Ys: The Vanished Omens
System: SMS
Release Date: March 1989
Developer: Sega
Publisher: Sega
Genre: RPG
We’ve got another RPG on the Master System with Ys: The Vanished Omens. I hesitate to call it an action RPG because of the battle mechanics, but you could make an argument either way. You are Aron, wandering into a new land and getting restless. This is where you join the story, in the town of Minea. You can walk into townsfolk and get some bits of information. After dying a few times, I found I could buy a sapphire ring and net an extra 500 bucks to start the game.
The battle system is new for our chronology. There isn’t an attack button. It isn’t a turn based system. You do damage, or have damage done to you when you walk into the enemy. Sometimes this works in your favor, other times you take the damage. If you’re not careful, you’re going to die. Hell, even if you are careful, you’ll probably die. You need to buy a sword, shield, and preferably some armor to get the main quest from the Seer Sara.
The story is incredibly linear and you have to progress from the first town, to the second, to the palace, to the mines, to the Tower of the Doomed. Along the way, you’ll buy upgrades for the sword, armor, and shield, as well as find special items and rings. The rings will come in handy, as they will halve damage, double power, slow enemies, or regenerate hit points.
There are several bosses littered throughout the game and they will give you some trouble, so make sure to save your game often. Once you figure out their patterns, you’ll be able to beat them without much trouble. In fact, most of the game is trial and error… and the final tower, which is a huge maze. I had to succumb to a walkthrough to figure out what to do with the hammer, but then I muddled through the mirrors until I found the final boss. In a cheap manner, the floor starts to drop beneath you as you damage the boss, which can trap you to your doom. Once you win, you collect the last Book of Ys. Once you read it, you’re taken to the final credits and get to bask in your victory.
Graphics: 2.0
The graphics aren’t anything special, but they’re decent for the time.
Sound: 2.0
Same thing goes for the sound. Music is fine, but not great. Sound effects don’t annoy me.
Gameplay: 2.0
It’s going to take you a few deaths before you realize how combat works. Then you have to power up and try not to get hit too often.
Difficulty: 2.0
You have to grind to be able to do damage to enemies. The grinding is ridiculous, but there are a couple places you can enter and exit to kill enemies quickly. I would have given up without a fast forward function.
Fun Factor: 2.0
I had an alright time, but my patience was tested a couple times. Getting lost in the final tower was super annoying.
Overall Grade: 2.0
Ys: The Vanished Omen earns a C. This is an incredibly average game. It doesn’t do anything particularly well or particularly horrible. I know I’ll have to play this one again on the TG-16 and I hope it gets some upgrades by then.