After CS1’s cliffhanger, I couldn’t wait to pick up and start playing Cold Steel 2. In general, CS1’s school setting and beginning two thirds put me off a lot, it took me more than it should have to finish it. However, the ending segment was very interesting, and it started my hype for the Erebonia arc at last, which looks very promising
Gameplay
Literally just the same Trails as always, and practically no new additions to it respect to Cold Steel 1. Move along
Though… I really liked the Corageous’ function across this game, working as a hub of sorts and a method of quick travel. And the mech battles were finally fully implemented during this game, and they were cool as fuck
Story
Of course, spoilers alert!
Just like with CS1, I’ll be opting to make a twitter thread with a few of my reactions instead of talking about each single bit or detail, since it ends up becoming real tiring
This time, I haven’t made as many posts on twitter about it as I would have liked, but I have quite a lot of things to say about CS2. It picks up right after the cliffhanger from CS1, and honestly I was so hyped to see how it’d continue that I must admit that I really liked the prologue in general (except for Elise, cough cough)
I talked it about in the thread as well, but I loved the scene where the mercenaries attacked Ymir and almost killed Rean’s father. I was SO ready for shit to go tremendously down and for this game to set a grim and painful war setting right off the start, but they quickly said “nvm.” and decided to let it be bait. It’s even worse seeing how cool Rean’s reaction was and how it could have been a great opportunity to let his inner power that turns him white-haired go wild and let us explore how it works, but oh well, can’t have peak fiction too soon I suppose
The first Act revolved around reuniting Class VII once again, and honestly it was a very pleasant segment, plus I loved seeing everyone again and how heartwarming the reunions were. Though, Jusis’ recruitment part was super good and I’m glad they are building on his character and conflictive motives even more, specially taking on account how Rufus is a huge part of this conflict and they both will have to fight against each other (The Rufus boss fight having Jusis as a locked character goes hard af too)
This time, they go all out with the mech battles and they are very hype sequences honestly, I really like them. Every time Rean screams “HEED MY CALL, VALIMAAAAAAAAR” I just get chills, sorry for being so basic
As for the guest characters during this part, I absolutely loved having the opportunity to learn more about Toval and Claire. They are super cool characters, and I’m glad Claire has the opportunity to shine more during this game since she was one of my favourite character designs back in CS1. As for Sharon, I’m SOOOOOOO happy she’s playable this time, and she’s so fun to have in my party! She definitely carried me super hard with Tea Party, she’s so good
Finally, we got the villains and… honestly what a cool line-up. I love Crow, Vita, Rufus, Altina, Duvalie… the first showdowns against them were super cool, and I can’t wait for shit to go wild and have the decisive battle against most of them. Fucking Blueblanc is back too, and honestly maybe I’m kinda glad to see him since we don’t have a lot of Sky fanservice in here. McBurn is also cool af
The final part of Act 1 is super cool, having EVERY member of the Noble Alliance comes to Ymir to fuck things up, though I wish it had gotten wilder since… they just come and leave… pretty default JRPG behaviour, and I hate that. Though what I truly loved was Rean and Crow’s interaction later. Rean asks Crow about his past, and we get to learn more about his motives and why he’s here. They don’t even act like enemies, they are good friends deep down, but their paths go against each other and have no other choice but to fight. It’s honestly a really good scene that I can’t really put into words how well it works to let us know the inner workings of these two. Plus, I love me some Crowrean too
Now, as for the Intermission chapter above the big airship of the enemies… This part is hitting hard, and I’m loving it honestly. Rean chats with all of our enemies, and they are much more human and friendly that the story has ever let us known before. For example Vulcan and Scarlet, that seemed so bidimensional and boring, do have some qualities to them that I wasn’t aware until now, and much more human than CS1 let us see. Also, Xeno and Leo caring more about Fie than it seemed, like two overprotective fathers. Altina just being a normal girl put in a situation against her will… It makes having to fight them later on much harder, and I love a game that can build that kind of angst.
