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Ys VIII Lacrimosa of Dana import impressions thread
- Thread starter ranmafan
- Start date
Finished it earlier today. I'm slow and the language barrier was a real thing, plus Nightmare and no healing/food items, so I clocked in at 64 hours while doing mostly everything I could (max relationship with every character, 100% map, treasures etc.).Going back for the plat later this week.
Absolutely loved this game. Seven was my favourite Ys for the longest time, dethroning Felghana, and now I'm happy to say they've done it again. The exploration aspect of this game is amazigly well handled and really makes you go "oh, so this is what they wanted to do with Celceta, huh?" quite often.
The world is huge, much, much bigger than Celceta's, but at the same time it feels a lot more interconnected. One of my favourite things, especially during the first hours, was finding out that a place that apparently was 'far' from my previously explored location wasn't actually very far at all, as new abilities you unlock will allow you to access areas that connected them. They're 'shortcuts', so to speak, but they're also part of the island, and it didn't feel like they were added simply out of necessity.
Also, I commented on this repeatedly on Twitter while playing, but I think it's amazing that I could basically choose the monument to warp/quick travel without so much as relying on the little miniatures, despite the immense size of the map. The way the game was structured, I really felt like I got 'the hang' of the island, and it became a huge playground for Adol to exercise his traditional wanderlust.
And man, speaking of wanderlust, this game really sells on you on that. Technically it's impressive, of course, but more than that, they really planned things in ways that made you awfully curious about all the stuff you could see far into the distance. I'm gonna keep it vague, but I was reallly, really hyped once I got to the 3rd chapter and the characters finally decided it was time to explore a particular location. It's been there since the start and the way they go about it is one of my favourite Ys moments ever, now.
(By the way, I know we're due an Ys V remake, but what I really started hoping for with this game is an Ys I&II remake, completely new from the ground up done in VIII's style. I kept imagining how awesome it'd be if Esteria was reimagined as a bigger place, with Darm Tower always looming in the back. The atmosphere would be amazing, I'm sure).
Anyhow, back to Ys VIII... Anoher thing that surprised me a bit is that while it's obvious that combat takes a lot from Seven and Celceta, the addition of jump and the way the character switching works actually shook things up a fair bit. Oh, and the new location of the roll button. Having roll on L and Guard on R, along with the flash move buff and flash guard nerf, really made you think which of the two techniques was better for certain situations. In Celceta I basically flash guarded everything as I felt FM was unreliable, but here it actually became a lot more useful, and I'd dare say that I used it more than Flash Guard.
As for the story, I think the chapter structure was a decent choice. The game is 40+ hours long, but the meat of it is spent exploring the island. For the longest time there isn't even any actual villains, so the plot related events focus on the actual characters who are there stranded alongside Adol. For me, that was a good decision, as you actually got to know them and this was a huge advantadge this game had over Celceta. While I dig the party in Celceta, they were sort of there for the ride, and you got very little development for them. In VIII, that's not the case. Each of them got enough screentime to develop a bit, and while some stories are sillier than others (hi, Hummel), the last couple hours of the game really got enhanced thanks to the bonds that we developed with everyone. Plus, it was neat seeing how the characters actually interacted between them, not relying on Adol. Some of them felt like they were naturally closer to some of the other people given their background, such as Sahad and Ricotta, for instance. The way they played off those two is one of my favourite character-related things.
Oh, and on the matter of those final hours, while it's true that the game lacked an 'Ys plot' for the longest time, once it kicked in, it was LEGIT. To the point where it might've had some of the most over the top concepts in the entirety of the Ys series. They introduced a lot of new ideas, and it was very easy to see that this is the first game where they basically had free reign to do whatever they want with the plot, not following any of the old outlines and stuff. There are new plot points that are big enough that will probably be of relevance to future installments of the series (most likely in IX... in 2023 or whatever, why so slow, Falcom!).
Anyhow, tl;dr being this game is great, and probably the most ambitious title Falcom's ever developed. I think it's amazing they did that for Ys instead of Kiseki, considering the sales of the latter, but I'm happy that it shows they still have lots of love towards the IP. In fact, I remember Kondo saying that even the internal team seemed really pleased with the result, and they should be. Ys8 is an amazing title.
Absolutely loved this game. Seven was my favourite Ys for the longest time, dethroning Felghana, and now I'm happy to say they've done it again. The exploration aspect of this game is amazigly well handled and really makes you go "oh, so this is what they wanted to do with Celceta, huh?" quite often.
The world is huge, much, much bigger than Celceta's, but at the same time it feels a lot more interconnected. One of my favourite things, especially during the first hours, was finding out that a place that apparently was 'far' from my previously explored location wasn't actually very far at all, as new abilities you unlock will allow you to access areas that connected them. They're 'shortcuts', so to speak, but they're also part of the island, and it didn't feel like they were added simply out of necessity.
Also, I commented on this repeatedly on Twitter while playing, but I think it's amazing that I could basically choose the monument to warp/quick travel without so much as relying on the little miniatures, despite the immense size of the map. The way the game was structured, I really felt like I got 'the hang' of the island, and it became a huge playground for Adol to exercise his traditional wanderlust.
And man, speaking of wanderlust, this game really sells on you on that. Technically it's impressive, of course, but more than that, they really planned things in ways that made you awfully curious about all the stuff you could see far into the distance. I'm gonna keep it vague, but I was reallly, really hyped once I got to the 3rd chapter and the characters finally decided it was time to explore a particular location. It's been there since the start and the way they go about it is one of my favourite Ys moments ever, now.
