It was really cool finding out that the guy from that gif "oh my oh my goodness gracious (1 big hot man)" is just a random dude that shows up out of nowhere to break a wall, and then leaves.
Sometimes there is beauty in simplicity and that definitely holds true for this game. Ys I took me back to a time when games were all about the simple joy of exploring and adventuring. Going out into the wilds with barely so much as a vague direction while fighting your way through hordes of goblins, wolfs and evil knights clad in dark armor. It is a game that doesn't really follow a well-defined linear narrative thread but lets you go and seek out your own adventure in the wilds until you hit a road block. It is only then when you have to retrace your steps and ask yourself what you might have missed. It's a game that doesn't guide you. You will have to visit towns, ask around for information and talk to specific NPCs multiple times to learn where you have to go next. Sometimes, an item-description might have some clue that will help you find the solution to some puzzle that kept you from progressing. It's old school and I'm all here for it.
Once you're out in the open, you'll start bumping into enemies to fight them. Yeah, the combat system doesn't require you to swing your sword or block manually, you just bump into stuff and hope that the enemy takes more damage than you. At first, I didn't quite get it :D I was dying constantly and I was sure that I hadn't fully understood the combat mechanics. But no, I was just underleveled and had to upgrade my gear. So I started grinding for a few minutes, gathered some gold and experience, bought new equipment and tried again. And it made a huge difference. Gear and levels really matter in this game. At fixed intervals, I would have to take some time to grind. It wasn't unbearable but since the combat is so simplistic in nature, it got old really fast. All in all though, the bump system was pretty fun. It's just satisfying as hell to bump into enemies and trap them in corners where they are squashed to bloody bits :D
Graphically, the game has its charme. As with many other aspects of the game, the visuals are rather simplistic but the art direction and love for detail that the devs poured into it, really make Ys shine. Even though the game offers only simple sprites for enemies, they were so distinct, that I could easily tell them apart. I felt that each design had personality and character. Same goes for the environmental design. Seeing the shadows of clouds that are passing by overhead may just be a small detail but it shows that the developers cared. I love stuff like this. The character portraits of special NPCs you talk to are absolutely gorgeous just as the cutscenes that are composed of beautiful hand-drawn images.
So far the review has mainly touched on positive aspects of the game and if you've read up until this point, you're probably wondering why I've given the game such a mediocre rating. Well, I did have some issues with the game. First of, navigation in dungeons, especially in the final dungeon of the game, can be a real pain. You have no map and no idea of where to go most of the time. Sometimes you are even surrounded by darkness which makes it extra hard to get your bearings. There are sections in the game where you have to traverse through multiple levels of a dungeon back and forth which confused the living hell out of me.
On top of that there's the boss battles. Some are ok, they mostly feel like wars of attrition. However, for most of them, there is a great deal of luck and randomness involved. I'm not going to spoil anything but there were 2 bosses that made me almost drop the game for they committed mutliple cardinal sins of bad boss design :D The final boss in particular was a disaster design-wise.
Nonetheless, I had a good time with Ys I. It's a charming, simplistic and short Action RPG which is still very playable today. I loved the character art, music and level of detail. For me, it was my first Ys experience and I'm looking forward to playing more games of the series in the future.
Once you're out in the open, you'll start bumping into enemies to fight them. Yeah, the combat system doesn't require you to swing your sword or block manually, you just bump into stuff and hope that the enemy takes more damage than you. At first, I didn't quite get it :D I was dying constantly and I was sure that I hadn't fully understood the combat mechanics. But no, I was just underleveled and had to upgrade my gear. So I started grinding for a few minutes, gathered some gold and experience, bought new equipment and tried again. And it made a huge difference. Gear and levels really matter in this game. At fixed intervals, I would have to take some time to grind. It wasn't unbearable but since the combat is so simplistic in nature, it got old really fast. All in all though, the bump system was pretty fun. It's just satisfying as hell to bump into enemies and trap them in corners where they are squashed to bloody bits :D
Graphically, the game has its charme. As with many other aspects of the game, the visuals are rather simplistic but the art direction and love for detail that the devs poured into it, really make Ys shine. Even though the game offers only simple sprites for enemies, they were so distinct, that I could easily tell them apart. I felt that each design had personality and character. Same goes for the environmental design. Seeing the shadows of clouds that are passing by overhead may just be a small detail but it shows that the developers cared. I love stuff like this. The character portraits of special NPCs you talk to are absolutely gorgeous just as the cutscenes that are composed of beautiful hand-drawn images.
So far the review has mainly touched on positive aspects of the game and if you've read up until this point, you're probably wondering why I've given the game such a mediocre rating. Well, I did have some issues with the game. First of, navigation in dungeons, especially in the final dungeon of the game, can be a real pain. You have no map and no idea of where to go most of the time. Sometimes you are even surrounded by darkness which makes it extra hard to get your bearings. There are sections in the game where you have to traverse through multiple levels of a dungeon back and forth which confused the living hell out of me.
On top of that there's the boss battles. Some are ok, they mostly feel like wars of attrition. However, for most of them, there is a great deal of luck and randomness involved. I'm not going to spoil anything but there were 2 bosses that made me almost drop the game for they committed mutliple cardinal sins of bad boss design :D The final boss in particular was a disaster design-wise.
Nonetheless, I had a good time with Ys I. It's a charming, simplistic and short Action RPG which is still very playable today. I loved the character art, music and level of detail. For me, it was my first Ys experience and I'm looking forward to playing more games of the series in the future.
