Review for Ys: Memories of Celceta. Game for PC, PlayStation Vita and PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 27/09/2012 The version for PC came out on 25/07/2018 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 19/06/2020
Originally released on PlayStation Vita in 2012, Ys: Memories of Celceta it was one of the most popular chapters in the long-running Nihom Falcom saga.
Arrived in a difficult period for the brand and designed "on purpose" to remedy a series of more or less obvious errors made by the company, Memories of Celceta ranks as the fourth chapter of the story, a chapter of particular importance from the point of view of the characterization of the main character, charismatic, certainly , but far too anonymous until then.
Thanks to its particular nature and certainly to its above average appreciation index, Falcom and Marvelous Europe have well thought of reviving it even on the luckiest shores of PlayStation 4 to give the title, also penalized by the alternating fortunes of PSVita, a more important. Announced during the past few months, the remastered version of Ys: Memories of Celceta is ready to land on the European market on June 19 at a low list price (we are talking about € 29,99), in both digital and physical format .
Loaded as never before and strong in the fact that we have never tried this chapter of the saga, we rushed quickly in the company of Adol and his new journey, but the sensations we experienced, at the end of the race, are all in all modest, for various reasons that we will now try to explain to you.
Let's be clear, this is not a bad game, of course, but not even a product that we would like to recommend to everyone.
A tearful story
Before briefly telling you the story that revolves around the events of Ys: Memories of Celceta, it is right to make a necessary premise. This remastered version does not add any kind of new content on the narrative level and, therefore, is preparing to arrive on PlayStation 4 accompanied by the narrative vein that those who have already tried the title know well. The protagonist Adol, historical face of the long-lived saga, finds himself wandering aimlessly, shaken and troubled by mysterious worries from which the good red-haired warrior seems to be gravely afflicted. Adol has lost his memory for reasons that, of course, he does not know and neither does the player, who is called that, at least at first, to deal with a story that is all in all simple and uninspired from the point of view of the plot.
Fortunately, however, he arrives to help Adol Duren, the one who claims to be a friend of Adol himself and who makes him a very important revelation: the last time he was seen "healthy" Adol had accepted a delicate assignment in the ghostly but at the same time splendid Celceta forest from which, it is said, no one can return. It is clear how much this simple expedient is at the basis of the whole story, since Adol himself, in the company of the "trusted" Duren (actually driven more by economic reasons), and exhorted by the latter's words, will begin a difficult journey - on behalf of the government entities, called to investigate mysterious events - in the maze of the forest itself, in search of information on what really happened to the protagonist and what is happening in the game world in general.
If, as we said, the incipit is not the most original, the plot still lives of interesting moments and an excellent progression, in which new characters, new situations and stories also “adult” by themes (conspiracies, betrayals, etc.) will ensure that the adventure of Adol and his traveling companions is eventually also fairly interesting.
Who by the sword wounds ...
Once the journey has begun, throughout the vast game map we could find fragments of memories, which have a great importance in the economy of the game and of the series in general. Through this expedient, in fact, the narrative framework is enriched with numerous new information on the history and above all on the past of the protagonist, in fact, never really explored until that moment. This solution also pours its branches from the side of the gameplay, in a functional and coherent way.
By regaining memories of himself and what happened to him, Adol takes greater control of himself, his skills and his body, and this translates into an increase in the basic statistics (strength, defense, hit points) as you analyze the fragments of memory scattered throughout the game world. This small but welcome "innovation" is linked to a background gameplay very familiar to historical fans of the saga, so simple and satisfying, which will delight both veterans and novices. The combat system, first of all, is the backbone of the Falcom saga, and with this chapter, net of its “portable” origin, it remains tied to the classic stylistic features coined by the Japanese company. With the press of a key only (square) it is possible to attack, with X you avoid, holding down triangle you para and with circle you change character, to take advantage of enemy weaknesses and various strengths of allies. End. As simple as it is functional, the way in which Ys: Memories of Celceta allows the player to approach the many fights, strictly in real time, represents one of the strengths of the offer, which even without any reinterpretation is still more than enjoyable and current. .
In its simplicity, the combat system of Ys: Memories of Celceta reveals the limits of the nature of the game's origin, in which the controls, adapted only marginally for the PlayStation 4 pad, show all the limits of an overall conversion superficial. All in all everything works fine and if the attacks do not enjoy a particularly inspired tactical depth, the same cannot be said of the many abilities (which can be equipped from the menu and used via the R2 together with triangle, cross, circle or square), which offer the right variety to a game that goes all-in on the enjoyment and freshness of the clashes.