(By the way, I know we're due an Ys V remake, but what I really started hoping for with this game is an Ys I&II remake, completely new from the ground up done in VIII's style. I kept imagining how awesome it'd be if Esteria was reimagined as a bigger place, with Darm Tower always looming in the back. The atmosphere would be amazing, I'm sure).
Anyhow, back to Ys VIII... Anoher thing that surprised me a bit is that while it's obvious that combat takes a lot from Seven and Celceta, the addition of jump and the way the character switching works actually shook things up a fair bit. Oh, and the new location of the roll button. Having roll on L and Guard on R, along with the flash move buff and flash guard nerf, really made you think which of the two techniques was better for certain situations. In Celceta I basically flash guarded everything as I felt FM was unreliable, but here it actually became a lot more useful, and I'd dare say that I used it more than Flash Guard.
As for the story, I think the chapter structure was a decent choice. The game is 40+ hours long, but the meat of it is spent exploring the island. For the longest time there isn't even any actual villains, so the plot related events focus on the actual characters who are there stranded alongside Adol. For me, that was a good decision, as you actually got to know them and this was a huge advantadge this game had over Celceta. While I dig the party in Celceta, they were sort of there for the ride, and you got very little development for them. In VIII, that's not the case. Each of them got enough screentime to develop a bit, and while some stories are sillier than others (hi, Hummel), the last couple hours of the game really got enhanced thanks to the bonds that we developed with everyone. Plus, it was neat seeing how the characters actually interacted between them, not relying on Adol. Some of them felt like they were naturally closer to some of the other people given their background, such as Sahad and Ricotta, for instance. The way they played off those two is one of my favourite character-related things.
Oh, and on the matter of those final hours, while it's true that the game lacked an 'Ys plot' for the longest time, once it kicked in, it was LEGIT. To the point where it might've had some of the most over the top concepts in the entirety of the Ys series. They introduced a lot of new ideas, and it was very easy to see that this is the first game where they basically had free reign to do whatever they want with the plot, not following any of the old outlines and stuff. There are new plot points that are big enough that will probably be of relevance to future installments of the series (most likely in IX... in 2023 or whatever, why so slow, Falcom!).
Anyhow, tl;dr being this game is great, and probably the most ambitious title Falcom's ever developed. I think it's amazing they did that for Ys instead of Kiseki, considering the sales of the latter, but I'm happy that it shows they still have lots of love towards the IP. In fact, I remember Kondo saying that even the internal team seemed really pleased with the result, and they should be. Ys8 is an amazing title.
QisTopTier
XisBannedTier
The way Y's should be experienced!
Thanks for the write up, 7 is my current fave as well
No problem! And yes, it is, haha. If you dig the challenge, the game'll be right up your alley. I'd say it's harder than Seven and Celceta in general if you're not using items especially the first half, as early on the random mobs and the bosses hit very hard. I swear early fodder enemies hit you for like 75% of your HP, and bosses quite often had attacks that OHKO'd you!
And while in the 2nd half you're more powerful and OHKOs will be less frequent, especially against bosses, the field enemies are... well, you'll see. I'm sure everyone looking for the challenge is going to quite love it
QisTopTier
XisBannedTier
I'll never understand the sponge complaint, 4-5 minute on average boss fights are not long.
Then again I come from raiding in mmo's xD
Then again I come from raiding in mmo's xD
Sounds on par with origin nightmareNo problem! And yes, it is, haha. If you dig the challenge, the game'll be right up your alley. I'd say it's harder than Seven and Celceta in general if you're not using items – especially the first half, as early on the random mobs and the bosses hit very hard. I swear early fodder enemies hit you for like 75% of your HP, and bosses quite often had attacks that OHKO'd you!
And while in the 2nd half you're more powerful and OHKOs will be less frequent, especially against bosses, the field enemies are... well, you'll see. I'm sure everyone looking for the challenge is going to quite love it
Picked this up based on the reception it was getting, even though I didn't like celceta very much. Will probably start in the next day or two.
Looks like falcom is also running a raffle that ends on the 21st which requires an in-game phrase you get from some parrot after the first 迎撃戦 as the password. How early in the game is that? Wondering if I can make it without having much time to play.
Edit - password is
if anyone wants to enter http://www.falcom.com/ys8/special/chusenkai-form.php
Prizes are pin badges and if super lucky, a shikishi from Laxia's VA or Hummel's VA. Will probably need a JP mailing address too.
Looks like falcom is also running a raffle that ends on the 21st which requires an in-game phrase you get from some parrot after the first 迎撃戦 as the password. How early in the game is that? Wondering if I can make it without having much time to play.
Edit - password is
アカイ　ダケアル
Prizes are pin badges and if super lucky, a shikishi from Laxia's VA or Hummel's VA. Will probably need a JP mailing address too.
Bit of a issue getting the plat here. Basically got all trophies except for the one that requires you to have max affection with everyone in the village. The info page shows max stars and the little 'max' sign below them for all characters who get it, and there are no 'memo' parts left to fill, either, and yet the trophy simply won't trigger.
I was browsing through one of the jp wikis for the game and saw some people commenting on " 漂流村のスター" not showing up for them, either, so I'm figuring it MIGHT be a bug. Otherwise I'm at a loss, because I can't find anything that I may have missed, and as I've gotten the trophy for 100% items and quests there isn't much leeway for anything that I may have skipped...
Did anyone run into this issue? My JP account is secondary, so if I don't get it it won't be the end of the world, but oh well, went so far as grinding all the skills, it'd be nice to have it plat'd. Sent a tweet to Falcom asking about it, too, so hopefully they'll get back at me. Or not!
