The Legend Of Heroes: Trails From Zero PS4 Review-
For those unaware of the existence of the stellar Trails' JRPG series, allow me to give a brief rundown of the history. The Trails games are huge games that are all interconnected to one another by the same world. For instance, the very first Trails series, Trails from the Sky follows the story of Estelle Bright and is set in the region of Liberl. Although, this game is set in a completely different country of Crossbell and follows different protagonists from Sky, the world and the events taking place in Trails from Zero are all connected and events from that game effect and feature throughout this game. This goes for the other series, Trails of Cold Steel, and there are others but the point is this. The amazing storytelling chops of the creators are on full display here and returning players of the older games will immediately see and hear about events that they played through in the other series. The way this massive world is connected via a thick web is incredibly fascinating and remains one of the strongest points of the Trails games!
Back on topic, this game was actually created a LONG time ago for consoles that are not being made anymore and was previously only available in Japan. This recent remaster FINALLY brings this classic to the West, with English subtitles and Japanese voice acting. If you have played any of the Trails of Cold Steel games, you will immediately recognize some of the characters in this saga. This is the introduction story of the Special Support Section of SSS, and the protagonist is the beloved rookie detective, Lloyd Bannings and his entourage, Randy Orlando, Elie MacDowell, & Tio Plato. What makes this work even better is the varied personalities on offer in our playable party. Lloyd is hot-blooded yet kind to a fault, Elie is a sweetheart who has some wealthy kinfolk, Tio is the soft-spoken computer whiz whose past is draped in mystery and of course, the laid-back ladies man Randy. This is the core group you will be playing as and there initial formation of the SSS is not only captivating, it is brilliance in terms of writing and execution.
While the actual gameplay does not offer anything people haven't seen before, it is the writing and the gripping story that pulls you in and won't let go until the credits roll and by then you will wish that it was not over. It spins a story that could almost be a real-life event, from vile mafia mobsters getting away with heinous acts of crime to a devil-worshipping cult who deny the existence of Aidios (the Trail's games main religious deity). While I won't spoil any of the later events that take place for anyone, you can't help but fall in love with the SSS and the various citizens of Crossbell who all in some way or another give aid to the cops in hopes of making their home a safer and better place. You will also get guest characters at times in the story who will briefly join you in combat and you will grow to love these colorful characters. Being as the protagonist is a detective, the game will constantly test your knowledge not only of Crossbell and events happening around you in the game, but also your efficiency as a cop in general. For instance, an early scene pits you with a choice of how best to evacuate a kid surrounded by monster's dead set on feasting on him. Depending on your choices throughout the story, you will gain DP or detective points and these unlock some very powerful items and gear that you will aid you greatly.
The retro looking graphics and character sprites may look like they belong in the 90's but even so, this is a jam-packed JRPG with all the content you would expect out of a Cold Steel title. The NPC's all say something different almost every time you return to speak to them later and there are tons of hidden side quests that reward players who explore instead of rush to the next goal.
For me personally, I played the Trails of Cold Steel games before playing this and I got ALOT out of this even though this is chronologically before those games are simply because the amazing way the developers link each game together. I learned just as much that I did not understand before in the other games, and that is all a testament to the A+ job the dev's did at worldbuilding. If you have EVER enjoyed any Trails games in the past, you owe it yourself to go get this diamond in the rough right away, there has never been a better time to learn how the SSS got to be what it is today. And with Trails From Azure (which is this game's direct sequel) finally being localised in the West, there should be nothing stopping you! Prepare to lose several weeks of your time to this amazing masterpiece!!