Ys II

"A fantastic conclusion to Adol's adventure in Esterior!"

Final Chapter is the continuation of Ancient Ys Vanished and sequel to Ancient Ys Vanished Omen. While the original game is definitely a classic, it was bogged down with many problems that made it lose it's spark as time passed. However, the second game in the series more than makes up for it's predecessor and delivers a fine action-rpg experience that we wouldn't see again until the games were re-released as Ys Book I&II. Personally, I like these two games better than the original Zeldas.

After the conclusion to Ys I, a bright light shot up from Dahm Tower and Adol is awakened by a young girl who finds him lying on the ground. She introduces herself as Lilia and tells Adol he is in the land of Ys. Adol has finally found the gateway to Ys, but now he has to stop the evil entity that Dalk Fukt served. This time around, Adol will travel through the land of fire and ice, infiltrate the base of the evil doers disguised as a bunny (?) and stop whoever's behind this evil plot before it's too late.

For people who have never played an Ys game that isn't Ys III, you are missing out, really. The Ys series is great and has a very different battle system from your typical action-rpg. There is no attack button, you just walk up to your enemies as hard as you can! Of course, it helps to run at them from the side or at an angle and then shove them into a wall... but you get the idea.

I was surprised by this games complexity (seeing as how it is an 8-bit Famicom game). While the first game may have been a tad redundant, Ys II delivers in the story line and gameplay departments. First of all, it is nearly twice as long as the first game, with many more areas to explore. Leveling up is much more gradual and the game itself isn't as hard as the first Ys. Adol can now use a handful of magic spells, each with their own special use. One spell allows Adol to transform himself into a cute little bunny creature who can talk to other monsters. This is a very handy skill that comes into play often during the game. The storyline builds of the cliffhanger ending of the first and for a NES game, it's very good. The amount of story line present in this game is great considering the first one had almost zero character interaction. And probably the greatest improvement... Adol walks MUCH faster than he did in the Master System versoin of the game. *phew*

The music is just as memorable as the first game. One of my favorite tunes from the original returns here, of course, when a character from Adol's past returns near the end. Guess who. ^_^ The graphics don't bode as well. The Master System had a much better color palette and Ys II looks bland, like most NES games.

Anyway, I will say the same for this game as I did for the Master System prequel. If you can get Ys Book I&II, do that instead. It will be a much better experience (now if you have a lot of cash... pick up Ys I.II Complete for PC!). If you don't wanna spend money on Ys, well, then play these versions... If you're like me, you'll be hooked anyway, hehe.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/21/01, Updated 03/28/02