Nihon Falcom recently unveiled details for Hajimari no Kiseki‘s third story route, dubbed “The Miserable Sinners.” Falcom also highlighted the unique narrative progression system Hajimari uses, called the Cross Story System.
The Sinners, a mysterious, ragtag bunch with potential ties to important events in the Cold Steel saga, are the focus of the Hermit story path.
Their leader is a knight who calls himself “C.” It’s the name the Imperial Liberation Front’s leader used prior to triggering Erebonia’s civil war, but this “C” uses different weapons and outfits. He’s not the real “C,” and no one knows why he might use the name. He’s investigating the actions of Erebonia’s Imperial Defense Force, defenders of the imperial family and capitol.
The next two characters, Nadia and Swin, should be familiar to those who saw Falcom’s poster for the series’ 15th anniversary. They’re the boy and girl seen from behind at the top, and both are former members of an assassin’s organization.
Nadia specializes in mid-range combat and stores her weapons in her giant teddy bear. She excels in analysis and uses her appearance to catch foes off guard. Swin is the more practical of the two and uses two different-length swords in combat. He’s calm and collected, but Nadia tends to manipulate him.
It’s thought, Falcom says, Swin and Nadia are the models for the protagonists in 3 and 9, a popular international novel series meant to act as a wanted poster more than entertaining literature.
The characters in the novel operated in the Calvard Republic, but Falcom is still playing coy as to whether Nadia and Swin are tied to the Republic.
Finally is Lapis Rosenberg, a living doll made by the famous Rosenberg Studios in Crossbell. She tries to act as human and grown-up as possible and just as frequently fails at it. Her goal is recovering memories of her past and helping Swin and Nadia in the process.
You’ll be able to switch between The Miserable Sinners, the Crossbell Re-Independence story, and Erebonia’s part of the narrative freely, thanks to the Cross Story System. You can’t progress to the next chapter until all three parts of the current chapter are finished, and each route offers a new perspective on events as they unfold.
The cast is massive as you’d expect. Falcom is promising a “True Reverie Corridor” similar to Trails of Cold Steel 2‘s, where you can mix and match your party as you see fit.
Hajimari is the newest game in Falcom’s Trails/Kiseki series and launches this summer in Japan, but there’s no word yet on a Western release.
You can check out the full translation on Gematsu. Stay tuned to GameSkinny for more Trails series news as it develops.
