Ys X: Nordic Review – Across the Sea

Ys X: Nordic Review

Ys given a ship. Given his history with ships (most games start with him shipwrecking), I was immediately concerned. And while this title has many highlights, I was right to be worried.

First of all, let me assure you that this is a great point to jump into the Ys series. In fact, the Ys games are pretty easy to get into, with their mostly self-contained plots and cheerfully adventurous protagonist. Some heroes are chosen by fate or called to action by prophecy. Adol, a thrill-seeker, set out primarily for the fun of combat and discovery. If he can help some people too, that would be great.

In this game, Adol and his friends are raided on their quest to the land of Celceta (and the events of Ys III) when their ship is boarded by pirates. Viking pirates. The Balta Seaforce executes the captain for evading the toll and claims the ship, leaving the passengers in the lurch.

With no loose ends left, Adol decides to investigate folk tales about a throne that grants wishes. Before the day is over, he heard a mysterious voice, was granted magical powers, and was mystically linked to the pirate princess Karja. And that's before the immortal monsters known as Griegr attack the city of Carnac, kidnapping everyone, villagers and Vikings alike.

A boy who loves adventure

Ys X: Nordics is a classic JRPG about the importance of community, friendships, and working together to endure great hardships. It's also a game where you use a magic hook to board enemy ships and fight waves of monsters on the deck. And, frankly, I think that's beautiful.

Karja and Adol make an interesting couple of heroes. Karja's wisdom is balanced by his emotional immaturity. Meanwhile, Adol is already a seasoned adventurer, but he finds himself in uncharted waters. And since he has a lot of dialogue options for a mostly silent protagonist, their odd couple dynamic gets a lot of comedy and character development.

The game's cast is relatively archetypal, but its focus on trauma, recovery, and bonding keeps the characters interesting, if not exactly surprising. And the art direction draws heavily from Nordic traditions, which is refreshing. Karja's distinctly Viking background contrasting with Adol's more traditional European JRPG is conveyed both visually and narratively.

Most of the voice acting is pretty good, especially Karja's. And the soundtrack is absolutely magnificent, as expected from a Ys title. The music is easily one of the game's greatest achievements.

Ys X: The Nordic countries take you across the sea

Ys X: Nordics has a lot going on, but most of it is tied together through the game's central themes. That is, the importance of working together to protect what is important and how to recover from pain and loss. Even the gameplay is tied to this thanks to Adol and Karja's partnership.

The pair fight together figuratively and literally, with a variety of combo moves that reflect their inability to stray too far from each other. Each one has a variety of skills. The pace of combat requires swapping characters and using team attacks and defenses appropriately. For the most part, this leads to chaotic but fun battles that smoothly blend into each other.

Exploring is fun in itself. The ability to overcome gaps adds a strategic element to navigation. And it's delightful to dash across the map toward an unsuspecting enemy. I had the most fun with this game when I was swinging and running through dungeons looking for hidden items.

The ship's controls take some getting used to, but naval combat is fun too. And with Mana Seeds, you can customize Adol and Karja's development and unlock new abilities.

stop this

Ys X: The Nordic countries have some disadvantages. The biggest problem I have with this game is almost a deal breaker for me: the boss fights can't be won without stops. If you are not good at stopping, you have no choice but to lower the difficulty. I ran into serious problems here despite being decent at the combat system. It seems like a questionable design.

While the graphics are generally decent, this game highlights the ocean. Some of the water animations in the scenes are really lame, especially around the boats. I keep falling off my board during the surf segments. And it takes a while to get used to the boat's controls.

That being said, I ultimately had fun with this game. There's something deliciously heartfelt about the Ys franchise, and Ys X: Nordics is no exception. Adol's dialogue choices may be sarcastic, but he is an adventurer simply to have fun and help others. And while the Balta Seaforce situation is complicated, the overall narrative is equally simple in its themes of understanding and recovery. If you're tired of metagaming or cynics, you could do a lot worse than this.

All in all, Ys X: Nordics is a fun action RPG with Vikings, fast-paced combat, and a truly entertaining silent protagonist. If you can figure out the parry system, it might even be a good game. I'm still taking points away from him for making me curse at my Switch so hard I scared my cat.

***Exchange code provided by publisher***