A while ago, I made a post on another subreddit, asking if there were any cool games that I would've been able to play on my (very) old laptop. I was recommended Trails in the Sky, among other games, so I went with it, also because I was seeing it everywhere on GOG and similar places.

A few months and a new laptop later, I've finished the series, so...

The Good

• The characters: while the various characters, both NPCs and playable ones, do adhere to quite a few Japanese media tropes, even the most stereotypical waifu bait is more than just that. And even the more Marty Stu-like character in the series so far, Rean Schwarzer, is far more complex than the many anime characters in his mold - his saviour complex lands him in trouble more often than not, for example.

• The combat system: I'm usually not one for tactical RPGs but, while you can literally spend hours min-maxing every single character, the combat system is easy to grasp and, even though the final bosses can often be brutal, the progression from low level mook to top tier villain is gradual enough that, by then, you don't feel the need to smash your controller against a wall even as you're being torn to shreds. Compare and contrast other RPGs whose learning curve is more of a vertical axis.

• The world: everything is connected, everything is justified. Almost every NPC has some sort of connection to another NPC or playable character, a backstory and a personality. And the more you expand your focus, the more everything is tied together - even the internal and foreign politics of Zemuria's countries. Speaking of which, I loved how even the most paranormal of dangers ends up having very concrete, real consequences: you defeated a deranged conqueror possessed by an even more deranged demon? Sure, but the countries he tried to invade aren't going to let the ensuing provisional government forget that and oh, there's internal dissent and a succession crisis brewing, now.

The Bad

• The drinking game fodder: if I were to down a shot for every single time the odds of a seemingly hopeless fight were evened by the sudden arrival of the proverbial cavalry, my liver would be done for. Same for whenever key Ouroboros members teleport away while dodging the questions asked them, or for whenever the main characters engage in cheesy rousing speeches - at least Ash pointed out the absurdity of those himself, so Falcom might actually be self-aware there.

• The pacing: for the love of Aidios, Falcom. With each game being several real world days long, you'd expect the plot to move along more quickly but, while character development moves at a faster pace (since each mini-series has its own set of characters), the overarching plot might as well be The Winds of Winter. Nine games later, we only have a faint idea of what Ouroboros is up to, and some of the twists and turns of the plot generate even more questions that might take years to be answered. I'm legitimately worried Falcom's going to write itself into a corner, in much the same way George R. R. Martin has done. And the end game stretches of most of the games, especially the final dungeons, might be more tedious than anything.

• The pandering: the series usually does anime and J-RPG tropes well but, having played through it in chronological order, I feel like it might've gotten much more otaku with time. Example: Joshua had at least three of the female characters salivate after him, but all of them knew he only had eyes for Estelle. Lloyd had the black hole density of your average harem anime character and the same inexplicable tendency to attract the ladies, but it was more of an in-universe meme than anything else. Rean... yeah, what the fuck, every single playable female character wants to pork him, and you get routes for all of them. Also, some of the camera angles and clothing choices in the game might be a little too much, you know. Fie's basically half my age, Dio merda. XD

All in all, a great series with a few issues, but those issues are nothing a less overworked writer (the Japanese entertainment industry's insane) couldn't solve.