The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails
If major RPG franchises like Final Fantasy introduced me to RPGs, it’s the B-tier titles that made me love the genre. Throughout the SNES, PSX, and PS2 eras of gaming, those lower budget, heartfelt RPGs were my bread and butter. Games like Illusion of Gaia (and later Terranigma), Lunar: The Silver Star Story, and Wild Arms meant so much to me, and I’m always in search of titles that capture that same creative energy. The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails may not come from that same time period, but it is absolutely cut from that same cloth.
Granted, it’s no surprise that I would like this one (sorry, spoilers). The Legend of Nayuta was originally released by Nihon Falcom for the PSP in 2012, AKA the creators of the Ys series. If you read my bio at the bottom of this article, you could guess my feelings on the developer. And really, The Legend of Nayuta is potentially the most Falcom-y Falcom game ever made. It sports the Trails/Kiseki moniker in the title, seems to use the Ys Seven engine, yet plays like a mix of Zwei: The Ilvard Insurrection and Ys: The Oath in Felghana. Few games are so tailored to my tastes and sensibilities as this, and I imagine other Falcom fans don’t need my take to know they should pick this one up.
Don’t worry, for the rest of you not as keen on relatively niche RPG franchises, I still have my critic hat on. And while I did thoroughly enjoy The Legend of Nayuta, it maybe doesn’t have the same consistent highs as Falcom’s best work. Mostly due to the hardware it was originally made for.
The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails (PC [Reviewed], Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4)
Developer: Nihon Falcom
Publisher: NIS America, Inc.
Released: September 19, 2023 (NA), September 21, 2023 (EU)
MSRP: $39.99
