This is it, my first taste of the legendary "Tales" games. Its a series I've heard so much good about, and an entry where the main character had my curiosity, so when the dice called it out, I jumped in eagerly. But as I finish up, I look back and, well, if you know the phrase "more then the sum of it's parts" then you are looking at a game that feels like the absolute reverse of that. It has all the pieces, but somehow is less then what it should be.
It's been a long time since I started playing video games, having grown up in the 80s and 90s. I have watched series come and go being a steady favorite of mine before either being shut down due to a badly selling entry or making some insane turn somewhere and just ceasing to be what made me so excited to see each new entry. To this end I don't think I hold up too many series as flawless and loving every game in the series. Ys was one such series... until today, when I found myself not wanting to continue after giving it more then it's due time (14 hours in this case). This isn't a review of a bad game necessarily, but it is one of a game that, if it could think, might wonder why it's part of this franchise.
This time we have a game that has been hiding in the backlogs for many many years. Way back in the day I had bought a PSP for the soul purpose of playing two games: Phantasy Star Portable and the recently released remake of Persona. But to have a console and not play more the two games is an absolute waste, so I would pick up other titles during it's life. Unfortunately I did not get to play them all over the lifespan of that machine, but it would hint at it's own demise coming, so I had time to prepare, ripping my library to file form so I could eventually play them all anyway. Today this should have paid off with an interesting view of how the events of Final Fantasy VII were set into motion. But I am sorry to say, it did not. I found myself bored by it to be quite honest.
Now before we begin, I have to admit, just as the above suggests, I did not play this game on the PSP. Rather well after my actual hardware died, I played via emulation ripped from my original copy, so my experience could well be different then yours. But with that in mind, step inside.
And for at least a few months, we have finished yet another series. (Nordic is dropping soon.) I have absolutely loved every Ys game I have played till now, but I will admit I was a bit nervous this time around. I was not hearing great things from friends about this one, so I waited this time till I could get it on sale. But I am here to tell you right now, there was no reason to fear such concerns. In fact, I think I have a new favorite of the series.
For all the times a game comes up where I have some history, for once we have a blank slate. I knew the game is supposed to be good, so when Epic offered it for free, I decided "yeah, I'll take it." It was that simple with that little thought necessary. But as I finish the game, I'm kinda glad I didn't give it any more thought. I would not call it a must play, but I had a lot of fun with it.
Once again we we have here another adventure with gaming's leading adventurer, Adol. (Seriously, how many characters actually claim their job title is Adventurer?) And each time we have spent time with him, I have to say I have enjoyed the hell out of it. Was this time any different? Not really... I had a blast here too. Come on in and have a peak.
And here we are as we continue to play through Adol's adventures. What started as a flawed classic has become a long and storied franchise of fun and exciting games and me eager to see each as they come up in the backlog. And this is where this game differs: when I finished the last one, I had run out of backlog entries, making this the first title I went out of my way to pick up to continue. Suffice it to say, I made no mistake doing this.
And now come to an end within my backlog. Over my years on Steam I had collected Ys games after the first two had left a pretty solid impression on me, and this was the last one to have sat waiting to be played. It won't be the end of the series for me, but I think that speaks well for this and the rest of the games so far. How well? Why not come on in and see.
For once we have a game that hasn't spent long in my backlog. In fact I picked it up shortly after finishing Ys III and finding a gap in my collection. It then sat on the list of games to play due to the series for about as long as possible, leaving me eager to get back into battle along side our red-headed hero. Once again I was not disappointed. Come on inside.
This could have been something great. If you were a kid during the early days of gaming, the idea of a game that celebrates each era in turn is a nostalgia trip the likes of which will would bring a tear to the biggest retrogamer's eye. If you are not so old, then it would be worth it just to see what gaming was like once. But this, as much as it wants to be, is not that game. It starts as it, absolutely, but by the time you are done, it falls from grace in repetition and, ultimately breaking down entirely into a mess nothing short of patching it at a code level will fix.... just in time to ruin the end of your experience.
I really wanted to like this game. Having watched the anime, I absolutely love the world created for it so I was looking forward to taking part. However, trouble brewed with this one very quickly. I found myself repeating the first hour of the game to figure out which way would play better: keyboard and mouse or a controller. Mixing two forms of combat repeatedly, both fitted well for only one type of control did not bode well for this game... and ultimately was the first hint of it's undoing for me.
