Ys Book I and II (1990 Video Game) User Reviews

I'll try to be objective, but this game really shines for me

[zodreb · 9/10 · 4 February 2007]

My problem is this is the first video game RPG I've ever played. See, that's a huge bias with me because it totally blew me away. I borrowed a TurboGrafx 16 with a CD player and a ton of games for a week in high school and the whole experience totally excited me. This system was not popular, so me and my few friends were probably the only kids in the entire school who even saw it. This is back in the days of SNES and Genesis, 16-bit gaming. Back then, there was no such thing (to console gamers) as voice in video games or CD quality music.

So enter the Turbo CD games. It was expensive so no one had it. It had tons of anime games but nobody knew what anime was back then! Can you kids imagine? I had never seen a narrated intro anime movie (movie!!) for a video game. That didn't exist back then. There were cut-scenes with graphics and text on the SNES and Genesis, but not animated with orchestrated music and with a real narrator. This game was years beyond what I expected to see video games do and only a few of us saw it, the few people who had TurboGrafx.

Combine that crazy stuff with the fact that this was my first RPG makes it amazing to me. Also be aware that I was a huge cartoon and anime geek at the time, and the fact that well-known voice actors from all my favorite cartoons were in this game almost made me die of happiness. See, these hobbies are very acceptable and popular now, but back then nobody knew about them and certainly didn't think it was cool.

So I'll try to rate this game looking back at it without letting too much of my feelings mess with it. Although it's bound to happen, so don't hold your breath.

The game has a perfect difficulty. You don't have to spend too much time leveling up but you do have to do a little. However, the exploring you do while you are trying to figure out how to get through the game will level you up at a nice pace. This game also has quite a wonderful atmosphere. The incredible music definitely sets the tone brilliantly, but also the story and environments certainly take you away. The game play is great. It's an accelerated RPG, which means instead of wasting your time with random encounters and battle screens, you simply run your character into the enemies and the game immediately takes into account your stats and the angle in which you approached the enemy and reacts accordingly with damage. So if you're the impatient type like me it's a great game. It's a nice long game, it took me a week to get through playing after school for about 3-5 hours a night. It might be too short for you if you have lots of time on your hands. There's a reason EGM magazine gave this game a perfect 10 score when it was released. It's a tight game in most respects.

Playing it now, you'd probably think it was just a 16 bit game with awesome music, and you'd be right. It is fairly straightforward, no real side quests and linear, but that's how games were back then. You also might think the cut-scene animations are primitive, but again, that was the technology back then. You have to remember that full screen images of people on screen and talking were literally something no console gamer ever saw before. Also, this is one of those 'main character doesn't talk or have any emotions' type games, which were extremely popular back then. The idea was for you the gamer to take the full brunt of the emotions and situations presented to you (kind of like some first person shooters like Half-Life) and the character on screen was just an extension of you, instead of you controlling a person on an adventure who you may or may not agree with. This game pulls it off nicely, although there is still a bit of disconnection, especially now with games being so complex.

Anyway, if you consider yourself a gaming nut and you think you need to know and play all old legendary games to make yourself an expert in the history of gaming, this is a must-play. Play it alongside the popular SNES and Genesis games released in 1991 and see for yourself why all the people (look at all the comments here in IMDb so far) get all teary-eyed when they think back about it. That's the only way to see what people were seeing and expecting of video games and how far the Turbografx and Y's were beyond those expectations. It really was an amazing experience for us

A precedent setting role playing game.

[eMTeePeeCestMe · 4 November 1999]

"Ys Book I & II" in many ways is your standard RPG (Role-Playing Game) about a boy who would be hero (Adol), out to destroy the "great ancient evil" (Dark Fact) which has blighted his homeland for generations from atop Darm Tower. The story is as strait forward a cliché as it sounds and the graphics are standard late 80's simplicity, but as one of the earliest CD-ROM games it blazed some brilliant new trails in its use of fill in cinematic story telling and true voice narrations. It also shocks the first time player with the revelation that just when you think it's over, that's only "Book I". In a stylish revolution stolen by every "Zelda" game since, the first challenge (Book I) is followed immediately by a longer, harder challenge (Book II).

