Timeline and play order of The Legend of Heroes and Trails series games – Updated March 2019, completed.

The Trails of Cold Steel III recently launched on PS4, and it seems to be an exclusive. The long-awaited Trails in the Sky SC Chinese version is also coming to PS Vita soon, which has reignited my interest in completing the series. Although I already have the Chinese versions of Trails of Cold Steel I and II, I've been waiting for Trails in the Sky SC and 3RD after finishing Trails in the Sky FC, because I want to play through the story. Thinking that my first platinum trophy was from Trails in the Sky FC on my fourth playthrough still makes me quite excited.

As we all know, there are many series of Legend of Heroes, especially the Trails series. Not only are there many series, but the timelines are also intertwined and complex. Here is a summary for everyone to fill in the gaps and for my own future reference (it always takes me a long time to look up information).

PS: The Trails series is available on PC or other platforms such as PSP. If you want to catch up quickly, you can play it directly on PC (remember to buy the official version). This discussion focuses on the new EVO version.

First, let's quickly go through the Legend of Heroes series before moving on to the Trails series. The Trails series in Legend of Heroes begins with The Legend of Heroes VI, preceded by:

• The Legend of Heroes 1: Descendants of the Dragon
• The Legend of Heroes II: Dragon Slayer
• The Legend of Heroes III: The White-Haired Witch
• The Legend of Heroes IV: Crimson Tears
• The Legend of Heroes V: The Song of the Sea

Games 3, 4, and 5 form a series (the Kakabu series?), but the stories in this series have absolutely nothing to do with the Trails series, so it's fine not to play them. From game 6 onwards, it's the Trails series we're familiar with. Here's a timeline (from Wikipedia):

• The Legend of Heroes VI: Trails in the Sky is divided into three parts (the Trails in the Sky Trilogy): Trails in the Sky FC → Trails in the Sky SC → Trails in the Sky 3RD
• The Legend of Heroes VII: Trails of Zero and Trails of Azure
• The Legend of Heroes VIII: Trails of Cold Steel is divided into Trails of Cold Steel I, II, and III.
• The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Dawn

PS: There is actually another track by Nayuta, but since what he said is not the same story as these, it is excluded.

These series get a bit more complicated, so let's break it down. First, playing The Legend of Heroes VI: Trails in the Sky is definitely the first choice, as these three games precede the later ones. While Trails of Zero and Trails of Azure are set in the same era, they differ from Trails in the Sky in the location. Since Trails of Zero comes first, play it first, then Trails of Azure, and you can carry over save data from Trails of Zero. The same logic applies to Trails of Cold Steel; although it's set in the same era, the trilogy changes the location. However, playing Trails of Cold Steel first, then Trails of Azure and Trails of Zero is perfectly fine.

The new game, Trails of Dawn, was recently released. This should be played last because its story spans several other kingdoms within the same historical period. Therefore, the recommended play order is:

The Trails in the Sky trilogy —> Trails from Zero -> Trails to Azure -> Trails of Cold Steel I, II, III -> Trails of Dawn

or:

The Trails in the Sky trilogy —> Trails of Cold Steel I, 2, 3 -> Trails from Zero -> Trails of Azure -> Trails of Dawn

However, the story of Trails of Cold Steel is said to be terrible, so it's recommended to play them in the first order. Trails in the Sky, Trails from Zero, and Trails to Azure Evolution are now available on PS Vita and PS4 (note that they are also available on other platforms, but not EVO, and the story is the same). Trails of Cold Steel has also been ported, but not fully in Chinese. Details are as follows:

• Trails in the Sky FC EVO – PSV Chinese
• Trails in the Sky SC EVO – PSV Chinese
• Trails in the Sky 3RD EVO – PSV Chinese
• Zero no Kiseki EVO – Japanese release, Chinese release indefinitely delayed.
• Trails of Azure EVO – Japanese release, Chinese version indefinitely delayed.
• Trails of Cold Steel I – PSV Chinese, PS4 Chinese (modified)
• Trails of Cold Steel II - PSV Chinese
• Trails of Cold Steel III – PS4 Chinese
• Trails of Cold Steel IV – PS4 Chinese