Ys Play Order

[Ruen]

I want to start enjoying the Ys Series but am wondering where to start. Is this a good place to start as the first game to play? Thanks

[Quint the Alligator Snapper]

The games are not story-linked, aside from Ys I and Ys II.

I personally started with Ys Oath, which was the first game to get an official English-language PC release.

If you want to start from the series's roots, start with Ys I and II. But they are not the most impressive games, though they are still solid experiences.

If you want to start with something more visually impressive, basically any of the later games (including this one) will do. I do feel that Origin is particularly awesome, though, so I personally would do what I accidentally did, which is to save the best for not-the-first.

[Ikagura]

You can play Origin before Ys I&II but you'll miss a lot of references and fan-service for Ys fans who played I&II, Felghana and Napishtim before

[Fluff Fact⚙ry]

You can start first in any Ys game you are interested in as most of them are complete story in their own scenario. There are indeed some cameo and hints from past games, but they are not that important to the main story you are adventuring on. Here are some options for you:

*** If you prefer Chronological Story order:
Origin -> Chronicle I + II -> Memories of Celceta (IV) -> Oath in Felghana (III) -> Kefin, Lost Kingdom of Sand (V) -> Lacrimosa of Dana (VIII) -> Ark of Napishtim (VI) -> SEVEN (VII) -> Monstrum Nox (IX)

Currently there is no remake of V yet, only original SNES or Japanese PS2 with complete graphic overhaul. IX also has just been under preparation for western release.

*** If you prefer Combat Evolution, that you wouldn't feel upgrade downgrade in between while playing:
1. Bump System (I + II)
2. Simple Attack & Magic (V)
3. The 2.5D Platforming + hardcore (Napishtim -> Felghana -> Origin)
4. The Party + Guard + Flashmove (SEVEN -> Celceta -> Lacrimosa of Dana -> Monstrum Nox)

*** If you prefer Difficulty Level (increasing, in Nightmare+, in my opinion):
V -> Celceta -> Napishtim -> SEVEN -> Ys I+II -> VIII -> Felghana -> Origin

*** If you prefer Hours Play (Longest to shortest):
VIII -> Origin -> Celceta -> SEVEN -> Ys I+II -> Felghana -> Napishtim -> V

*** If you prefer Bumpy Adventure (to keep balance between fun, difficulty, and cameos appearance):
Ys I+II -> Origin -> Celceta -> III -> VIII -> Napishtim -> SEVEN -> V (just to know more, you can play this anytime you like).

[Quint the Alligator Snapper]

Also, for what it's worth, Ys Origin is actually three different characters' stories.

[Ikagura]

Originally posted by Quint the Alligator Snapper:

Also, for what it's worth, Ys Origin is actually three different characters' stories.

That's a bit of a spoiler but yeah, completing one of the two character's story unlock the third one (which is the actually canonical one) so you need to complete the game twice to see the true ending but worry not, the third playthrough is slightly shorter because some elements are being skipped.

[Quint the Alligator Snapper]

Originally posted by ◆Ikagura◇:

Originally posted by Quint the Alligator Snapper:

Also, for what it's worth, Ys Origin is actually three different characters' stories.

That's a bit of a spoiler but yeah, completing one of the two character's story unlock the third one (which is the actually canonical one) so you need to complete the game twice to see the true ending but worry not, the third playthrough is slightly shorter because some elements are being skipped.

Well you see three spaces on the character select screen even before you have access to the third character, so...

Though, I declined to state which one was canonical, lol.

[Ikagura]

Originally posted by Quint the Alligator Snapper:

Originally posted by ◆Ikagura◇:

That's a bit of a spoiler but yeah, completing one of the two character's story unlock the third one (which is the actually canonical one) so you need to complete the game twice to see the true ending but worry not, the third playthrough is slightly shorter because some elements are being skipped.

Well you see three spaces on the character select screen even before you have access to the third character, so...