I was browsing through one of the jp wikis for the game and saw some people commenting on " 漂流村のスター" not showing up for them, either, so I'm figuring it MIGHT be a bug. Otherwise I'm at a loss, because I can't find anything that I may have missed, and as I've gotten the trophy for 100% items and quests there isn't much leeway for anything that I may have skipped...
Did anyone run into this issue? My JP account is secondary, so if I don't get it it won't be the end of the world, but oh well, went so far as grinding all the skills, it'd be nice to have it plat'd. Sent a tweet to Falcom asking about it, too, so hopefully they'll get back at me. Or not!
It triggered for me once I maxed the last person...
For those interested, there's a demo/trial version up on PSN now: https://store.playstation.com/#!/ja...-無料版/cid=JP0425-PCSG90259_00-YS08JPGAME000000
mattiewheels
And then the LORD David Bowie saith to his Son, Jonny Depp: 'Go, and spread my image amongst the cosmos. For every living thing is in anguish and only the LIGHT shall give them reprieve.'
I'll take a stab here...anyone in here willing to sell their Vita copy to me used? Just wondering, PM me if so.
Yeah, friends of mine also got it, but I can't find anything missing and this + the wiki report of people who also said it wouldn't show up for them makes me think there may be a bug there. Oh well, I'm waiting for the next patch to see if Falcom will address, if not I'll just get it on a replay or something.
And speaking of the demo, I haven't downloaded it myself, but from what Falcom said in their tweet, it seems like it goes all the way up to the middle of Chapter 2. I'm not sure what exactly they're considering the midpoint of ch2, but I imagine it must be Elevated Coral Reef. If that's right, we're talking a good 10 hours (maybe less, depending how fast you go) of gameplay here if you do everything and take your time. Quite a lot, and more than enough to experience the good stuff Ys8 does.
Oh, and apparently you can even use the save state from the demo in the full game, should you decide to purchase it. Quite nifty. Considering the good word of mouth the game seems to be receiving, I think it was a really nice move by Falcom. Hope it pays off for them.
Wait, did XSEED asked Falcom to make an Oath-like Ys? Can you elaborate?
Dragoon En Regalia
Member
Really cool demo if it does extend through much of Chapter 2. Falcom's treating their 35th anniversary well. Too bad we aren't getting new arrange albums unless that's what Mitsuo Singa's doing for them.
No, I simply suggested a scenario where Falcom might license the IP to someone willing to make an Oath-like Ys. XSEED's currently localizing a Touhou fangame that plays somewhat like that kind of Ys, but not quite.
Glitter and Gold
Banned
Really tempted to get the demo, but I think I want to go into the full thing as blind as possible
It's cool as hell that it lets you import your save to the main game after letting you play such a big chunk of it, but that's probably not gonna be compatible with the western versions
It's cool as hell that it lets you import your save to the main game after letting you play such a big chunk of it, but that's probably not gonna be compatible with the western versions
Read the yellow books you find. And if I remember correctly, you find the recipe you're looking for at the beginning of Schlamm Jungle and/or need to find Miralda first. Not sure which quest this is about.
They're actually more like trials than demo's.
_
I 100%'d everything there's to do in this game last night. Took me 50 hours.
Like Gu4n said, recipes are the yellow books. And my memory is a bit hazy too, but I think he's right. If I'm not mistaken, that recipe book for the quest that required a dish in Ch2 was right in one of the first screens of Schlamm Jungle.
Also, if you're still having issues, check this wiki. It's entirely in japanese, but you can most definitely google translate stuff (if you don't know jp, which may not even be the case, if so, I apologize!) and it'll be probably easier to check out your in-game journal/map to find the stuff you're looking for. For the quest list search for クエスト in that site. Hope it helps.
Marathoned the crap out of this over the weekend and just finished. 100%'d the map, chests, quests, fishing, and mats/ingredients, but don't really care about trophies so didn't bother with the rest. I hadn't read much of anything about the game before purchasing so I was kind of disappointed that
Game started feeling really great once I got the dash speed increase and double jump items. Also still prefer temples and dungeons as opposed to the great outdoors, but they did a pretty good job with making all the locations interesting.
Coming from not really liking Celceta, this is definitely the best Ys game I've played, though I still have mixed feelings about the story focus. On one hand I would've liked the game to be about 10 hours shorter with less cutscene downtime (especially in the last 2 chapters), but on the other hand the story was actually fairly competent despite some throwaway characters. (True ending spoilers)
you don't get Dana permanently until like halfway through the game. Thought it was going to let you play as either Adol or her from near the start based on the dual protagonists advertisement, though I understand why they did it this way in service of the story.
Coming from not really liking Celceta, this is definitely the best Ys game I've played, though I still have mixed feelings about the story focus. On one hand I would've liked the game to be about 10 hours shorter with less cutscene downtime (especially in the last 2 chapters), but on the other hand the story was actually fairly competent despite some throwaway characters. (True ending spoilers)
I think Dana is my favorite Ys heroine so far but her fate was too bittersweet. It's too bad Adol has more adventures he needs to go on, otherwise I would've liked to see an ending where Dana doesn't become a goddess and they settle down together. Or at least having Dana leave the island with everyone so she can become a reoccurring character. At this rate the only way my headcanon will be realized is if Adol also becomes a god someday, which actually isn't too far-fetched considering what he goes through all the time.
Funny thing is, looking back at the opening of the game, (related spoilers)
the first words from Adol at the start are basically a big hint that the game is going to have a bittersweet ending.
But I'll agree with you on that whole thing.
Adol x Feena has been my OTP for this series for a very very long time, and I loved the dynamic between Adol and Dana so much that I found it challenging my primary ship of the series. lol
The scene where she tells Adol he's only known about her since he came to the island but she's known about him since long ago, thanks him for being her encouragement in her darkest times with tears streaming down her face, then goes in for the hug. I was like "COME ON FALCOM, these two are made for each other".
