The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak 2 Review - The Final Verdict
182I've stuck with The Legend of Heroes: Trails series since Trails in the Sky: FC. My enthusiasm may have waned at some points, especially when Cold Steel 4 was done and dusted, but it's always enthralled me with its characterization, larger narrative, combat, and world-building.
Many of those tenets still apply in The Legend of Heroes: Trails through Daybreak. Van Arkride and his "assistants" are still as endearing as ever. The Republic of Calvard still offers numerous secrets and a distinguished atmosphere compared to other locations. Even the combat system has seen some much-needed additions and improvements.
However, Falcom has seemingly missed the boat on the larger narrative. A new storytelling mechanic proves completely hands-off and overdone to the point of absurdity; the LGC Alignment system feels irrelevant; and it feels like the characters deserve better. I wouldn't completely skip this entry because there's a lot of good stuff but it's easily the weakest entry yet.