Ys IX: Monstrum Nox

Finished this on PS4 slim. Incredible game. I played this in a time when Assassin's Creed is going downhill and I finished my 5th playthrough of Ys 8. Ys 9 brings in a darker story that is no less beautiful than its usual offerings. But the most stunning part is the map navigation. Once you unlock the wall-climbing with White Cat, and the hidden eye with the Doll, the game starts to feel like a spiritual successor to Assassin's Creed. THIS is what that series should be, and Ys outdone them, if I'd say so. I did not really expect the plot twist near the end. That gave me goosebumps. The only gripe I have with this game is the music. Rather loud and chaotic, not as memorable as the other Ys games I played. If you ask me to hum one of the best tracks from 9, I simply can't.

Written as an occasional Ys enjoyer: I went into it purely on instinct and enjoyed this game a whole lot! Ys IX is a delightful experience even if the player hasn't covered the entire series before it. While the story does reference events from the previous games, it isn't necessary to have played the entire series to enjoy Monstrum Nox' story and gameplay. From a technical point of view, no objections. The HUD is constructed well, the controls are tight and responsive. Special praise for the love keyboard/mouse got, many games treat us keyboard users as non-existent. Menu navigation is sometimes a little "slippery" due to somewhat imprecise scrolling with the wheel. Didn't come across any bugs. Visually, the game is a treat. Expressive, vibrant and colourful character designs and pleasant environment. The slightly matted background elements make interactable objects, characters and enemies quite easy to spot which greatly aids exploration. And that's important because exploration is this game's main hook. The numerous traversal options (Monstrum Gifts) make moving around Balduq and its immediate surroundings VERY fun. And what would an Ys game be without plenty of monsters to whack? This time, Adol can do that with up to five more companions, though 3 at a time, which you can hot-swap between. Each character comes with their own fighting style and set of skills, so pick whoever you like! Adol is also not always mandatory, so you can freely combine between 6 characters. Combat comes in 6 difficulties, so pick whatever you're comfortable with. Sound and music? It's a Falcom game, both their series are known for the captivating musical numbers. The story is a collage of events from a wide span of European history laced with the supernatural and divine. Serves the purpose of holding everything together fine. ONE gripe I had: keyboard commands HAVE to be remapped, as some keys are assigned multiple functions by default. Final rating: 9.2/10.

Pretty much a continuation of the Ys 8 design philosophy, music is great, graphics are nice and story is interesting, even if the ending feels rushed, because the game plays coy during dozens of hours and doesn't show its hand until the very end, at least is better than the ending of Ys 8 (still sour about it) That said, by the end I was bored out of my mind, despite the combat being almost identical to Ys 8, the increased volume of enemies encouraged me to spam skills, of which not many felt satisfactory to use. On top of that, unlike Ys 8, the difference between a lvl 1 and lvl 3 skill is barely perceptible (massive let down), not to mention that getting attacked by 6 enemies at the same time also forces you to overrely on the dodge mechanic that doesn't work very well because enemies track you after commiting to an attack and hitboxes are all over the place. So the best bet is to use the strongest chaarcter, equip a lifestealing accesory and just go berserk (Yufa was my main character the whole game) Another huge let down was the lack of a romantic interest for Adol, I mean, the 16 year old girl has a crush on him but I had to use all the dialogue options to shoot her down because Adol is 24 and that would be, to put it mildly, highly problematic (Yufa was right there, wtf, Japan). I loved to tease Laxia in Ys 8, and, alas, it was not possible this time around. I think it was a mistake to make it the central location of the game. Of the entire city you can only enter a handfulof buildings, sure, you shouldn't be supposed to enter every building, but I have no doubts someone was being cheap when I saw the pub owner standing in the street selling food instead of, you know, being inside the pub. Yet another point where Ys 8 was better, that deserted island was a great excuse to get rid of pointless npcs and buildings, of which there are many in Ys 9. Overall, I think Ys 8 did it all better, except for the ending, and the music. Still worth a playthrough.

Let's start from positive sides of the game: the new adventure with Adol, new interesting and sometimes funny heroes abilities (especially cat-runs >^_^< on the buildings), a good story. This game is a nice addition to Ys series. Still, unfortunately, I would rate it as 3.5/5 for two reasons: 1. The game is too short, it took me just 43 hours to almost fully complete the game (missed 1 box and 1 event). After Ys VIII and recent Trails games this was unexpected a bit. It would not be a big deal if not the next item 2. The game is sold at full price without any regional discounts. I do understand why Trails of Cold Steel IV costs 60$ (and I actually bought a Deluxe on release there), or Lacrimosa of DANA costs the same, but the same price for Monstrum Nox looks unjustified, especially after the game end. In the end, if you a fan of the Ys series, I assume you've already bought it :), for everyone else you may wait for a reasonable discount, or look on Lacrimosa of DANA, if you didn't play it before

Is there anyone who has actually played it, who can help the rest of us make a decision?