Still makes me sad thinking about it right now （ つ Д ｀）
Still makes me sad thinking about it right now （ つ Д ｀）
And done with Ys VIII Lacrimosa of Dana. What an adventure! I wasn't expecting to like the game that much and it definitely ranks as one of my favourite Ys game.
Finished the game in 50 hours in Hard mostly without items.
Every character were around level 75.
My quick review on the game:
The Good:
+ A constant for the series: combat/battle system/music are still great.
+ The setting of the game (
) was better thought than it seemed:
+ While Celceta was the draft of how exploration are likely to look like in the series, it lacked the sense of adventure that VIII managed to create. The map of Ys VIII is so well designed, so fun to explore and fits organically with the story. Exploration is defintely the main highlight of the game.
+ Crafting is - surprinsgly - not intrusive and a good replacement of money. I felt the game never forced you to farm materials. The materials you collect while exploring are far enough to progress in the game. While it's important to upgrade your equipments, having the best upgrades available isn't necessary (unlike Felghana/Origin). Moreover, it solved one main issue of Celceta...
+ Healing items are sort of restricted! You may be able to farm them, but there are no incentives in the game to have you do it.
The most powerful healing items (potions) are restricted by the number of bottles you have (and they are not craftable until the end game, and even so the required materials are rare).
The cooked food have a long cooldown between each use.
And finally, the fruits are mostly used for reviving allies, it's possible to farm them but it's too much of a chore to be worth it.
+ The story of one particular character is touching and melancholic.
The so-so:
+/- Some story elements early in the game came out of nowhere.
+/- Thankfully characters talks less than in Trails/Tokyo Xanadu, but there are still too much text in an Ys game for my taste. The same complain I have with recent Falcom games: being a more synthetic would make the games flow better.
+/- Not enough platforming levels and vertical areas. Dungeons are too straightforward.
+/- The game may have been a better experience if it's a bit shorter.
+/- Most boss battles are good with several memorable ones. But I had some issues with:
* one boss based on a gimmick (
)
* several bosses are too easy on Hard difficulty (
)
+/- Laxia is an anagram of Alixa => Alisa (from Cold Steel). No idea if it was intentional, but this anagram is what I remember of her. How they introduced her was unnecessary.
The flaws:
- The pacing in several parts of the game is quite annoying.
One particular area of Part 4 is absolutely terrible: walking 10 steps to trigger a cutscene then walking another 10 steps to trigger another cutscene... and it goes on for some time.
- The execution of
parts didn't work that well. It could have been a cool idea if there was more things to do in those parts (like more freedom with some dungeons to explore).
- The defense missions. Not only did those tend to interrupt my lust for exploration, but I also found them boring and by nature repetitive.
- Technical part. It's a good looking Vita game imo. Framedrops are noticeable but not too disturbing: it's largely playable. My biggest complain would be about the loading times which are a bit too long, espescially between each boss retries.
Good job Falcom. I didn't expect the game to be that good. Ys VIII managed to mark a big step in the evolution of the formula from Seven/Celceta.
I am quite curious on how they are going to evolve the series from now on. I guess the next entry would be a remake of Ys V. Looking forward for what's coming next.
Finished the game in 50 hours in Hard mostly without items.
Every character were around level 75.
My quick review on the game:
The Good:
+ A constant for the series: combat/battle system/music are still great.
+ The setting of the game (
lost in a deserted island
+ While Celceta was the draft of how exploration are likely to look like in the series, it lacked the sense of adventure that VIII managed to create. The map of Ys VIII is so well designed, so fun to explore and fits organically with the story. Exploration is defintely the main highlight of the game.
+ Crafting is - surprinsgly - not intrusive and a good replacement of money. I felt the game never forced you to farm materials. The materials you collect while exploring are far enough to progress in the game. While it's important to upgrade your equipments, having the best upgrades available isn't necessary (unlike Felghana/Origin). Moreover, it solved one main issue of Celceta...
+ Healing items are sort of restricted! You may be able to farm them, but there are no incentives in the game to have you do it.
The most powerful healing items (potions) are restricted by the number of bottles you have (and they are not craftable until the end game, and even so the required materials are rare).
The cooked food have a long cooldown between each use.
And finally, the fruits are mostly used for reviving allies, it's possible to farm them but it's too much of a chore to be worth it.
+ The story of one particular character is touching and melancholic.
The so-so:
+/- Some story elements early in the game came out of nowhere.
+/- Thankfully characters talks less than in Trails/Tokyo Xanadu, but there are still too much text in an Ys game for my taste. The same complain I have with recent Falcom games: being a more synthetic would make the games flow better.
+/- Not enough platforming levels and vertical areas. Dungeons are too straightforward.
+/- The game may have been a better experience if it's a bit shorter.
+/- Most boss battles are good with several memorable ones. But I had some issues with:
* one boss based on a gimmick (
Oceanos
* several bosses are too easy on Hard difficulty (
in particular in the last third of the game
+/- Laxia is an anagram of Alixa => Alisa (from Cold Steel). No idea if it was intentional, but this anagram is what I remember of her. How they introduced her was unnecessary.
The flaws:
- The pacing in several parts of the game is quite annoying.
One particular area of Part 4 is absolutely terrible: walking 10 steps to trigger a cutscene then walking another 10 steps to trigger another cutscene... and it goes on for some time.
- The execution of
Dana's solo
- The defense missions. Not only did those tend to interrupt my lust for exploration, but I also found them boring and by nature repetitive.