This chapter sure… was something. We finally get to see white-haired Rean in action, finally being able to control his power. Though the build-up was definitely weird, I was expecting a lot more to go before such an awaited moment, but all it took is Alfin’s words and Rean realising the support he gets from everyone (for the third time in this game)
But what I really did not expect was… BLUE DESTINATION!!! IT PLAYS SO SOON IN THIS GAME, I WASN’T EXPECTING THAT!! I wish they had left it to play only during the 1vs1 against Crow, but oh well, it’s still hype as fuck
The escape sequence with Alfin was great (why does she have to be so weird about it, uhggg), and when the Courageous arrived to save the day was so cool too, though once again very shonen-ish. I was so happy to see Olivier back though, I missed my man. Though, what I loved the most about this part is the ceasefire: they aren’t real enemies, they just fight because they have to, and they make that super clear. And Rean and Crow’s parting words to each other… god, I love them so much, Rean will do anything to get Crow back with them…
Act 2 revolves around gathering our classmates from Thors and fixing war’s consequences on East Erebonia. Later, it focuses on the shrines and making a real weapon for Valimar
Overall, there aren’t many relevant parts here to remark, except Vulcan’s death though. I don’t get it though, after seeing how much friendlier he could be, he just threw his life away out of nowhere for no reason at all. Like, his death amounts to nothing, and even though he had nothing left to live for, it’s quite an abrupt end to his storyline
It isn’t until Celdic’s incident that you can truly feel the worth and weight of the war in this worldbuilding tbh. The mayor that helped you since the first game is now dead, and a lot of the NPCs’ lives have been turned around in a blink
I like how Duvalie keeps mentioning Crossbell, was she one of the bosses on the tower before Arianhordt? Poor girl can’t take a break
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA, we even get to see the Azure Tree up-close and it’s treated like a significant event, that’s so fucking cool!!!!!! GOD I LOVE CROSSBELL SO MUCH I MISS MY BABIES THERE
Three Shrines later and Vita comes to fuck everything up and reveal that Erebonia’s war and fate with the Divine Knights is an event that has taken place again and again throughout their history, in a very similar light to Liberl and Crossbell’s major events (also why the hell did I never notice Celine looks exactly like Bernkastel, and even better taking on account Vita’s VA is Bern’s)
Now, it’s time to take Trista back and oh wow TOWA IS FINALLY PLAYABLE WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, I HAD BEEN WAITING FOR THIS MOMENT SINCE FOREVER, I LOVE TOWA SO FUCKING MUCH HELL YEAH
Final dungeon time!! This looks like a long ride and I’m all for it. The first battle here is against Duvalie and Bleublanc and I absolutely loved how “Exceed!” played against us this time to showcase Duvalie’s undefeatable spirit, and I loved when Olivier and Toval came back to save the day, I missed them!! Plus, finally Vander makes an appearance, my guy!!!!!
Xeno and Leo’s battle was great too, and I like the little lore bits they left around regarding their boss and if he’s still alive or not. Not to mention, they really do care about Fie after all. ALSO, FINALLY SHARON AND CLAIRE
McBurn’s fight though… holy fuck, that went hard as fuck, I love it. I can’t wait to learn more about this shithead cause he’s just so raw every time he appears, and his new form looks incredible. Plus, when Laura’s father appeared with “Exceed!” and the battle started taking place… shit that was hype. Though, I must say, they always hype up Viscount Arseid a whole lot for a character that doesn’t hold the same weight as other prominent “overpowered” figures in the games did, such as Arios or Cassius, so it’s weird they keep using him for these plot devices
Here we go. Final boss time. It has… five fucking phases, let’s go. First of all, we got our long-awaited clash against Crow and Vita, and what a fucking fight it is, I love it. “The Decisive Collision” plays for this one, and I can’t deny how hyped it makes me. Then, at last, the duel between the Ashen Knight and the Azure Knight, with “Blue Destination” making its peak appearance in the game at last. How fucking hype.
The final final boss however… kinda meh, plus I didn’t like having to use both parties. Here’s our incomprehensible otherworldly final boss that has to appear in every Trails no matter what, but hey, the music is hype and the final clash where we get to control Crow is great
And… here it is. The reveals that I sadly got spoiled on: Crow’s death, and Osborne’s comeback. Yeah, I know Crow isn’t staying dead, but what a fucking moment regardless. Crowrean nation, those two love each other too much. And Osborne being back… god, they’ve been building up to this guy ever since Sky, and I must say he’s kinda living up to the hype right now cause holy shit
And holy shit, Rufus continues being an absolute mystery. His loyalty was all along with the Ironbloods, so all his work as leader of the Noble Alliance was a facade. What’s even the plan of this guy, I’m so extremely curious
