Adol's adventures continue
Yet another entry in the long run series of Ys games from Falcom. As usual, there is no continuity from previous entry so new players can jump in this one without losing anything but few references or easter eggs from other adventures.
Gameplay and graphics wise, should feel familiar for those who have already played Lacrimosa of Dana (VIII) or Monstrum Nox (IX) with few improvements and refinements in the gameplay mechanics. I like that Falcon continues to innovate and try new things with every new entry while not completely departing from what proves to work well with the players, be it general fighting mechanics, mini-games, story and character development, soundtrack vibes.
Is it a contender for GOTY? Maybe not, but it is a lot of FUN and continues to bring back that magic and escapism we need in our busy lifes every now and then. Speaking of that, in terms of accessibility you have a wide range of options for difficulty (5) which should suit different players.
On technical side, so far this plays perfect on Steamdeck with Proton 9.0, game being managed through Heroic launcher. This is another confirmation of the great work done by Durante and his team from PH3 in optimising this PC port. Co-op is technically possible but experimental, won't be able to test that one anytime soon.
Is it worth the asking price? The base game I would definitely say so for an existing YS fan, if you are a new comer you may want to start with an older and cheaper title to get a similar taste of it, or just wait for a deep sale. Either way, I am happy this showed up on GOG on the same day like every other PC store and I wanted to support the developer for doing that by buying it on the release day.
Nihon, please keep them coming! :D