Ys I&II to DS

[Lard]

Thanks to a Gamestop leak we know Atlus is working on the Nintendo DS Ys remakes. And when Atlus is done we’re not going to have to buy each game separately. Atlus is bundling the two games together to make Legacy of Ys: Books I & II, just like the classic TurboDuo release. However, this version of Ys I & II has been upgraded with 3D graphics, a multiplayer mode, and a brand new translation. Also, Adol uses his sword instead of tackling monsters. Fantastic.

We’ll wait for an official confirmation for an exact release date, but it looks like Legacy of Ys Books I & II is on track for a release in early 2009. Here are some early screenshots of Atlus’ “ultimate” translation.

http://www.siliconera.com/2008/10/22/atlus-brings-ys-i-ii-back-together-for-north-america/

[D-Rider]

Bah, it just looks like a port of Ys Eternal.  Good for those who haven't played it, bad for those of us who paid way too much money to import the PC version. :P

[Shiguma]

If this wasn't a near-direct port of Ys Eternal and Ys II Eternal (which were released ~8 years ago, mind you) I might be excited. 

[GrimReality]

What about the music? No way a DS can belt it out like the originals. I'm still interested in this, though. What was Y's Eternal released for anyway? If it never came to America why are you guys complaining? Is the game no good?

[Hidoshi]

Guys.

GUYS.

Adol Christian uses a sword.

That is ALL that matters.

[Dincrest]

I too like the sword over the tackling (man I hated the tackling).  As long as the controls are drum tight and not loose or slippery in any way, it's all good.  And this holds true for ANY action RPG.

And the first thing I thought of was what Grimmy thought- how will the audio fare?  Hopefully it'll at least be passable with headphones.  But there's no way a DS soundchip can recreate the CD quality audio that the Turbo Duo did. 

Grim, I think the Ys Eternal games were released on the PC.  I know Oath of Felghana (the superior remake of Ys 3) was. 

[Ryos]

Omg.  Well, seeing as how I don't have Ys Eternal and Ys II Eternal, I'm definitely pretty stoked about this because Adol's the man.  I have some reservations about the music quality myself, but then a bigger concern is I still don't have a DS yet.  This news is the final straw though.  

[Jonathan Ingram]

Ys I&II Eternal Complete for PC is the definitive version made by Falcom themselves. I`m not sure which company worked on the DS port(definitely not Falcom), but I heard a lot of bad things about it. There`s probably no reason at all to get this over the PC version if you strive for a great Ys experience.

For those interested in the series, I`d also recommend Ys: The Oath in Felghana and Ys Origin. As far as action RPGs are concerned they are better than pretty much anything on consoles. Also, avoid PS2 Ys remakes by Taito(and any non-Falcom games with Ys license in general, like Ys Strategy), they are quite horrible.

[D-Rider]

You "OMG USING A SWORD" folks need to realize something:  you still tackle them to kill them. :P  It's just adding a sword swinging animation to the same old gameplay.

Now if it turns out that you actually DO mash a button to swing on this port, then I'll be buying it.  But I bet that won't be a problem. :P

[John]

There done been a press release put out there.

[Eusis]

Now if it turns out that you actually DO mash a button to swing on this port, then I'll be buying it.  But I bet that won't be a problem. :P

You do actually, so long as you're not running around with the stylus anyway.

[Lard]

I have some reservations about the music quality myself,

Why are people concerned about the music - because it was originally orchestral and it's going to be (likely) midi-fied on the DS?

[Shiguma]

I have some reservations about the music quality myself,

Why are people concerned about the music - because it was originally orchestral and it's going to be (likely) midi-fied on the DS?

You're clearly a stranger to the series.

Ys I and Ys II (on the Turbo Duo) were the first RPGs to use redbook audio, back in the 80s.  While other game soundtracks were a collection of bleeps and boops, Ys had electric guitars.  That said, the music is the highlight of the experience.  Soundteam JDK is, in a word, amazing - and although he doesn't do much work with them anymore, Ryo Yonemitsu (who was responsible for the 'Perfect Collection' albums, among others) is one of the best arrangers in the industry.

So yeah, the mere suggestion of a midi-fied soundtrack is an eyebrow archer for most fans.

[Professor Gast]

I`m not sure which company worked on the DS port(definitely not Falcom), but I heard a lot of bad things about it.

That might have been the Japanese publisher, i.e. Interchannel Holon, which is known for its love adventure (ports), but not for outstanding contributions to the RPG genre (admittingly they used to publish Black/Matrix when they were still known as NEC Interchannel, but that series was developed by Flight-Plan).

[ChevalierEagle]

Taking advantege of this topic, which would be a good place to start with this franchise? I have seen Ys: The Ark of Napishtim in some stores here and there but never really picked my interest until i started to read about the franchise.