ricen-beans
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The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel |OT| Class Warfare
- Thread starter Dandy Crocodile
- Start date
Dragon1893
Member
Damn, those completion times. For some reason I was under the impression this was shorter than the Tits games. It's gonna take me a year to beat this game when I finally buy it, I was leaning towards the PS3 version since it performs better but getting this on the Vita would go a long way in allowing me to beat it before I die lol.
I would still be playing SC if it didn't run on my laptop and I got it on day 1.
I would still be playing SC if it didn't run on my laptop and I got it on day 1.
TitS also starts with a cast that has better relations with each other. Cold Steel is forcing a group together who doesn't meld as well as the cast from the Liberl or Crossbell arcs. They all show, in a localized view, the prejudices and other issues that you can find throughout Erebonia. They are the small scale reflection of what they're expected to guide Erebonia past at some point in their future.
Erebonia absolutely IS a mess, and the conflict you see in CS and CS2 is one that was 5 games in the making. Hell, if you look in FC and SC, you can see that political drivers are expecting a meltdown somewhere in Erebonia. It's basically a ticking time bomb with no clear timer on it. I remember when the game was being hyped by Falcom originally- the whole deal of commoners vs nobles was really really heavily pushed. (The two media outlets, for example, are both pushed by their own class's agenda, as an example.)
DrROBschiz
Member
Would have been nice if more of the internal conflict between the characters was more personal
Seemed like they became this tight knit team to easily.
And then they break it up at the end lol
I just wanted MORE out of their relationships
You will definitely get that out of Cold Steel 2.
DrROBschiz
Member
I appreciate you guys are getting me excited and back on board.
Damnit I wish we could somehow get 3rd, Ao, and Zero
I watched the opening of 3rd on Youtube and holy shit. Thats how you open a fucking game
Both Kevin and Rean top Estelle as main characters in my opinion. Admittedly, if I may make the distinction, I vastly prefer Trails!Estelle over Kiseki!Estelle but have spent most time with the latter. XSEED amplified her personality a little by adding extra 'oomph!', making her much more interesting (and less dumb) in the localised version.
You're going to love it.
Have faith in Hatsuu. If she can't make it happen, no one can.
And although I don't recommend you to watch it because of spoilers, I've probably never seen anything fuelling 'hype' as much as the promotional videos for Ao no Kiseki.
I'm in agreement with ROB on almost everything.
Though I'd hate to compare too much, given how different the games are, I prefer to simply judge characters rather than say "better compared to..." but sometimes it can't be helped.
That being said... Rean definitely gets much cooler moments in CS2. But the frustratingly bad parts are still there (a woman could come out and say I'D DIE FOR YOU and he would probably just pat her on the head). And I still think characters give Rean a ridiculous amount of stock. It's one thing to respect him (CS end spoilers)
and another to treat him like he's a paragon of greatness because he... he... jesus, I think Class VII cares more about Rean than their own families.
For what I prefer, I definitely prefer Estelle as a lead and I had endless amounts of enjoyment with Joshua poking fun at her in FC. Keeps things grounded, which I like.
Though I'd hate to compare too much, given how different the games are, I prefer to simply judge characters rather than say "better compared to..." but sometimes it can't be helped.
That being said... Rean definitely gets much cooler moments in CS2. But the frustratingly bad parts are still there (a woman could come out and say I'D DIE FOR YOU and he would probably just pat her on the head). And I still think characters give Rean a ridiculous amount of stock. It's one thing to respect him (CS end spoilers)
as the pilot that will help save the country from the ensuing civil war and stop Crow's ambition
For what I prefer, I definitely prefer Estelle as a lead and I had endless amounts of enjoyment with Joshua poking fun at her in FC. Keeps things grounded, which I like.
