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Thoughts on Ys IX (Spoiler Warning!)
It is one of life’s cruel ironies that Ys series hasn’t yet seen the light of mainstream success, despite its groundbreaking role in shaping the modern day JRPG. In recent years, Falcom’s former flagship franchise (after the Kiseki series, and sorry for the alliteration) has slowly begun to edge closer to the limelight, given a host of developments that have served to boost its visibilty in the west. On release, Ys VIII enjoyed moderate success and critical praise for its emotional narrative, likable characters, and polished gameplay, despite sufferring from a heavily flawed localization. While many retro-game-focused Youtube channels have been promoting the Ys series for decades, it wasn’t until recently that long-form retro game content really caught fire on the platform, garnering greater awareness, interest, and appreciation for Ys. In addition, many of the Ys games have now been ported to Steam and other systems, including the previously PSP and PS Vita exclusives Ys Seven and Ys Memories of Celceta, reaching a broader audience. New merchandise, such as vinyl records and art books have even been made available to the western audience in recent years, which was previously unheard of (despite Falcom’s penchant for merchanidsing, they never pay attention to the west). What’s more, the going-rate for Ys games have skyrocketed on the retro game market in the last five years, with the PSP entries being amongst the most desirable to own for the console. Considering all of these factors, I really believe that we are living in a renaissance for the series in the west, and was hoping that the next numbered title would serve to push it further into the spotlight.
It is thus a bit of a shame that Ys IX recently released with relatively little fanfare, despite an uncharacteristically agressive marketing effort (I doubt that being an AGDQ sponsor is cheap). There can be any number of reasons as to why: the two years between Japanese and US release, and the staggered launch between the PS4 and Switch platforms certainly did not help. Rather than focus on the circumstances surrounding Ys IX’s less than stellar impact in the west, though, I wanted to instead share my thoughts on game itself, and why I think it is deserves much more attention than it received.
To preface, I will assume that the reader is generally familiar with the Ys series, or at least Ys VIII in particular (which is the basis of most comparisons I will make). As a result, I won’t give an overview of the general gameplay mechanics or story of Ys IX (this information is easily available in any press review you might find). I’ll instead focus on specific qualities of the game that I thought were notable and warranted mention.
The first point that I want to make above all else is that this game’s structure and mechanics are based heavily on Ys VIII, and that alone will be a sufficient litmus test for those who are on the fence about Ys IX. Of course, the prison city of Balduq (where IX takes place) is very different than the Isle of Seiren (the setting of VIII), but everything from a gameplay perspective is here. For example: over the course of the game, you will gradually build a team of compariots who serve various roles, such as refining equipment, brewing potions, etc., and slowly build a relationship with them. They also will aid you in raid battles, which make a prominent return, taking the form of “Grimwald Nox battles” rather than defending your base survivor camp. The similarities don’t stop there, however. As the game progresses, you will explore more of your new setting, gaining access to new areas and dungeons. There are even interludes again between story chapters, where you take control of a character that is (quite disappointingly) less interesting and cool than Dana from the past. Overall, if you enjoyed Ys VIII, you will definitely also enjoy Ys IX. I fall into this category quite squarely, if you were wondering.
At the risk of making Ys IX sound too much like its older sibling, though, I want to point out some areas where I think the former entry does better than its predecessor. For one I belive that the main cast of Ys IX is more likable than that of VIII. This is, at least in part, due to the fact that you obtain these characters over the course of the game, with one chapter being more or less dedicated to fleshing out a new party member’s backstory and personal growth. This is in contrast to Ys VIII’s cast, where everyone has the same reason to be working together (i.e. we’re all stranded on an island), and have less time dedicated to their backstories overall. I also believe that Ys IX’s characters have more likable personalities, and the game benefits heavily as a result, notwithstanding the obviously out-there design of the various Monstrum that you recruit. A major disappointment that I had with the cast, though, is that (SPOILER) Aprilis isn’t a playable character. Given that Dana was playable (and had three different playstyles to boot!) in VIII, I really can’t see a reason why Falcom would make this decision besides to save development costs. They both fulfill very similar roles in their respective stories, and are equally present/relevant in combat situations. It really is a glaring omission in an otherwise well-achieved connection between narrative and gameplay.