"Bump system this, bump system that"
Yeah, how about you bump into some bitches??
Yeah, how about you bump into some bitches??
Let's start with the obvious; this is a remake of the original Ys I, and a faithful remake down to the bump combat and the general lack of tutorials and instructions. That said, I don't think the bump combat (while a meme) is as bad as many others have made it out to be; just think of it as an invincibility star (well, one where you're not always invincible so admittingly not that close but it'll suffice as a comparison for now) and you need to ram your opponents whenever they're vulnerable to chip away at their health. The actual angle calculation that is required to avoid taking damage altogether from bump combat can make this a bit more messy than how simply the combat was supposed to be designed, but in general as long as you're approaching an opponent diagonally with the joystick, you should be fine. With a little bit of grinding (and you will have to grind, because levels make a huge stat difference in a game capped at level 10) and the proper equipment, this usually isn't too egregious and is at worst, a novelty of its time.
The other complaint I often hear is that there aren't many instructions to guide you through the game; you wash up on a beach in a mysterious land greeted by strangers after the doctor takes you in, and you can actually leave for the plains right away without ever arming yourself. That's because the original Ys is a game heavily dependent on context clues and this game will not hold your hand; the doctor actually suggests talking to all of the villagers to fill yourself in on the situation, and talking to all the villagers and then talking to stockroom guy will net you a free sword. This is just one example of the clues that the people and environment around you will hint towards; you really need to make sure that you understand everything that's going around you (sort of atypical of the other Ys games I've played actually, but a welcome diversion), and if you follow and pay attention to their language, you'll make it out fine. Don't be afraid to use a guide, because it is an ancient game (in more ways than one) and there's no map or detailed adventure log, but it is definitely possible to figure out what to do and how to clear this pretty short adventure (took me less than 8 hours) without too much difficulty.
So I suppose what I'm trying to say is, it's aged a lot better than I expected. It's a pretty condensed JRPG and while the combat doesn't match up to future installments of furious hack and slash, the bump combat is serviceable enough for the generally interesting and varied boss fights: since there's a pretty early level cap, you'll really need to pay attention to patterns to figure out how to strategically pick each one apart instead of relying on stats to outbuff boss fights. (Though the strategy of running around in circles might work a little too well, even on that bat fight that's considered a nightmare by some.) The graphics are a nice upgrade from the original and hold up well in terms of lighting and color, and the soundtrack is Falcom JDK Sound Team, so obviously it's just banger after banger because these guys can do no wrong with their music.
I won't try and excuse that final boss fight though, which is just this mish mash of fireballs flying around the screen while you have to chase this speedy diagonal dude and dodging holes that form right under your feet as soon as you touch the boss and instakill you if you're caught by a hole. What the actual fuck.
But besides that, it's an interesting relic of Falcom's history that's worth an exploration if you've got five bucks and a lazy Sunday to blow. I'll obviously prefer both Ark and Modern Ys to this, but it wasn't half bad and Falcom fans will definitely be able to find some appreciation and enjoyment from this pioneer action RPG title.
The other complaint I often hear is that there aren't many instructions to guide you through the game; you wash up on a beach in a mysterious land greeted by strangers after the doctor takes you in, and you can actually leave for the plains right away without ever arming yourself. That's because the original Ys is a game heavily dependent on context clues and this game will not hold your hand; the doctor actually suggests talking to all of the villagers to fill yourself in on the situation, and talking to all the villagers and then talking to stockroom guy will net you a free sword. This is just one example of the clues that the people and environment around you will hint towards; you really need to make sure that you understand everything that's going around you (sort of atypical of the other Ys games I've played actually, but a welcome diversion), and if you follow and pay attention to their language, you'll make it out fine. Don't be afraid to use a guide, because it is an ancient game (in more ways than one) and there's no map or detailed adventure log, but it is definitely possible to figure out what to do and how to clear this pretty short adventure (took me less than 8 hours) without too much difficulty.
So I suppose what I'm trying to say is, it's aged a lot better than I expected. It's a pretty condensed JRPG and while the combat doesn't match up to future installments of furious hack and slash, the bump combat is serviceable enough for the generally interesting and varied boss fights: since there's a pretty early level cap, you'll really need to pay attention to patterns to figure out how to strategically pick each one apart instead of relying on stats to outbuff boss fights. (Though the strategy of running around in circles might work a little too well, even on that bat fight that's considered a nightmare by some.) The graphics are a nice upgrade from the original and hold up well in terms of lighting and color, and the soundtrack is Falcom JDK Sound Team, so obviously it's just banger after banger because these guys can do no wrong with their music.
I won't try and excuse that final boss fight though, which is just this mish mash of fireballs flying around the screen while you have to chase this speedy diagonal dude and dodging holes that form right under your feet as soon as you touch the boss and instakill you if you're caught by a hole. What the actual fuck.
But besides that, it's an interesting relic of Falcom's history that's worth an exploration if you've got five bucks and a lazy Sunday to blow. I'll obviously prefer both Ark and Modern Ys to this, but it wasn't half bad and Falcom fans will definitely be able to find some appreciation and enjoyment from this pioneer action RPG title.
some of the most next-level final bosses are the ones where winning requires an exhausting amount of focus, and that feel like a divine fluke when you actually win against them. alternatively, you could just design a final boss that isnt like Dark Fact from Ys 1, but you gotta appreciate both approaches. i loved that boss and i loved this game.......................