DrROBschiz
Member
Estelle earns every praise and criticism she gets
Rean is infuriatingly dull. He gets a few moment's when one on one with characters but hes basically just tells people what they want to hear in the lamest way possible
Then they frame it as his character flaw and call it out. Lmao why do i want to play this moron
Sorry but its going to take a bit for Rean to win me over. Crow should have been the lead
Rean is infuriatingly dull. He gets a few moment's when one on one with characters but hes basically just tells people what they want to hear in the lamest way possible
Then they frame it as his character flaw and call it out. Lmao why do i want to play this moron
Sorry but its going to take a bit for Rean to win me over. Crow should have been the lead
Make George the lead character.
Seriously, that guy is the most consistently helpful guy in the whole series.
Actually Sara being the lead character would be pretty awesome. Let the drunk lead the way!
DrROBschiz
Member
Sara was so great. Oozing personality and honesty
She gets some of the best one on one scenes in the game
I love estelle, but I didn't actually start liking her until about near halfway through the game and I still like other characters in both sky and SC more than her. That's better than rean I guess because I'm not really fond of him at all most of the game.
SatelliteOfLove
Member
The "modernization" and what Kondo was talking about recently about demographics shifting from the platform change (plus the earlier talk here about Rean) has me pointing to it sometimes was excellent but other times WAY worse (which I dinged it for in the GOTY).
Im of the impression those stumbles are CS1 only so well just see how Falcom deals with juggling these...
DrROBschiz
Member
Bawww haters
One of the best RPG leads ever. And i Hated her introduction too! I thought oh geez this game is giving me such a lame uninspired anime-esque ditsy lead.... but it melted away so fast
I think it was the writing. She just immediately gets layers and its a nice slow burn with notable moments of growth, reaction, comtemplation etc.. Plus the way she bounces off other characters man.
Ive never had a female lead catch me off guard like Estelle routinely did
I thought Estelle was fucking lame and could not disagree more with the people who think she's the best JRPG protagonist (well-written, sure, in the sense that her development does make sense and is handled reasonably well, but that alone doesn't make me LIKE her) ever and I like Rean just fine, but yeah, I can't really disagree with this. He's not a very colorful guy, and were he a real person, I don't think I'd spend much time with him.
Shouta
Member
Discrimination against twintails! Discrimination against twintails!
*looks at avatar* I see someone likes the twin-tails.
DrROBschiz
Member
Changed the Profile on their Facebook
THE LEGEND OF HEROES: TRAILS OF COLD STEEL II
Coming to North America 2016!
Nothing special but its nice to see it anyways. Laura's new look is nice son
THE LEGEND OF HEROES: TRAILS OF COLD STEEL II
Coming to North America 2016!
Nothing special but its nice to see it anyways. Laura's new look is nice son
Dragon1893
Member
Estelle is the best. THE BEST.
R_thanatos
Member
Random idea
I'd take a towa side game where she manages the student concil.
I'd take a towa side game where she manages the student concil.
I've no idea why this idea popped up in my head...but towa 's the best girl ( when angelica isn't there )
DXLelouch153
Banned
twintails and short hair are the best
fuck you if you disagree
and yes Thanatos
Towa is friken adorable
fuck you if you disagree
and yes Thanatos
Towa is friken adorable
Nice to have official confirmation! Hope it's sooner than later.
You don't have to spend time with Rean because he's going to spend time with you. About 30 gameplay hours later, you'll be chanting his name like the choir and be making out with him at your dorm after the bonfire dance at school. No escape.
I dread the fact that CSII will probably be out later in Europe. hopefully not too long. The wait was short with CSI but I feel like any wait is going to feel horrible once it's out in NA.
I'd import if my save could transfer but I'm pretty sure it won't. (plus I want to support trails in EULand)
hopefully not too long. The wait was short with CSI but I feel like any wait is going to feel horrible once it's out in NA.I'd import if my save could transfer but I'm pretty sure it won't. (plus I want to support trails in EULand)
DrROBschiz
Member
Setting her up as a possible love interest was weird and unnecessary
If anything her role should have been to inform on Rean's history, expose some interesting character trait (she does kind of do this) and be the connective tissue to his home.
She doesnt really succeed at anything outside of being awkward around her brother.
