The Complicated Origins Of Trails Of Cold Steel

The Complicated Origins Of Trails Of Cold Steel

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The Trails of Cold Steel RPG saga is part the Trails series within The Legend of Heroes, a branch of Dragon Slayer, which has a complex history.

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The Complicated Origins Of Trails Of Cold Steel

The four-part JRPG saga The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel is a complex series, with an intricate narrative from the very first entry, but the game’s own history is nearly as complicated. Trails of Cold Steel is a series of games with one continuous story that takes place within the same world as the earlier trilogy of Trails in the Sky games. All Trails series games are part of Nihon Falcom’s The Legend of Heroes series, and The Legend of Heroes franchise itself originally started as a spin-off from the Dragon Slayer series.

As labyrinthine as the story within Trails of Cold Steel games may seem, the series’ origins might be even more opaque to US gamers. This is largely due to the absence of many Dragon Slayer games released in English territories, and the ones that were localized rarely displayed the Dragon Slayer name or any clear numbering. The same is true for the Dragon Slayer sub-series Legend of Heroes, and several games that have been released in the West were numbered differently from the order they were originally released in Japan.

The original Dragon Slayer was a 1984 action RPG, predating both the first Final Fantasy and first Dragon Quest games from those long-running JRPG franchises, and it has never had an official U.S. release. The sequel was Xanadu: Dragon Slayer 2, which was also never localized, but it did begin the tradition of sub-series of Dragon Slayer branching out into their own sprawling franchises. Xanadu spin-off titles Faxanadu, Xanadu Next, and Tokyo Xanadu, have all had US releases, but none of them noted the Dragon Slayer connection.

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Few Dragon Slayer Games Saw U.S. Release Prior To Trails

The Complicated Origins Of Trails Of Cold Steel

Dragon Slayer 4 was released in the US as Legacy of the Wizard for the NES, again with no noted Dragon Slayer series name attached to it. Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes, was the sixth title in the Dragon Slayer main series, and the first to be released in the US with the Dragon Slayer name intact. Its 1992 release on the niche TurboGrafix CD console meant few US gamers were aware of the game. While both Dragon Slayer 2: Xanadu and Dragon Slayer 5: Sorcerian spawned a large number of spin-off titles in Japan, Dragon Slayer 6: Legend of Heroes, and its spin-offs, have had the most exposure to U.S. audiences.

Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes 2 was never localized, but many subsequent main entries in The Legend of Heroes series have been released in the West, albeit with some naming confusion adding to the complications surrounding the games. The Legend of Heroes 4 was released for the U.S. PlayStation Portable as The Legend of Heroes: A Tear of Vermillion in 2005. The next year, The Legend of Heroes 3, the prior game in the series, was ported to U.S. audiences under the name The Legend of Heroes 2: Prophecy of the Moonlight Witch. A third U.S. release for PSP followed in 2007, as The Legend of Heroes 5 became The Legend of Heroes 3: Song of the Ocean, jumbling the order of these three titles.

The Legend of Heroes 6 was localized as The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky, another PSP release originally, beginning the long-running Trails sub-series of The Legend of Heroes. Some of the confusion with naming and order dissipated from that point on, as the remainder of the trilogy was released domestically as The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky SC (for Second Chapter), and The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky the 3rd. For gamers trying to keep up with the nested series’ numbering, the third Trails in the Sky game would be Dragon Slayer 6: The Legend of Heroes 6: Trails in the Sky 3.

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Despite Complex Origins, Trails Of Cold Steel Is Accessible

The two games in the “Crossbell Arc” of Trails, which were released in Japan between the Trails in the Sky trilogy and Trails of Cold Steel, have not seen a U.S. release as of yet. The beginning of the most recent arc in Trails was released domestically as The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel, adding 2 through 4 to the follow up titles. Unpacking the origins of Trails of Cold Steel is complicated, but RPG fans can simply start with Trails of Cold Steel and play through Trails of Cold Steel 4 to experience a multi-part epic, without needing to play prior Trails, The Legend of Heroes, or Dragon Slayer games, to understand the story.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/trails-cold-steel-legend-heroes-dragon-slayer-origins/

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