Ys Series

[EvilEagles]

Ys is a Japanese hack & slash RPG series, and Nihon Falcom corporation's flagship franchise. In terms of the number of game releases, Ys is second only to Final Fantasy as the largest Eastern RPG series.The first game of the series was released in early 1988 by Falcom. Ys series was originally solely for Japanese audience. It wasn't until 2003 when Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim came out that Ys was known by the Western audience (actually, the rest of the world).

​

The Ys series chronicles the adventures of Adol Christin, a young man with a zest for adventure and an uncanny knack for being in the right place at the right time. Gameplay usually revolves around Adol, though his comrade, Dogi, is a frequent companion in his travels. Thus far, Adol has visited the regions of Esteria, Ys, Celceta, Felghana, Xandria, the Canaan Islands, and Altago. Among which, Celceta is the place where the upcoming Ys title on PS Vita Ys: Foliage Ocean in Celceta takes place in (obviously).

​

I'm currently playing Ys Origin which takes place hundreds of years prior to any of the Ys games. And once again, it takes place in the same old Darm Tower which would sound very familiar to you if you've played Ys Eternal (Ys I & II) and Ys IV. While this has been severely criticized by quite a number of people because "the main purpose of the game is to yet again simply crawl up from the bottom to the summit", I myself find it still intriguing enough to keep me playing until I get too exhausted after a boss fight. I mean, sure some might feel that the setting is boring as it's been repeated too much, but the gameplay element of an Ys game per se is already enough to get at least a nine out of ten score from me.

​

There are many factors that make Ys series enjoyable, but I kind of wanna hear them from you guys

​

 

[Samven]

I've played The Legend of Heroes by the same developer but I've never had a chance to get into Ys yet. I've always wanted to, though. The music alone has sold me on the world. Which one would you recommend as an entry point?

 

[Apple]

YS Origin was probably the most enjoyable title among the YS series, as it was also the only title that I felt like playing more than once (to unlock the hawt claw guy, of course). Though, the series had grown stale pretty much during the last few releases, with the gameplay mechanic pretty much recycled from games to games :V YS Seven's party system (instead of, you know, just Adol all over again) is as far as gameplay innovation you can get :/

But hey, it's just my opinion. Besides, even with that complaint, I still plan to get YS Seven later this summer. My PSP had been collecting dust enough XD

 

[crimcrim]

Anything made by Falcom is praiseworthy. I actually got into this series purely for the music, and the gameplay was just an added bonus. Sure it may seem a little bland to some, but Falcom makes an otherwise stale gameplay base into a magical and engaging experience.

 

[willyfoureyes]

I concur with Apple. Ys Origin is aces...even without Adol.

 

[EvilEagles]

In my humble opinion, Ys series actually took a step up from Ark of Napishtim to Ys Seven, considering a few following facts I can think of:

• Much wider choices of weapons and equipment
  
• Most complex and epic storyline thus far
  
• Players finally get to actually play as Dogi - I'm sure this was a brilliant idea from Falcom. They knew fans would be willing to die happily just so they could get to use Dogi. We all love him
  
• And so it also means that Adol isn't alone anymore. I'm sure variety of characters, skills and overdrives are a big plus to a large chunk of fans.
  

Though I must admit, it's for sure that I and most probably many others will one day miss the time when Adol is all alone, it does have its charm.

About the music, or more specifically, JDK Band, their music in overall is always spectacularly brilliant, I do feel that their best album of all time is Oath in Felghana. I can't seem to be able to dislike any tracks of it

 

[Droe]

The only Ys games I've played are Ys 1: Ancient Ys Vanished on the sega mastersystem when I was a kid, it's remake on the DS and Ys Origin. I absolutely loved the mastersystem one when I was a kid just cuz it was so flipping hard, I never did beat it. Plus the music was totally epic. But just the fact that the game was so hard was extremeley intriguing to me. The reason you lost was your fault, not the game's. All the enemies and bosses had distinct attack patterns and weaknesses. If you could figure them out then the game was pretty much a cakewalk. If you couldn't then it was practically impossible. And when you finally did beat a boss the feeling of accomplishment was amazing. I've always liked the whole concept behind the game too. You go to the tower, you need to get to the top to save the world, there's stuff in your way so you simply go through it. I don't know about the other games in the series, but in the first one you literally WENT THROUGH the enemies. You had to run into the enemies to attack them, there was no attack button. Again, if you couldn't that was cuz you didn't have the right gear or weren't a high enough level and that was your fault. Simple but way epic.

