Postgame Wrap-up: Ys IV – Mask of the Sun

 

Being a fan of the Ys series of video games has not always been easy. While the series has seen regular English releases going back to 2005, there was a span of time from 1992 to 2005 that saw no English releases at all. While Ys III: Wanderers From Ys was released on the Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis, and TG-CD in the US, it would be the last entry to see the shores of the west until Ys: The Ark of Napishtim in 2005 (PS2 & PSP).

For some time, I had given up all hope of playing Ys IV and Ys V, both being Japanese exclusives available on the Super Famicom, but now, thanks to clone consoles (I’m still incapable of playing games on a PC, I need a standard controller) and language patches (God bless those people), many games, including these, were finally available to me. I’ve already written about Ys V and, as this blog posts indicates, recently completed a playthrough of Ys IV. As noted above, much like Soul Blazer, I played this game via a language patch, so there’s a possibility that some of the translation may not be direct, but I can’t imagine that it affects the game as a whole.

Interesting side note regarding Ys IV. Falcom licensed two versions of Ys IV, with Mask of the Sun being developed by Tonkin House, and an alternate version, subtitled Dawn of Ys, developed by Hudson Soft for the TG-CD. The titles share some characters and plot points, but are ultimately quite different. According to Falcom, Mask of the Sun is the official sequel, with Dawn of Ys taking place in an alternate Ys universe. Mask of the Sun has since been remade as Memories of Celceta and has seen release on multiple consoles.

The Set-up:

You are Adol Christin. Famous adventurer. Known far and wide as Adol the Red due to your ginger locks. Returning from your adventure as depicted in Ys II, you arrive in the town of Minea only to find a message in a bottle. Coming from the land of Celceta, the message pleads for help. Never one to turn down the chance for more adventuring, you board a ship bound for Celceta and set off.

You’ll notice that I’ve stated that this game happens immediately after Ys II instead of Ys III. This is not a typo as, canonically, Ys IV takes place prior to Ys III. I’ve never been able to determine if this makes a difference, but it is worth pointing out. The Ys timeline is rather confusing. The most recent entry, Ys X: Nordics, actually takes place between Ys II and Ys IV.

The Story:

Upon arriving in the land of Celceta, you are warmly greeted in the town of Kasnan by being locked up. You are quickly released and immediately set out to discover what help is needed. Advancing to and through the town of Komodo, you’ll encounter your first dungeon, guarded at the end by a Minotaur. Upon his defeat, the Minotaur reverts to a man, the same man that you were told was missing while in Komodo. It seems a witch is behind his curse, though that’s very little information to go on.

Continuing, you’ll find your way to the town of Highland, the home of Leeza, who wrote the letter that brought you to Celceta. It is at this point that the full plot of Ys IV truly gets rolling. Soon after leaving Highland, you encounter your antagonist, the winged being known as Eldeel who, up until recently (in the timeframe of the game), was a warm, kind being, but has shown none of that upon your introduction to him and his three generals. Clearly, there is a mystery to unravel here involving the forest of Celceta and Eldeel.

The Ys series has a rich lore, but not all of it exists within the games (and the lore is made more confusing by some of the games having never been released in English). The story of Ys IV is quite intriguing, but to fully appreciate it, you really need to be familiar with Ys I and Ys II, neither of which are extremely easy to find in English (at least, in their original release form as they have been remade for both the DS and PSP). Still, the stories told in the series are well worth the effort needed to seek out the information that is not so readily available.

The Gameplay:

While Ys III took the Ys series in a new direction by being developed as a sidescroller, Ys IV returned the series to its roots, being presented in top down fashion. Also returning in Ys IV is the run and bump attack method the series was known for at the time. If you’re unfamiliar with the earlier Ys titles, to attack an enemy you simply run into it, though not straight on. The key to attacking in Ys is to hit an enemy slightly off center, or from the back, if possible, to cause considerable damage. There is no attack button, as simply colliding will cause damage. Unfortunately, this will also work against you if the enemy hits you from the back or side, or if the enemy is too strong, a factor you can’t really know until it’s almost too late. While there is not an attack button, I do need to note that swords found later in the game come with magic abilities. Pushing X will launch a magic attack. It’s not particularly strong, but the attack does push enemies back and can help with crowd control.