Often released as a bundle with its immediate sequel, Ys I really is just one half of a bigger whole. However, since it still works as its own standalone game, I decided to review them separately. As the first Ys game I ever played, there was an initial sense of confusion as I tried to figure out the somewhat archaic combat system and lack of explicit guidance. Thankfully, once it clicked, I enjoyed my short time with it and made me eager to check out the rest of the series.
Story: Adol Christin is a young, wandering adventurer who happens to come across the town of Minea, in the land of Esteria. Here, he meets a fortuneteller named Sara, who informs him of a terrible evil that he must ultimately bring an end to (nothing new, amirite?). In order to do this, he must find the six Books of Ys; text which contains the history of the ancient land of Ys and the knowledge needed to bring an end to the dark forces at bay.
Despite containing a simple plot, it’s still impressive to note how it exceeds expectations for a game released in 1987. In the same year that The Legend of Zelda released for the NES in North America, Falcom was creating an ambitious duology that not only contains plenty of dialogue, but also fairly interesting lore in the way of solid worldbuilding, interesting NPC conversations, and a fairly detailed and expansive backstory for the main hero in the original game’s manual; a backstory containing locale and event descriptions that would continue to be referenced in future games to this day.
Gameplay: This was the biggest roadblock upon starting the game. The infamous “bump” combat is a weird system that, although easy to understand, is incredibly awkward to execute for a first-time player and takes a bit of getting used to. But once I did, I was making mincemeat of enemies left and right. The bump combat simply involves running into enemies at an off angle in order to minimize damage received and increase damage taken. There is no attack button involved for this. The main limitation to this is the lack of variety. Even during bosses, it’s mainly a matter of learning its attack pattern and just bumping into their weak spot when possible. Still, the game is short, which helps a bit with its inevitable redundancy. Not to mention, the boss designs are damn cool and the fights themselves are still fun and challenging.
As with any RPG, you level up after gaining enough experience points. And trust me, if you feel like you are doing next to no damage to a boss, then you have to grind. Because here’s the thing: The level cap is 10. That’s right, you can only reach level 10 in this game, which means that each level gives you quite the significant boost to strength and defense. With each new area, enemies give a lot more EXP, so grinding isn’t much of a problem in this game, as it’s fairly quick.
Apart from this, there’s also a shop where you can buy better equipment, as is typical for the genre.
Through this short journey, NPC’s will give you hints on certain items you must find and use in order to make progress. None of these are usually too cryptic but, backtracking and traversing some of the maze-like dungeons can be a bit of a chore unless you look up a map. The final dungeon is especially huge and can be a bit of pain. And um… if I can just vent for a second…: WHAT WERE THEY THINKING WITH THAT FINAL BOSS? All I can say is, prepare your butthole.
Music: Um… yeah… There is no reason for the music to be this good. Honestly, all the Ys games I’ve played have had great soundtracks, but it’s especially impressive to hear these tracks from a game released 35 years ago. Granted, with this being a remaster, the soundtrack has been re-recorded and remixed, but even after listening to the original soundtrack, it’s amazing to hear the foundation of a wonderfully melodic and haunting track list that perfectly captures the sense of adventure. Not much else to say here. The music is fantastic.
Ys is a series that usually flies under the radar of many RPG fans, and even with the recent success of VIII and IX, many would still be hard pressed to return to the series’ roots. I believe it’s well worth it, though. Ys I (and II) may not be a perfect experience, and it is admittedly not for everyone, but with its short playtime and classic Falcom charm, it just begs to be given a chance and experienced.
Final Score: Light 7/10
Story: Adol Christin is a young, wandering adventurer who happens to come across the town of Minea, in the land of Esteria. Here, he meets a fortuneteller named Sara, who informs him of a terrible evil that he must ultimately bring an end to (nothing new, amirite?). In order to do this, he must find the six Books of Ys; text which contains the history of the ancient land of Ys and the knowledge needed to bring an end to the dark forces at bay.
Despite containing a simple plot, it’s still impressive to note how it exceeds expectations for a game released in 1987. In the same year that The Legend of Zelda released for the NES in North America, Falcom was creating an ambitious duology that not only contains plenty of dialogue, but also fairly interesting lore in the way of solid worldbuilding, interesting NPC conversations, and a fairly detailed and expansive backstory for the main hero in the original game’s manual; a backstory containing locale and event descriptions that would continue to be referenced in future games to this day.
Gameplay: This was the biggest roadblock upon starting the game. The infamous “bump” combat is a weird system that, although easy to understand, is incredibly awkward to execute for a first-time player and takes a bit of getting used to. But once I did, I was making mincemeat of enemies left and right. The bump combat simply involves running into enemies at an off angle in order to minimize damage received and increase damage taken. There is no attack button involved for this. The main limitation to this is the lack of variety. Even during bosses, it’s mainly a matter of learning its attack pattern and just bumping into their weak spot when possible. Still, the game is short, which helps a bit with its inevitable redundancy. Not to mention, the boss designs are damn cool and the fights themselves are still fun and challenging.
As with any RPG, you level up after gaining enough experience points. And trust me, if you feel like you are doing next to no damage to a boss, then you have to grind. Because here’s the thing: The level cap is 10. That’s right, you can only reach level 10 in this game, which means that each level gives you quite the significant boost to strength and defense. With each new area, enemies give a lot more EXP, so grinding isn’t much of a problem in this game, as it’s fairly quick.
Apart from this, there’s also a shop where you can buy better equipment, as is typical for the genre.