You're right, she plays a little role. She is literally only there to catch the incest crew. The implementation is really sad, considering that she's part of his close family, like ROB says, could've given more insight on Rean before he began attending Thors.
I have to hand it to XSEED, listening to a Japanese girl shriek nii-sama every couple of seconds must've been excruciating on several go-arounds of the game in prep for VA.
Ah yes, this is what I really wanted to say I guess. I do really like her but it took awhile for me to like he through the first game. As said I still like other characters even in SC more than her but she is one of the best protags in jrpg's at least.
skLaFarebear
Member
Damn right.
I agree here. Rean definitely has the potential to be am amazing MC (possibly even the best Trails MC) by the end of 2. They set him up very well for the sequel.
I agree she could have been handled better, but that alone doesn't justify the hate imho.
Oh, the "incest" thing. Can't say I agree here, considering they aren't related by blood and the fact that she tries to push Rean towards his classmates.
I feel like you are TOTALLY off with this particular assessment. First of all, no Class VII as a whole doesn't care more about Rean than their own families. The ones who have a totally crappy & unloving relationship with their parents
mostly Jusis or ones who don't have a family like Fie
Alisia is shown to care about her mother quite deeply, even if she doesn't get along with her
Gaius, Machius, Laura & Elliot[/quote] are shown having a very loving family that they really appreciate and they don't put Rean above their families at all, though they might come to think of ALL of Class VII as a part of a kind of extended family by the end, not just Rean.
And Rean is never treated as some kind of Jesus character. He's just put into leadership position because he's shown to be the most diplomatic, helpful, caring, cool-headed & open-minded of all the characters. Others share some or even all of those qualities as well, but also have some weaknesses that keep them from being ideal leaders (as they are at the time of CS's events). Rean has his own weaknesses but those just so happen to be the kind that don't really make him any worse or affect him the least as a leader.
If you think about it, none of the other characters are really leadership material. Elliot is too much of a weakling/zero-self-confidence character, Alisa & Machias are too hot-headed as they are in CS, Jusis is too disinterested & a bit of dick towards a lot of people (and not just "a bit", really) and Fie & Millium are... well, Fie & Millium (as much as I like Fie). Really, Gaius, Emma & Laura are the closest ones to fit leadership positions, but Laura is perhaps a bit too out-of-touch with how normal people act & has some trouble relating to people whom she doesn't understand, Emma probably somewhat deliberately keeps herself from getting too much attention and Gaius is perhaps a bit too much of a hippie "let the winds decide our fate" type.
I think putting Rean in charge is far more believable a choice than how Estelle is put into leadership position in situations where there are far more experienced characters around. And even if Rean is put into a leadership position, they still usually think about & solve everything as a group, with most everyone giving their own input towards solving things (especially during field studies when there's a smaller group involved, of course when they are all together not everyone can have their share of the spotlight).
And Rean is never treated as some kind of Jesus character. He's just put into leadership position because he's shown to be the most diplomatic, helpful, caring, cool-headed & open-minded of all the characters. Others share some or even all of those qualities as well, but also have some weaknesses that keep them from being ideal leaders (as they are at the time of CS's events). Rean has his own weaknesses but those just so happen to be the kind that don't really make him any worse or affect him the least as a leader.
If you think about it, none of the other characters are really leadership material. Elliot is too much of a weakling/zero-self-confidence character, Alisa & Machias are too hot-headed as they are in CS, Jusis is too disinterested & a bit of dick towards a lot of people (and not just "a bit", really) and Fie & Millium are... well, Fie & Millium (as much as I like Fie). Really, Gaius, Emma & Laura are the closest ones to fit leadership positions, but Laura is perhaps a bit too out-of-touch with how normal people act & has some trouble relating to people whom she doesn't understand, Emma probably somewhat deliberately keeps herself from getting too much attention and Gaius is perhaps a bit too much of a hippie "let the winds decide our fate" type.
