Ys X: Nordics

Ys X is a wonderful game. Stunning visuals, amazing music, and compelling characters and story. After loving Ys 8 and enjoying Ys 9, Ys X is the most polished and my favorite of the Ys games I’ve played. It is a no brainer for anyone who has loved Ys games in the past. Visually, the game is so gorgeous with bright colors and beautiful visual effects. The character’s faces are full of emotion, and I love the hand drawn portions. On a PS5 Pro, the game runs at a consistent ~60 fps and is immediately responsive and dynamic to play.

Pros - the best iteration of the combat yet - banging OST - exploration is made infinitely more interesting by adding the ship and centering the game around smaller islands - genuinely fun story with memorable characters - the reduction in character roster only makes the game more focused on delivering spectacular abilities // Cons - weapons and armor not carrying over into NG+ feels cheap especially when both your accessories and mana seeds do carry over // Nordics is the most fun I have had with the Ys series yet. Dropping the party based combat for a duo based system is a welcome change that only serves to distinguish this game from the rest, and excites me for the next one. Like mentioned before, the party of six where three members were active is gone and instead we now only have two party members. This also means that the slash/pierce/blunt system is gone, in favor of damage/break. This, alongside the option of duo abilities, duo parries and the revenge gauge make this a really rounded out system that feels great to engage with. Next great addition is the ship. First time since 2013 I have felt the same excitement for world exploration as with Assassins Creed: Black Flag. While simpler than AC, the ship serves as a great mobile base for you and your crew, allowing you to engage in exploration of smaller island areas that have a lot of fun packed into them. To compare it to another game, Sandras the ship gives me the feeling of Normandy from Mass Effect, in the way that I find it a home that I return to when I want to talk to people. And the characters this game offers you, make all the talks worthwhile. While I liked the previous casts quite a lot, the game having only two playable characters means that there aren't any weaknesses in Adol and Karja, since the game can just focus down on the story of these two. And still, the rest of the crew is just as impactful on my time with the game as the two protagonists. Just chefs kiss. I can not recommend this game enough. Incredible combat, fun characters and a main story that is intriguing to explore. All of it and more, make this game a classic for me.