- Technical part. It's a good looking Vita game imo. Framedrops are noticeable but not too disturbing: it's largely playable. My biggest complain would be about the loading times which are a bit too long, espescially between each boss retries.
Good job Falcom. I didn't expect the game to be that good. Ys VIII managed to mark a big step in the evolution of the formula from Seven/Celceta.
I am quite curious on how they are going to evolve the series from now on. I guess the next entry would be a remake of Ys V. Looking forward for what's coming next.
Eh. First of all I don't see how this would be 'so-so'. Secondly, her name is derived from the langues-de-chat cookies, just like how Sahad's name is derived from a particular Germanic chocolate cake of which I can't remember the name.
Oh I didn't know. Thanks for the information!
They've done a huge contraction from "langue de chat" to "Laxia" huh. The biscuit name is unrecognizable in terms of pronunciation.
And about the "so-so" part, I didn't phrase it correctly. I didn't explain it further in order to avoid spoilers.
It's not an issue with the character, she turned out to be great!
It's more about how I felt during her character arc.
Spoiler for Ys VIII and Trails of Cold Steel I in the following:
Basically, Laxia is developed in a similar way as Alisa from Cold Steel:
Embarassing first encounter with the main character => Some period of "can't stand you" => Say sorry for what happened before and start to open up to MC about her past/future.
This can explain why I felt the anagram made sense.
Yes, I know it's a very common trend when developing this type of archetype.
I felt it was done in a so similar fashion that it felt like a rehash. That's why I consider it a "so-so" for me.
Embarassing first encounter with the main character => Some period of "can't stand you" => Say sorry for what happened before and start to open up to MC about her past/future.
This can explain why I felt the anagram made sense.
Yes, I know it's a very common trend when developing this type of archetype.
I felt it was done in a so similar fashion that it felt like a rehash. That's why I consider it a "so-so" for me.
Sachertorte
In this case, I don't think it's so much pointing at Alisa as it is throwing a very very VERY common Ys trope under the bus and running over it a few times. To me, it came across as very self-aware humor with the series as a whole. Instead of the girl finding Adol on the beach and fawning over him, he stumbles on her and gets in trouble with her.
Falcom is 100% aware of their tropes, and has been for a very long time with the Ys series. (The Perfect Data book I translated the timeline from actually lists every time he's been shipwrecked, and every time Dogi's had to break him out of something by breaking down a wall, for example.) I think the Ruins Island thing in Ys Seven was meant to laugh in the face of the shipwreck trope, for one, since you go back and forth by ship SO MANY TIMES in-game for that. lol Ys Seven spoilers:
And on top of that, the reveal of Tia being the big bad is also a subversion of their own trope.
Ys VIII Spoilers:
I think this is because Falcom did a very strong mislead campaign. If you look back at the trailer, you will see that it's very heavily edited and sequences that couldn't have been done were done. They were trying to keep you from realizing how soon Dana joins the party, I think, while keeping much of the game a complete mystery. As soon as I realized the trailer was so wrong in so many places, I started to realize that I had no clue where the hell the game was going and thought it was quite brilliant in a way of keeping people in the dark.
I'm going to guess Ys V and I'm actually predicting the location of Ys IX now, because of stuff that goes down in the game, too.
There are so many 'if you're in the empire' comments in the game, that it makes me think we're going to finally see our Romun Ys game real soon, too.
kubricks
Member
OST is on Spotify now. I assume it just went up, because I didn't get an email notification yet.
It went up super early on 8/24, because it released at the same time as the album released for sale.
Finally done with this game. What an amazing adventure game which I think is the most developed of all the Ys games in regards to the story. I loved all the characters so much and I really feel empty inside me now and especially during the credits. Dana is most developed of all the Ys heroines so far and I loved her. Easily the star of the game.
Spoiler for ending:
Now.I can't wait for the next Ys game.
Spoiler for ending:
And that ending scene where they say farewell, auu they were meant for each other. Excuse me, changing ship now. Also, Adol sure has a thing for goddesses, eh?
Now.I can't wait for the next Ys game.
GamingBird
Member
How do I reach the true ending in this game... what do I have to complete...?
Hiding it behind spoiler marks in case people don't want to know:
Your reputation score determines the true ending. For the true ending, it has to be 150 or higher. You find this on the main data page of your diary where it has all your combat stats. What you're looking for is this: 名声値
encephalon
Member
I didn't expect a Sen III artwork book.
I also noticed the "we're hiring!" advertisement in the back and I feel like I've been seeing that a lot these days. I've seen targeted ads from ATLUS for staff recruitment and what appears to have been one for SEGA in the past few weeks. Are developers having trouble recruiting talent for traditional development?
I also noticed the "we're hiring!" advertisement in the back and I feel like I've been seeing that a lot these days. I've seen targeted ads from ATLUS for staff recruitment and what appears to have been one for SEGA in the past few weeks. Are developers having trouble recruiting talent for traditional development?
Was waiting for the PS4 version and got this Friday. Played the first couple of hours. On the plus side, the music is awesome already and the graphics are colorful and fine. I really like the starting area combat zone theme.
On the negative side, way too many cutscenes between action like Ys7, Laxia is so anime tropey, and just guard seems like it has too long of a window? I'm playing on hard and I could just stand in front of the first boss and hit R1/Just Guard easily every attack and keep attacking. I'm a big fan of JG as well as rolling in these games, but usually JG timing is really tight and there's some risk involved so it often makes more sense to roll dodge, but the window seems huge here, same with roll dodge window. Maybe it's because I'm coming from rolling Dark Souls 3, but yeah wondering if I should bump the difficulty up one further.
