TheBestestJoe
This game nearly gaslit me into thinking cs4 was good.
1998
The only thing that can really be called peak.
2019
Not quite as good as Ys VIII in my opinion. The combat is about the same as 8 but feels a lot easier and more spammy. The monstrum abilities really make exploration a lot of fun this time. You have a large open city which perfectly complement these abilities too. The map is somehow worse than before since sub areas arent really marked in a way I'd like. I liked the story a bit more than Ys VIII since it does a good job deveeloping the main cast. Visually, the game definitely looks rough. The colorful lush environments of 8 are replaced with more drab grey environments. The game is pushing some very large maps for a falcom game, but the engine cannot keep up as the game struggles to run in these areas. Overall its a good game that tries to do some unique things for the series but doesn't always stick the landing.
I think the only reason I didn't hate this more than cold steel 2 is because I was already used to the series bullshit by this point. I swear it's like I entered a zombified state while playing this game where I did everything with my brain shut off. The story legit feels like the writers gave up and just wanted to get the story over with while simultaneously being forced to pad out the dialogue to meet an absurd quota. If you stop and think about anything it makes less and less sense. Every conflict in the game is a contrivance. The curse is one of the worst plot devices I've seen. Many returning character are victims of character assassination to some degree. The romance options feel gross as they let you romance the protagonist's own students. Often if you want to spend all your bonding points you might be forced to use one on a romantic bonding event. A lot of the returning characters were hyped up, but they were surprisingly unimportant to the plot.
Gameplay is still fun like usual, but the game balance is more broken than before making the game very easy after the beginning.
Gameplay is still fun like usual, but the game balance is more broken than before making the game very easy after the beginning.
2006
Easily in my top two Ys games. The game has an amazing flow where it incentivies killing enemies to keep your stat and exp multipliers up to the point where grinding is legitimately fun. The story is really good and somehow not intrusive on the gameplay. The boss design is easily the best in the series with patterns that are easy to learn while still keeping the challenge.
There are three character routes and the game can feel a but repetitive if you decide to play them back to back. The levels are mostly the same but your moveset is different. Hugo in particular had my favorite storyline but my least favorite combat style.
You should play the game but maybe play something else between routes if you decide to play them all.
There are three character routes and the game can feel a but repetitive if you decide to play them back to back. The levels are mostly the same but your moveset is different. Hugo in particular had my favorite storyline but my least favorite combat style.
You should play the game but maybe play something else between routes if you decide to play them all.
2009
The gimmick was super fun to mess around wtih but the game has like no content.
It's a shame so much of the discussion surrounding this game is how it might connect to the mainline Trails series. This game is a gem in its own right.
2010
Wish I could go back
This review contains spoilers
What a fuckin snoozefest of a game. After Cold Steel 1 took its time setting things up I expected Cold Steel 2 to deliver on its storyline and show us the civil war first mentioned in Trails to Azure. Instead, the game hardly shows any of the actual civil war and has you do a lot of miscellaneous things that don't really matter too much in the grand scheme of things. Crow's death at the end of the (second to) last dungeon was the only moment that made me feel anything. Then rather than end on what seemed like should've been the ending, you start playing as thr protagonist from the previous arc and get to beat up this game's protagonist, which was admittedly cathartic in a way. Then the game temporarily goes back to the structure of cold steel 1 to show the characters back in their school life before throwing in a 25 floor, randomly generated dungeon at the last minute. This is seemingly a contrived way of having the game end on a high note even though they accomplish nothing by doing it.
Gameplay wise, this is about the same as cold steel 1 with a couple additions. My main issue is that the balancing is such that its much easier than cold steel 1.
Overall this is actually my least favorite of the trails series.
Gameplay wise, this is about the same as cold steel 1 with a couple additions. My main issue is that the balancing is such that its much easier than cold steel 1.
Overall this is actually my least favorite of the trails series.
The bump combat system won't be for everyone, but it is pretty satisfying once it clicks. Ys I is a very short and sweet adventure. I found Ys II to be a lot more frustrating. I liked the addition of magic to spice up the gameplay but the game is far more linear in its progression, and the dungeons are way too big and labyrinthine to be easy to navigate. The final dungeon is the worst case of this being essentially half of Ys II. Bosses in both games can be hit or miss. Sometimes they have fun patterns, other times you can run in a circle and kill the boss before it kills you. The final boss of Ys I is notably bugged when playing at 60 fps making it very difficult. If you are a fan of old school adventure games, you'll probably like this.