I think putting Rean in charge is far more believable a choice than how Estelle is put into leadership position in situations where there are far more experienced characters around. And even if Rean is put into a leadership position, they still usually think about & solve everything as a group, with most everyone giving their own input towards solving things (especially during field studies when there's a smaller group involved, of course when they are all together not everyone can have their share of the spotlight).
zelhawks37
Member
I liked estelle from the start when she as a little kid asked cassius if he cheated on her mom when she saw joshua.
Her personality is so refreshing compared to other leads in games. Despite maturing as you journey in the game, she never loses who she is which is the reason she can get along with everyone on the cast. Also, unlike other leads, she isnt the strongest character in the group nor does she get some strange power to make up for it and i find that to be a good change. Estelle simply works hard to achieve her goals and thats awesome.
Definitely my favorite lead protagonist to date.
Her personality is so refreshing compared to other leads in games. Despite maturing as you journey in the game, she never loses who she is which is the reason she can get along with everyone on the cast. Also, unlike other leads, she isnt the strongest character in the group nor does she get some strange power to make up for it and i find that to be a good change. Estelle simply works hard to achieve her goals and thats awesome.
Definitely my favorite lead protagonist to date.
DrROBschiz
Member
I feel like you are TOTALLY off with this particular assessment. First of all, no Class VII as a whole doesn't care more about Rean than their own families. The ones who have a totally crappy & unloving relationship with their parentsmight have a warmer relationship with Rean than their father/mother (figures), but even someone likemostly Jusis or ones who don't have a family like Fie. But characters likeAlisia is shown to care about her mother quite deeply, even if she doesn't get along with herGaius, Machius, Laura & Elliot are shown having a very loving family that they really appreciate and they don't put Rean above their families at all, though they might come to think of ALL of Class VII as a part of a kind of extended family by the end, not just Rean.
And Rean is never treated as some kind of Jesus character. He's just put into leadership position because he's shown to be the most diplomatic, helpful, caring, cool-headed & open-minded of all the characters. Others share some or even all of those qualities as well, but also have some weaknesses that keep them from being ideal leaders (as they are at the time of CS's events). Rean has his own weaknesses but those just so happen to be the kind that don't really make him any worse or affect him the least as a leader.
If you think about it, none of the other characters are really leadership material. Elliot is too much of a weakling/zero-self-confidence character, Alisa & Machias are too hot-headed as they are in CS, Jusis is too disinterested & a bit of dick towards a lot of people (and not just "a bit", really) and Fie & Millium are... well, Fie & Millium (as much as I like Fie). Really, Gaius, Emma & Laura are the closest ones to fit leadership positions, but Laura is perhaps a bit too out-of-touch with how normal people act & has some trouble relating to people whom she doesn't understand, Emma probably somewhat deliberately keeps herself from getting too much attention and Gaius is perhaps a bit too much of a hippie "let the winds decide our fate" type.
I think putting Rean in charge is far more believable a choice than how Estelle is put into leadership position in situations where there are far more experienced characters around. And even if Rean is put into a leadership position, they still usually think about & solve everything as a group, with most everyone giving their own input towards solving things (especially during field studies when there's a smaller group involved, of course when they are all together not everyone can have their share of the spotlight).
This reads like a surface interpretation of the script. What about the nuance, the deep character moments that reveal something human. What about the fun?
Its there. Mostly in the bonding event scenes which are mostly... discarded unfortunately. See this is the problem with Player driven story in a game where the narrative was built for you.
It just kind of mucks things up during the core sections of the game. In FC/SC that story is all there and continuous. Cold Steel has you have limited access to character moments that while nice and revealing bear no change to the main course of events
So in contrast Estelle constantly builds while Rean is a series of Peaks and Valleys
Its there. Mostly in the bonding event scenes which are mostly... discarded unfortunately. See this is the problem with Player driven story in a game where the narrative was built for you.
It just kind of mucks things up during the core sections of the game. In FC/SC that story is all there and continuous. Cold Steel has you have limited access to character moments that while nice and revealing bear no change to the main course of events
So in contrast Estelle constantly builds while Rean is a series of Peaks and Valleys
Well keep in mind I was speaking from the experience of finishing CS2.
