December 2023
I was kinda indecisive between Ys Origin and Nier: Automata for the showcase (both were really great) but I'm going with Ys Origin.
It was a good origin story to Ys I&II and the only Ys game without Adol. I initially started the game on normal mode with Yunica and I was stuck at one floor and eventually dropped the game. This time I didn't make that mistake and went with very easy. Then, easy mode Hugo and finally normal with "the third character". No name, because spoilers. If you translate normal from Falcomese, that would be hard. Even though it was my third playthrough and it was on normal, it really made me sweat at some points. It can be hard but it's really a fun ARPG. The story is emotional enough and I really love the plot twists on Falcom stories.
Falcom games have really good soundtracks and this was no exception. Brilliant music.
I guess I've waited to finish this way too long. At least one less for the backlog. Also I'm glad I've played all three routes. Even though the core game is same, there were really nice nuance between characters and the story. Definitely worth it. I like Ys and looking forward for the next titles.
It might not look like that but this game is heavy on bullet hell. I’m not good with bullet hells, though I like some of them (still I suck) and I’m able to play some. Luckily Nier: Automata was one of them. It’s generally hack’n’slash and it’s really an exceptional game. It’s never boring (almost). I say almost because for me getting into the game was the hard part. Not that I don’t like it or anything but I felt like something was missing, could be personal.
Like Ys Origin, music was brilliant here too. Very emotional.
After finishing the game and got the true ending, I was decided to go for all the side quests. However I found that kinda confusing and dropped doing it after a few try. I guess I’ll do them if I start over some time later, maybe 10 years later as a nostalgia. Anyway, brilliant sci-fi, nice boss battles, unfolding story and very rememberable characters.
Some say this is the best tower-defense game on Steam. I wouldn’t say the best but it was really good. Even though it’s originally a mobile game and this is a PC-port, it was generally fine with mouse-only. If you like TD, this is a must play I guess.
Weird enough, this was not so different from the older Momodora games. A nice metroidvania with unforgiving enemies, tough boss battles and cute pixel art. I tried a pacifist playthrough but couldn’t got it thanks to a suicidal enemy, I even re-rolled a save file a couple of times but he was always suicidal so I stopped that.
Sacred Gold
12 hours playtime, no achievements# 102
I was going for a nostalgic run and played over 10 hours but I guess some parts of the game didn’t age well, generally fine though, really good for its age. However I started getting under-leveled and I had no patience for grinding. Counting this as “played enough”.
V2 was my favourite Sniper Elite title and it still is. Too bad no one plays multiplayer, TTH (Team Tag Harvest) is one of the most fun multiplayer modes I’ve ever played.
And there is an achievement for shooting Hitler in the balls (didn’t manage).
Ys Origin holds a special place in my heart, especially with its soundtrack. Glad you liked it as well!
Yeah, awesome soundtrack. Falcom knows how to make great games.
I think I played Ys Origin as second game in the series (after Oath in Felghana) and really liked it. And then I was disappointed after playing Ys I & II that Yunica was not mentioned anywhere because she is just added fluff for the prequel. Such a good character T_T Still a good game. Shame they are so brutal to complete though. Curse you boss rush >.<
Yunica indeed is fluff. since her ending is not even canon. :) Though I agree, I liked her play style the most. For me it’s Ys I&II that has a special place but I really liked Ys Origin too. And yeah, if you’re an achievement hunter Falcom games are generally tough. Good thing I’m casual on achievements. I wouldn’t even dare for nightmare boss rush. ^^
Well I got gifted nier and ys origin so looks like I got some interesting games upcoming
Ys Origin is a prequel but I suggest playing Ys I&II before this (if you haven’t already played them), you’ll get a better understanding of the lore this way. Also they’re old-school and have very nice pixel art.
well i also got gifted ys 1 and 2 so yeah Ill be making sure to play that 1st
That’s nice. I really love those games, wish they made more 2D Ys games.