
Nihon Falcom's longest-running series, Ys, celebrated its 35th anniversary yesterday, and fans of red-headed adventurer Adol are eagerly awaiting his next big journey — probably with a shipwreck or two in his wake.
And in this week's issue of Famitsu, Falcom president Toshiro Kondo has shared some pretty gorgeous-looking key art from the next Ys title — presumably Ys X — which we've embedded at the top here. We can see Adol on the left here, but on the right, there's a blonde-haired woman wielding an axe and shield. Is this an Ys Origin reference?
As well as this lovely art, Kondo has also shared a few tidbits from the next game. These details have been shared by reliable Japanese insider and reporter ryokutya2089, translated on Twitter by @Hansuke21, and reported on by Noisy Pixel.
ryokutya2089 states on his blog that:
- Adol looks like a young boy, around the age of Ys I & II.
- “A woman who looks to be the main heroine is shown. Uses a one-handed ax. Their arms are connected by an aura-shaped string/cord.”
- 1 versus 1 combat is a focus, with huge changes to the party member switching mechanic and weapon attributes. Personally, this seems akin to Ys VI, though it isn’t entirely certain yet.
- Souls-like inspirations are stated, but not overt.
@RyujiBlades has also translated the points from the Famitsu interview for Noisy Pixel, which goes into a little bit more detail and corroborates what ryokutya2089 has said. We've grabbed the details on the new Ys title exclusively, but Kondo does also confirm his favourite Ys character and the fact that Dark fact — the difficult boss from Ys I took him a very long time to beat
- Mentions an emphasis on providing new gameplay, as well as new scenarios, actions, and systems.
- The title will take place in Eresia, though the writer of the Famitsu article paints this as speculation.
- Kondo emphasizes that Ys X is not a full-on Souls-like, as there is simply inspiration taken from the genre
- Kondo recommends any Ys game for newcomers. Later games like Ys VIII and IX are explicitly stated and shouldn’t be intimidating because they’re standalone.
- Ys X’s story will not be centered around the Romun Empire
- The Party Member system where you change characters and weapon attributes (Slash, Pierce & Strike) at will has received major changes, though it hasn’t yet been elaborated how
- Kondo heavily implies a multiplatform release.
- Adol will be around 17 years old, his age during Ys 1 & 2
Changes to the party system — which has been in place since Ys Seven — alongside some Soulslike inspirations sounds like a bit of a change-up for the series, which has already seen several changes over the years. We'll have to wait and see what else Kondo has to share about the upcoming game, and whether this is really, actually, the next numbered Ys game.
The last Ys game to launch was 2021's Ys IX: Monstrum Nox, which came to the Switch last summer nearly two years after its Japanese release.
Kondo has recently gone on record stating that he wishes to bring more Ys and Trails titles to modern platforms, and this is something he reconfirmed during the Famitsu interview.
- Further reading: Ys And Trails Developer Plans To Release More Retro Titles On Switch
How do you feel about potential Soulslike elements being introduced into the Ys series? Let us know in the comments.
[source noisypixel.net]
Comments (24)
Honestly, Ys VII got me on board for the series. I just hope Falcom has had enough humble pie to continue supporting Nintendo systems.
Ys IX really doesn't feel like a standalone game to me, and I've tried to play it several times now before stopping because it just didn't grab me the way Ys VIII did. Maybe I'll feel differently after I've gone back and played the other games in the series, though.
...and for crying out loud, PLEASE don't double down on the Soulslike elements. The only thing worse than that would be if they decided to make it open world...
I like the subtle X reference the slashes make. Ys X.
And all primal colors being present.
@moodycat agreed. Do not make it souls or roguelike please.
Still need to play IX. Got into it with VIII (on Switch) which I thought was great, and then went back & played Seven & Memories of Celceta (on Steam) which I liked as well but not quite as much.
no please, not a soulslike
I've only played the Ys games available on the Nintendo switch, but I love all three of them dearly.
This article is giving me flashbacks to the original screens shared of Ys 9 in 2018/2019 and my knowing that it would be 3 years before I got to play it lol. I hope I am wrong, but would take any number of ports in the meantime!!!!
I'm somewhat hopeful this will end up on a Nintendo system after VIII and IX, among others.
@moodycat I'm assuming by souls-like they mean to include elements like high risk/reward, challenging fights, and no-nonsense combat. Souls games didn't become truly open world until Elden Ring. The prior games were very, very focused experiences, especially Demon's Souls.
