The other Ys IV

Really fumbled the ball at the end, didn't it? 

I first played Ys IV: Mask of the Sun in 2018. It was when I played all the other games in the franchise. I remember playing it, but that's all I recall. Since I want to play all the RPGs for the SNES, I figure now's the best time to replay it. I think I regret it. I want to keep this quick, so... 

If you've played Ys I or II, then IV will feel exactly the same. It's the return of the bump combat. It's fast paced, feels random, and is unchanged in any way. To damage an enemy, simply run into them. But this also damages you, so you have to find the correct angle. Aim for the back, and don't let them get ya. Dungeons are unique with their own mobs, but this falls off at the end of the game...

The plot is also just like Ys I and II. In fact, it takes place days after Adol saved Ys. We see him and Dogi running from Lilia at Minea Port. Doctor Flair joins them as well. You even return there a few times. But this adventure is kicked off when Adol finds a message in a bottle he can't read. It's in a different language, but a friend translates it. He also teaches Adol how to speak in a matter of days, I guess? Once settled in the land of Celceta, Adol gets thrown in jail. He's allowed out and starts looking to save the forest, finding new friends and uncovering new ancient legends along the way. This also falls off towards the end... 

The music is also classic Ys. Borderline metal music for exploration and boss battles. Slow, mellow melodies for heartfelt and relaxing locations. That being said, I was kinda annoyed by some of the town themes. Fortunately, you barely spend any time in them! This did not fall off towards the end. 

The art also follows suit. 

The charm is, well, let's discuss the fall offs here. While the NPCs hang around, and the world feels aliveish, the game over stays. The penultimate final dungeon is an incredibly long maze filled with backtracking. It kills the fun. Doors open up at plot points, but good luck realizing and remembering where the doors are. 

What's worse, the last two bosses are awful. They require being at a high level to do any damage to them. And I, despite grinding an extra level before every boss, was not high enough. I had to grind six more to reach level twenty five. And I still did zero damage! I did cheat to reach that level, so maybe there was an anti cheat or a bug somewhere. I did harm the penultimate boss at level twenty, but failed to at twenty one, so who knows. Regardless, I was not manually grinding those levels. The exp from mobs was too low for how much I needed. This killed the vibe. The plot drops are terrible because they contradict games I and II. It's further ruined by VI and Memories of Celceta, and that's good. The big twist makes Reah and Feena out to be cannibals instead of the kind and loving leaders we know they are. And we don't even know what this great ancient power was, something the game itself points out!

The last four hours ruined all the enjoyment for me. MotS is, apparently, not well liked, but I was loving it until then. The final four hours cost ten points from the final score. I only kinda wanted to play Mask of the Sun, so I'm whipping through this review. The final score is 29 out of 50, 57 percent. 

Between the weird plot, terrible final dungeon, and occasional headache graphics, I don't want to play this anymore, and I'm thrilled to know it's no longer canon. I'm already looking forward to my next game, even if I don't know what it is yet.