Fortunately, you can acquire stronger weapons and armor as you progress through game, while also being able to level up Adol to increase your attack and defense. I learned very quickly that, in Ys IV, if you are having issues with an enemy or a boss, backtrack a bit and grind out a level or two. I was becoming very frustrated with a boss early on and finally swallowed my pride and spent a few minutes gaining one level. Once that was done, I beat the boss on my very next attempt. It’s not impossible that I could have succeeded at the lower level, but after trying over a dozen times with no luck, I was no longer enjoying my experience. Leveling up was clearly the answer.

While I like the play style of Ys, it felt less smooth in Ys IV than what I experienced in the original two games (both the TG-CD versions and the DS remake). You’re hampered a bit by Adol’s inability to move diagonally, but, in my opinion, the primary issue is the speed and AI of enemies. When approaching an enemy in Ys IV, they will correct almost immediately so as to avoid a sideswipe. For me, the most effective method was to move in a circular motion as they got to me (or me to them). This worked, but took away all the fun of lining up with enemies to slice through them. Also, as noted above, enemies can mess up your day as quickly as you can mess up theirs. I died multiple times simply by misjudging the position of a common enemy and having it destroy me in a matter of a few seconds as a result (side note here: if you play this game, save…often).

I’ve been concentrating on the common enemies of the game to this point, and that’s because the bosses in this game are an entirely different ballgame. Each have their own patterns, weak points, and strategies to make you pull your hair out. Okay, maybe that’s a bit extreme, but excepting two or three, they are quite tough. Just to give one example, let’s examine the boss I was speaking of above, which required double digit attempts. First of all, there are spears coming at you from the sides of the room. They appear for a few seconds before flying horizontally across the room. I figured out the hard way that you couldn’t get close to them on the left, but could do so on the right. I still don’t understand this. While that’s going on, the boss will be moving horizontally at the top of the room. To damage him, you have to bait him to charge at you. While he’s preparing to charge (he raises his arms), you can brush against his legs to damage him. After some time though, he morphs into a second form. In this form, he launches three orbs that will randomly arrange at the top of the room before shooting instant death lasers vertically. It’s probably best to avoid these because, again, death. The will then fly at you, so that’s fun, though not as deadly. He will also launch fireballs at you. Oh, and remember those spears? They’re still flying at you from the sides of the room. Frankly, I nearly broke my controller. Again though, one additional level and the difficulty dropped quite a bit.

As for the non-combat portions of the game, you will journey throughout Celceta, visiting towns, buying supplies (there is a healing item, but you can hold only one at a time), and speaking with the citizens. Conversing with the citizens is extremely important as that’s the only way to determine where you need to journey next and what your goals are. This is very standard for a RPG, but Ys IV handles it better than some titles I’ve played. Also, if you are familiar with the story and characters of Ys II, you’ll notice some familiar areas and faces, which is a nice touch. I also want to note that Ys IV includes the ability to heal Adol by standing still, one of the first series to include such a mechanic. This doesn’t work in caves/dungeons, but is great inclusion at it negates the need to constantly return to a town to heal.

A couple of additional notes in regards to the presentation of Ys IV. This is a very good looking game. The 16-bit sprites hold up well, and the larger, detailed bosses are very appealing (when they’re not stomping you into dust). The areas you visit are varied and never redundant. The visuals don’t compare with those on the TG-CD, but for a 16-bit title, they are quite well done. Also, the music is fantastic. The Ys series is known for having great musical tracks, and Ys IV does not disappoint in this department.

Conclusions:

I love the Ys series. I’ve played almost every title and have enjoyed them. While that is true of Ys IV, it did leave me the most divided of any Ys game I’ve played. When things are going well in the game, it’s a pure joy to play. Gliding through enemies feels almost rhythmic once you get into the groove of it. That said, I feel like all too often your game can be taken completely off the rails due to one unlucky approach by an enemy. Towards the end of the game, I was taken out by an enemy that I was having no trouble defeating on a regular basis, but it caught me at the right angle and, in about three seconds, my game was over. This was not an isolated incident and had nothing to do with my level or equipment, it’s just the price of the game design.

Ultimately, I did enjoy this game more than I was frustrated by it, but I can also see why anyone playing it would have the opposite experience. As I noted above, this game has been remade as Ys: Memories of Celceta (available on both the PS Vita and PS4). Having played both, I would have to suggest playing Memories of Celceta over Mask of the Sun, but if you are searching for a game to scratch a 16-bit itch, you can do far worse than playing Ys IV: Mask of the Sun.

