Basic premise/Story

From developer studio, Nihon Falcom and directed by Toshihiro Kondo. With original composer Yuzo Koshiro and arrangements by Hayato Sonoda & Takahiro Unisuga with Falcom’s Sound team jdk band. YS I + II Chronicles Plus is the start of Falcom’s Ys series. You play as Adol Christin. A young adventurer sets sail for the island of Esteria upon hearing a series of misfortunes surrounding the island. Unfortunately, he loses his boat in the ensuing storm and washes aboard the shore of Esteria. What awaits Adol as he investigates the mysterious rumors?

Unique Gameplay

One of the best things I found when playing both YS games was the combat system. Or more commonly known as the ‘Bump System.’ As Adol, you don’t need to hit a button on your controller to initiate an attack. Instead, if you pivot your controllers' analog stick in any direction you can automatically attack any enemies in front of you. And thereby ‘bump’ into enemies. The caveat is that you will likely sustain damage by attacking head-on. However, if Adol were to ‘bump’ into enemies in a direction other than head-on like off-center, from behind, or the sides. He won’t receive any damage as long as he maintains his path forward.

This isn’t difficult to grasp at all. Since all I had to do was fight not head-on like a berserker. But initiate my fights from a weird angle. After ten or so minutes awkwardly trying to position Adol, I found myself greatly liking the ‘bump system.’ It’s simple but effective. And I had a ton of fun speeding through enemies and turning them into monster guts every time. It never got old during my seven-hour playthrough of ys 1 and over ten hours with ys 2.

The core gameplay loop of both YS games is straightforward. Talk to NPC's in a village until you find the one that has you assigned with the main quest. This is usually highlighted in blue text. More often than not, it has Adol retrieve an item, person, or defeat the main boss of a dungeon he enters to procure an important item. And repeat. And I had no trouble following these steps. I did scratch my head at what I should do a little in YS II, but it wasn’t a huge pain. Only forgetting I had to equip this item before interacting with a certain place. Or forgetting to talk to another important NPC. These moments were very rare and barely impeded my overall experience. I did use a walkthrough to make sure I didn’t miss anything. Still, the game is fine to be experienced blind or not. You can also do miscellaneous sidequests whenever you gift villagers with an item in YS II. Or follow certain directions the villagers tell Adol to do like gifting them with items or saving a loved one from harm.

The first YS I after playing the second felt like a prototype. Dungeons were small. There aren’t a lot of items you can optionally use nor where there are optional weapons or trinkets you can switch anytime. This is understandable considering the first YS game is very short.

YS II on the other hand. Takes everything Falcom started with, in Ys I and enhances nearly every aspect. You can move diagonally now to bump enemies. A bit longer dungeons, expanded world-building, continues right after the events from the first game. Includes more weapons, a MAGIC system, awesome music once more, and finishes Adol’s adventures in Esteria with a worthy finale. It does everything right in a sequel and more that I cannot help but compare the two.

The Sound Design

What’s cool about the pc version is the ability to play the music from the complete soundtrack, chronicles soundtrack, or the original PC-88 soundtrack. For YS I and YS II, I selected the Chronicles version. And man does Falcom nail the rock department. There is a harmonious balance between the inclusion of drums, bass, and violins which create an electrifying atmosphere that is very difficult not to bop your head on time and time again. It has excellent rhythm where the electric guitars take center stage for some tracks or letting other instruments like percussion or wooden string instruments into the forefront of the music. While the guitars take up the background. There is a good balance of tempo from either game’s soundtrack where I wasn’t bored listening to it again after I had died. I’d say about 15-25% of the rest of the soundtrack in either game consists of jolly upbeat vibes upon visiting a town. Which fits the calming yet vigilant atmosphere the game evokes constantly. The female vocals are also splendid. Creating a mystifying ambiance that is both soothing as well as beautiful to hear. All in all had a blast with Falcom’s soundtrack department, which I didn’t expect to hit so many great highs with few if no lows at all.


