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So, I finally beat #TrailsOfColdSteel ! It was a fun time and while it's a slow burn just like the start of any arc. It still has a lot to love! Wanted to relay some closing thoughts here incase anybody missed the streams. *SPOILERS INCLUDED*, somewhat review/ramble.
So I'll be real. I was excited and dreading this game after experiencing the Sky & Crossbell arcs. This was, technically my first trails experience. It's ultimately what made me stop playing games outside of streaming back in 2015. I was having so much fun but had to stop cuz -
I was enjoying it so much but felt I was robbing myself of sharing that first time experience with others. It was my first year streaming and I grew to appreciate that. I Love archiving it too! So I stopped at ch 3 in Nord and said I'll come back only when the time was right.
Having played previous entries I now see more concerns than I did previously. Stopping midway certainly didn't help. My biggest fear was how they would handle a large cast & how they'd handle the story now having Crossbell knowledge. I started playing again & it felt like -
Coming back home. I remembered how amazed I was hearing Atrocious Raid all those years ago. That opening setting up intrigue but now in a whole new light with the context of previous games. It made everything feel fresh again. Nods & references that-
Would go right over my head. I can appreciate so much more now. Olivert, Mueller, Orchis Tower! Vice President gushing about how great Rixia is in that sidequest! It's all great to see! It felt more satisfying in this compared to Crossbell due to lining up the pieces together.
I will say though, I remember how some of the cast started off... honestly? Unlikable. Again, stopping midway with those impressions is unfortunate. Alisa started fine until the slap. Machias was annoying, judgemental & sexist while jusis was a snob and Fie just didn't care lol
I laugh at all this now because I was so happy to see them all come around. Alisa's grudge was shorter than I remember and while Machias took a lot longer for me to get used to, his backstory was what I needed to sympathize. Fie's interactions were fun by the end etc. The only-
One I didn't care for much was Emma. Knowing what I know now I can see why they kept her vague but ultimately still fell short for me compared to the rest. Though I look forward to learning more in CS2. Unfortunately with a big cast though some characters are better developed-
Than others. Laura gets a lot with Heimdallr & Legram. Alisa, Rean & Fie too but I feel like Jusis or Milium for example, didn't get enough. Still good mind you, but I wanted more. I know that's what sequels are for though but this is all I know for now. I noticed the cast can -
Be a bit one note at times too. Elliot is a good music boy. Gaius is foreign wind. Every other line by the end had to mention the wind in some way. Jusis starts off as a snob noble etc. However don't get it twisted, I think tropes used effectively can be a good thing & it didn't-
Bother me as much as you might think. Crossbell & sky gotta use em too. By the end, I still liked em. Ofcourse I have my favorites (Rean, Sara, Laura, Crow, Alisa, Fie, Towa, Olivert) but everyone is handled well enough. Biggest thing that helped me enjoy this game compared to-
The Crossbell games is, hear me out- The graphics, ost & english dub combined with the localization. Loved geofront's work on Trails From Zero but I think I personally felt unsatisfied with azure. It's not the games fault but my expectations were too high I feel. I kept hearing-
How amazing ao was and while I did enjoy it. I just felt like I was expecting more. Sky being the bar for arc payoff at the time. Ultimately liked it though but CS going 3D along with an ost that took vibes from sky & Crossbell made it such a relaxing & fun time along with the -
Dub that kept me laughing, smiling & invested all the way through. Especially Sean Chiplock as Rean. One of my biggest inspirations in pursuing VA and Carrie Keranen as Sara kept me laughing with her delivery. I'm sure jp is great but I have no comparison and the dub never took-
Me out of the experience, hell I recognized a lot of them. It was a real treat! Gameplay is a nice improvement. Especially with being able to change party members in battle. Story wise it's mainly getting to know erebonia & the cast but there were some nice surprises after ch3.
Elise at the old schoolhouse, Lohengrin Castle. Fighting C at the mines. Combined with only having roughly 3-4 sidequests per day I think CS1 has pretty good, consistent pacing along with bonus AP not being a pain like in azure. But man, those final hours? That right there was-
Exactly what I was waiting for. Casually dropping Sharon as an enforcer. Vita as an Anguis. C's identity ing with Divine Knight battles & the iconic standoff that now has (potentially) my favorite finql boss theme in the entire series! I love it so much!
Add on top a cliffhanger that made me truly realize how much I grew to love Class VII and now seeing the previous perspective of Erebonia shatter made me feel just like I did back in FC where Zero did not. Also, Valimar's design is awesome! So far, I think I like Rean more than-
Lloyd, but not as much as Estelle. He has good development, though I hate how important parts are in the drama CD (WTF) He really gets me though when he quips with Sara or has lines like "The bank of Rean" to just get a good laugh out of me. Something that's elevated by the dub.
I do think the large cast is still a concern & a lot of stiff animations took me out of scenes at times
I also still dislike the bonding system ever since it was introduced (Went with Alisa but also love Laura, not gonna explain why here, this thread is too long as is!)
I also still dislike the bonding system ever since it was introduced (Went with Alisa but also love Laura, not gonna explain why here, this thread is too long as is!)
IMO Cold Steel 1 sticks the landing though and while it has some flaws it never stopped me from having fun all the way through! I give it about a 7/10. Great for fans of the series like me though. I'm very excited to see where it goes in the sequel after that cliffhanger.
Thank you so much to anyone who watched the streams live. I had a great time sharing my first time experience! And thanks to anybody took the time to read this thread. I'll be talking about a week-ish break to stream other games but Cold Steel 2 will begin soon enough.
For those who missed the streams though, the archive playlist is all up on YouTube. Feel free to watch at your own pace or just get to the good stuff. It's all there! If chat was any indication, I think you'll enjoy it too! Have a good one and take care! https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTAVG37uP4QlMs1bl14ui-dW6o2vILdVN
