Newcomer’s guide to The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie

Welcome, dear adventurers, to the enchanting world of Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie! If you’re looking for an epic RPG experience that’ll transport you to a land of captivating action, intriguing characters, and more inane plot twists than your average low-budget ITV soap opera, then you’ve come to the right place. (And what curious tastes you have, might I add).

To commemorate the game’s impending Western release in early July, I’ve chucked together a little ‘beginner’s guide,’ here to help you navigate through your first few hours spent in the wondrous realm of Zemuria. After all, fortune favors the prepared, and those armed with a Mega Visions Magazine Subscription™. Load up on some mana, and possibly a snack or two; let’s be off!

Getting started

Things kick off in very rudimentary fashion. Baby steps! You’ll start by creating your protagonist, a young hero who you’ll want to give a name worthy of a medieval fantasy novel. Whatever moniker or attributes (which you can tinker with to your little heart’s content) you apply to them, they’ll soon be immersed in a tale that will see them matching wits with devilish beasts and pulling all kinds of romantic interest. Don’t worry: I won’t judge you for having a mild identity crisis when your in-game alter ego turns out cooler than you. ‘Tis just the way RPGs tend to roll.

Battle basics

Brace yourself for some time-honored turn-based combat, friend. Trails into Reverie features a battle system that requires strategic thinking (the very idea!) rather than mashing buttons like an overcaffeinated squirrel. Pay attention to the turn order, set up your party’s moves and equipment accordingly, and exploit your enemy’s weaknesses like you’re a chocolate company on January 2nd. You’ll also be wanting to make use of the trademark ‘Orbment’ system and quartz upgrades to keep everyone’s moves flowing swimmingly. And hey, if you happen to yell out corny one-liners during battles, screeching them directly into the TV or Switch speakers, nobody’s fussed (except perhaps your neighbors; that’ll require a slightly different combat approach).

Party time

Better brush up on those social skills, as you won’t be soloing your way through this adventure, champ. In the course of your journey, you’ll gather a party of diverse companions, each with their own quirks, skills, and more personal drama to rifle through than a modern Disney animation. From edgy swordsmen to brainy spellcasters, the possibilities are limitless. Oh, and word to the wise: don’t forget to keep their equipment and armor up to date – nothing screams “rookie mistake” like sending your badass mage into battle with a rusty spoon.

Side quests galore

Prepare to become the champion of all distractions, baron of all OCD you see before you! Trails into Reverie is teeming with side quests and minigames like fishing and card-based gambling, each offering a chance to uncover hidden treasures, make new friends, or just waste hours on end procrastinating from saving the world. It can wait. These quests may seem trivial at first, but trust me: they’ll reward you with experience points, valuable loot, and probably a few sleepless nights of addiction.

Bonds ‘n’ bravery

In the land of Zemuria, relationships matter almost as much as your weapon skills. Almost. Take time to build friendships, strengthen bonds, and even pursue romance if you feel like it. Gamers, who needs a real-life love interest when you can swoon over pixels, right? (Note to self: don’t let my partner read this.) Just remember, if you get to the stage where you’re planning to pop the question to your in-game crush, it’s probably time for a reality check.

It isn’t just your party members you ought to hit up, however. The NPCs in Trails into Reverie are a chatty bunch, and they love to share their thoughts on everything from the weather to the existential crisis caused by whatever the latest brain-imploding plot twist happens to be. Talk to everyone and exhaust their dialogue trees, because hey, you never know when a seemingly inconsequential conversation could lead you to a hidden treasure or an unexpected quest. Worst case scenario, you get your ears collectively talked off; and you don’t need those to swing a mace.

Save, save, save!

Listen up, young warrior, and heed this sage advice: save your game like your life depends on it. Because in all likelihood, it (and the integrity of your file data) probably will. Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie is a game of choices, consequences, and the occasional bouts of throwing your controller at the wall in frustration. Save before major decisions, boss battles, or any event that might turn your playthrough into a smoldering trainwreck. You’ll thank me later when you can revisit the same dialogue choices for the tenth time without breaking a sweat.

Embrace the slow burn

This game is an exercise in patience, ye of little… er, patience. Trails into Reverie takes its sweet time to build up its intricate world and narrative, so sit back, relax, and enjoy the scenic route for a change. The devs worked really hard on it. Take in the lush landscapes, engage in banter with your party members, and generally muck about while you wait for the next plot development. By the time the game hits its stride, you’ll be so emotionally invested that it won’t matter that you’ve forgotten to feed yourself for days. Priorities, right?

The adventure begins this July

And there you have it, oh valiant novice: your beginner’s guide to the captivating world of Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie. Gather your courage, sharpen your wit, and embark on an adventure that will challenge, entertain, and possibly consume your entire existence. Mostly the latter; this baby promises to offer more than 200 hours of content. Per the developers, it’s not just a game – it’s an emotional rollercoaster. Bold marketing strategy there, lads.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails Into Reverie launches this July for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and PC. Pre-order on Steam here.