Falcom plans to finish the Kai no Kiseki arc with its next game

Nihon Falcom President Toshihiro Kondo has outlined the studio's upcoming development slate, confirming that the next Trails beyond the Horizon (Kai no Kiseki) game will conclude the current story arc. The studio is currently balancing the finale of the Zemuria storyline alongside multiple remake projects and a new Ys title.

The details come from a four-page interview in the latest Weekly Famitsu, with images shared by hansuke21 and transcriptions via ryokutya2089. Kondo stated that Falcom is going into development with a strong determination to finish the Kai narrative with the next release. The Trails franchise has been running continuously since 2004. It spans over a dozen games.

The development pipeline is currently crowded. Falcom has already announced a remake of the original Trails in the Sky. The studio still needs to tackle Trails in the Sky the 3rd. Kondo noted that working on both the Kai conclusion and the 3rd remake simultaneously is difficult with their current resources. The release order isn't finalized.

A retirement plan for the Crossbell team

The interview also touched on the highly requested remakes of the Crossbell duology, Trails from Zero and Trails to Azure. The motivation for revisiting these games is unusually practical. Some of the original staff members who worked on the early Trails games are reaching retirement age in a few years.

According to Kondo, those veteran developers have explicitly asked to see the series through to the end of the Crossbell arc before they retire. It's a great reason to greenlight a project. Falcom operates as a relatively small, tight-knit studio compared to other major Japanese RPG developers, and keeping the original creators involved in the modern remakes makes sense.

The Ys timeline

Outside of the Trails universe, a new Ys game has begun internal development. The long-running action RPG series celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2027, four decades after Adol Christin debuted on the PC-8801 in 1987.

Fans hoping for a massive anniversary release might need to adjust their expectations. It won't happen in 2027. Kondo pointed out that Ys X: Nordics was announced during the 35th anniversary year in 2022 but did not release until 2023. He expects a similar situation here, admitting it'll be difficult to have the new game ready for release during the actual 40th anniversary year. A 2028 release appears more likely, though Falcom plans to share some information before then.

Dragon Slayer and unannounced projects

The studio is also working on a Dragon Slayer revival. It's a historic franchise that launched in 1984 and laid the groundwork for many of Falcom's later successes. Falcom announced the new Dragon Slayer project earlier this year around its 45th anniversary.

Kondo confirmed the game is being developed alongside external partners, which requires extra coordination. An update on the project is expected soon. The Famitsu interview concluded with a brief mention of two completely unannounced titles currently in the works. These fill out a development roadmap that will keep the studio busy through the end of the decade.