Ys X First Playthrough: Chapter 1 (via demo)
0After repeatedly checking for any sort of demo for Ys X, one finally appeared, mere weeks before launch, during Next Fest week. And I'd argue "demo" is the wrong word. This thing is practically a shareware episode.
In this first chapter, we're introduced to the setting and a bunch of characters, as well as a little bit of battle mechanics, before things start to get serious.
I was quite surprised at just how dialogue-heavy this chapter is. Ys X seems to include a new UI mechanic where NPCs with new dialogue will be marked with a blue icon, while NPCs whose dialog you have seen will be marked in gray. This is great for folks who don't want to miss out on every little bit of dialogue... but it's also at risk of becoming exhausting given how frequently dialogue gets refreshed.
I was equally surprised at how much the first chapter didn't cover, including many mechanics I'd expect to see return from other recent games in the franchise; for example, quests? I get the impression that this installment may introduce things more gradually than I seem to recall in some of the other recent entries.
I was unpleasantly surprised by one of the segments toward the end of the chapter, which involved some mechanics that I really hope we don't see again, because they seemed rather awkward and out-of-place in an Ys game... Falcom certainly makes it clear they're not pulling punches, though; I'll certainly be curious to see how the plot progresses.
Most surprising of all, of course, is that the demo continues clear into Chapter 2. I'm splitting by chapter because otherwise my demo playthrough is literally longer than YouTube will allow in a single video. Also, I might as well let folks know up-front that the demo does allow saving at the end to continue in the full game (though I have to cross my fingers that I'll be able to get that to work on Linux through Proton - but I have to say, the demo itself performed flawlessly).