But you know when my jaw dropped to the floor literally? The last scene before the ending. The flashbacks of Rean’s childhood proving that… Osborne is his father, and he’s the one who left him in the snow. How the fuck did I never see that one coming. And then. the ending plays with a fucking banger of a song, starting with an image of Crow looking at the horizon to break my heart in a million pieces. What a fucking game man, what a fucking damn game. I’m absolutely loving all of this, this cliffhanger and all of the reveals have been incredible
holy shit HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT HOLT SHIT HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT. RIGHT WHEN I THOUGHT THEY COULDN’T SURPRISE ME ANYMORE AND THAT THIS GAME HAD ALREADY REACHED ITS PEAK: WE GOT AN EPILOGUE IN HERE, AND YOU KNOW WHO IS FUCKING VOICING IT? YEAH. I WOULD RECOGNIZE THIS VOICE EVERYWHERE. LLOYD. LLOYD BANNINGS. AND WE’RE BACK IN CROSSBELL AT FULL FORCE. I’M GOING TO FUCKING CRY AND SCREAM AND AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
GOD!!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!! LLOYD!!!! RIXIA!!!! THE GEOFRONT THEME!!!!!! FUCCCCCKKKKKK!!!!!!!! and GET OVER THE BARRIER TOO!?!?!?!?!?!?!??!!?!? YOU ARE JUST FUCKING WITH ME NOW, THIS IS INCREDIBLE
I know they are just doing it for the fanservice, but I’m absolutely loving how they keep mentioning other characters or events from Crossbell
ALSO. WOW. I DID NOT EXPECT THIS SO EARLY, BUT I GUESS WE ARE CONFRONTING REAN *AND ALTINA* AS LLOYD AND RIXIA THIS SOON. THAT’S NUTS, AND IT’S SO HYPE TO SEE THEM MEET LIKE THIS. I know it’s all even more fanservice, but I can’t help but be excited and hyped af for how they’ve played all of this and what’s to come later. Absolutely incredible, I loved this divertissement
As for the actual epilogue itself… it’s a nice goodbye to Class VII and all that it has achieved across these two games. Plus, I cannot lie I didn’t get teary-eyed since every single one of the party members coming together to conquer the Reverie Corridor
Though… it really tears down everything that the actual ending had achieved, and all of the excitement of the cliffhanger and the future vanishes away by the poor pacing of this extra epilogue that feels like it should have been entirely optional content. Welp. Plus, I REALLY did not feel like tackling that randomized dungeon, I just ran straight to the elevators and cheesed the bosses lmao
Characters
Spoilers during this segment too!
Oof, so many characters to talk about, so let’s just focus on the important and a tier list
I’m just gonna say. god. I love Crowrean. Rean as a protagonist has proven to be better and better with time (is he finally beating the shonen protag syndrome allegations?), but it’s specially that ending where he has to confront a bitter truth and work for a cause he doesn’t agree with that is really making his character sound even more interesting than he already was
As for Crow… god, I already loved him in CS1 but this game managed to make me love him even more. I don’t know what it is, but I absolutely love this friends to enemies (to lovers) thing between him and Rean. He still cares a lot about Rean even though their paths oppose each other and they are technically enemies, and all about him is soooooooo interesting. In addition, with “I’ll Remember You” playing for the ending while he looks into the horizon, the 50 mira coin falls and he’s shown inside his Divine Knight… I teared up so much
TOWAAAAAAAAAA TOWAAAAAAAAA TOWAAAAAAAAA, I’m not even sure how I ended up liking her this much but she’s easily my favourite girl in all of Cold Steel. She is a great captain to the Corageous and she is just a little shining sun (oh… I see a pattern in my fav characters if you take on account Estelle is my fav Trails character)
Music
As usual in the Trails franchise, the soundtrack for Trails of Cold Steel 2 was phenomenal. This time, I thought “Blue Destination” was gonna be the track to steal my heart but… it’s been days since I finished the game and “I’ll Remember You” is still stuck in my head, it’s such a good theme…
Conclusion
Spoilers during this segment too!
Hm… Maybe I can no longer consider myself a Cold Steel hater after this… Cold Steel 2 is a fantastic game that it’s definitely high in my list alongside SC and Azure. This time, I had fun from beginning to end and the side content didn’t feel as overwhelming as it usually feels during Trails games
The war setting that the first game helped build is definitely its strongest point in comparison to CS1, and it manages to deliver a great story thanks to everything that its prequel (slowly and… maybe boringly) laid out
Cold Steel 2 is pretty much built the same way the past duologies of games in the franchise were, with the first game working to set the new atmosphere and region, and then the sequel blowing everything out of the water to deliver a superb game. And as always, the villains also receive a big boost thanks to Ouroboros presence (since, apparently, it’s forbidden to them to appear during the first game of a new arc)
Overall, I greatly enjoyed Cold Steel 2 and it’s become of my favourite games of the franchise. With my hope for Erebonia regained, I just hope Cold Steel 3 follows its footsteps and delivers another great game since I’ve heard so many good things about it. CS4 however… I have zero hope for it, and I’m expecting it will be tons and tons of fanservice with no substance. We’ll see…
Oh, and the Divertissement worked wonders to generate even more hype on me for the next game. I can’t wait to see my beloved Crossbell again and hopefully some returning faces from Liberl (since I know we sadly aren’t coming back to Liberl any soon)
Silvy 