Through this short journey, NPC’s will give you hints on certain items you must find and use in order to make progress. None of these are usually too cryptic but, backtracking and traversing some of the maze-like dungeons can be a bit of a chore unless you look up a map. The final dungeon is especially huge and can be a bit of pain. And um… if I can just vent for a second…: WHAT WERE THEY THINKING WITH THAT FINAL BOSS? All I can say is, prepare your butthole.
Music: Um… yeah… There is no reason for the music to be this good. Honestly, all the Ys games I’ve played have had great soundtracks, but it’s especially impressive to hear these tracks from a game released 35 years ago. Granted, with this being a remaster, the soundtrack has been re-recorded and remixed, but even after listening to the original soundtrack, it’s amazing to hear the foundation of a wonderfully melodic and haunting track list that perfectly captures the sense of adventure. Not much else to say here. The music is fantastic.
Ys is a series that usually flies under the radar of many RPG fans, and even with the recent success of VIII and IX, many would still be hard pressed to return to the series’ roots. I believe it’s well worth it, though. Ys I (and II) may not be a perfect experience, and it is admittedly not for everyone, but with its short playtime and classic Falcom charm, it just begs to be given a chance and experienced.
Final Score: Light 7/10
Honestly for such a short game I had fun, it was simple. being a kind of experimental obtuse take at an early action rpg,
story isn't anything to write home about but it does give you hints in the gameplay including how to beat the final boss its very simple yet effective design.
most of the leveling up part of the rpg, feels like the preparation for the actual challenge you are going to face at the end, because the level cap is 10 which surprised me, but in that context of it being you getting the equipment you need to go forth made it kind of cute in a way.
speaking of equipment I do enjoy how the game handles it including a neat little twist on the best gear in the game that makes you super strong, which again ties back to the very small story you have in this game intertwining with the gameplay.
I don't want to overhype this game or anything if you it is super short and unless you are buying the I and II collection it may not feel like your money's worth, and if you don't like games that are that weird combination of being hard and old in that aforementioned obtuse way of game design, you won't like it just play a later game in this series,
But if you like old weird games like me you'll have a fun albeit short time
story isn't anything to write home about but it does give you hints in the gameplay including how to beat the final boss its very simple yet effective design.
most of the leveling up part of the rpg, feels like the preparation for the actual challenge you are going to face at the end, because the level cap is 10 which surprised me, but in that context of it being you getting the equipment you need to go forth made it kind of cute in a way.
speaking of equipment I do enjoy how the game handles it including a neat little twist on the best gear in the game that makes you super strong, which again ties back to the very small story you have in this game intertwining with the gameplay.
I don't want to overhype this game or anything if you it is super short and unless you are buying the I and II collection it may not feel like your money's worth, and if you don't like games that are that weird combination of being hard and old in that aforementioned obtuse way of game design, you won't like it just play a later game in this series,
But if you like old weird games like me you'll have a fun albeit short time
Joguinho curto, agradável e bastante desafiador. Estranhei o bump system no começo, mas confesso que ele tem algumas nuances que eu curto bastante, principalmente nas batalhas de chefes, que é onde mora realmente o desafio do jogo. Algumas coisas no jogo são um pouco crípticas pra mim, mas acho que é por conta do seu tempo, nada que atrapalhe demais a experiência.
Back when video games were good
Finally diving into the Older Ys titles so here we are with the first Ys game !!
Overall was a pleasant surprise in the sense of how well the game holds up imo. One thing I was not expecting was the original combat to be the way it was I had no idea this was a run into combat style of RPG so it makes it all the more interesting seeing how the combat evolved in later titles.
Seeing the roots of the story and seeing Dogi for the first time is simply awesome. The game was a lot shorter then I was expecting but honestly that was 100% fine by me since at the end of the day the game felt like a short yet sweet experience that didn't overstay its welcome. My only huge complaint is that the final boss is probably one of the worst final bosses I have dealt with in a very long time it almost made me rip my hair out lol.
Good game overall!
Overall was a pleasant surprise in the sense of how well the game holds up imo. One thing I was not expecting was the original combat to be the way it was I had no idea this was a run into combat style of RPG so it makes it all the more interesting seeing how the combat evolved in later titles.
Seeing the roots of the story and seeing Dogi for the first time is simply awesome. The game was a lot shorter then I was expecting but honestly that was 100% fine by me since at the end of the day the game felt like a short yet sweet experience that didn't overstay its welcome. My only huge complaint is that the final boss is probably one of the worst final bosses I have dealt with in a very long time it almost made me rip my hair out lol.
Good game overall!
I don't know how, but even if it is repetitive to be bumping around enemies to defeat them I enjoyed playing 90% of the game by just moving.
Oh yeah, I played this game 8 years ago but I got stuck on a puzzle (the hammer one) and I couldn't finish it, so I replayed it entirely in one sitting. What's wrong with me and Falcom games??
Oh yeah, I played this game 8 years ago but I got stuck on a puzzle (the hammer one) and I couldn't finish it, so I replayed it entirely in one sitting. What's wrong with me and Falcom games??
XSEEDed all my expectations for how old this game is, definitely has aged well! A comfy experience with a fun simple battle system.
I will note that I played with a walkthrough to pull up whenever getting stuck due to the opaque guidance at times, and the amount of backtracking needed if you miss certain objectives that don't become relevant until later. (The final dungeon...)
I will note that I played with a walkthrough to pull up whenever getting stuck due to the opaque guidance at times, and the amount of backtracking needed if you miss certain objectives that don't become relevant until later. (The final dungeon...)
