Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana is another great entry in Nihon Falcom’s long running action RPG series, and the first to really feel like a full RPG experience. Fast paced action has always been the core of the Ys experience, but in recent entries the story and characters have received more attention from the developers. Ys VIII is by far the most story driven yet, and it’s better for it.
Ys VIII retains the fast paced combat the series is known for, while learning from the narrative success Falcom’s had with their Trails series of turn based JRPGs. I finished Ys VIII at 59 hours, and that’s not 100% completion. Average completion times online are 70+ hours. Compared to the 12 hours I spent finishing Ys Books 1&2 or 10 hours for Oath in Felghana, I’d say there’s a lot more to experience in Ys VIII.
The game takes place on the Isle of Seiren after our main character Adol is shipwrecked. Anybody familiar with the series will know this isn’t his first time waking up on the shores of a mysterious land. Thankfully Ys is very newcomer friendly, never leaning heavily into series lore or character background. Any player can dive right in and have fun, while getting a complete narrative experience.
Exploring the island and fighting its monstrous inhabitant’s is the basic game play loop. Controlling Adol is breeze. Directional controls are fluid, with responsive jump and dodge mechanics. Attacking is a single button press, which works perfectly well for basic enemies, but the real fun comes with the Special Moves.
Adol can have three special moves active on at a time, and as he levels up he’ll learn far more than three moves. Which moves you keep active depends on personal taste and strategy. Whether you prefer an aggressive offense or defensive play style, you’ll find a set of moves that compliment your approach. You can then level up those moves to make them more powerful.
You’ll also be leveling your armor, weapons and accessories. This is an RPG after all. As you explore the island, Adol will encounter stronger creatures that require different moves to defeat. Some of them may be impossible for him to defeat alone, and that’s where Ys VIII really shines. Joining Adol in his fights are a number of castaways, with fighting styles of their own. Laxia and Sahad are the first castaways to fight alongside you.
Each characters can be swapped between with a quick button press. When not in use, any character in your three person party is AI controlled, and the AI does a great job of effectively attacking. If you feel like it’s not helping, you can quickly switch from offense to defense, but I never found a need to pull them back from attacking. The AI really is solid.
Adol slashes through soft bodies, Laxia pierces flying enemies, and Sahad smashes hard shell creatures. Match the fighting style to the right enemy and you’ll deal maximum damage. Hit for max damage enough and you’ll “break” the enemy, making all attack styles more effective. This system’s a great encouragement to switch between the characters.
If you find you don’t like how any one of the main trio play, you’ll have options as another member of each fighting style joins the group. By the game’s end I found myself favouring an all female team, who move quicker than their male counterparts. Work out whichever combinations work best for you, but I recommend keeping them all leveled equally. You can swap characters in and out of your playable trio at will, and having them all equal in strength can make the difference between escaping a total party kill. There was more than a few battles I rushed into, lost two playable characters, and switched to a fully healed party just to run away…not the best approach, but I’m impulsive when playing games.
One place where combat struggles to engage is during boss fights. Traditionally these are the highlight of any Ys games. Ys VIII’s bosses come close to the series standard, but one aspect knock them low. Attack patterns are varied, requiring fast reflexes and attention to detail. This has created amazing bosses in Ys past, but here they become tiresome as fights drag on too long. Every boss is a damage sponge, with battles lasting 5-10 minutes. Cutting health bars by half would lead to intense focused fights that excite instead of bore. Oath in Felghana’s bosses were deadly, but over quickly.
Outside of combat, there’s exploration to consider. Traversing the map of Seiren records a percentage explored for each area. Anybody who needs to 100% a game will be kept plenty busy covering every inch of land, finding every hidden item, and locating all the shipwrecked castaways scattered across the island. There’s a lot to discover from a pure gameplay perspective.
Complementing the gameplay is a narrative designed to encourage that exploration. The basic setup of being on a mysterious island and needing to survive explains why you’d be exploring a dangerous place full of monsters. You have no choice. It’s a matter of survival at first, but throughout the game you’ll uncover the mysterious history of the island. Nothing in the plot is especially unique or creative, but it’s a solid story that never falls flat throughout the 60 hour game.
Bolstering the story are the characters, which is where Ys VIII really shines. Laxia is a book smart noble woman who slowly learns to open up and befriend those around her. Sahad is a good humored fisherman, with a refreshing lack of self-consciousness. Joining the party later in the game are Hummel and Ricotta. Hummel’s the quiet cool type who takes his job very seriously, even while stranded on a deserted island. Ricotta’s a curious and emotionally open child who has lived her whole life on the island. She also happens to be one of the team’s strongest members. Adol’s the typical silent JRPG protagonist, strong and noble in the classic hero manner.
None of these characters are particularly complex or unique. There’s more castaway’s you’ll come to know, and they all fit the same comfortable storytelling formula the others do. What Ys VIII lacks in originality, it makes up for in using standard characters well and diving into them. The game stops to allow the characters to share how they feel about story developments and each other. These quite moments of reflection set these characters apart from the rest of the Ys series. Sahad’s fear at never seeing his family again and Ricotta’s longing for a full family of her own were equally important to keeping me invested in Ys VIII as the mystery of Seiren.
This is as good a place as any to address the translation of Ys VIII from Japanese to English. Handled by NISA, when the game launched in North America the translation had technical and artistic problems. Overall reaction was poor, and rightfully so. Thankfully, anybody picking up the game now will get the patched version with an improved translation. I had zero problems with the writing and voice acting. It’s not the best, but its a solid effort. I was able to enjoy the character moments without and plot points without bad translation pulling me from the experience.
Seiren is a beautiful location to spend 50+ hours exploring. The visual design is top notch. Divided into multiple sections with their own distinct vegetation, you’ll never grow tired of seeing the same thing over and over. This can be a real concern with a tropical island setting. Tomb Raider (2013) suffered from this problem, with areas blending together. By keeping the map sectioned, and visually different, players will always know where they are.
Character designs are equally strong. A basic element of character design is a unique silhouette. Can you tell characters apart when only their outline is visible? Every playable character team can be distinguished by their silhouette. Bright colours and patterns engage the eyes, but avoid going overboard. Its anime styled, but thankfully avoids exaggerated extremes of some games. I’m looking at you Xenoblade Chronicles 2.
Complimenting the beautiful island visuals is an equally lovely soundtrack. Sunshine Coast is particular memorable, and the opening theme perfectly representing the mysterious nature of the Isle of Seiren. Battles are accompanied by rock tracks that don’t quite hit a series high, but that’s an insanely high bar to achieve.
I could keep gushing over Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana, but I won’t. I’ve talked enough. Next time you’re looking for a new game to play, pick this one up. Support an independent game developer who created an amazing sequel that stands as one of the best in its genre. Nihon Falcom absolutely nailed it with Ys VIII and you’ll love it.