The Legend of Nayuta Boundless Trails is a spin-off in the Legend of Heroes franchise of titles from Nihon Falcom and one that newcomers can dive right into with no issues. Being a spin-off, it has nothing to do with mainline The Legend of Heroes long running list of games which is great news for those who want a solid JRPG without having to sink hours and hours into previous games and titles.
Is this a game that you should pick up then? And is it worth playing on Nintendo Switch?
The Legend of Nayuta Boundless Trails
The Legend of Nayuta Boundless Trails kicks off with Nayuta on a ship out in the vast ocean. On the ship Nayuta speaks to his pal Cygna and they witness a star shower as they head back to “Remnant Isle”. Upon their return to Remnant Isle, Nayuta meets up with his sister Eartha and they take a look at a mysterious “Star Fragment”. Viewing the Star Fragment using a special scope which shines light upon them reveals a picture.
Nayuta is absolutely enamoured by these Star Fragments and the images they reveal. These pictures represent “Lost Heaven”, a strange world or region that’s shrouded in mystery. Fast forward a little bit and Nayuta encounters something else that’s mysterious. This time it’s a fairy known as Noi and Nayuta gets drawn into a plot to stop an evil antagonist from wreaking havoc upon the world.
The story of The Legend of Nayuta Boundless Trails is great with a lot of lore built up over time and the introduction of a great cast of characters that each have their own unique personalities that really shine through. The game does feature some voice acting and this helps with the character development somewhat. Nayuta for example sounds like a classic JRPG protagonist while his sister is incredibly wholesome and sweet.
Gameplay in The Legend of Nayuta Boundless Trails is very similar to the Ys series of Nihon Falcom games rather than the Legend of Heroes series games. There’s a mixture of adventuring out in the world and some downtime back at the town where you’ll be able to talk to NPCs and purchase new items at the shops or accept more quests. It’s perfectly balanced for each chapter in the game which helps keep you going without you losing interest in the game’s overarching story.
Combat in the game involves using both Nayuta’s abilities as well as Noi’s in combination with each other. Players can run, jump, dodge and slash away with his sword. You’ll also be able to use Noi’s magic to attack enemies and will be able to learn new skills throughout the game as you progress through levels. The game also features “Seasons” which drastically changes up the areas you can visit.
While the core gameplay formula here in The Legend of Nayuta Boundless Trails is rather formulaic, that’s not a bad thing at all and it works really well throughout the game’s multiple chapters. There’s also a “New Game+” available at the end which adds additional longevity to this already rather hefty JRPG.
It should be noted that The Legend of Nayuta Boundless Trails was originally a PSP game from 2012 and while it did get remastered for PS4 in 2021 and 2022 on Nintendo Switch, it only got a full English localization now in 2023.
Graphically, the game looks quite good. It holds up by modern-day standards thanks to the remastered visuals and the sprites and visual novel-esque character portraits are top-notch stuff. The soundtrack to the game features some incredibly catchy and really amazing music tracks which you will love to listen to while playing through the game.
The English voice acting is also performed by well-known voice actors and the original Japanese voice acting is also present in the game too if you’d prefer to listen to that throughout. Unfortunately, not every interaction is voiced but this is typically the case with older JRPGs so it can be forgiven.
Final Verdict
Overall The Legend of Nayuta Boundless Trails is an extremely solid JRPG adventure with a rather simplistic battle and combat system. There’s quite a bit of puzzle platforming that happens throughout the game but the fast-paced combat where you effectively hack and slash your way through waves of enemies feels extremely satisfying.
The game’s combat system could have been a bit more complex but the simplistic nature was well suited to the PSP at the time of release and this translates very well to the Nintendo Switch too. This is the type of game that you’d load up, play for a bit, put down and then come back to later when you get a chance to.
The pick-up-and-play gameplay was clearly a part of its design with the Chapter based storytelling too and this definitely fits right at home on Nintendo Switch. Give this game a try. It’s really beautiful with some great artwork on offer and the combat is extremely fun despite being formulaic.
The Legend of Nayuta Boundless Trails Launch Trailer
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