Definitely a series that has had a big impact on me. If I could find the other games in the series I would play them in a heartbeat.

 

[EvilEagles]

Ahhh Ys Eternals, nostalgia.

Actually man, there's a trick for fighting the enemies and I think you knew it too and you've just forgotten it. You and the monster shouldn't be on a straight line or else you'll get hit. It's like this:

There are Ys: Oath in Felghana and Ys Origin that are totally up for grab on Steam for 15 and 20 bucks respectively I think. You should definitely try them out

​

 

[Kyriaki]

I played Ys: Oath in Felghana for the first time on the PSP and absolutely fell in love with it. I have always known about the series but before that title and version never took a chance with it. I think that it is not so popular because people go "what the heck is a Ys?" and don't even give it a second glance, but are really missing out.

 

[crimcrim]

I think that it is not so popular because people go "what the heck is a Ys?" and don't even give it a second glance, but are really missing out.

That is the only drawback to the Ys franchise, the marketing, especially in western markets. Ys Seven is a great example. Fantastic gameplay, revolutionized the standard gameplay of Ys and didn't sell as much as it deserved. Why? Because it was titled Ys Seven. The name doesn't matter, or isn't well known, enough to warrant sales. Now it's growing, which is a great sign. Adol deserves it

 

[EvilEagles]

That is the only drawback to the Ys franchise, the marketing, especially in western markets. Ys Seven is a great example. Fantastic gameplay, revolutionized the standard gameplay of Ys and didn't sell as much as it deserved. Why? Because it was titled Ys Seven. The name doesn't matter, or isn't well known, enough to warrant sales. Now it's growing, which is a great sign. Adol deserves it

That, plus this fact:

In terms of the number of game releases, Ys is second only to Final Fantasy as the largest Eastern RPG series.

​

saddened me heavily I'm just hoping Foliage Ocean in Celceta is gonna do well enough.

 

[Droe]

Ahhh Ys Eternals, nostalgia.

Actually man, there's a trick for fighting the enemies and I think you knew it too and you've just forgotten it. You and the monster shouldn't be on a straight line or else you'll get hit. It's like this:

There are Ys: Oath in Felghana and Ys Origin that are totally up for grab on Steam for 15 and 20 bucks respectively I think. You should definitely try them out

​

lol I remember figuring that out as a kid and it totally blew my mind. lol I remember telling my mom "If you attack them on the sides they don't kill you!". It was totally different than any game I had played before that.

I've played Origin, beaten it as Yunica. Definitely an awesome game. lol At first having an attack button kinda bothered me, but I quickly got over it. The reason I haven't played Oath in Felghana is cuz I would like to play them all in order, just so I don't miss any important story points, but if all the games are more stand alone adventure type deals then I have no problem buying it immediately.

 

[EvilEagles]

Yeah man. It's totally alright. Each Ys title is about an entirely new adventure, the only linkage between them is Adol and Dogi, and some other minor exceptions. Even Falcom is going backwards in terms of time anyway. Like say for example, the upcoming Ys: Foliage Ocean in Celceta is basically Ys IV: Mask of the Sun, but in a completely different perspective (Mask of the Sun wasn't produced by Falcom themselves anyway). So go and grab Oath in Felghana man XD it's always a pleasure to finally find somebody who's into Ys series too. Cheers!

 

[Droe]

Well that's good to know. Definitely gonna get Oath in Felghana. lol For a while I thought I was the only person in the world who'd heard of the Ys series. Nice to know that isn't the case.

 

[Nemoide]

I have the first one for Sega Master System and think it's pretty great. The Ys series is one of the few things that makes me really want a PC-Engine CD.

 

[EvilEagles]

Guys. Opening Animation of Ys: Foliage Ocean in Celceta. Many thanks to FalcomClassics channel on Youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCFijCaWzeo​

 

[Droe]

The opening animations for all the Ys games are always amazing. This one is no exception. I don't read Japanese, but from what I saw at the very end am I right in assuming this is going to be exclusive to the PS Vita?

 

[EvilEagles]

As far as I know, Falcom only stated that this Ys title would land on PS Vita first, and they didn't mention anything about exclusivity. So I guess there's still hope for those who don't want to buy a whole new handheld just for a single game hahaha.

Regardless, I'll still definitely find a way to play this game. Feeling super excited right now.

 

[crimcrim]

NEW fricking OPENING RELEASED FOR YS CELCETA

​

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCFijCaWzeo&​

Hooooolyyyy **** this song is great

​

 

[EvilEagles]

I posted the same thing 3 posts before you did lol