This game rules, the bump combat is so funny especially in this remake. I sampled each port of this game and the version on steam is my favorite version. Very simple short and sweet RPG but it's bursting with swag. Love the visual improvements in this version and the entire soundtrack is a banger.
Bump combat is great
better than kuro 2
While i really liked the first 3 hours of this game with its immediate freedom and very appealing combat system, the rest of it immediately collpases in on itself and becomes disgustingly unfun.
Go into this dark ass labyrinth and fight enemies way too strong for you. Find a random seed and somehow know that you have to eat it to progress the game. Dont fight that werewolf bat cause if you dont have a SPECIFIC sword you have to get by eating a seed then leaving then finding Reah then talking to Reah then giving Reah her harmonica then going to two trees and watching a cutscene, then youre fucked. Go back into the awful mines that's layout is akin to a 4 year old's art class project and fight the bat with the 3 frames of vulnerability.
Hoorah.... the mines are now over. Now i can have fun?!?!??
Wrong. Go to zepik village and run around in circles and talk to feena then leave then come back and talk to feena then leave then do 3 backflips then recieve a psychic premonition that you should probably ask grandma to read those random ass books youve been lugging around all game then leave then come back then feena should be there and THEN you will be told you can enter darm tower
And darm tower is where the game goes to rot and die. Awful layout. You have to find specific gear sets in order to progress, which are pretty much impossible to locate in this horrible labyrinth. No walk-through can help you here. Im stuck on this floating head boss that no one has ever had a problem with apparently cause i cant find any help. I do no damage. Im assuming i need a special sword 100 floors down from where i am that i need to backtrack to get, but i dont want to.
A shame because this was really free of all the issues i had with 80s-90s games but then it all fell off as soon as the mines happened. Hopefully ys 2 is better, for now i quit.
Go into this dark ass labyrinth and fight enemies way too strong for you. Find a random seed and somehow know that you have to eat it to progress the game. Dont fight that werewolf bat cause if you dont have a SPECIFIC sword you have to get by eating a seed then leaving then finding Reah then talking to Reah then giving Reah her harmonica then going to two trees and watching a cutscene, then youre fucked. Go back into the awful mines that's layout is akin to a 4 year old's art class project and fight the bat with the 3 frames of vulnerability.
Hoorah.... the mines are now over. Now i can have fun?!?!??
Wrong. Go to zepik village and run around in circles and talk to feena then leave then come back and talk to feena then leave then do 3 backflips then recieve a psychic premonition that you should probably ask grandma to read those random ass books youve been lugging around all game then leave then come back then feena should be there and THEN you will be told you can enter darm tower
And darm tower is where the game goes to rot and die. Awful layout. You have to find specific gear sets in order to progress, which are pretty much impossible to locate in this horrible labyrinth. No walk-through can help you here. Im stuck on this floating head boss that no one has ever had a problem with apparently cause i cant find any help. I do no damage. Im assuming i need a special sword 100 floors down from where i am that i need to backtrack to get, but i dont want to.
A shame because this was really free of all the issues i had with 80s-90s games but then it all fell off as soon as the mines happened. Hopefully ys 2 is better, for now i quit.
as a person who knows absolutely fucking nothing about ys as a whole series i ended up doing what i do for a lot of series around which is just starting with the first game and while lacrimosa of dana is looking at me as the most appetizing entry in the series i just really wanted to play this one in order since it wouldve been the best way to do it in my eyes
did i regret it ? not really i genuinely do think this game has a lot to offer mainly due to the fact that its a remaster/remake/port of something i still have no idea actually i didnt do any study on this series i just went with the flow and played this one whatever
it sure as hell got the skeleton of an old rpg but i dont know what they did to me but the bump system was such a fucking blast ??? it wears thin after a while but during the first hours of the game when i actually realised how this worked i swear it was so fucking funny just to be running around and bumping into enemies and seeing them EXPLODE in front of my eyes literally most fun ive had with an old snes ish title secret of mana can only learn from this like forreal i wasnt a huge fan of this combat system in the beginning but it definitely grew on me pretty fast and i was left with some of the best fast paced action rpgs ive ever played im not joking here the bump system stole my heart sure i still have no idea how it actually works since theres a lot of nuance here in the “hit them diagonally pal” and most of the time i was actually confused as to WHAT this off centered attack actually was which led me to die in many many different situations during the beginning of the game it gets progressively easier after leveling up and getting some new equipment but the weird nature of this system shows its seams after a while
what surrounds this gameplay loop actually gets tiring after a while due to the fact that most of the other elements of the game arent supporting it the enemies are pretty samey after you get the best equipment you got rings with different uses that can be switched for each situation and you can use some objects that give some nuance to the gameplay but apart from this theres not a lot here the exploration is pretty bare bones theres like 2 towns a couple dungeons and some hidden chests with actual good stuff but apart from this nothing truly groundbreaking and it was pretty weird that the game stopped my leveling right at 10 (and completely annihilated any interest to actually kill enemies I encountered) which is the max just so that i wouldnt be overleveled for bosses that would fuck my ass up like why would you NOT make me overleveled for these insidious bosses whatever im not a game designer i wont ever learn the answer to this i guess its an rpg i should be free to overshoot my characters levels so that i would breeze through the game (not you fire emblem) and also fuck that final boss im not gonna honestly spend more time honing my abilities just so that I could beat an unfair shmup final boss