On the odd side, from the initial trailers and screens I got the impression that the big change for Ys8 was making it more a Xenoblade/Berseria-esque world where you can go anywhere, so I was kinda surprised how you're totally locked by invisible walls everywhere. I think a more open environment (with loading dividers) + Ys action would've been cool, but Vita probably couldn't have handled it or something.
Anyhow, seems fun.
On the negative side, way too many cutscenes between action like Ys7, Laxia is so anime tropey, and just guard seems like it has too long of a window? I'm playing on hard and I could just stand in front of the first boss and hit R1/Just Guard easily every attack and keep attacking. I'm a big fan of JG as well as rolling in these games, but usually JG timing is really tight and there's some risk involved so it often makes more sense to roll dodge, but the window seems huge here, same with roll dodge window. Maybe it's because I'm coming from rolling Dark Souls 3, but yeah wondering if I should bump the difficulty up one further.
On the odd side, from the initial trailers and screens I got the impression that the big change for Ys8 was making it more a Xenoblade/Berseria-esque world where you can go anywhere, so I was kinda surprised how you're totally locked by invisible walls everywhere. I think a more open environment (with loading dividers) + Ys action would've been cool, but Vita probably couldn't have handled it or something.
Anyhow, seems fun.
A little further now. Still haven't pulled the trigger to go from Hard->Nightmare but might before the next boss fight. For normal encounters I'm happy with hard because I get occasionally hit in the chaos of multiple enemies. But yeah, I'd like more of a challenge in the bosses. Just feels like the easiest Ys yet in the slow signaled boss attacks and loose timing of roll/JG.
But definitely enjoying this much more than 7 or Celceta. Not exactly sure why as it's pretty similar, but maybe the graphics not looking like blurry butt in Celceta helps and it seems a little more focused than 7.
I really like the troll dialogue choices. Falcom's getting better and better at these. It's getting close to ZZT Irem level of hilarious choices. There was a set of responses that I kept trolling and Laxia's response was basically "Has anyone ever told you that you're kinda of a shit?" lol Having dialogue choices every line for Adol and half of them being troll responses to get a rise out of someone is way better than sitting and reading stupid MC being stupid aka Rean. Defintiely a good direction for Falcom since the non-MC dialogue is still pretty generic anime tropey. Not really sure why Falcom has this thing for making bitchy tsundere-trope female opposites every game now. Risa, Asuka, Laxia are like the same freaking archetype. It's a bad archetype and really old at this point. I mean Adol is nothing like Rean (but Kou kinda is :|). Eh, hopefully this is just a phase they are growing through as developers trying to stay relevant in an otaku market.
But definitely enjoying this much more than 7 or Celceta. Not exactly sure why as it's pretty similar, but maybe the graphics not looking like blurry butt in Celceta helps and it seems a little more focused than 7.
I really like the troll dialogue choices. Falcom's getting better and better at these. It's getting close to ZZT Irem level of hilarious choices. There was a set of responses that I kept trolling and Laxia's response was basically "Has anyone ever told you that you're kinda of a shit?" lol Having dialogue choices every line for Adol and half of them being troll responses to get a rise out of someone is way better than sitting and reading stupid MC being stupid aka Rean. Defintiely a good direction for Falcom since the non-MC dialogue is still pretty generic anime tropey. Not really sure why Falcom has this thing for making bitchy tsundere-trope female opposites every game now. Risa, Asuka, Laxia are like the same freaking archetype. It's a bad archetype and really old at this point. I mean Adol is nothing like Rean (but Kou kinda is :|). Eh, hopefully this is just a phase they are growing through as developers trying to stay relevant in an otaku market.
Troll choices makes it sound like Zelda (especially BotW) where sometimes it seems the only option is for Link to fuck around with people. I hope NISA does a good job when they localize this one.
And I did like what I played of the demo, the free camera was kind of a surprise even though it really shouldn't be, guess I'm just so used to it being fixed from literally every other game.
And I did like what I played of the demo, the free camera was kind of a surprise even though it really shouldn't be, guess I'm just so used to it being fixed from literally every other game.
I don't know how the game looked on Vita, but I really like how it looks on PS4. It's so bright, clear and colorful. I think the visual style + the music just make it a fun action adventure which goes a long way. It's really enjoyable to play.
Started rocking Nightmare difficulty (which I've never done in a Ys game before, usually only play on normal or hard) and it didn't really take care of anything since the only difference between the difficulties seems like the damage you take and maybe dish out. On Nightmare I gotta be a little extra careful because 2-3 hits kill me, but the enemies still move at the same speed with the same easily dodged or just guarded telegraphed moves. Feels like the game was made for mainstream brain dead accessibility with the thought that just modifying the damages would satisfy regular Ys players. Wish they actually made the difficulty levels unique with sped up enemy attack speeds and shorter dodge/guard timing windows on the higher difficulties. That + the constant cutscenes are what are still keeping the game away from the pure non-stop exciting action of the pre-Ys7 titles imo so far. Maybe things will change as I get further in.
Started rocking Nightmare difficulty (which I've never done in a Ys game before, usually only play on normal or hard) and it didn't really take care of anything since the only difference between the difficulties seems like the damage you take and maybe dish out. On Nightmare I gotta be a little extra careful because 2-3 hits kill me, but the enemies still move at the same speed with the same easily dodged or just guarded telegraphed moves. Feels like the game was made for mainstream brain dead accessibility with the thought that just modifying the damages would satisfy regular Ys players. Wish they actually made the difficulty levels unique with sped up enemy attack speeds and shorter dodge/guard timing windows on the higher difficulties. That + the constant cutscenes are what are still keeping the game away from the pure non-stop exciting action of the pre-Ys7 titles imo so far. Maybe things will change as I get further in.