"inspired by soulslikes"
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
I've picked up a few of these games and liked what little I played of VIII, so I was interested when I saw a tease for X... although the news that they're drawing inspiration from Dark Souls is certainly one way to make me less interested. I hope they don't go too heavy on it, I like a good challenge but all of the Souls-inspired games seem like way too much to me. If people enjoy them, more power to them, but the first Dark Souls is the only one to catch even the tiniest bit of interest from me and I've been questioning that one lately as well.
It might be just me, but I feel like the Ys series has very “floaty” combat. This could help bring some weight and focus to the battles, and I kind of wouldn’t mind. Oddly, a lot of souls-like feel a bit too heavy for me in combat. Just picky personal preference. I think a balance would be perfect.
Absolutely dig the art style in these games though.
Fast, frenetic combat has been part of the identity of Ys since it first started in the 80s. I'll wait for footage, but this sounds like a terrible change. There are more than enough Souls-inspired games out there as is.
If (console of choice has lots of souls-like games), comment = "Hooray! I am happy that the next Ys game is a souls-like!".
Else, comment = "Oh no! Not a souls-like!"
VIII was great fun! IX didn’t win me over with the gothic/vampire aesthetic.. I’m ready to be won over with this one!
@BloodNinja Those are all the elements that the Ys series definitely does not need as far as I'm concerned: if you want to experience any of that, there's Nightmare/Inferno Mode. It doesn't need to be incorporated into the game any further on lower difficulty settings.
I'd also put forward the point that given how disgustingly linear the last third of the game is, Elden Ring doesn't really qualify as a fully open world Soulslike either.
@moodycat Which point did the game begin to feel linear?
@BloodNinja Once you hit Crumbling Farum Azula it's basically a back-to-back boss gauntlet.
There's a frustrating plateau of strength at that point in the game that completely contradicts the rest of the game I think. Prior to that point, if you came across a boss you couldn't beat, you could explore and improve your stats and gear to overcome it. Once you hit that point, though? Nothing you do can really improve your chances, it's back to the linear Soulsborne formula of bashing your head against the same foes over and over until you "git gud" and can move past it.
...I'm extremely bitter about it honestly, because up to that point I loved Elden Ring, and I didn't welcome this return to that structure of gameplay. It just didn't fit the game.
As not a soulslike but a Monster Hunter fan, and a great Ys Fan, as well as a fan of the character design on the concept art, I am VEEEEERY excited for this game!
More one on one sounds like a dream. I always enjoyed the duel bossfights in the series. If this game doesn't mess up what Ys is all about, while also bringing those teased additions and not completely messing them up, this might very well shake up my "Favoutire Games of all Time" list.
@moodycat Man, that part of the game was breath taking for me. I acknowledge your feelings on the matter, since that last boss gauntlet is pretty fearsome. I did wish that there was only a single boss after Maliketh for the main story line. It’s very exhausting (depending on build/gear) fighting from Godfrey to the last boss. And I’ve been playing these games since Demon’s Souls, so I get you.
@BloodNinja I'm not saying it was badly designed in itself or anything - other than the final boss, that is the worst thing I have seen in a Souls game since Flamelurker and it shouldn't have existed at all when the fight before it was just the perfect end battle - just that it was a very poor fit for what had previously been a very open and enjoyable experience. It just...invalidated all progress made prior to that point. It would have been fine in any other Souls game, just not Elden Ring.
I really would hate to see something like that as the default in a Ys title, because it's one of the few franchises where the action combat is balanced perfectly between difficulties. With Flash Guard/Move being a thing and Nightmare/Inferno enemies all being much more intelligent on top of the boosted stats, there really isn't any need for Soulslike elements. The Ys games definitely benefit from their smaller world design too, thanks to the extensive compendium that encourages exploration and completion in and of itself.
I just...don't know what they're driving at with this. It feels like a buzzword designed to generate interest - and I thought Ys VIII and IX both did fairly well? - or a very, very bad decision in the making to change up something that doesn't need to be changed.
@moodycat Interesting take! You clearly like Ys as a series more than I do! I appreciate the music much more than the games themselves.
@BloodNinja I've only played I, Origins, Memories of Celceta, VIII, and IX so far, but now that I have my Steam Deck I plan on going through them all in order! The music is definitely a big part of why I like them, haha. I'm very audio-centric when it comes to games at times and I'm drawn to stuff like this.
@moodycat Yep, same here, though for me the game also has to hold up. I only ever played some of 3 and some of 7. Kept hitting a wall with them about halfway so I stopped following the series other than for it's music. Truth be told, running Ys music while playing souls games is a fantastic time
If people here haven't played "Ys III: Oath in Felghana", then you're doing it wrong That's the first one I played on PSP and I loved it.
I've played Seven on PSP too, but never got round to playing any of the others, too many games on my backlog still
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