Final thoughts/Ruminations

Graphically, I found both games pretty charming and the remakes certainly hold up quite well. I didn’t experience any bugs or crashes whatsoever during both of my playthroughs. And the pc configurations packaged with both games are solid in my book, offering ample options to players who need to tweak it. The game ran fine on an old laptop I was using, maintaining solid fps throughout.

In the end, I enjoyed my time with YS I + II. I was surprised. I didn’t think I would enjoy it all that much coming off my playthrough of YS IX. The graphics hold up. And the ‘bump’ system is endlessly amusing whenever I combat mobs of enemies or bosses alike. And the gameplay loop of talking to NPC's to procure my next main objective to advance the main story. By defeating a boss in a dungeon and repeating the steps. The sequel takes everything the predecessor did and ramps everything up. Which is exactly what a sequel should do. I didn’t feel fatigued during the second YS game because of the unraveling of events that followed from YS I which kept me engaged.

The soundtrack is awesome. The various instruments used from guitars, drums, violins, bass are used to great effect with each track different from the last based on rhythm and tempo. No two tracks are the same. The average length of both games is fantastic with just the right amount of side-content for players looking for more. There isn’t a whole lot you learn about Adol himself, but the lore and plot will keep you invested in just what he does that has massive ramifications to both games. As the start of the YS series and Adol’s adventures. YS I + II is an excellent beginning for the franchise Falcom has created. If you’re looking for a short Arpg with an interesting plot and rock-solid music. Look no further than YS I + II Chronicles.

Total Times Beaten: 1
Score for YS I: 8/10
Score for YS II: 8.2/10
(Score is based on how much I enjoyed the game)
Date Finished: 2/20/21
Date Reviewed: 2/20/21
Date Posted: N/A
Date Edited: N/A
Hours Played:
YS 1: 7+
YS 2: 10+