Not really, you only see two before the third comes (And there's also an extra space for Adol in Arena Mode

[Berahlen]

So other than I & II being direct continuations, these games CAN be played in any order. But there are a few minor cross-spoilers interspersed, and how much you care is up to you. If you don't mind osmosing a few pieces out of order, tl;dr this whole post.

The chronological order is Origin, I, II, Celceta (IV), Felghana (III), Kefin (V, not released in US), Lacrimosa (VIII), Ark (VI), Seven, then IX comes out soon. And pretty much nobody cares about Kefin -- it was never released here, its only story contribution is one brief character in Ark existing, and it was so bad it almost killed the series stone dead.

The release order of the updated versions of the games is I, II, Ark, Origin, Felghana, Seven, Celceta, Lacrimosa, IX. The reason this matters is that some of the "middle" games -- primarily Celceta -- got retconned in their most recent rerelease to fit better into the overarching mythology, and several of the others like Origin have callbacks and even a few spoilers for games that were previously released but took place later. They're not big but they're there, and they put a lot of other events in a bit better context. Again how much you care is up to you.

Honestly, I'd start with Felghana if you want to start on a really high note. It's one of the strongest games but also entirely disconnected from most of the series mythos until the very end. Basically just remember the last boss's name and what he says right before you kill him.

Lacrimosa is also pretty disconnected in its main story, but it discusses some of the background geopolitics that come to a head in Ark, Seven, and the upcoming IX, and were manipulated quite a bit by certain people who show up in Celceta.

If you don't mind playing a much more antiquated game with all the warts that come with it (weird combat and poor player direction that almost requires a guide to figure out where the hell to go), I & II are the natural entry point into the story, and Origin anytime after that because it massively spoils those. Celceta and Ark next, as they unavoidably spoil each other a bit -- and like I & II, Ark is considered one of the weaker and less polished entries. Seven has a party member that spoils Ark. After that it doesn't matter as much.

[Ruen]

thanks for all the responses. Gave me alot of options and its good to see that there's really no wrong way to get into the Ys series. I look forward to enjoying this series

[Ikagura]

Originally posted by Ruen:

thanks for all the responses. Gave me alot of options and its good to see that there's really no wrong way to get into the Ys series. I look forward to enjoying this series

The only wrong way to begin the serie would be with Ys V (which wasn't that good and never came to the west, it needs a remake first)

[Dragon]

I think this game, Ys Origin, is the best place to start, although story-wise it doesn't matter for the Ys series which game you start at.

This game has better main characters than all the other Ys games do since your characters actually talk in this game, but the main character never talks in the other Ys games.

[Fluff Fact⚙ry]

Originally posted by Dragon:

I think this game, Ys Origin, is the best place to start, although story-wise it doesn't matter for the Ys series which game you start at.

This game has better main characters than all the other Ys games do since your characters actually talk in this game, but the main character never talks in the other Ys games.

Well, it can be the best place to start, but it is also the worst place to end as well if people aim for 100% completion. While OiF can have its ridiculous dmg to take you down in few hits, Origin on the other hand does not but involve many bosses with long phases and regeneration , i.e requiring a lot of patience, focus and endurance. So it is best to play for story at first, and practice Nightmare from time to time to conduct strategies and beat it properly. And I don't like people spending 10hrs+ just to do a single Boss rush run either, sometimes you have to stay off it for a while, then return and may discover something new.

[Ikagura]

Originally posted by Dragon:

I think this game, Ys Origin, is the best place to start, although story-wise it doesn't matter for the Ys series which game you start at.

Beginning with Origin will make you not get every references as this game had a lot of fanservice for people who played Chronicles, Napishtim and Felghana. But overal it doesn't matter which game you begin with (except for Ys II)

Originally posted by Dragon:

This game has better main characters than all the other Ys games do since your characters actually talk in this game, but the main character never talks in the other Ys games.

The fact that those characters are better because they talk is entirely subjective.

In the Ys serie Adol doesn't explicitely talks because he's more or less the player's avatar (even with the whole "Adol's journals" meta-story )