Game: The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak II
Genre: JRPG
System: Nintendo Switch (also available on Steam (Windows), & PlayStation
Developers: Publishers: Nihon Falcom | NIS
Age Rating: US T | EU 18
Price: US $59.99 | UK £54.99 | EU € 59,99
Release Date: February 14th, 2025
A review code was provided. Many thanks to Reef Entertainment.
The Legends of Heroes saga is, by now, so sprawling that it’s easier to refer to their individual popular, world-spanning epic arcs by their regions, i.e., the Crossbell Arc, the Erebonia Arc, etc. We also often just call it the Trails series. The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak is not only the newest arc, taking place in a region called Calvard (hence, Calvard arc), but the most modern in tone. Trails have flirted with magitek and evolving science since its more heavily fantastical orgins. Still, our newest hero, Van Arkride, takes a stage filled with cutting-edge flip-phones and Victorian patisseries that create a world that feels both futuristic and nostalgic.
Trails Through Daybreak II is a fast-moving follow-up to what was designed to be a smart starting place for JRPG fans that didn’t want to start with a literal twenty years of background history (but I do recommend going back through those eras if you have time). That puts it on some odd ground: it still wants to be part of a new player’s first Trails era, but it’s also a direct sequel to the events of the first Daybreak game, and the more you know, the more you’ll get out of this one. But does it all work? Let’s dig in.
Trailing Through the History of Trails Through Daybreak
The Trails games are typically good about offering you the information you need to catch up on previous events before things get spicy for our protagonists. Trails Through Daybreak II offers a brief narrated tour of the biggest events of the previous game, which I can confirm still leaves curious players a lot to discover for themselves if they want to go back and finish it up. But you’re up to date on the biggest thing you need to know, and I’m about to drop some big spoilers that tie together these games. Look away!
As the Calvard Arc begins, we meet Van Arkride, a ‘spriggan’ who’s available for all sorts of odd jobs. Think the classic version of The Equalizer, but give old Edward Woodward a sweet tooth. Van gets looped into a hunt for a bunch of plot devices, which also reveal some dark secrets buried in his backstory. Van’s soul is tied with a demon lord through no fault of his own. The Grendel form this entanglement offers gave Van a ton of power, at the risk of losing it all. It’s a high-concept bit of mysticism in a fast-evolving postwar society, but Van, with the help of his friends, is freed of his burden by the end.
As Daybreak II begins, the traditionally convoluted (but enjoyable) Trails story of ancient powers coming back to ruin everyone’s day begins with a new Grendel on the loose. It’s difficult to ignore the idea of a Super Saiyan Jack the Ripper as the mystery behind what this murderous figure is after begins to ensnare pretty much everything. Let me tell you: it all sounds like a lot. And it is. And there is so much to take in as the story deepens.
Trails games are notoriously hard to summarize, and this is where I’m going to stop my crack at it. But the result offers oodles of characters returning, all of whom are interesting and often well-rounded, if occasionally afflicted with some anime nonsense. On a bright note, it is also true as reported elsewhere that Trails Through Daybreak II actually nails something JRPGs have a hard time with: treating a trans character with the normalcy they deserve.
Playing Through the Daybreak
If a Trails game is your first JRPG, you picked a good one. But as the franchise grows, their intricacies also escalate, and Trails through Daybreak II builds on its predecessor’s interesting method of blending real-time combat with turn-based tactics. If you happened to play Metaphor: ReFantazio first, you’ll recognize this a bit: as you dungeon crawl, you have a limited but still powerful palette of attacks to let you cut down smaller enemies. At any point, or preferably after you’ve stunned them, you can swap into turn-based mode, which allows you to position yourself for special attacks and heavy-hitting combos.
There is a lot to absorb, with pop-up windows offering a new JRPG player a frankly dizzying amount of information as you gear up your characters and select your combat options. But all of it is available for later reference in the menus, and difficulty options allow you to figure things out at whatever pace works best for you.
If you’d like some expert notes, my partner is the house Trails expert, and assures us that most combats in the franchise can be easily handled with steady use of Arts in combat, and some vaguely sensible fuddling with the material-like orbment gear systems. Refer to guides for bosses (or just plunk that difficulty down to ‘I don’t wanna argue’) and continue to enjoy the plot.
Do as you like! The Trails games are more inclusive to new players than ever, gobs of info aside, and they want you to enjoy the plot they have on offer. This is understandable; Trails remains the closest thing to a true fantasy epic in video games, crossing decades and continents to build its world for us to care about.
Technical Notes
Playing Trails Through Daybreak II on the Nintendo Switch is, no argument, a graphical downgrade for those who played its predecessor on PS5. It also has some big issues with tiny text in handheld mode, which won’t heavily mar your gameplay but may make navigation more difficult. TV mode ameliorates the issue, but, of course, it still won’t look quite as shiny as it will on fancier hardware.
That said, the Switch version runs incredibly well, with minimal to rarely moderate load times and smooth play during combat and travel. There’s an art of its own to compressing games efficiently to different hardware, and Falcom shows off their talent at it here. The controls are also mapped smartly, making it easy to learn how to do all your basic stuff. Then, add more options as you get more comfortable with the smorgasbord on offer.
Conclusion
If you’re already a Trails fan, The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak II is a no-brainer of a purchase, kicking off a fast-paced story on all fours and ready for you to catch up to what’s going on. If you’re new to the franchise, at the very least, I recommend you start with the first Daybreak, but the game does what it can to bring you into a new episode of Van Arkride’s weighty life with the information you need to understand why he cares deeply about some people you’re meeting for the first time.
The only major question is what format you want to play in, and if you prefer to make the Switch your JRPG machine, you won’t be disappointed with Daybreak II’s performance. It’s a cozy way to play a convoluted (affectionate) story in a world that’s already weathered countless trials, and is up for weathering a few more. Another solid entry for a grande dame franchise.
Final Verdict: Two Thumbs Up
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