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Top 10 Favorite Games of 2021

#5. Ys IX: Monstrum NOX

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/7/2/8/AAB6RfAACwsQ.jpg

An honor to once again play a new game in one of my favorite franchises. Ys IX really does feel like the end of Act 1 of Adol's journeys encompassing all the games in the series so far while setting up what Act 2 might end up being about. I wouldn't be surprised if a remake of Ys V is next using this quasi-open world style that's present in this game, but I'm betting by the time we get to Ys X that they're going to change up the gameplay again and also finally make the series fully open world.

The story and characters are the best the series has ever seen and the mystery that presented itself late in chapter 2 kept me guessing until the reveal of what was really going on. The new Monstrum abilities added a ton of verticality to the exploration and allowed for more complex maps than the series has had in the past. There were also a ton of collectables hidden around the city that gave it a bit of an Assassin's Creed feel to it. You're locked to the city for most of the early game, but eventually you're able to adventure beyond its walls and it has all the types of locales you would expect from an Ys game.

The combat mostly felt unchanged from Ys VIII although the Monstrum abilities let you zip around the battlefield a little faster than before. It still had the tower defense sections although they were less complex and I think a bit easier than they were in VIII.