My thoughts on this mostly echo my thoughts on Ys Origin. I love the gamplay loop focusing on the stat and exp boosting potions to incentivize keeping a streak of slain enemies going. The boss fights are very enjoyable with tough but easy to learn patterns that make the fights challenging but fun. The boss design isn't quite as good as Origin with some fights being a little too easy and some boss patterns being awkward to read. Overall a solid entry in the series.
An excellent sendoff for the Sky trilogy. The story is very different as it focuses more on character growth than anything. There are many optional scenes you can unlock through doors that present a lot of worldbuilding and backstory for the series. The story is strong enough here that it is easily my favorite story in the series and in my top 3 trails games in general.
I have issues with the structure of this game however. The dungeon crawler gameplay is a fine concept, but I hate how every other floor is a recycled map in some capacity from the other two games.
Despite my gripes with the gameplay, this is still among my favorite in the series.
I have issues with the structure of this game however. The dungeon crawler gameplay is a fine concept, but I hate how every other floor is a recycled map in some capacity from the other two games.
Despite my gripes with the gameplay, this is still among my favorite in the series.
Ys VIII ties a very fun to explore island with a surprisingly gripping story that goes a bit off the rails towards the end. Combat is fast and fluid but suffers from having the player controlled camera with a subpar lock on system as opposed to fixed camera angles like previous games. The game does a very good job at tying your game progression to the story as finding all the castaways fits perfectly with the exploration. The castaways aren't just for the story as they can grant you access to items or other services as well as the ability to eliminate roadblocks in the world. The bonus dungeon you play during certain sections of the game is easily the best in the game and incorporates puzzles in a way that I wish were present in other parts of the game.
This review contains spoilers
When compared to its predessor, Ys Seven, this game is a marked improvement in numerous ways. Combat is more fluid than before with better boss design than seven. Exploration is more fun and encouraged with more unique landmarks and a map completion system. As a standalone game, I quite liked this entry and believe the combat to be better than Ys VIII due to the fixed camera and more encouragement to learn enemy patterns.
I recently, however, watched my friend play through one of the original versions of Ys IV for the pc engine. What became apparent was how much the story in the game was altered for the worse. The story was okay on its own merits but ends abruptly. The original Ys IV heavily expands on the lore of previous games while delivering a narrative with fun characters and villains. Celceta seems to do away with most of this in favor of telling an amnesia plotline that fails to majorly build on Adol as a character as is hinted at the beginning of the game. The characters feel watered down, especially one of the main villains who no longer is a villain in Celceta. The game being twice as long as the original does not help matters as it feels like less happens despite the game being longer.
Overall, i think Celceta is a fun game, but knowing what the story was like original really puts a damper on my appreciation of it.
I recently, however, watched my friend play through one of the original versions of Ys IV for the pc engine. What became apparent was how much the story in the game was altered for the worse. The story was okay on its own merits but ends abruptly. The original Ys IV heavily expands on the lore of previous games while delivering a narrative with fun characters and villains. Celceta seems to do away with most of this in favor of telling an amnesia plotline that fails to majorly build on Adol as a character as is hinted at the beginning of the game. The characters feel watered down, especially one of the main villains who no longer is a villain in Celceta. The game being twice as long as the original does not help matters as it feels like less happens despite the game being longer.
Overall, i think Celceta is a fun game, but knowing what the story was like original really puts a damper on my appreciation of it.
A solid follow up to Trails from Zero. The story goes way off the rails near the end, and some lategame twists come out of nowhere if you don't do the sidequests that foreshadow them. You can also see some of the tropes that cold steel would become infamous for start to rear their head here.
One problem I have with the gameplay this time around is getting max DP. There's many fights that you do not need to win to progress the story, but if you choose to you have practically no choice but to abuse cheese strats to win. I wouldn't recommend going for max DP in this game.
I'm in the minority that considers Zero to be the better game, but I can absolutely see why this is often a fan favorite.
One problem I have with the gameplay this time around is getting max DP. There's many fights that you do not need to win to progress the story, but if you choose to you have practically no choice but to abuse cheese strats to win. I wouldn't recommend going for max DP in this game.
I'm in the minority that considers Zero to be the better game, but I can absolutely see why this is often a fan favorite.