The History of RPGs Ep. 8 | Ys II - The Final Chapter Analysis (1988)

Today, we analyze the classic (and one of my personal favorites) Ys II: Ancient Ys Vanished - The Final Chapter. Adol rushes to the Shrine of Solomon in hope of ending the terror of the monsters once and for all, but what are the elements that make up his journey?
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[@zacks8998]

Watched almost all of your videos, heard every one of your criticisms, how you constructively never say anything outright negative... And then we get to Lilly, and it's great.

[@VBshredder]

"This is one of the greatest opening cinematic sequences ever conceived". That's a bold claim but I say it's a legit claim. The music over that section sets such of a tone of adventure and wonder, all backed up by amazing events and visuals. Great stuff.

[@Artimes.]

Can you please for the love of god due one on the Tales series, specifically tales of phantasia since there are so many versions of that game. Also you should be revered as a prodigy here on youtube for your explicit in-depth analysis and breakdown of each of these games. I have never seen video's as deep as yours. Seeing as how you have done Ys, have you done the popular "kiseki" series yet?

[@ABrix-ob8bf]

Amazing how much different gameplay footage, you have collected. I am impressed of your work. This is a great series of videos! Best regards :)

[@carlosaugustodinizgarcia3526]

Great video,Ys I and II underrated classics.A point I never saw anyone discussing: was Grandia inspired by Ys? Feena from Grandia share the same name and origin as Feena from Ys. Both have twins sisters with pale blue hair and are "goddess" like beings.

[@eweeparker]

dude, so glad you're still making these. Probably one of my favorite channels.

[@mononasu7870]

see that one dislike? this is for talking bad about best girl lilia

[@DijaVlogsGames]

mono nasu True. Lilia is straight up waifu material.

[@johnnydemo7585]

Another great video! Very well done. I've noticed your editing and audio is gettig much better, keep up the good work!

[@Prodmullefc]

Man the Velegunder (or whatever) fight on Nightmare mode looks kinda like a Touhou boss

[@djsangre]

I'm a huge Ys fan. I played all of them (yes, even Ys 5) and I think Ys 2 has still today the best ending. Ok, Ys 8 is awesome and probably the best in the series, but 1&2 are still great fun today and Ys 2 ending, my God...beautiful and upsetting at the same time. Brilliant.

[@VBshredder]

Also one heck of a buildup i realized after replaying it recently on the TG-16. They really took the time to make the build up to the final battle detailed and impressive. No rush finish here!

[@ailtonbueno4333]

Another great video. Thanks dude.

[@13nLen]

Man that last part of the game had me bawling for a good hour , feena didn't deserve it but ultimately the game wouldn't be the same and neither would adol. I would like for feena to come back someday but only at the end where she can settle down with adol

[@TheNumberOneShmuck]

21:18 21:52 ...okay. Evocative of... what, exactly?

[@Demonskunk]

Ys2 special looks really nice graphically.

[@silvermknight]

Ive only played Legacy of Ys on the DS. Looks like ive got to buy Chronicles on Steam.

[@DSan-kl2yc]

Heh I've never imagine someone could have so much hate for Lilia. You're not wrong about the design between the two. But its not like they're in competition. She's just an innocent normal girl npc.

[@ghostghost514]

I played YS I & II Remake in GOG and loved it. However, I have the feeling that missing a lot of features that the Turbo Grafix version has, such as voice acting and cutscenes.

[@RekkaAlexiel]

The Ys II anime OVA is subtitled 天空の神殿 aka "Heaven's Sanctuary"... not "Castle in the Sky". xD

[@gramirez81]

I am really grad you are back...

[@nepnep9673]

you are amazing

[@jmssun]

Would love to see your view on Ys4 PCE and Ys6!!!

[@LunaticTheGame]

Well that was quick

[@shydex]

Any chance you could do one on the Evolution of RPG dungeons? I would love to watch that one!

[@mr.gentleman2358]

Maybe when I have a bit more knowledge on them. If I do it, I would want to cover the dungeons of both CRPGs and console RPGs and i'm not sure if I've played enough to get a feel for them all.

[@Walican132]

Do you still do videos?

[@TheSILV1982]

please make a Video about the Zenithian Trilogy of Dragon Quest

[@faultyvideos2215]

He's already made a dq4 video and he's currently working on a dq5 video, though I don't know when that's going to release

[@treebush]

would you recommend the anime over the games if the gameplay isnt there thing?