Also, I wasn't arguing from the position of being assigned a leader, but emotional attachment.
Some of the scenes in CS2 are kind of crazy to me from that angle, and prompted the "valued more than their families" comment.
Estelle is one of my favorite video game characters ever, but as a protagonist, I also like Kevin a lot more. He's just infuriating sometimes, though... and there's so much nuance with him as the protagonist of 3rd, that Guan and I KEEP FINDING NEW STUFF howevermany years after 3rd's release, just from the way he simply /says/ things.
The best part of following Kevin in 3rd is that you need to learn how to read between the lines and understand what ISN'T being said. And it's an important quality to pick up on in Kiseki, since that comes up a LOT for series foreshadowing.
I have very conflicted feelings about Rean. But that's because (vague CS2 spoilers)
he completely wrecked me and really upset me during CS2 in a way a game protagonist never has. Thus he has a special place in my heart, after he broke it to pieces.
I want to stress this, as well. Absolutely.
I disagree immensely, but I say that with the perspective of CS2 as well. Crow has an extremely different role in everything when you look at the big picture. (And I think it's going to be even more different when you look at it in the perspective of the series as a whole.)
DrROBschiz
Member
Well shit who doesnt love Kevin?
Huge and awesome personality. Hes a badass and mystery man with charm to fill an entire room.
I dont even think I could utter Rean's name in his presence.
R_thanatos
Member
I'm intrested as well ( as i have 2 end games saves from CS1 )
I think elise is fine .. but that's also because in CS1 , elise + alfine are 1 character .. the 2 compliment each other .. Elsie wouldn't have been as intresting if the princess wasn't near , teasing her about it and making remarks. Elise + alfine is a beautifull dynamic and BOTH are making the other intresting to me.
Elise alone would have been annoying if she was alone , and plotting and making advances ..but she doesn't do that .. she just mostly sit back and
even puch rean around in
There's only one way Kevin is better: that would be when you add Ries into the equation. The duo of Kevin and Ries is, without fail, my favorite team in all of the Kiseki series. They have great chemistry together, as well as great squabbling together. And most importantly, finding how they learn to support and grow together. That's what makes 3rd so good in my view.
DrROBschiz
Member
Yeah I got to watch the opening on youtube al the way up to when they end up in that weird dimension
I want to play 3rd real bad lol needless to say.
I want to play 3rd real bad lol needless to say.
SatelliteOfLove
Member
I liked estelle from the start when she as a little kid asked cassius if he cheated on her mom when she saw joshua.
Her personality is so refreshing compared to other leads in games. Despite maturing as you journey in the game, she never loses who she is which is the reason she can get along with everyone on the cast. Also, unlike other leads, she isnt the strongest character in the group nor does she get some strange power to make up for it and i find that to be a good change. Estelle simply works hard to achieve her goals and thats awesome.
Definitely my favorite lead protagonist to date.
The apple of Estelle didn't fall far from the tree as it were FC/SC spoilers:
I like to think of those two games as where she got the Badass Hero Upgrade like Cassius did at her age.
Boom.
Elise immediately upgrade from Creeper Bait when Alfine's joking about that proved true, shocking the princess and slapping Elise into an actual person. THEN on it was worth listening to what came out of her mouth.
I liked estelle from the start when she as a little kid asked cassius if he cheated on her mom when she saw joshua.
Her personality is so refreshing compared to other leads in games. Despite maturing as you journey in the game, she never loses who she is which is the reason she can get along with everyone on the cast. Also, unlike other leads, she isnt the strongest character in the group nor does she get some strange power to make up for it and i find that to be a good change. Estelle simply works hard to achieve her goals and thats awesome.
Definitely my favorite lead protagonist to date.
Yes, that's why I love her in SC. The majority of first chapter I just found her meh, being refreshing doesn't automatically make her not boring at points. She may not have strange power but she has a great bloodline so to speak so she has great genes and so basically like people with power she got lucky at birth.