One of the, it not the, greatest RPG ever created

[breathfire · 10/10 · 8 September 2000]

Mere words cannot describe a game with such a great story. Tears of nostalgia come to my eyes, whenever I hear the opening song, or any song for that matter. It's unfortunate, that America has never really expierienced this game, because, the Turbo Grafx, although the BEST system of the 3 16-bitters, didn't generate enough popularity. But, this game, is worth buying a Turbo for it! There are ofcoarse loads of other great games, but, this is deffinitly one of the masterpieces! I highly recomend it.

Perfection

[doc_brown · 10/10 · 8 December 1999]

The first time I popped Ys Book I & II into my Turbo Duo, I knew I was in for the greatest videogame experience of my life.

I had never played a CD-ROM game before, so I was completely amazed when I heard an actual narrator (Alan Oppenheimer) telling me the story of a hopeless world oppressed by evil forces. The complete awe I felt watching the introduction never once dimmed as I made my way through the adventure.

The story may sound like countless others you've heard in you life, but Ys tells it with so much quality. A young man, Adol Christin, must gather the books of Ys in order to bring down the megalomaniac, Dark Fact (beautifully voiced by veteran cartoon man, Michael Bell). Once he recovers the books, Adol is then transported to the land of Ys where he must face the most powerful and frightening of foes - Boss Darm.

Without giving the entire story away, I must say that Ys presents one of the most sweeping adventures of all time; this includes movies, books and radio. I was absolutely mesmerized as I made my way through this enormous quest, never once wanting to put the controller down. When I finally beat the game, I was left speechless. The ending was moving and uplifting all at once. The game beautifully wrapped everything the player experienced throughout the adventure into an unforgettable denouement.

I can't begin to say how much this game moved me. It developed the characters into people you cared about, it swept you through a land filled with challenge and excitement, and at the end, it made you beg on your hands and knees for more. This is by far the greatest game I have ever played, and I can safely say that no game since has touched me the way this one has. The music and voice acting are second to none, and although the graphics appear dated, they still retain much of their charm to this day. If you love RPGs, videogames, or love epic tales, then by any means necessary, dig up a Turbo Grafx CD player and this disc. You will never look at videogames the same way again.

A trailblazer for a cinematic games to come

[jpvarga5 · 10/10 · 26 August 2008]

Some of you may have played the original Ys on the Sega Master System, or Ys 3 on the Genesis, SNES, or The Ark of Napishtim on the PS2, PSP (technically the 6th in the series), but the best - and sadly underplayed - release in the West was Ys Book I & II on the first console to use a CD-ROM - the TurboGrafx-16/CD. Ys originally appeared as a 2 part/2 game story for Japanese PC back in the 80s. The game itself is actually a remake of those first two Ys games merged into one narrative (it works well, since the first game basically ends "to be continued") While at its heart, the game is basically a Zelda-style game, what set this particular version apart was its groundbreaking presentation.

Strange as it sounds, what defines Ys more then anything is the music, but not because the rest of it isn't up to par - the music actually enhances the whole experience - it TELLS the game's story and gives the whole quest this evocative quality. Perhaps it was the shock of going from NES music to REAL music that made such an impression on me, but even many latter-day J-RPG soundtracks don't even compare (as good as the compositions in Final Fantasy VII are, for example, the sound quality still sounds like a goofy wavetable set for Sound Blaster 16 by comparison). The only music in Ys that could be called "ordinary" would be the town music. To fit both games on one CD-ROM, the designers opted to give the towns standard TG synth music. It actually works well, strangely, enough, since you feel safe when you are not being bombarded with violins and electric guitars. The original music was composed by Yuzo Koshiro, of Actraiser and Streets of Rage fame. His original compositions were re-arranged for this version, but you can still hear his style in the pieces. Ys music is so popular in Japan, that the amount of arranged soundtracks and OSTs for the games easily rivals Final Fantasy's catalog.

On top of the epic music, you get a voice cast consisting of Alan Oppenheimer, Jim Cummings, and Michael Bell - all of whom have done voice acting for countless cartoons, video games, and movies (He-Man, Neverending Story, Lost Odyssey, you name it) - and even Thomas Haden Church (Sideways, Spider-Man 3). Story-wise, don't expect the bloated philosophical pondering of Xenogears, but it does go beyond the standard kill-the-evil-demon plot. You essentially play part hero/part archaeologist as you investigate the legends surrounding an Atlantis-esqe civilization known as Ys (pronounced "ease"). The "uncovering" part actually gives the game some of its mystique (captured greatly by the music as well) since you feel like you are doing much more then simply killing a bad guy.

