Platform(s): PC (version reviewed), PS5, PS4, Nintendo Switch
Genre: Action RPG, Naval Warfare, Falcom Title

Sometimes it’s OK to go back to your roots after a while of experimenting.

An action RPG series like Falcom’s Ys series whose previous entries had you switching around multitudes of characters with various attack styles for combat (and partly puzzle purposes) can be quite a handful, especially with the Ys series. While I appreciate Ys VIII and Ys IX to a degree, I do yearn for the days when main red-headed troublemaker Adol used to solo his adventures like in the earlier entries back in the 16-bit era. So when I heard that Ys X: Nordics might go back to basics, I was elated.

Of course, there are twists this time around: Adol gets paired up with a new companion and the entry takes place just after the first two games chronologically-wise. Oh, and there’s sailing and naval combat involved since the theme this time revolves around pirates, seaside adventures, and pseudo-Norse mythology to go along with the game’s pseudo-Roman and pseudo-Spanish fictional history. Do these elements work in Falcom’s tenth mothership Ys title? Yes they do, and while I admit that it won’t reach the heights of Ys VIII, arguably the best in the series that uses the tri-weapon party system, I daresay Ys X: Nordics is better than its past entries when Adol was technically a one-man god-slaying army.

It Takes Two

Part of the main reason why I adore this return to form is because Adol is paired with a pretty awesome main character. Her name is Karja, she’s a pirate queen, and she has a lot to prove and live up to while also being prissy and smug about it at times. The rest of the cast and your eventual crewmates of your naval expedition (more on that soon) are also fun to be with, but your tag-team partner is a special kind of companion who entertains and makes you think about how she’s handling the life of a pirate queen.

While she starts off as a no-nonsense character, she gradually warms up and starts showing her endearing qualities. At the same time, she also keep her sharp tongue and wits, as well as continuously keep making jabs at our hero in good fun and calling his nonsense out. She’s also just as skilled as Adol with weapons, though she’s more specialized with axes, ice magic, and breaking enemy armour.

And you’ll be doing that a lot: whittling enemy defenses via the game’s new combat system. Dubbed the Duo System, you basically hold the R2/Right Trigger to have both Adol and Karja fight in sync and also unleashing devastating moves if you have enough Special Meter to do so. You can also solo it with either Adol or Karja, with the other AI-controlled character doing his/her thing while being helpful. But seeing as how the Duo System actually lets you deal more damage and is also your only method at parrying and blocking attacks, there’s really no need to go Solo unless in certain story missions where Adol goes at it alone in a “dreamscape” like place. While there are “blue” attacks that you have to evade as you can’t block them, you actually can do a hard-hitting counterattack right after evading these specific moves. Otherwise, combat survival is just a matter of using the Duo System to defend and counter, and evading blue attacks half the time while figuring out boss patterns and attacks.

While mob fights get easier over time once you get the hang of the Duo System, the boss fights do pose a challenge as you’ll have to figure out what’s safe to block and what isn’t. Some enemies have unblockable moves that you have to get out of, meaning you’ll need to give them space before going back in again with your Duo barrage specials and tag-team shenanigans. Other than that, the combat is just as fast-paced and satisfying as it was in past iterations. There’s a lot of weight in how it controls this time, and you can definitely exploit the Duo System to your advantage, but it doesn’t diminish from the fun factor Ys X offers, especially with many difficulty options ranging from regular to one-hit-and-you’re-dead affairs.

The Duo System is complemented by the Mana system, where you allocate special spheres of different colours to boost Adol and Karja’s separate skill trees. You not only unlock new individual moves for each of them, but also new grid slots to put stat spheres in. Normally, I just focus on giving Adol red sword spheres for damage and Karja red axe spheres for break frequency since armored foes are plentiful in the second half of the game. However, you do need to use blue spheres for defense and yellow spheres for resource management for skills. Your customization mileage may vary, but there’s a lot you can do in making Adol and Karja the best tag-team duo of the high seas.

Best of all, you get pretty neat antiques that give you great Mana abilities for your exploration. These include a magic monocle that lets you find hidden switches and treasure, as well as slows down time to move through fast-closing doors and obstacles. You also have the Mana String which lets you swing across gaps and obstacles Bionic Commando-style. The best one is clearly the Mana Ride which lets you dart around the area on a medieval magic surfboard. Given each level’s pretty expansive layout, there are plenty of opportunities to break out the magic surfboard and race across the valley. If that isn’t fun in an action RPG, I don’t know what is.

Speaking of high seas, we have the game’s naval combat. It’s essentially Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag’s ship combat but on an obvious budget, but Ys X’s offering can get entertaining once you get enough buffs to your ship’s speed. The initial first few hours with the ship you get to explore Ys X’s new continent in is pretty sluggish at first. Be patient, and you’ll gain access to special wind tunnels that bring you to certain areas faster and a Mana Boost move that gives your ship a short burst of speed regardless of where the wind is blowing. Coupled with a ton of upgrades to apply to your ship, as well as simple-yet-entertaining ship combat and ship-boarding bits involving defeating waves of enemies on-ground and with Adol and Karja, and you have a variety of gameplay to keep your teeth sink into its 25+ hour main story-led offering.

Normans By Northwest

While it’s not the biggest game changer in the franchise ala Ys VIII, Ys X: Nordics is still a fun and smooth-sailing ride that truly throws you back to the days when Adol had less people to work with in the combat field. Having said that, new character Karja is a worthy addition and a tag-team player to go alongside Adol, and does help form a pretty fun-if-potentially-broken combat system involving tag-team moves that go in sync. The naval combat and plethora of sidequests and explorable island sections in Ys X’s new continent are good additions to mix things up while not detracting too much from the meaty combat that’s clearly the standout. I’d say this proverbial action RPG ship is worth cruising on if you need a Falcom fix that isn’t turn-based.

Pros

• Great mix of exploration & action RPG combat.
• Mana System and tag-team system feel good to play.
• Karja is a fun addition to the Ys roster & adds a lot to the narrative.
• “Magic Surfboard” & other Mana abilities are fun to use.

Cons

• Combat gets easy the deeper you get into it.
• Sailing & naval content starts off very slow.

Final Score: 70/100