Well, first of all, I was just responding to the idea that Rean is some kind of Jesus character to everyone. He isn't, at least not in Cold Steel I
Second, I don't see how mine is "surface level" when you people just keep repeating "Rean is no fun, he sucks!"
Rean has plenty of fun moments even outside bonding events. They are more subtle than Estelle sharing some ether & having her *Estelle stare* moments, but they are still there. Rean has a very different sense of humor than Estelle, but there are still plenty of times he showcases it.
Rean IS a somewhat reserved person as far as his emotions go. He's not shy or totally introverted, but he does keep his emotions in check.
For a good reason. He's afraid of losing control so he tries to keep his head cool at all times.
While I agree that it sucks they limit the bonding events so much, there are still a lot of them. Enough that it's not like Rean has considerably less those kinds of 1 on 1 moments than Estelle, when all is said and done. He might not get access to all of the bonding events, but there are so many characters to bond with that even if you only get access to ~50% of all the events, you still get to see a lot of Rean in different kind of situations. I think the bonding events do more harm to the other characters than to Rean. We get to see some different sides of Rean in the bonding events, but someone might miss a whole lot of growth & different sides of the other characters if they never choose a particular character's bonding events for one reason or the other.
And while the person playing misses some of the bonding events in a single playthrough, you can still see how the class grows closer throughout the game. That we don't see all the bonding events really isn't all that horrible in the context of the game's world & story, even if does some harm to developing the characters you DON'T spent points on during a single playthrough. Still, as far as the in-game world goes, those aren't the only moments that these people spend together, a lot of it is unseen and you can just assume that even if you personally don't see Rean spending time with a particular character because you don't spend bonding points with them, it's not like they never do. So Rean didn't go to the garden with a certain character on that particular day during your playthrough, maybe he went the next day?
Rean does have a few lower lows than Estelle, I agree on that, but all in all I don't think the game does considerably worse job with Rean's growth during the game than what FC did with Estelle. There's perhaps a little less "overall growth" from where he begins and where he ends up at, but that's understandable & also applies to pretty much all characters in Cold Steel considering the game does try to juggle between the character development of way more characters than FC. FC is basically Trails: An Estelle Journey (with a side of Joshua & occasionally feat. some old & new friends)
With only having experienced him in SC...
o/
He had a sweet moment with Estelle near the beginning of SC and a couple of other events during the early parts of the game made it clear that he's not a totally worthless character and
that twist at the end with him killing Weissman & stuff
For the people who have played CSII, quick question(s) (no spoilers for CSII though please.) (spoiler tagged because it references the end of CSI)
Since CSII looks to take place outside of school. Do we get to see much of 1. The NPCs/classmates from Trista/the academy? (I do hope to see Patrick since he is one of the few voiced class mates) and 2. Do we get to see much of the teachers outside of Sara and possibly the Military one?
Just curious because they were rather bad ass during the end scenes
Just curious because they were rather bad ass during the end scenes
Yay ^_^.
Can't wait for CSII
Also the Op for CSI (and the credits) is awesome. Listen to it every so often <3
And that's what makes Kevin so amusing with it, actually- the lameness part of it that is. Especially when people call him out on it. He does get that fairly often.
It's even described in a bunch of the source books that nampa is one of Kevin's hobbies, mid-SC spoilers:
but that it's very much a 'just for show' sort of thing. When you get to chapter 4, you can start telling that with the way he's talking to Estelle as things carry on.
But regarding the spoiler in your post:
When the eventuality of people getting to play 3rd in English comes around, a lot of that playful, flirty side is something people will probably appreciate/understand a lot more. What you saw of Kevin in the scene with Weissmann was the tip of the iceberg for him, personality-wise. He's an incredibly complex character, as a result.
DrROBschiz
Member
O, just going to accept that me and Fammasu are polar opposites
Cant believe we found someone that doesnt consider Kevin one of the best RPG characters ever made
Cant believe we found someone that doesnt consider Kevin one of the best RPG characters ever made