[h1]Shipwreck Adol [/h1] Basic premise/Story From developer studio, Nihon Falcom and directed by Toshihiro Kondo. With original composer Yuzo Koshiro and arrangements by Hayato Sonoda & Takahiro Unisuga with Falcom’s Sound team jdk band. YS I + II Chronicles Plus is the start of Falcom’s Ys series. You play as Adol Christin. A young adventurer sets sail for the island of Esteria upon hearing a series of misfortunes surrounding the island. Unfortunately, he loses his boat in the ensuing storm and washes aboard the shore of Esteria. What awaits Adol as he investigates the mysterious rumors? [h1]Bump! Adol! Bump! [/h1] Unique Gameplay One of the best things I found when playing both YS games was the combat system. Or more commonly known as the ‘Bump System.’ As Adol, you don’t need to hit a button on your controller to initiate an attack. Instead, if you pivot your controllers' analog stick in any direction you can automatically attack any enemies in front of you. And thereby ‘bump’ into enemies. The caveat is that you will likely sustain damage by attacking head-on. However, if Adol were to ‘bump’ into enemies in a direction other than head-on like off-center, from behind, or the sides. He won’t receive any damage as long as he maintains his path forward. This isn’t difficult to grasp at all. Since all I had to do was fight not head-on like a berserker. But initiate my fights from a weird angle. After ten or so minutes awkwardly trying to position Adol, I found myself greatly liking the ‘bump system.’ It’s simple but effective. And I had a ton of fun speeding through enemies and turning them into monster guts every time. It never got old during my seven-hour playthrough of ys 1 and over ten hours with ys 2. The core gameplay loop of both YS games is straightforward. Talk to NPC's in a village until you find the one that has you assigned with the main quest. This is usually highlighted in blue text. More often than not, it has Adol retrieve an item, person, or defeat the main boss of a dungeon he enters to procure an important item. And repeat. And I had no trouble following these steps. I did scratch my head at what I should do a little in YS II, but it wasn’t a huge pain. Only forgetting I had to equip this item before interacting with a certain place. Or forgetting to talk to another important NPC. These moments were very rare and barely impeded my overall experience. I did use a walkthrough to make sure I didn’t miss anything. Still, the game is fine to be experienced blind or not. You can also do miscellaneous sidequests whenever you gift villagers with an item in YS II. Or follow certain directions the villagers tell Adol to do like gifting them with items or saving a loved one from harm. The first YS I after playing the second felt like a prototype. Dungeons were small. There aren’t a lot of items you can optionally use nor where there are optional weapons or trinkets you can switch anytime. This is understandable considering the first YS game is very short. YS II on the other hand. Takes everything Falcom started with, in Ys I and enhances nearly every aspect. You can move diagonally now to bump enemies. A bit longer dungeons, expanded world-building, continues right after the events from the first game. Includes more weapons, a MAGIC system, awesome music once more, and finishes Adol’s adventures in Esteria with a worthy finale. It does everything right in a sequel and more that I cannot help but compare the two. [h1]Falcom’s Soundtrack Department Nails Mystical Feelings [/h1] The Sound Design What’s cool about the pc version is the ability to play the music from the complete soundtrack, chronicles soundtrack, or the original PC-88 soundtrack. For YS I and YS II, I selected the Chronicles version. And man does Falcom nail the rock department. There is a harmonious balance between the inclusion of drums, bass, and violins which create an electrifying atmosphere that is very difficult not to bop your head on time and time again. It has excellent rhythm where the electric guitars take center stage for some tracks or letting other instruments like percussion or wooden string instruments into the forefront of the music. While the guitars take up the background. There is a good balance of tempo from either game’s soundtrack where I wasn’t bored listening to it again after I had died. I’d say about 15-25% of the rest of the soundtrack in either game consists of jolly upbeat vibes upon visiting a town. Which fits the calming yet vigilant atmosphere the game evokes constantly. The female vocals are also splendid. Creating a mystifying ambiance that is both soothing as well as beautiful to hear. All in all had a blast with Falcom’s soundtrack department, which I didn’t expect to hit so many great highs with few if no lows at all. [h1]The Beginning of Adol’s Adventures [/h1] Final thoughts/Ruminations Graphically, I found both games pretty charming and the remakes certainly hold up quite well. I didn’t experience any bugs or crashes whatsoever during both of my playthroughs. And the pc configurations packaged with both games are solid in my book, offering ample options to players who need to tweak it. The game ran fine on an old laptop I was using, maintaining solid fps throughout. In the end, I enjoyed my time with YS I + II. I was surprised. I didn’t think I would enjoy it all that much coming off my playthrough of YS IX. The graphics hold up. And the ‘bump’ system is endlessly amusing whenever I combat mobs of enemies or bosses alike. And the gameplay loop of talking to NPC's to procure my next main objective to advance the main story. By defeating a boss in a dungeon and repeating the steps. The sequel takes everything the predecessor did and ramps everything up. Which is exactly what a sequel should do. I didn’t feel fatigued during the second YS game because of the unraveling of events that followed from YS I which kept me engaged. The soundtrack is awesome. The various instruments used from guitars, drums, violins, bass are used to great effect with each track different from the last based on rhythm and tempo. No two tracks are the same. The average length of both games is fantastic with just the right amount of side-content for players looking for more. There isn’t a whole lot you learn about Adol himself, but the lore and plot will keep you invested in just what he does that has massive ramifications to both games. As the start of the YS series and Adol’s adventures. YS I + II is an excellent beginning for the franchise Falcom has created. If you’re looking for a short Arpg with an interesting plot and rock-solid music. Look no further than YS I + II Chronicles. Total Times Beaten: 1 Score for YS I: 8/10 Score for YS II: 8.2/10 (Score is based on how much I enjoyed the game) Date Finished: 2/20/21 Date Reviewed: 2/20/21 Date Posted: N/A Date Edited: N/A Hours Played: YS 1: 7+ YS 2: 10+