next boss fight was actually super-easy. Hell, using the same loadout and strategy I used on Loewe meant that I could absolutely destroy every other obstacle left in my path with little issue. Not that I'm complaining. Honestly, after I almost thought I wouldn't be able to finish the game, it felt... cathartic.

Having said that, I am sad that I'll probably never see Liberl again as the series continues. While I know for certain that Estelle and Joshua will continue to make at least sporadic appearances through the remainder of the series -- something I only know due to their presence in various promotional materials for future games in the Trails series -- I'm a lot less optimistic that other major characters from this duology will show up again. As for the minor cast, I know for certain that Liberl itself hasn't played a major role through the rest of the Trails series up to this point. The franchise's moving on to new settings... but I do hope that I'll be able to spot any cameos for any wayward Liberlians as I continue on with the series.

I think I ended up enjoying SC more than the first game in the series... but they make for a perfect pair. SC just had better pacing compared to the first game. That's not really a fair criticism though: after all, "FC" had to do all the heavy lifting when it came to exposition -- and SC benefitted from all of that stuff. To use an old cliché, FC walked so that SC could run. SC does still retain the first game's habit of railroading the player into extended story sequences if they go "the right way" by mistake, though. So it's not perfect.

I'm debating on whether I want to take one or two weeks off before I move onto the third and final game in the trilogy. Either way, I'll start it before Trails from Zero -- the fourth game in the series -- finally makes its officially licensed debut in the West. And before I wrap things up, I actually have two fun facts for you. First off, I almost called this stream "Blame It on Georg", but I figured that reference might be a bit too obscure or oblique. I'm much happier with the title I actually went with. Secondly, when I thought I was going to finish up the game last time, I was a bit apprehensive about finishing on an odd number. That kinda ended up backfiring on me though, right?

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