as for the story in it of itself it doesnt get too convoluted but it sure has some interesting story beats and plot twists here and there that i wasnt expecting but the general skeleton is poor adol gets stranded on a continent and here he tries to find out what happened to the ancient land of ys and why the two goddesses vanished STOP this is the stuff the game is working around and most of the time youre just gonna go from town quest to town quest so there's not really a lot of implications in the lore department but I gotta say I'm in love with feena she's my sweet little baby I love amnesiac girls and I'm pretty sure this game as a whole just acts as a prologue to ys II since the story just ends abruptly not giving any real insight to the story implications but I will be tuning in for the next installment since I really want to know what the fuck happens since it should be a direct sequel
art style is cool and looks like some 80s anime and the in game sprites remind me of those rpg maker horrors so there's that not really the most groundbreaking art direction ive ever seen in my life but it brings the whole idea home and also for some reason this has such a fucking banger soundtrack ??? like it's so out of place and awesome that it honestly shocked me a little for how good it is like the “battle” themes are honestly legendary and this one absolutely stole my heart the drums hit a little too hard and the electric guitar fucks everyone up in here I was eargasming the entire time
so ughhh all in all that was a nice good 10 hours of my life maybe with the prior knowledge of the later installments I wouldve liked this more bit still pretty excited to explore the rest of the series from here feena wait for me
WAIT WAIT WAIT THIS SONG TOO ???? OH LOOOOORD MASTERPIECE
did i regret it ? not really i genuinely do think this game has a lot to offer mainly due to the fact that its a remaster/remake/port of something i still have no idea actually i didnt do any study on this series i just went with the flow and played this one whatever
it sure as hell got the skeleton of an old rpg but i dont know what they did to me but the bump system was such a fucking blast ??? it wears thin after a while but during the first hours of the game when i actually realised how this worked i swear it was so fucking funny just to be running around and bumping into enemies and seeing them EXPLODE in front of my eyes literally most fun ive had with an old snes ish title secret of mana can only learn from this like forreal i wasnt a huge fan of this combat system in the beginning but it definitely grew on me pretty fast and i was left with some of the best fast paced action rpgs ive ever played im not joking here the bump system stole my heart sure i still have no idea how it actually works since theres a lot of nuance here in the “hit them diagonally pal” and most of the time i was actually confused as to WHAT this off centered attack actually was which led me to die in many many different situations during the beginning of the game it gets progressively easier after leveling up and getting some new equipment but the weird nature of this system shows its seams after a while
what surrounds this gameplay loop actually gets tiring after a while due to the fact that most of the other elements of the game arent supporting it the enemies are pretty samey after you get the best equipment you got rings with different uses that can be switched for each situation and you can use some objects that give some nuance to the gameplay but apart from this theres not a lot here the exploration is pretty bare bones theres like 2 towns a couple dungeons and some hidden chests with actual good stuff but apart from this nothing truly groundbreaking and it was pretty weird that the game stopped my leveling right at 10 (and completely annihilated any interest to actually kill enemies I encountered) which is the max just so that i wouldnt be overleveled for bosses that would fuck my ass up like why would you NOT make me overleveled for these insidious bosses whatever im not a game designer i wont ever learn the answer to this i guess its an rpg i should be free to overshoot my characters levels so that i would breeze through the game (not you fire emblem) and also fuck that final boss im not gonna honestly spend more time honing my abilities just so that I could beat an unfair shmup final boss
as for the story in it of itself it doesnt get too convoluted but it sure has some interesting story beats and plot twists here and there that i wasnt expecting but the general skeleton is poor adol gets stranded on a continent and here he tries to find out what happened to the ancient land of ys and why the two goddesses vanished STOP this is the stuff the game is working around and most of the time youre just gonna go from town quest to town quest so there's not really a lot of implications in the lore department but I gotta say I'm in love with feena she's my sweet little baby I love amnesiac girls and I'm pretty sure this game as a whole just acts as a prologue to ys II since the story just ends abruptly not giving any real insight to the story implications but I will be tuning in for the next installment since I really want to know what the fuck happens since it should be a direct sequel
art style is cool and looks like some 80s anime and the in game sprites remind me of those rpg maker horrors so there's that not really the most groundbreaking art direction ive ever seen in my life but it brings the whole idea home and also for some reason this has such a fucking banger soundtrack ??? like it's so out of place and awesome that it honestly shocked me a little for how good it is like the “battle” themes are honestly legendary and this one absolutely stole my heart the drums hit a little too hard and the electric guitar fucks everyone up in here I was eargasming the entire time
so ughhh all in all that was a nice good 10 hours of my life maybe with the prior knowledge of the later installments I wouldve liked this more bit still pretty excited to explore the rest of the series from here feena wait for me
WAIT WAIT WAIT THIS SONG TOO ???? OH LOOOOORD MASTERPIECE
i feel that time has been really kind to ys i, particularly thanks to this stellar remake. i played with the 2001 "complete" assets just due to it generally feeling and looking more suited to what i like out of this series aesthetically - so shoutout to this version for providing those options.
in returning to ys for the first time in around a decade, i was thrown back to the newgrounds-era "rpg" flash games you'd see around a lot; three towns, a dungeon, a few bosses, referential humor... it's really cozy. ys i complete is like a really, really polished version of that with some kickass tunes and memorable areas. having just come off of my first playthrough of ys origin, it was especially cool to revisit darm tower in its original state - i'd totally forgotten this connection to the original!