(This is the White Cat. She is my favorite).
The game’s performance is very lacking (especially on the Switch), and the engine itself is showing its age. On Switch, the game is capped at 30 FPS, but will rarely reach that within Balduq (I think that ~20 FPS is the average, even after the day 1 patch), which is quite difficult to excuse. However, Ys IX’s art and UX/UI direction are top notch. The character portaits are beautifully illustrated, and take different poses depending on the menu that you are in. You can freely rotate character models during the equipment selection screen, and the journal menus are meticulously populated with a bona-fide encyclopedia of everything you would care to know about the game. It is obvious that a lot of love and care has gone into the game’s basic construction, and you get the feeling that Falcom has a team of very passionate developers with a love for these games.
However, the general setting of Ys IX being a gray-washed prison town does serve to make the settings feel a bit less varied overall. Even when you finally are allowed to explore the surrounding area, the general presentation of these areas are much less radiant and eye-catching than the Isle of Seiren. Falcom has shown that the engine is capable of much better visuals in Ys VIII, so this seems a bit like a deliberate choice on their part. I think that it does serve to detract a bit from the game’s presentation, however.
There isn’t really much to say regarding the battle system, as it uses the same team-based approach of the series starting from Ys Seven. The playstyles of each Monstrum are varied and interesting, making use of different weapon styles and a sleuth of battle skills. Some of these skills look a bit familiar (a few are ripped from Ys VIII and renamed), but overall there is a great selection and you will quickly find your favorite skills. Other than that, suffice it to say that (as far as I know), there are no major changes to the combat systems going from VIII to IX.
Some may be a bit concerned about the localization quality of Ys IX, and I can happily report that it seems to be good, if not great overall. I only encountered a small number of typos or awkwardly translated lines of dialogue (and I’m rather sensitive to this sort of thing). I managed to screencap two such instances (see below), but it is generally the exception rather than the rule. The voice acting was also fine in my opinion (save for Adol, who sounds pretty bad when he’s actually forced to talk), but there is a JP voice option for those who want it.
(I’m actually a bit of a fan of the phrase: “the more dangerous ultimate Grimwald
Nox”)
On the whole, I also think that the story of Ys IX is well paced, with a cadence superior to that of Ys VIII (was the murder mystery island part of that game even really necessary?). It doesn’t really reach the same emotional heights as VIII, but its sins are also much less offensive, and this trade-off is acceptable to me. The story of Ys IX is well delivered and is also tied up nicely, everything from the history of Balduq, the true nature of Balduq Prison, the origin of the Monstrum curse, the heroes of the Hundred Years War, etc. I don’t think many fans of the series will have complaints in the story department.
One talking point that I’ve seen some other reviews/discussions mention is that story progression is sometimes locked behind earning enough “NOX points” to initiate a raid battle. If you do all of the side content as soon as it becomes available, then this isn’t a problem at all- you are awarded with 90% of the points you need (and the rest can easily be gotten in 5-10 minutes). I wouldn’t recommend skipping the side quests either, as they offer substantial story content and can grant you additional companions. For all intents and purposes, these should be considered essential to the story, and only skipped if one wants to rush through the game for one reason or another.
The amount of content in the game is solid. I was able to complete the game, doing all of the optional content that I was aware of, in about 40 hours. This includes 100% exploration of each area, 100% treasure chest completion, 100% side quest completion, 100% of the graphiti in Balduq found, 100% of the blue feathers collected, and achieving 100% affinity with comrades. I was missing a few monster entries and character entries by the very end, but a general look around the internet tells me that there are many subtle and missable things in the game. This might make it tough to platinum if you are an achievement hunter. As far as replayability goes, there is also a New Game Plus option, as well as a boss time attack mode that you unlock after completing the game once.
I think that’s about all I wanted to mention about Ys IX for now. In my opinion, it is a completely worthy successor to Ys VIII, and does a number of things better (although this is expected from a sequel, I suppose). As the second game in this style, it is not as groundbreaking as Lacrimosa of Dana was, and this is evidenced in the corresponding lack of waves it made on release. However Ys IX’s quality contributes significantly to the franchise, and it will likely become more favorably viewed with time. Here’s hoping that we can continue to enjoy Ys in the west!
