So recently Nintendo held a pretty big E-Shop sale, and I decided to bite the bullet on a bunch of games I've wanted to try, and it was a pretty stellar batch. I finally got to check out some of Supergiant's games, I played my first Studio Pixel game in the expertly crafted Kero Blaster, and I was very pleasantly surprised by DKC homage Kaze And The Wild Masks for how it iterated and at times even improved one some of my favorite platformers from the 16-bit era. But one game in particular really stuck with me, a game that I wasn't expecting to love nearly as much as I did. That game is Ys Origin.
Ys as a whole had been on my radar for quite some time, particularly the games known as the "Napishtim engine games". Trails In The Sky is one of my all-time favorite games for its characters, writing, scope, sidequests soundtrack, and unique visual style, so to learn that there were some fast-paced action RPGs using that same engine intrigued me to no end. Ys Origin was the only one of those games on the Switch, but I heard good things so I decided to give it a shot, and I was not prepared for how good this was.
Ys Origin is like if you took Threads Of Fate, sped up the combat to ridiculous degrees, and shoved it all inside a Zelda dungeon. The main premise is that you choose between two characters, Yunica or Hugo, to scale the tall Darm Tower to locate two goddesses that have suddenly disappeared. Both characters have entirely different playstyles and parallel character arcs and stories that intersect frequently, and you gotta play both to get the full narrative (and also unlock the hidden third character with the actual canon path). Ys Origin is meant to be a prequel to the first two Ys games so I'm probably missing a bit of context (though I did do my research, don't worry), but the lore is still fascinating and the main character arcs stand on their own even for a newcomer. Falcom really has a gift at crafting memorable characters you can't help but get attached to, with the highlights including the mysterious The Claw, the very Estelle-esque Yunica (and I mean that in a good way), and the snarky Epona. My favorite characters though have to be the two goddesses Feena and Reah, who I can only describe as convincingly angelic, both in their designs and their kind and selfless personalities.
The gameplay is the real star of the show, though. Ys Origin is pretty much just non-stop hack-and-slash combat with some light sprinkles of platforming here and there. Once you get going, the pacing remains pretty relentless from start to finish, and the game's systems encourage you to be as speedy as possible. There's a combo that multiplies how much XP you get from foes and brief status upgrades to keep you moving, and between items you get from exploring the tower, leveling up, and buying divine blessings, it feels like you keep getting powerful at a consistently speedy rate. And it all plays like a dream. Combat is fast, fluid, and responsive, and the bright flash of enemy attacks make the game surprisingly comprehensible despite its speed. The combat is so fun that I actually went out of my way to grind just to see how long I can maintain the XP combo. If you can get me to enjoy grinding, that's how you know you're doing something very right. The highlight, however, is absolutely the boss fights, which are pretty much phenomenal across the board. From giant monsters to tense one-on-ones, Ys Origin's boss fights are numerous, varied, and incredibly tough, with some bordering on bullet hell. However, they're also all fair, and the game respawning you right at the start of the battle when you die softens the blow for when you inevitably bite the dust. There isn't a single dud in the bunch, this is one of the best boss lineups I've seen in a video game.
It's not just the combat that's great though, simply navigating your way through Darm Tower is a blast in itself. As I said, it's basically like one lengthy Zelda dungeon filled with branching paths, environmental puzzles, and even some light metroidvania elements. You'd think that this would get old after a few hours but no, not really. The level design remains varied and strong throughout, and each major part of the tower being basically like a different biome keeping things fresh. So there's a desert area, a fire area, and a water area that is genuinely really fun. Seriously, this might be one of the best water levels I've played possibly ever? Despite having underwater segments, swimming is just as fast-paced and fun to control as the rest of the game. I also need to praise the presentation of Ys Origin because it elevates this game for me. I've seen some say the game doesn't look too great anymore, but as someone who's always loved the that engine Falcom used in the 2000s for the early Trails and Naphistim Ys games, I think the art direction holds up remarkably well. Its a very 2006 game, with a gritty vibe that brings to mind Twilight Princess (whose artstyle I'll also defend in a heartbeat). The interiors of Darm Tower are so detailed and beautifully ornate, and those grim vistas whenever you walk out onto a balcony are brilliantly haunting. Like, just look at it...
And that's not even getting into the hand drawn stuff! Every character has a bunch of 2D portraits that all look great, and the official art used for menus and promotional material goes so incredibly hard.
As a whole, Ys Origin is just the sort of game that really vibes with me and me specifically. It kind of hits on everything I want in a video game. It's got a great story with strong characters and interesting lore, fast-paced and fun-as-hell combat with a rewarding and addicting feedback loop, strong navigation-based level design that blends enjoyable puzzles with fun platforming, phenomenal boss fights that are tough but fair, a striking aesthetic and gripping sense of atmosphere, a top-notch Falcom soundtrack, and lots of replay value in its multiple characters. It's easily one of the finest ARPGs I've ever played, and is quickly becoming one of my favorite games period. What an absolute gem.
5/5 Stars
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