some backtracking and boss fights are a little nonsense, and i'd complain more about the whole level grinding thing if it didn't cap at 10. playing the steam version, i did need to fuck around with the settings to make the final boss actually palatable thanks to a still-unresolved glitch in that release... but all things considered, yeah, this was a fun ride. between this and origin, i'd consider myself a fan of ys thus far!
in returning to ys for the first time in around a decade, i was thrown back to the newgrounds-era "rpg" flash games you'd see around a lot; three towns, a dungeon, a few bosses, referential humor... it's really cozy. ys i complete is like a really, really polished version of that with some kickass tunes and memorable areas. having just come off of my first playthrough of ys origin, it was especially cool to revisit darm tower in its original state - i'd totally forgotten this connection to the original!
some backtracking and boss fights are a little nonsense, and i'd complain more about the whole level grinding thing if it didn't cap at 10. playing the steam version, i did need to fuck around with the settings to make the final boss actually palatable thanks to a still-unresolved glitch in that release... but all things considered, yeah, this was a fun ride. between this and origin, i'd consider myself a fan of ys thus far!
Ys I definitely has the strangest combat I’ve ever played, but it is fun as fuck. The music is really good too, and the world feels small but everything feels important, exploring the world grants you nice hidden items and bonuses, and you’re going to have to explore most of it anyway.
A playthrough requires a guide, and you’re still going to have to do quite a bit of backtracking. It’s not perfect by any means, and some of the bosses are ridiculously hard, but it’s a fun time nonetheless and exactly what you would want from a short ARPG/adventure game.
A playthrough requires a guide, and you’re still going to have to do quite a bit of backtracking. It’s not perfect by any means, and some of the bosses are ridiculously hard, but it’s a fun time nonetheless and exactly what you would want from a short ARPG/adventure game.
um ótimo jogo com um sistema de combate simples e interessante, dungeons complicadinhas (mas que até tem seu charme) e os piores bosses já colocados em um videogame.
eu devo dizer que como uma admiradora de mulheres (gay) eu aprecio o quanto do universo de Ys é regido por múltiplas deusas. é um detalhe que eu gosto.
eu devo dizer que como uma admiradora de mulheres (gay) eu aprecio o quanto do universo de Ys é regido por múltiplas deusas. é um detalhe que eu gosto.
Dark Fact? Tá mais pra BUXA FACTKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK eu odeio esse chefe.
This is pure, unadulterated, soulful Ys.
Mejor que Touhou 1: Highly Responsive to Prayers
También mejor que Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana
También mejor que Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana
Though I can't say I fully appreciate the true extent of this remake of the original 1987 title, it still holds up pretty well as the beginning of the long running series.
A rather short game (it ran me 5-6 hours), Ys I is an adventure where the main character Adol runs around fighting monsters and learns about this new land he has shipwrecked on. The combat system is a bit different than most classic RPGs where it a top-down action game that makes use of the 'Bump' system. Ideally, you try to run into enemies at an angle. This allows you to do the most damage while also avoiding the damage of a head on collision. It works pretty well, and the handful of boss fights all have their own strategies.
This release also offers a toggle between three different arrangements of the soundtrack - the original PC-98, the Complete, and the Chronicles+. While all three are pretty good, the high-quality, intense guitar soundtrack of Chronicles+ is absolutely incredible and really elevates the experience.
This is a great entry to this series and I am looking forward to continue on to the rest of them. As I mentioned before, it's really not too long so give it a go if you want to try out what an action RPG that predates even Final Fantasy feels like! Just one word of advice, if you are playing on PC ensure the refresh rate is set to 60. You will thank me by the end for not having it set to 144Hz - I found out the hard way!
A rather short game (it ran me 5-6 hours), Ys I is an adventure where the main character Adol runs around fighting monsters and learns about this new land he has shipwrecked on. The combat system is a bit different than most classic RPGs where it a top-down action game that makes use of the 'Bump' system. Ideally, you try to run into enemies at an angle. This allows you to do the most damage while also avoiding the damage of a head on collision. It works pretty well, and the handful of boss fights all have their own strategies.
This release also offers a toggle between three different arrangements of the soundtrack - the original PC-98, the Complete, and the Chronicles+. While all three are pretty good, the high-quality, intense guitar soundtrack of Chronicles+ is absolutely incredible and really elevates the experience.
This is a great entry to this series and I am looking forward to continue on to the rest of them. As I mentioned before, it's really not too long so give it a go if you want to try out what an action RPG that predates even Final Fantasy feels like! Just one word of advice, if you are playing on PC ensure the refresh rate is set to 60. You will thank me by the end for not having it set to 144Hz - I found out the hard way!
This is my first approach to the Ys franchise and I have to admit, this first game is a real gem. I loved the attention to details in dialogues during the completion of the different quests, loved all the different ways you can progress the game and loved all the little secrets you can find if you do specific things. There is a lot of quality content for a game that originally came out in 1987. I don't know how much this version is updated in terms of level, quest and game design, but it's really cool. I'm kinda neutral on the bump mechanic, I like it more than I'd like a turn based rpg, but I think it results in a lot of confusion during certain fights. Maybe I'm the one to blame, but this is actually one of the most difficult games I ever played.
Kino story , fuck the controls
Randomized Backlog #1 - Ys I Chronicles+
Trying a new thing and rolling random digits to decide how to cut through my backlog. Of all 1600+ games to play, of course I start with one that I gave a half-hearted spin not even a month prior.