[@hugolarioscolino4256]

Just a nitpick, but, what do you mean by "Disney eyes" on Lilia? Disney character design uses an almond like shape for the eyes, as the drawing style takes forms from reality and anatomy, while those are the older rounded rectangle shape that was used in anime heavily back in the 80s all the way to the early 2000s when artists started rounding the eyes more frecuently. Also, Disney tipically uses black for the pupil, as again the artists try to be closer to reality than anime/manga does. I've actually worked as an artist for Disney before so that comment seemed really weird, as i really can not see any similarity on that character design with anything Disney would ever produce, is just too anatomically incorrect. Despite this the video is very solid in its analysis of the game and the history of the project, and would defenetily recommend it.

[@megamike15]

really makes me want to sit down and finish ys2. only really finished 1 and origins and bit of the remake of 3 but got lost in the lava dungeon. and this is just a small nit pick but shouldn't you be doing phantasy star 2 after dragon quest 4?

[@mr.gentleman2358]

First, thanks for the comment and I do hope you finish Ys 2. Second, I usually do things by Japanese release date. In Japan, the Mega Drive/Genesis and Phantasy Star actually came out a year before DQ4.

[@jobojoe1]

Okay, I'm downloading the gog version

[@Rokabur]

Watching the videos for the first 2 games got me interested enough to try the games and have to say they're pretty decent for 'bump-fighting'. Looking further into the series, were 4 and 5 ever translated to English, even fan translations?

[@mr.gentleman2358]

Both versions of 4 (the SNES and Turbografx are completely different) and 5 have fan translations. It should also be noted 4 was remade as "Ys: Memories of Celceta" which uses the Ys VII combat style.

[@Rokabur]

@@mr.gentleman2358 The first few games are actually how I wished combat in Secret of Mana was. In that game you ALWAYS have to wait for the power bar to hit 100% to deal any real damage. Once an enemy is hit they're staggered and can't be attacked til they recover. Combat is drawn out far longer then it should.

[@Koops2245]

Hoo, those rock tunes sound a lot like Castlevania-!!

[@redmage8719]

No matter what anyone says, i still like Lilia.

[@DijaVlogsGames]

I'm currently replaying Ys 1 and 2. I've played the PSP Version first and now I'm trying out the TG16 Version. Loved Ys1, Darm Tower got annoying at times, but it really felt like you're exploring and old tower alongside the others! Ys 2 however...oh boy, I don't like it at all. I remember preferring Ys 1 over 2 when I played on PSP, but the TG16 Version is downright terrible (in my opinion). I've just finished the mines and the amount of backtracking and bad design (I had to look up a guide, because I couldn't see the fruit you need for the medicine). The difficulty is also unfair. Some monsters (those violet things on the last floor specifically) just kill you in a couple of hits. And the Fire magic completely ruins the bumping gameplay and you have to use it, because, like I've said, some enemies kill you in a couple of hits. That god they fixed that in the remakes. Not to mention the fact that you can't see into the next room in the mines. Sometimes you just bump into a bunch of enemies and die instantly. The return spell makes it a bit more manageable, though. I hope it gets a bit better, but so far TG16 Ys2 feels like they took all the bad parts of darm tower, but non of the good ones. But I'll definitely finish it. I'm planning on playing through the TG16 Versions of Ys 1-4 (and Mask of the Sun) before Ys8 comes out. I've only played their remakes on PSP and Vita. After Ys8 I'll probably play through Ys 5 and 6 as well. And there is a physical copy of origins coming out in Asia as well, looking forward to playing that. Looks more like a dungeon crawler and I love those! Ys7 is also on my list.

[@Temuho]

Never play this game. Maybe is time to give a chance on my psp

[@lucasboulevard2886]

how fast :D

[@InTheMindOfDavid]

Fuck nightmare mode

[@Alianger]

Gaijin, it's "jurrpgah" (silent a), not "jayarr-peegee".

[@mr.gentleman2358]

a) Actually, it's "jurrpeg". You're confusing it with the pronunciation of MMORPG, which is "mumorpgah". b) No one in glorious Nippon Moonland uses the term "JRPG". If they have to use a more specific denotation, they use, "Light RPG". c) I'm pretty sure I don't even use the term "JRPG" in this video because I dislike it to begin with :P

[@Alianger]

True, it was a preventive tip. :)

[@jus4000kicks]

I don't think that term "light RPG" would catch on here. Also despite you not liking the term jrpg, this term is more correct than console rpg because there are jrpgs on computers just as there are wrpgs on consoles. Using such a term (CRPG) makes things confusing when you are mentioning a CRPG on a computer. I guess the term Eastern Style RPG might work but the term JRPG makes sense because this genre was invented and popularized in Japan (Like how japanese food was started in japan and therefore we call it japanese food or by the japanese specific names).

