At Pax West 2024 I had the opportunity to explore one of the dungeons in The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak II. Since I’ve been playing and replaying Trails Through Daybreak frequently, I could easily discern what had changed or differed in the sequel.
The Premise
The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak II supposedly has a narrative structure similar to that of Trails into Reverie, involving multiple perspectives and character groups to advance the main story. In one dungeon, Van and Elaine team up to locate a remnant of Almata, who was involved in a disaster in a city plagued by monsters. Van aims to uncover what this remnant knows about the incident.
The remnant has hidden away in some of Edith’s sewers. As Van and Elaine navigate the dungeon, they also discuss the events that transpired at the end of Trails Through Daybreak. Their conversation highlights two key aspects: Elaine’s ongoing efforts to mend their fractured relationship, and Van’s struggle to maintain distance due to the new Demon Lord residing within him.
Upgrading to Daybreak II
The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak II introduces a brand-new mechanic to the series early on: Quick Arts. In Trails Through Daybreak, you had to switch to a character using an orbal staff or an orbal gun to deal damage to spirits during action field combat sections. This limitation is addressed with Quick Arts. By holding the triangle button and releasing it over a group of enemies, you can deal Arts damage. However, it consumes a significant portion of your EP bar, so it can’t be spammed. This addition allows you to rely less on staff users for spirit damage and gives you more freedom to play the character you prefer.
Field combat and Shard-based combat return, feeling faster than in the first game. The Boost gauge is still present, and you need to use two of the three boosts to activate S-Crafts. A significant change is that you can no longer use an S-Craft on the same Boost you just used. After using an S-Craft, you must wait until you’ve used two new boosts to use another one. This adjustment will make it harder to spam S-Crafts, which could make Nightmare mode even more challenging.
One of my favorite new features is Elaine’s updated outfit. In Trails Through Daybreak II, she sports a new look with a larger jacket, pants, and long brown boots. Her jacket and shirt are adorned with X cross-stitches, which might hold significance within the game or reflect her current focus on Van’s issues rather than her own.
I thought it was worth mentioning!
We were able to record the whole dungeon playthrough, all thanks to NIS America so be sure to check out some of the things we noticed in the game as you watch it too!
The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak is set to release in early 2025 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