The "perfect center" (or almost) recorded with the combat system, however, collides with a very serious problem that today more than yesterday compromises the enjoyment of the game. We refer to the lack of the ability to "lock" opponents, a lack if we want understandable and "passable" on the small screen of PSVita but difficult to digest on the PlayStation 4 and which makes the many (far too many) clashes that the player is subjected to moving from one part of the map to another. game, especially those with various bosses, often large creatures.
Thanks to the lack of the lock and of a camera unable to rotate at three hundred and sixty degrees, these clashes often become more difficult than they should, a feature that is far from enviable and that accompanies the player throughout the adventure, a very "classic" adventure from the point of view of the general structure.
Many possibilities, little variety
The substance always remains the same: traveling in search of Adol's memories, the game gives the player the opportunity to carry out main and secondary activities, which are activated mainly by consulting the notice boards of the various cities, now made more beautiful and alive by a graphics adapted to current times, which manages to go as far as 1080p, accompanied by a fairly solid frame rate fixed on the 60fps.
These missions usually consist in recovering objects or killing certain monsters, in a far from original way, and offer the player rewards in terms of money and useful items for the creation and improvement of equipment items, in a simple but effective crafting system. The progression of the character is however a key factor, and facing the various missions without adequate preparation both in terms of levels and in terms of clothing is not exactly a good choice, due to a level of challenge if you want unbalanced that puts in front of the player an almost zero difficulty rate in the first hours but which slowly becomes more and more calibrated upwards, in a way that is sometimes inconsistent.
To be right of the most difficult enemies it is therefore necessary to learn to know well the various usable characters, all different and equipped with different abilities and types of attacks more or less effective against certain opponents. The choice of the three elements that make up the party is therefore very important, but it does not betray the willingness of the development team to put on a product that is overall fast and fresh in its mechanics, but which does not mean that it will not be able to keep you glued to the screens for dozens. and dozens of hours.
Technically speaking ...
As we said earlier, the choice to bring this chapter in particular to the PlayStation 4 (it is already available for PC) is all in all understandable, for the reasons they mentioned above. Net of the numbering, Ys: Memories of Celceta is a perfect entry point for all those who are eager to enter the universe of the saga and, therefore, we are convinced that the move to bring it back to PlayStation 4 will bear fruit.
What convinced us only in part, however, is the conversion itself. Being a remastering operation we didn't really expect anything else, and the work is still good, since the rendering in full hd helps to improve not a little the "base" power of a title released on a portable consolesure, but for this very reason it is difficult to manage on a home console. The management of the camera stands out above all, with which you can only, by pressing the right analog stick, zoom to bring the image closer or further away, but the impossibility of rotating it makes exploration much less pleasant and if we want to traits frustrating. To see, however, Ys: Memories of Celceta is not that far behind the other exponents of the genre.
The cities and places that can be visited are very large and above all varied and, if you decide to complete the game in a total way, you will come across a rich and colorful bestiary, as regards both ordinary enemies and bosses and those "special" opponents, which as per tradition of Japanese role-playing games they are scattered along the game map. It must be said that the work of the development team on Ys: Memories of Celceta also extends to the sound sector. In this version, in fact, Japanese dubbing will also be available, which will later also arrive for the PC version, and the game music has all been rearranged and modernized, for a more than satisfactory overall result. Finally, we remind you, the game lacks localization, still far away for a saga that in our country still has a long way to go to be able to establish itself and that, with this remaster, although only half valid, it is hoped that it will enter more homes possible.
Ys: Memories of Celceta is a product with good potential in its basic version and in this remastered version it does not betray its nature, even if the conversion appears excessively lazy and conservative. The PSVita matrix title arrives on PlayStation 4 with full HD graphics and a much firmer frame rate, but the news pretty much ends there. Of course, we weren't expecting miracles, but a little more could be done at least in terms of room management and character lock, two elements that, put together, show all the limits of a game born and designed to run on portable consoles. and not on big screens. The rearranged music and the Japanese dubbing help to "hide" the antiquated nature of a title which, however, has aged very well from the gameplay and mere fun side. If you missed it at the time and if you are passionate about the genre, in short, we would like to recommend it without too many hesitations, even for a low introductory price, but do not expect miracles, you will not find any. Ys: Memories of Celceta, finally, also represents an excellent entry point for the saga and, therefore, it is not to be underestimated even from this point of view.
► Ys: Memories of Celceta is a JRPG-Action type game developed by Nihon Falcom Corporation and published by Nihon Falcom Corporation XSEED NIS America for PC, PlayStation Vita and PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 27/09/2012 The version for PC came out on 25/07/2018 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 19/06/2020