Ys is a time capsule of a world that was still forming the conventions of the RPG. Falcom was churning out all sorts of projects that explored different methods of combat, storytelling, and worldbuilding in 2-dimensional space, taking cues from Dragon Quest and Hydlide. Ys was a particularly punchy formula, one that didn't abstract the act of combat to a series of menus interactions, nor grapple with real-time swings when the foundations weren't yet established. Instead we get a real-time abstraction, where running into enemies directly triggers what is essentially a cartoon fight cloud, resolving with a victor within seconds. Health is recovered automatically, provided the player is still and safe. No inventory management, no party tactics, just smash and bash and watch those numbers go up.
It's got a primal sort of appeal - every battle is like the 'instant' battles in Earthbound, you walk through guys or they walk through you, and little time is wasted. Unfortunately this loses its luster quickly, as each enemy type is essentially identical in behavior and strategy. The only real variety is in the bosses, which range from questionable to clueless. The core issue with these fights is that the boss hurtbox is always active, and therefore have no defenses to circumnavigate. Instead, they typically run or teleport around a minefield of damage sources, and you aim to kill them before you're taken out yourself. These fights are not pleasant nor satisfying to win. The bump system likely developed its poor reputation because of these enemy design shortcomings, and less because of its merit. They missed an opportunity to prove it viable, which is a real shame.
The rest of Ys is cryptic and boilerplate, in a charming way. You're heavily rewarded for talking to people and listening to their stories, both to learn about the inner mechanisms of the lore and to piece together side quests and the purpose of the items you'll find. The characters have their own motivations and purposes, and I found most of the tropes forgivable with one huge exception - more on that later. The pace of the game, stemmed from the bump system, helps resolve these events and keep them recent enough in your memory to inform your exploration. There is, of course, JRPG bullshit, but not enough to overly annoy if you're attentive and thorough.
This altogether makes Ys a tolerable, occasionally interesting game that is short enough to encourage a playthrough for people getting into the series. But here's the hang-up I alluded to before: there is a damsel whom the player rescues that has an achievement incentive for you to corner and, implicatively, grope in a dead-end alley in the same dungeon she was imprisoned in. This is so exhausting in its blatant misanthropy that I hardly know what to say, but I can't believe it exists here. I don't have the ability to confirm this is present in the original, so I can only assume it's the work of the remake team, which casts a sickly air over an otherwise passable project.
Trying a new thing and rolling random digits to decide how to cut through my backlog. Of all 1600+ games to play, of course I start with one that I gave a half-hearted spin not even a month prior.
Ys is a time capsule of a world that was still forming the conventions of the RPG. Falcom was churning out all sorts of projects that explored different methods of combat, storytelling, and worldbuilding in 2-dimensional space, taking cues from Dragon Quest and Hydlide. Ys was a particularly punchy formula, one that didn't abstract the act of combat to a series of menus interactions, nor grapple with real-time swings when the foundations weren't yet established. Instead we get a real-time abstraction, where running into enemies directly triggers what is essentially a cartoon fight cloud, resolving with a victor within seconds. Health is recovered automatically, provided the player is still and safe. No inventory management, no party tactics, just smash and bash and watch those numbers go up.
It's got a primal sort of appeal - every battle is like the 'instant' battles in Earthbound, you walk through guys or they walk through you, and little time is wasted. Unfortunately this loses its luster quickly, as each enemy type is essentially identical in behavior and strategy. The only real variety is in the bosses, which range from questionable to clueless. The core issue with these fights is that the boss hurtbox is always active, and therefore have no defenses to circumnavigate. Instead, they typically run or teleport around a minefield of damage sources, and you aim to kill them before you're taken out yourself. These fights are not pleasant nor satisfying to win. The bump system likely developed its poor reputation because of these enemy design shortcomings, and less because of its merit. They missed an opportunity to prove it viable, which is a real shame.
The rest of Ys is cryptic and boilerplate, in a charming way. You're heavily rewarded for talking to people and listening to their stories, both to learn about the inner mechanisms of the lore and to piece together side quests and the purpose of the items you'll find. The characters have their own motivations and purposes, and I found most of the tropes forgivable with one huge exception - more on that later. The pace of the game, stemmed from the bump system, helps resolve these events and keep them recent enough in your memory to inform your exploration. There is, of course, JRPG bullshit, but not enough to overly annoy if you're attentive and thorough.
This altogether makes Ys a tolerable, occasionally interesting game that is short enough to encourage a playthrough for people getting into the series. But here's the hang-up I alluded to before: there is a damsel whom the player rescues that has an achievement incentive for you to corner and, implicatively, grope in a dead-end alley in the same dungeon she was imprisoned in. This is so exhausting in its blatant misanthropy that I hardly know what to say, but I can't believe it exists here. I don't have the ability to confirm this is present in the original, so I can only assume it's the work of the remake team, which casts a sickly air over an otherwise passable project.
new gamers trick themselves into liking:
its pretty good and the bump combat's wickedly fun once you get a feel for it but some of these bosses are absolutely insane and not in a good way.
It's decently challenging but i swear to god that final boss can eat my ass. He wouldn't even be that bad if i could heal mid battle.
It's decently challenging but i swear to god that final boss can eat my ass. He wouldn't even be that bad if i could heal mid battle.
short but really enjoyable and charming, i would consider this a great start.
now time for ys 2!!! im really hoping to play and enjoy this whole series so lets see whats next for my new favourite red headed boy
now time for ys 2!!! im really hoping to play and enjoy this whole series so lets see whats next for my new favourite red headed boy