GAME TITLE | : | Ys VIII:
Lacrimosa of Dana |
PLATFORM | : | PC |
DEVELOPER | : | Nihon Falcom |
TRANSLATION | : | NIS America |
PUBLISHER | : | NIS America |
ENGINE | : | SEVEN Engine |
RELEASE DATE | : | April 16, 2018 |
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By Johnathan "ABF" Sawyer |
While we're used to seeing the normally PC-native Ys series get ported to consoles, it's only recently that we've started to see the ones developed for Sony consoles make their way back to PC. While Ys Seven and Ys: Memories of Celceta have had extremely successful ports on behalf of XSEED, Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana gets similar treatment via NIS America... but with many, many problems along the way.
The PC version of Ys VIII (thankfully) comes with the newly revised script, and with that, puts it on equal footing with the most recent update of the PS4 version. For those with decent video cards, one could also say that the PC version is now the optimal way to play, given that you can enhance the graphics a decent amount. Well, I guess I should say for those with decent video cards... and a whole lot of luck.
Throughout the localization of the game by NISA, the PC version has been repeatedly plagued with bugs and delays, at one point even being delayed less than 24 hours before release. Given the backlash for the initial translation issues, NISA knew that they had to do the fans right, and had put several resources not only into the re-translation, but into resolving these bugs via a beta program with gamers, as well as bringing in a second company later on to help resolve the bugs. It did finally release several months later... but it's still in an unplayable state for numerous gamers, members of our staff included. It’s also worth noting that the PC version is a port of a port. The PS4 version was ported and enhanced natively by Nihon Falcom from the Vita version, and the PC version is a ported by NISA from the PS4 version.
When it comes to the actual game, if you're able to play it, it's easily the best version of the game - everything is more beautiful, just as fluid and just as enjoyable as its PS4 counterpart. I was also part of the beta, and I had extremely good luck with my setup and only running into a couple of minor bugs that were resolved by release, so I've enjoyed it just as much as I did on my first run.
Thankfully Steam has a refund policy - I strongly recommend buying this version... but if you're one of the unlucky few that can't run it, at least you can get the refund, and hopefully you have a PS4, Switch, or Vita.
Editor’s Note: This reflection was written before the major Ys VIII Update that included the experimental co-op feature. Some of our staff continue to have problems running the game on PC.
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