The only part of the game that might considered detracting to some is the combat system. It's real-time like Zelda, but what sets apart is its lack of an attack button. Basically, you equip a sword and you literally ram into the enemies. Depending on the your stats, equipment, and the angle of attack, you will either damage the enemy and send it reeling back or it will do the same to you. While I've noticed its been an initial turn-off to some gamers since we're all weened to strike our sword with an attack button, it actually feels very succinct and intuitive once you get used to it. The boss battles usually require trickier strategies and you'll eventually be introduced to magic attacks, but the combat system is rather unique. The actual in-game graphics stray somewhere between 8-bit and 16-bit. They're effective and do the job, but I get the impression the designers let the cut-scenes and music "tell the story". Its effective in that it you really don't "notice" the in-game graphics being rather mundane.

To those who have never played Ys in 1990 and were to do so now, I imagine it may not instill the same amount of awe and wonder that it did for a 12 year old gamer just weened off of the NES. Even the series' contemporary remakes and sequels can only add so much more polish to a formula that looks pretty run-of-the-mill by today's standards. However, to those who download it, I think most can appreciate that it represented something unique back in 1990, at least. Today's games may have pushed cinematic quality and narration far beyond Ys, but when I experienced this game for the first time, it was a shocking revelation. It was a fortune-teller showing me that games would soon no longer consist of contrived settings and mindless hand-eye coordination tests. You could convey emotion and grandeur in a video game on a level every bit as good as cinema. To me, many aspects of modern games - certainly Japanese games - owe a debt paved by Ys on the Turbo. Seeing it re-emerge after so many years of obscurity has really helped me appreciate what it showed me all those years ago.

(Small Note: One reviewer mentioned that "Book II" is actually a more challenging version of "Book I". This incorrect. II is a direct sequel to I.)

The greatest video game you will ever encounter...

[Keranu · 15 September 2003]

How can I start off about this wonderful game by Falcom for the Turbo Grafx 16 CD-ROM system (Or "Turbo Duo")? Well, I can certainly and easily say that it's my favorite game of all time and that I have never played a game that has grabbed me into it's own world before. There are many other great games in the world, but they are nothing to this true masterpiece.

The story is a big part of this game; it's very deep and mysterious, as you progress through the game, it slowly unravels and you find out more and more. The story takes place in a land called "Esteria", a land where all of a sudden, evil demons start attacking the land and disturbing the peaceful villages and people of this land. A young, red-headed swordsman comes to the land to find out the mystery of why the demons are attacking the people of Esteria and starts to learn a whole lot more about demons in this mystery. Legend says there was once a peaceful country called "Ys" that was located on Esteria and one day just simply vanished. It was ruled by two beautiful goddesses and six wise priests. The six priests wrote their thoughts into their own books, which you have to discovery to find out what they are trying to tell you, brave swordsman, of what is happening to Esteria and this very intriguing land of Ys.

You will meet multiple characters in this epic adventure, some are friends, and some are fiends. Some characters you will meet are Sarah - a young psychic teller that helps you with your discoveries of Ys, Goban - a tough thief that will guide you to your way around Esteria, Jeva - an old woman who knows a bit about the land of Ys and can read the books of Ys for you, and Feena - a young lady who seems to have forgotten her memory and stays at Jeva's house until she can remember. I won't talk about other characters because I don't want to spoil anything and want you to encounter them yourself.

The graphics for this game are decent, it is an old game and the first RPG on CD. It was made in 1989 in Japan and brought to the US in 1990 (Though there are many other versions of this game since it is very big in Japan and started in 1987). The sprites are small and have some-what nice animation to them, but the backgrounds in the game can be very detailed and look really nice.