Being a fan of the Ys series of video games has not always been easy. While the series has seen regular English releases going back to 2005, there was a span of time from 1992 to 2005 that saw no English releases at all. While Ys III: Wanderers From Ys was released on the Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis, and TG-CD in the US, it would be the last entry to see the shores of the west until Ys: The Ark of Napishtim in 2005 (PS2 & PSP).

For some time, I had given up all hope of playing Ys IV and Ys V, both being Japanese exclusives available on the Super Famicom, but now, thanks to clone consoles (I’m still incapable of playing games on a PC, I need a standard controller) and language patches (God bless those people), many games, including these, were finally available to me. I’ve already written about Ys V and, as this blog posts indicates, recently completed a playthrough of Ys IV. As noted above, much like Soul Blazer, I played this game via a language patch, so there’s a possibility that some of the translation may not be direct, but I can’t imagine that it affects the game as a whole.

Interesting side note regarding Ys IV. Falcom licensed two versions of Ys IV, with Mask of the Sun being developed by Tonkin House, and an alternate version, subtitled Dawn of Ys, developed by Hudson Soft for the TG-CD. The titles share some characters and plot points, but are ultimately quite different. According to Falcom, Mask of the Sun is the official sequel, with Dawn of Ys taking place in an alternate Ys universe. Mask of the Sun has since been remade as Memories of Celceta and has seen release on multiple consoles.

The Set-up:

You are Adol Christin. Famous adventurer. Known far and wide as Adol the Red due to your ginger locks. Returning from your adventure as depicted in Ys II, you arrive in the town of Minea only to find a message in a bottle. Coming from the land of Celceta, the message pleads for help. Never one to turn down the chance for more adventuring, you board a ship bound for Celceta and set off.

You’ll notice that I’ve stated that this game happens immediately after Ys II instead of Ys III. This is not a typo as, canonically, Ys IV takes place prior to Ys III. I’ve never been able to determine if this makes a difference, but it is worth pointing out. The Ys timeline is rather confusing. The most recent entry, Ys X: Nordics, actually takes place between Ys II and Ys IV.

The Story:

Upon arriving in the land of Celceta, you are warmly greeted in the town of Kasnan by being locked up. You are quickly released and immediately set out to discover what help is needed. Advancing to and through the town of Komodo, you’ll encounter your first dungeon, guarded at the end by a Minotaur. Upon his defeat, the Minotaur reverts to a man, the same man that you were told was missing while in Komodo. It seems a witch is behind his curse, though that’s very little information to go on.

Continuing, you’ll find your way to the town of Highland, the home of Leeza, who wrote the letter that brought you to Celceta. It is at this point that the full plot of Ys IV truly gets rolling. Soon after leaving Highland, you encounter your antagonist, the winged being known as Eldeel who, up until recently (in the timeframe of the game), was a warm, kind being, but has shown none of that upon your introduction to him and his three generals. Clearly, there is a mystery to unravel here involving the forest of Celceta and Eldeel.

The Ys series has a rich lore, but not all of it exists within the games (and the lore is made more confusing by some of the games having never been released in English). The story of Ys IV is quite intriguing, but to fully appreciate it, you really need to be familiar with Ys I and Ys II, neither of which are extremely easy to find in English (at least, in their original release form as they have been remade for both the DS and PSP). Still, the stories told in the series are well worth the effort needed to seek out the information that is not so readily available.

The Gameplay:

While Ys III took the Ys series in a new direction by being developed as a sidescroller, Ys IV returned the series to its roots, being presented in top down fashion. Also returning in Ys IV is the run and bump attack method the series was known for at the time. If you’re unfamiliar with the earlier Ys titles, to attack an enemy you simply run into it, though not straight on. The key to attacking in Ys is to hit an enemy slightly off center, or from the back, if possible, to cause considerable damage. There is no attack button, as simply colliding will cause damage. Unfortunately, this will also work against you if the enemy hits you from the back or side, or if the enemy is too strong, a factor you can’t really know until it’s almost too late. While there is not an attack button, I do need to note that swords found later in the game come with magic abilities. Pushing X will launch a magic attack. It’s not particularly strong, but the attack does push enemies back and can help with crowd control.

