This will be a review/analysis of the Trails series as we are right now. The current game is Trails Beyond the Horizon. This is currently the most up-to-date in the story of the Trails franchise that we have. I have thoughts on where the series has been, especially since last year. Last year we got the Sky 1st Chapter remake, which was genuinely great. Reminded everyone why this series mattered in the first place. Tight story, clear arc, actual payoff. And now Beyond the Horizon drops and I’m sitting here wondering what happened to that energy. Sky, Crossbell, Cold Steel, those arcs had structure. Beginning, middle, end. You knew where you were in the story. Daybreak, Daybreak II and now Beyond the Horizon feel like one game’s worth of plot stretched across two releases. Filler, basically. Or at least stuff that could’ve been combined without losing anything important. The ending specifically bothers me. Sky FC to SC to 3rd, that progression made sense. Zero to Azure, same thing. Cold Steel I through IV, bloated sure, but it concluded. Beyond the Horizon just… stops. No satisfying conclusion, no decisive bridge to whatever comes next. Just credits and a tease and the vague promise that maybe the next game will matter more. I don’t know where the story goes from here. And after twenty-one years of investment, that’s a problem.
A Quick Review of Trails Beyond the Horizon
[A review copy was provided by the publisher for the purpose of this review.]
Genres: Action, Adventure, RPG
Publisher: NIS America, Inc.
Developer: Nihon Falcom, PH3 GmbH
Release Date: Jan 15, 2026
Trails Beyond the Horizon is the third Daybreak game and honestly? It feels like Falcom ran Reverie’s playbook through the photocopier twice. Van Arkride’s detective agency is technically the focus, but half the screen time goes to Rean and Class VII doing guest appearances like it’s a Marvel post-credits scene. Cameos are fun until you realize the new cast never gets to matter.
What Actually Works
The combat’s genuinely great. Action battles got expanded, command battles are snappier, and the whole thing moves like Falcom finally hired animators who’ve seen games from this decade. Neck-and-neck with Sky 1st Chapter remake for best-feeling Trails combat. Music’s solid too. Falcom Sound Team jdk doesn’t miss often, though the last three soundtracks have been more “consistent” than “memorable.”
The tech leap is cool on paper. Shard Technology, cyberpunk Calvard, the Orbal Revolution paying off visually. Ten years of in-universe time took us from steampunk to almost cyberpunk, and showing that progression matters. It’s just a shame the story structure doesn’t match the ambition.
So let’s move into talking about the combat and the gameplay. The combat itself is largely the same from the previous game. There are a few changes here and there, but they aren’t big enough or substantial to where it is a giant leap from the previous game. In Trails Beyond the Horizon, the combat is still structured with two separate combat styles. You have your Action Battle and then you also have your Command battles; they work in tandem. I do like that they expanded the action portions a little bit more, giving you a little more variety when it comes to the amount of attacks and maneuvers and capabilities you are able to do. Command battles, for specifically turn-based battles, are very similar to the previous game; they have added some new additions to the combat to make it a little bit more robust. The area that Falcom has put a lot of effort and emphasis in. They have completely expanded a lot more than they have in the past. This is where the game truly shines. The gameplay is very fast-paced, it’s very fun and fluid, and the animations and the overall quality of the animations have gotten a lot better. I think this game is neck-and-neck with Trails in the Sky remake as the quintessential gameplay experience they have provided for the series.
I also would like to mention that I think the music is, of course, outstanding as usual; there are some misses, but overall, Falcom’s commitment to quality in their games soundtracks is something I really appreciate. I will say that the last three games in particular may not be the strongest of soundtracks they’ve created, but I do think that the quality is still there overall. There’s definitely some really good standout tracks in this game as well.
I think Trails Beyond the Horizon and the first two Calvard games are on the right track when it comes to gameplay, animations, and visuals, but they fall short in storytelling and narrative. One of the things I’ve always loved about Falcom games is their dense, intricate plots; these two entries still have all the moving parts, yet they never quite add up to a satisfying whole by the time the credits roll.
The combat’s genuinely great. Action battles got expanded, command battles are snappier, and the whole thing moves like Falcom finally hired animators who’ve seen games from this decade. Neck-and-neck with Sky 1st Chapter remake for best-feeling Trails combat. Music’s solid too. Falcom Sound Team jdk doesn’t miss often, though the last three soundtracks have been more “consistent” than “memorable.”
The tech leap is cool on paper. Shard Technology, cyberpunk Calvard, the Orbal Revolution paying off visually. Ten years of in-universe time took us from steampunk to almost cyberpunk, and showing that progression matters. It’s just a shame the story structure doesn’t match the ambition.
The Trail got cold…
This is the part that actually worries me. Ouroboros, Aidios, Sept-Terrions, the singularity, whatever lies beyond the Hollow. These aren’t teases for another decade. They’re supposed to pay off. Soon. A fumbled finale doesn’t just hurt sales. It retroactively cheapens hundreds of hours of investment across twenty years of games.
The last two entries felt like they could’ve been one game. Daybreak II and Beyond the Horizon both have strong moments, but neither justifies its existence as a separate release. Combine them, cut the filler, and you might have something worthy of the Trails name. Instead we got two games that tread water while the calendar kept turning.
My Modest Proposal
Skip 2026. Announce Sky 3rd Remake or Crossbell modern ports. Let the writers actually finish the outline before anyone models a dungeon. Give the team a breather. Level designers can iterate the engine, new fans can catch up in modern style, and scenario staff can figure out how the Grandmaster, singularity tech, and outside continent actually connect to a satisfying conclusion.
Three things a breather year buys:
- Engine iteration without script pressure
- New fans catching up on Crossbell and early Erebonia in current art style
- Most importantly, time for the scenario team to chart a definitive through-line from Daybreak’s mysteries to whatever catharsis they’ve promised for twenty years
Annual releases finally caught up with Falcom. The calendar, not the creative outline, is dictating pace. That shows in the thin payoffs we’ve been getting. If the next game is just more fan-service cutscenes and gameplay refinements without narrative weight, the trail ends not with a crescendo, but with a sigh.
Come back when the story says it’s ready. Not when the shareholder meeting does. Falcom’s done it before. They can do it again. But they need to remember that Trails built its reputation on clockwork plotting and emotional payoff, not just snappy combat and slick UI.
The gameplay’s never been better. The story’s never felt more lost. Fix that, and Falcom still has a chance to deliver a finale the industry talks about for another twenty years. Don’t fix it, and the trail ends here. Not with bang, but with budget.
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