The cinematic's in the game may look dated today, but they were really nice for back in 1989! There is a lot of color in them and the artwork is well detailed. There isn't a whole lot of animation to it, but give it some credit here! Some scenes, however, are nicely animated, like the opening for Ys II. As soon as you turn on the game, you have a opening cinema that gives you a little information about "Ys" by a narrator. This isn't suppose to really be animated, it's talking to you, so it's just some scrolling artwork, looks really nice. Once you start a game, a new cinema comes up with some nice, fast-beat music and some action. While this is going, it gives you the cast of all the characters, which may look strange at first, but it will mean so much to you once you have beaten the game. There are two other cinemas in the game, but I won't discuss them because they contain spoilers. I WILL say however, there is a nice little treat on the credit role.

The gameplay for this game is a highly talked about argument in the fans of Ys; you either love it or hate it. Ys in as action-RPG, where instead of going into a new screen and using a "turned-based" system, you use a "real-time" system, where you really fight them. In most action-RPGs, you press a button to attack, for Ys and a lot of other Falcom RPGs, there is no attack button. Instead, you simply run into the enemies. Sure this may seem a little lame to you, but it's actually quite good and you might prefer it over the fancy battle systems. When I first played the game, I didn't know how to play because of this, when I found out, I thought it was a bit stupid. But as I played through the game, I learned to love it! You see when leveling up, you need to tire your fingers by tapping the button, in Ys you can relax away! It may sound simple, but there is a lot to it; you have to hit the enemies at certain angles if you want to kill them more efficiently, running right into them might not be the best thing to do if you are not ready for them and/or not leveled up. Also if there is an advance enemy that you would care fighting, you may want to quickly run into it and back and repeat the process. If the enemy seems to hard for you, you can immediately run away, which is very useful.

The menus for this game are small and nice. It doesn't take a genius to equip weapons in this game like some of those advance RPGs, all you need to do is scroll over to the weapon or armor you want and that's it! You don't need to see if it's better than your old weapons and armor (unless you really want to), because they are all in a line - the weapons more to the right, the better. You can't sell weapons however, but it's nice to see that you have all the weapons and armor at the end.

The music in this game is just.... unbelievable! You will always hear people saying how great the music is in the "Final Fantasy" series, but after playing Ys, Final Fantasy music will just seem flat-out BORING! You see, Final Fantasy lacks variety, it mainly consists of the dramatic music which can be boring to hear over-and-over. In Ys, however, the music is perfect! It fits the scenes so well - the music can average from slow and peaceful for the towns, to fast-beat and explosive for bosses and big dungeons! This soundtrack will guarantee to not upset you, it's very well done! In fact, Ys was so big in Japan, that Falcom had their own band called "JDK Band" which had live concerts and music videos in Japan which were pretty big! Also if you go to online video game music stores, you will notice there is a lot of different soundtracks for Ys and other fine Falcom games. The Ys series easily has the best soundtracks of all time!!

The sound effects in the game aren't too much though, just basic "chings", "tips", and "tings", but they aren't bad, they just don't stand out compared to other games with fine sound effects like "Metal Slug".

If you have a Turbo Duo or Turbo Grafx 16 CD ROM system, I highly recommend this game. If you don't, I highly recommend you buy a Turbo Duo and this game, because it's definitely worth it, along with other fine games for the system. Trust me, you will be pleased when you play the game all the way through and look back at everything, it's truly breath taking to see a game that was first made in 1987 could be this advance. Maybe you too will consider it the greatest game ever made like many others who have played the game.

By far one of the best RPGs out there. Dragon Slayer, Alundra, and Vagrant Story.

[brainwarp · 27 October 2005]

I loved Y's 1, 2, 3, 4 on the Turbo Duo (PC Engine in Japan) by NEC. Y's 4 was all Japanese though, so never completed it. Y's 1&2 were by far the best of the Y's series. 4 was more like 1&2, but all Japanese, so was hard to play and enjoy as much. I know there is a Y's for the PS2 now and I really want to try it.

Dragon Slayer is also another awesome RPG on the Turbo Duo.

Playstation 1's Alundra (not Aludra 2 though) and Vagrant Story are two more awesome RPGs.

I have yet to find an RPG that I can say really stands out on the PS2. Final Fantasy lost me with FF7 and up. Though I mostly liked FF1-4 If anyone knows of any great RPGs for the PS2, I may check them out. But so far I haven't really enjoyed any of them. Hated "Kingdom hearts", ICO was too slow.

Really, I think the only 3D RPG I have really liked so far is Vagrant Story on the PS1.