The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III / The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV

Trails of Cold Steel III marks another school year full of adrenaline-pumping battles, interesting new faces, and unexpected hardships amidst political turmoil

Trails of Cold Steel III is the best game in the series so far. You're going to have to play the first two titles to get the full picture, but you'll be rewarded with one of the most enjoyable RPG sagas in modern gaming. This latest entry strikes a near perfect balance between story and gameplay, all while juggling an ever-growing cast of great characters and an in-depth, hugely rewarding battle system. Cold Steel III is JRPG joy from start to finish, and it sits alongside the likes of Persona 5 and Dragon Quest XI as one of the PS4's finest.

Trials of Cold Steel III is another excellent addition to a franchise that gains so much of what makes it absorbing from the huge amount of background detail and world-building that's been achieved in earlier entries in the series. Newcomers should be aware that taking the time out to play Trials of Cold Steel I and II is advised to get the absolute maximum amount of enjoyment out of this one but, even if you're jumping in fresh, there's still plenty to love here once you find your feet. With a massive cast of well-written characters and tons of excellent combat and exploration spread across its epic running time, this is a top-notch addition to the Switch's library of JRPGs.

All in all, I had a fun time revisiting Trails of Cold Steel III on Switch. I still wonder who this release is even actually for, given how it's hard for me to recommend newcomers play this, and most fans who really wanted this would likely have bought it on PS4 last year. Even with the issues, due to my preferences, I find this to be my favorite way to play the game. I hope there are further balance patches released to iron out any of the issues I found, but given how rare the serious ones were, I still recommend this for those looking to play the latest English Trails release on the go. It’s such a big improvement on Ys VIII’s port, and I wish in hindsight that it could have gotten the same treatment. This port gives me a lot of hope for the upcoming switch releases of Cold Steel IV and Ys IX. Time will tell if Engine Software manages to improve on what they have here, and I’m excited to see where they go from here.

Overall, an enjoyable port of a great game.

With its solid gameplay mechanics, excellent world-building and character development, The Legend Of Heroes: Trails Of Cold Steel III is an excellent Japanese role-playing and a more than worthy new entry in the long-running series. Some small flaws like slow pacing do not impact the experience as much as the lack of knowledge about the entire series do, which lessens the impact of several events and plot development. This makes Trails of Cold Steel III a game that must be played only after the previous two entries in the series have been completed.

The only real fault you can attribute to Trails of Cold Steel III is how it doesn't quite match the lofty heights the previous two titles deservedly reached.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel 3 quickly became one of my favorite entries in the series. It is a solid RPG with a great cast of characters, addictive tactical turn-based combat, and a story filled with twists and turns from start to finish.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III es un juego tan bueno como mínimo como las entregas anteriores. Vuelve Rean Schwarzer, y la nueva Clase VII de la que ahora es profesor y tendrá que hacer frente a intrigas y conspiraciones mientras se gesta un conflicto aún mayor. Si os gustaron las entregas anteriores, esta entrega es indispensable, además ahora se puede disfrutar con versión nativa de PlayStation 5, al igual que la entrega posterior.

It's not clear why a new fan should start their journey from the third chapter of the series, but Trials of Cold Steel III and IV are still enjoyable and a must play nonetheless.