The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak

Lore & Background

The game follows Van Arkride, a young man working at Arkride Solutions Office as a Spriggan—a bounty hunter and problem solver for hire. He is approached by high school student Agnès Claudel, granddaughter of Claude Epstein, to find eight orbments called the Oct-Genesis, created by her late great-grandfather Claude Epstein. They are joined by allies including Mare, Van's AI; Feri Al-Fayed; Aaron Wei; Risette Twinings; Quatre Salision; Judith Lanster; and Bergard Zeman. Their search brings them into conflict with the terrorist group Almata led by Gerard Dantès, who is revealed to be a former D∴G cult member and terrorist leader. Van himself is host to a demon lord, Vagrant Diaspora, and can transform into Grendel. After defeating Gerard, Van imprisons himself to save humanity but is rescued by his team.

Reader's Guide

Trails Through Daybreak is significant as the first game in the second half of the Trails series and the beginning of the Calvard story arc. It introduces a new proprietary game engine, the Falcom Developer Kit (FDK), replacing the PhyreEngine used in the Trails of Cold Steel series. The game features a chapter-based story structure, no load times for entering or exiting buildings, and a larger overworld than previous entries. It is the first in the series to include an alignment system based on law, chaos, and a mix of the two, which unlocks unique events and dialogues without affecting the main story or ending. Combat can be switched between real-time action and traditional turn-based modes, except for boss fights which are exclusively turn-based. The English release by NIS America in July 2024 was well received by critics and cited as a good entry point for newcomers. The game sold approximately 50,100 physical copies in its first week in Japan.

Did You Know?

• The game is the first in the Trails series to feature an alignment system based on law, chaos, and a mix of the two.
• Combat can be freely switched between real-time action and turn-based modes, including during boss fights which can be played in real-time action mode.
• The game uses a new proprietary engine called the Falcom Developer Kit (FDK), replacing the PhyreEngine.
• A fan translation group received a cease-and-desist order from NIS America in August 2022 after an unofficial patch was made.