Dragoon En Regalia
Member
FWIW regular enemies stay regular at higher difficulties in mid-2000s Ys games, with only Ys VI adding the occasional enemy which requires you to attack it with a certain sword. Only bosses got added moves instead of just stat hikes, and I don't remember old moves getting sped up. Seven/Celceta don't have any modifications for timing windows either. Not sure how VIII's bosses are braindead, however, just because of loose timing. It's easier than ever to ignore healing items and stick to retries instead.
Also, I wouldn't lump Ys VI into this. Fun as that game is, it's mostly lacking in the kind of challenging, frenetic action which Oath/Origin provide in spades. I had more to worry about in Seven on Hard than most of Ys VI (except for a couple parts in Limewater Cave and Kishgal). Most players are finding this a tougher Ys entry than Celceta and Seven, but I need to play this myself before saying much more. They've definitely fixed a lot of things without actively excluding their newer audience in East Asia.
encephalon
Member
Dana's character design makes me question why I ever purchased the game. It's fun, but ... I think I might sell this one.
I can't get the hang of the timing of dodge moves in this game. I press L1 or R1 right before an attack (before the attack animation carries through), and it's apparently too late. But sometimes I'll accidentally press it what feels like way early and it registers. ??? I probably just suck.
I can't get the hang of the timing of dodge moves in this game. I press L1 or R1 right before an attack (before the attack animation carries through), and it's apparently too late. But sometimes I'll accidentally press it what feels like way early and it registers. ??? I probably just suck.
The game definitely favors being a early vs late in the timing window. I know on enemies that jump down that if I waited until the last second when they were landing I'd get hit, but if I JG or dodge basically anytime after they get near on their arc down it works
Difficulty picks up after about 5-10 hours. Switched it back to hard (never been a Nightmare/Inferno type of Ys player) and it feels good now. The enemies keep up the difficulty by mixing large groups of enemies small & large which is challenging and the bosses have been great from the first real dungeon onwards. The first boss of the first dungeon messes you up with his jump attacks because it's not the landing that hits but the delayed shockwave after so you have to delay your dodge/guard timings an extra second from the landing which was a good challenge.
The tower defense new game system seems dumb & waste of time, but easy enough to be mostly harmless. I really hate the TD genre so I'm biased there.
Otherwise enjoying it and the music for the fields is so, so good. I remember reading someone said around TX/Ys8 JKS Band dissolved and TX/Ys8/SenIII and the future are a new JKS Band that isn't as good. Sure TX music felt mostly like Sen I leftovers and I'd want something better for a real Sen III game, but Ys8 music is awesome so far. Zero complaints and if this is a new JKS Band, they're proving themselves with this soundtrack. If Sen III has boss battle tracks like some of these Ys8 tracks...can't wait!
The tower defense new game system seems dumb & waste of time, but easy enough to be mostly harmless. I really hate the TD genre so I'm biased there.
Otherwise enjoying it and the music for the fields is so, so good. I remember reading someone said around TX/Ys8 JKS Band dissolved and TX/Ys8/SenIII and the future are a new JKS Band that isn't as good. Sure TX music felt mostly like Sen I leftovers and I'd want something better for a real Sen III game, but Ys8 music is awesome so far. Zero complaints and if this is a new JKS Band, they're proving themselves with this soundtrack. If Sen III has boss battle tracks like some of these Ys8 tracks...can't wait!
Dragoon En Regalia
Member
No one involved with the most recent jdk Band, or the old one led by Yukihiro Jindo, has composed anything for any Falcom games. OST music's composed and mostly arranged by members of Sound Team jdk, Falcom's actual sound team (currently Takahiro Unisuga and Hayato Sonoda). Sometimes Jindo and other arrangers (mainly Mitsuo Singa since 2016) arrange Sound Team jdk's compositions with live performers split between old and new jdk Band line-ups.
New jdk Band's live performances have improved, but they're 4/7 as good as the previous group which had arrangers like Noriyuki Kamikura (ex-Basiscape, arranges for Square-Enix now) and Toshiharu Okajima, and super reliable and talented people like Masaru Teramae (runs a doujin metal group called DEMETORI) and Atsushi Enomoto.
All that aside, Ys VIII sounds so great because of Sound Team jdk proper. Sunshine Coastline, the first field theme, is all sequenced with no live parts from what I can tell (even the violin's notably a synth); same goes for Unisuga's themes (Deadly Temptation, Whimsical Vacation) and what are likely Sonoda's tracks (Lost in Green, Riddles of the Labyrinth). Compositions like Red Line -021-, Iclucian Dance (note the live violin) and At the End of Disaster were arranged by Singa and sometimes use new jdk Band performers, but Singa's synth guitar and possibly sequenced drum-kit just doesn't work as well (I linked three of his best works). The old jdk Band would have a hard time doing Sunshine Coastline live, and new jdk Band had a lot of trouble doing their version recently.
tl;dr It's easy to get confused between Sound Team jdk, the freelance band (whose members perform some in-game tracks), and contract arrangers who don't compose the tracks to begin with.
Glad to hear you've really sunk your teeth into this.
New jdk Band's live performances have improved, but they're 4/7 as good as the previous group which had arrangers like Noriyuki Kamikura (ex-Basiscape, arranges for Square-Enix now) and Toshiharu Okajima, and super reliable and talented people like Masaru Teramae (runs a doujin metal group called DEMETORI) and Atsushi Enomoto.