[@mr.gentleman2358]

That's why the term is console style RPG, emphasis on style. It refers to the fact that style of controlling the gameplay (everything being streamlined to menus so that it could function on a controller without a keyboard and mouse). I admit CRPG has become confusing since modern RPGs made in the west don't reflect the need to use keyboard and mouse, which is why CRPG is usually only used to refer to games made prior to when stuff like Elder Scrolls began to be ported to consoles. The issue with JRPG is that because it doesn't really infer or imply a kind of gameplay within its name ("Japan" doesn't say anything about the gameplay, which a gameplay genre title should do), the term's use gets muddied. It was first meant to be used for just turn based RPGs. However, because the name doesn't imply a style of gameplay or function, people thought the term became proper for strategy RPGs, action RPGs, or pretty much anything that comes out of Japan. I think when you do that, the whole point of creating a genre title becomes pointless. Personally, i'd really prefer it if people just used "turn based RPG" or "action RPG", with JRPG being more of a stylistic title rather than a genre title (like the way we use JPop or JRock to differentiate from American pop).

[@jus4000kicks]

I do think JRPG is meant or should be used to represent Japanese Style RPGs (style) but many people confuse the terms. There are so many variables in RPGs that I think there was a need to differentiate certain things in wrpgs and jrpgs. Afterall, Secret of Mana and Skyrim are both action rpgs but are very different from each other. The problem is furthered when you look at a game series like Mass Effect which is a more linear wrpg in comparison to Skyrim or when you look at the SaGa series which is a more open world jrpg in comparison to Final Fantasy X.

[@Datenshi-Beats]

I have watched all of your analysis videos except FF3 and DQ4, as I been playing the games along with this series, but I don't understand why you had to analyze a remake for this game in specific. The whole point and objective of these reviews are analyzing important games IN THE HISTORY of RPG's. I don't think remakes could impart history for this subject specifically. Your Dragon Quest 3 and Ys I & II reviews felt you were being incredibly bias. For Ys II you literally made 0 criticism, yet you complained about Earthbound Beginning's white colors not being white enough (even if that was the Wii U port problem)? Come on Mr. Gentleman, are you trying to make accurate analyses or nostalgia praising? Great work for most of it though.

[@mr.gentleman2358]

Ah yes, I was wondering if someone was going to mention that. That was an issue of circumstance. At the time, I couldn't a) record off of the jank PC I had the time properly, and b) the PC-88 and -98 emulators are an utter pain in the neck to use. I only recently began to understand how to use one (just played Ys III in its PC-98 form for the first time). I don't know if you've ever tried using one, but it's like trying to read some lost ancient language and there aren't many who can outright help you work it properly. The only reason I felt comfortable using both the TG-16 version and modern remake was because each game is essentially the same game, but faster for its generation with slight rebalances (ie. since fireballs shoot faster in remakes, they were made weaker). They're also all made by Falcom. Unlike say, Ys III, where every version deceptively looks the same, but because they were ALL made by different studios, they all have some bizarre quirk that separates them from the rest. Another issue is that Ys 1 and 2 for TG-16 were in English which helped considering I really wanted to understand what they were saying. Even though I can now play PC-88/98 games, when I do Legend of Heroes 1, I'm most likely going to have to play the TG-16 version if just because of how text heavy that game is. As for nostalgia and remakes: I actually hadn't played Ys 1 and 2 until about a year before I made the video. I didn't even know what a TG-16 was until a few years ago when a KZbinr mentioned one. As for negatives, it's been awhile since I watched my own video, but I do remember mentioning I thought Lillia was a badly constructed female companion. That, and I think I mentioned the first dungeon was a bit too narrow at times, but it's been awhile.

[@carlosaugustodinizgarcia3526]

@@mr.gentleman2358 there is a good PC8801 emulator for PSP. It has a easy interface and it is excellent way to play some Falcom classics like Ys I-II-III,Xanadu and Popful Mail in their original versions. Old japanese pc emulation in tricky but there a lot of hidden rpgs gems there.

[@ElricSowrd]

Yo.