Fortunately, you can acquire stronger weapons and armor as you progress through game, while also being able to level up Adol to increase your attack and defense. I learned very quickly that, in Ys IV, if you are having issues with an enemy or a boss, backtrack a bit and grind out a level or two. I was becoming very frustrated with a boss early on and finally swallowed my pride and spent a few minutes gaining one level. Once that was done, I beat the boss on my very next attempt. It’s not impossible that I could have succeeded at the lower level, but after trying over a dozen times with no luck, I was no longer enjoying my experience. Leveling up was clearly the answer.

While I like the play style of Ys, it felt less smooth in Ys IV than what I experienced in the original two games (both the TG-CD versions and the DS remake). You’re hampered a bit by Adol’s inability to move diagonally, but, in my opinion, the primary issue is the speed and AI of enemies. When approaching an enemy in Ys IV, they will correct almost immediately so as to avoid a sideswipe. For me, the most effective method was to move in a circular motion as they got to me (or me to them). This worked, but took away all the fun of lining up with enemies to slice through them. Also, as noted above, enemies can mess up your day as quickly as you can mess up theirs. I died multiple times simply by misjudging the position of a common enemy and having it destroy me in a matter of a few seconds as a result (side note here: if you play this game, save…often).

I’ve been concentrating on the common enemies of the game to this point, and that’s because the bosses in this game are an entirely different ballgame. Each have their own patterns, weak points, and strategies to make you pull your hair out. Okay, maybe that’s a bit extreme, but excepting two or three, they are quite tough. Just to give one example, let’s examine the boss I was speaking of above, which required double digit attempts. First of all, there are spears coming at you from the sides of the room. They appear for a few seconds before flying horizontally across the room. I figured out the hard way that you couldn’t get close to them on the left, but could do so on the right. I still don’t understand this. While that’s going on, the boss will be moving horizontally at the top of the room. To damage him, you have to bait him to charge at you. While he’s preparing to charge (he raises his arms), you can brush against his legs to damage him. After some time though, he morphs into a second form. In this form, he launches three orbs that will randomly arrange at the top of the room before shooting instant death lasers vertically. It’s probably best to avoid these because, again, death. The will then fly at you, so that’s fun, though not as deadly. He will also launch fireballs at you. Oh, and remember those spears? They’re still flying at you from the sides of the room. Frankly, I nearly broke my controller. Again though, one additional level and the difficulty dropped quite a bit.

As for the non-combat portions of the game, you will journey throughout Celceta, visiting towns, buying supplies (there is a healing item, but you can hold only one at a time), and speaking with the citizens. Conversing with the citizens is extremely important as that’s the only way to determine where you need to journey next and what your goals are. This is very standard for a RPG, but Ys IV handles it better than some titles I’ve played. Also, if you are familiar with the story and characters of Ys II, you’ll notice some familiar areas and faces, which is a nice touch. I also want to note that Ys IV includes the ability to heal Adol by standing still, one of the first series to include such a mechanic. This doesn’t work in caves/dungeons, but is great inclusion at it negates the need to constantly return to a town to heal.

A couple of additional notes in regards to the presentation of Ys IV. This is a very good looking game. The 16-bit sprites hold up well, and the larger, detailed bosses are very appealing (when they’re not stomping you into dust). The areas you visit are varied and never redundant. The visuals don’t compare with those on the TG-CD, but for a 16-bit title, they are quite well done. Also, the music is fantastic. The Ys series is known for having great musical tracks, and Ys IV does not disappoint in this department.

Conclusions:

I love the Ys series. I’ve played almost every title and have enjoyed them. While that is true of Ys IV, it did leave me the most divided of any Ys game I’ve played. When things are going well in the game, it’s a pure joy to play. Gliding through enemies feels almost rhythmic once you get into the groove of it. That said, I feel like all too often your game can be taken completely off the rails due to one unlucky approach by an enemy. Towards the end of the game, I was taken out by an enemy that I was having no trouble defeating on a regular basis, but it caught me at the right angle and, in about three seconds, my game was over. This was not an isolated incident and had nothing to do with my level or equipment, it’s just the price of the game design.

Ultimately, I did enjoy this game more than I was frustrated by it, but I can also see why anyone playing it would have the opposite experience. As I noted above, this game has been remade as Ys: Memories of Celceta (available on both the PS Vita and PS4). Having played both, I would have to suggest playing Memories of Celceta over Mask of the Sun, but if you are searching for a game to scratch a 16-bit itch, you can do far worse than playing Ys IV: Mask of the Sun.