All that aside, Ys VIII sounds so great because of Sound Team jdk proper. Sunshine Coastline, the first field theme, is all sequenced with no live parts from what I can tell (even the violin's notably a synth); same goes for Unisuga's themes (Deadly Temptation, Whimsical Vacation) and what are likely Sonoda's tracks (Lost in Green, Riddles of the Labyrinth). Compositions like Red Line -021-, Iclucian Dance (note the live violin) and At the End of Disaster were arranged by Singa and sometimes use new jdk Band performers, but Singa's synth guitar and possibly sequenced drum-kit just doesn't work as well (I linked three of his best works). The old jdk Band would have a hard time doing Sunshine Coastline live, and new jdk Band had a lot of trouble doing their version recently.
tl;dr It's easy to get confused between Sound Team jdk, the freelance band (whose members perform some in-game tracks), and contract arrangers who don't compose the tracks to begin with.
Glad to hear you've really sunk your teeth into this.
Thanks for clearing that up
That's correct. The last time the actual sound team changed was when Atsume Hashimoto joined in 2015, then left shortly before the release of Ys VIII.
Dragoon En Regalia
Member
No problem! As preta says, Falcom recently hired a musician before he left for another company last year; this brings the sound team back down to Sonoda and Unisuga, years after Saki Momiyama left (she did some tracks for Sen no Kiseki).Thanks for clearing that up
I got back to this yesterday after taking a break to play Stormblood. Made it to ch.3 and there's a lot right and a lot wrong with this game just like the last 2 Ys games imo.
Like the story premise is absolutely terrible for what is supposed to be an exciting action rpg. "Ship crashlanded on an island, go find survivors and bring them back to camp", like that just doesn't work at all because there's zero plot momentum or movement. What's new in the story? Found a new person and sent them back to base. -_-
It's like they're trying to put the slow repetitive Sen/Tokyo Xanadu formula into Ys and why would you want that in an action rpg? At least Tokyo Xanadu had a plot that was moving, even if it was slow and character arcs. Ys8 in the first few chapters doesn't move at all.
It feels more like the plot setup you would expect for a survival crafting game. Which the game sorta is...sorta. But again, that really shouldn't be a big focus in an action rpg.
The quests are pretty bad too. I'm very close to starting to skip all quest dialogue because it's all just filler and overwritten.
The core of the gameplay with the action and exploration (huge maps with tons of chests and hidden areas) and the fun boss fights and lots of dungeons is great. Probably the best in 7->4r->8 series. But I can't help but feel the game would be so much better if I skipped every cutscene and every line of dialogue in the game. I mean to a degree I've always felt this about Ys games which is why Origins is my favorite since it just lets you dungeon crawl and fight bosses, but the story has never been so uninteresting in any Ys I've played and there's more dialogue than ever.
I'm sure the payoff of them going Kiseki style slow buildup of nothing really happening for dozens of hours is that in the back half the story might get good/interesting. But even if so, it's not going to be worth the first half of no-plot but lots of cutscenes.
And the Tower Defense game is dumb as is being pulled back to it. The game just does not want you to explore, progress and beat up bosses having fun at your own pace. I can't help but think if a western developer did this and it was fully open sandbox, with no cutscenes after the intro until the ending, and hardly any quest dialogue and you just got a giant island to explore gain new abilities to access new areas and progress; would be such a better game imo.
Right now I'm feeling the game is about the quality of 7/4r, it does some stuff better but some stuff is even worse. This new generation of Ys just kinda is disappointing compared to the old tight Ys experiences.
Like the story premise is absolutely terrible for what is supposed to be an exciting action rpg. "Ship crashlanded on an island, go find survivors and bring them back to camp", like that just doesn't work at all because there's zero plot momentum or movement. What's new in the story? Found a new person and sent them back to base. -_-
It's like they're trying to put the slow repetitive Sen/Tokyo Xanadu formula into Ys and why would you want that in an action rpg? At least Tokyo Xanadu had a plot that was moving, even if it was slow and character arcs. Ys8 in the first few chapters doesn't move at all.
It feels more like the plot setup you would expect for a survival crafting game. Which the game sorta is...sorta. But again, that really shouldn't be a big focus in an action rpg.
The quests are pretty bad too. I'm very close to starting to skip all quest dialogue because it's all just filler and overwritten.
The core of the gameplay with the action and exploration (huge maps with tons of chests and hidden areas) and the fun boss fights and lots of dungeons is great. Probably the best in 7->4r->8 series. But I can't help but feel the game would be so much better if I skipped every cutscene and every line of dialogue in the game. I mean to a degree I've always felt this about Ys games which is why Origins is my favorite since it just lets you dungeon crawl and fight bosses, but the story has never been so uninteresting in any Ys I've played and there's more dialogue than ever.
I'm sure the payoff of them going Kiseki style slow buildup of nothing really happening for dozens of hours is that in the back half the story might get good/interesting. But even if so, it's not going to be worth the first half of no-plot but lots of cutscenes.
And the Tower Defense game is dumb as is being pulled back to it. The game just does not want you to explore, progress and beat up bosses having fun at your own pace. I can't help but think if a western developer did this and it was fully open sandbox, with no cutscenes after the intro until the ending, and hardly any quest dialogue and you just got a giant island to explore gain new abilities to access new areas and progress; would be such a better game imo.
Right now I'm feeling the game is about the quality of 7/4r, it does some stuff better but some stuff is even worse. This new generation of Ys just kinda is disappointing compared to the old tight Ys experiences.
Dragoon En Regalia
Member
Make a safety save and see what happens? I'm pretty sure it lowers your reputation stat if you keep ignoring them, but I've heard you mainly just need to get all the villagers and do most quests for the complete ending. Doing all the defense missions is overkill.