Action · February 14, 2013

Ys I & II Chronicles+ (2013)

trophy17 achievementslocal_offer-70% current discountgroup100k–1M ownersrecommend2.6k recommendations
Long, long ago, there was an ancient kingdom called Ys which prospered under the auspices of two heavenly Goddesses. Over time, the kingdom came to be known as Esteria, and its divine history was largely forgotten by all but the descendants of those who once preached the Goddesses’ will. The only reminder of this lost lore was a cursed spire at the foot of a giant crater, which locals came to regard as “The Devil’s Tower.” Eventually, the men and women who called Esteria their home began mining a uniquely radiant silver from the nearby mountains, and development boomed. Towns were built, and the land became rich with life. Then, all at once, monsters began to appear. Only a few at first – but soon enough, the land was swarming with them, and the Esterians had no choice but to hide in fear, remaining ever vigilant just to stay alive. Our story begins with a young man who’d heard rumors of these misfortunes, and strove to verify them with his own eyes; a brave swordsman with an adventurous spirit bolstered by his own youthful naiveté. His name was Adol Christin. With no regard for his own safety, Adol set sail toward Esteria through a heretofore impassable barrier of neverending storms. There, he was destined to become ensconced within a 700 year-old mystery that would ultimately take him to a long-lost land nestled amongst the clouds... Ys I & II Chronicles+ is the most modernized and up-to-date remake of Falcom’s classic franchise-spawning action RPGs from 1987 and 1988. Come see how the story began, and witness the birth of a legend! Key Features Classic buttonless “bump” combat receives a full analog-enabled upgrade for gamepad users, and is augmented in Ys II by a robust magic system. Soundtrack selectable from among the original 80s FM-synth, an early 2000s MIDI-style remix or a modern studio performance by Falcom’s in-house rock band. Character art selectable from 90s-style portraits or more modern anime designs. Four selectable difficulty levels and optional boss rush mode grant players a true old-school challenge (if desired). Transform into a demon to speak with any and every standard enemy in the game, creating unparalleled depth that still impresses even to this day. (Ys II only) Unique Steam Achievements plus Steam Cloud support and leaderboards. Adjustable high-resolution PC graphics with a smooth, consistent framerate. Greater viewing area than in previously-available Ys I & II Chronicles editions. Decorative screen frames available from the earlier Japan-only Ys I & II Complete PC release, in addition to the more modernized full-screen viewport of previous Ys I & II Chronicles editions.

Action releases from 2013

104 Action titles launched in 2013 — top 6 by review volume.

Peer Action titles

Comparable titles in the same genre and review-volume band — ranked by Steam positive percentage.

Community Tag Signals

Tag weights reflect how many Steam users voted each descriptor — larger pills = stronger consensus.

  • JRPG · 218
  • Action · 182
  • Great Soundtrack · 174
  • RPG · 171
  • Adventure · 138
  • Action RPG · 108
  • Anime · 97
  • Remake · 81
  • Classic · 80
  • Difficult · 57
  • Fantasy · 51
  • Top-Down · 45
  • Dungeon Crawler · 43
  • Singleplayer · 39
  • Hack and Slash · 34

Position in Action

MetricThis titleGenre position
Review volume2.7k Steam reviewsTop 84% in Action
Positive rating89% positiveGenre average: 83% — this title sits in top 41%
Metacritic63/100Genre average 77 — top 93% of Action titles
Engagement hours7 h averageTop 60% for session depth among Action

Reception Metrics

Steam community

89%Very Positive · 2.7k reviews

2.4k positive · 302 negative

Metacritic

63/100 critic aggregate

Metacritic user score

8.6/10

Curator recommendations

2.6k

More from Nihon Falcom

Nihon Falcom has 9 titles indexed — top 6 by review volume below.

Features & Capabilities

Community

  • Steam Achievements
  • Steam Trading Cards
  • Steam Cloud
  • Steam Leaderboards

Input & Comfort

  • Partial Controller Support

Other

  • Single-player
  • Family Sharing

Engagement Profile

All-time avg

7h

short (5–15 hours)

Median

5h

Typical completion time

Achievements

17

Steam unlocks available

Release & Availability

Release dateFeb 14, 2013
DeveloperNihon Falcom
PublisherXSEED Games
Base price$4.49 -70%
PlatformsWindows
Estimated owners100k–1M
External linksOfficial site · Support · [email protected]

Editions & Packages

  • Buy Ys I & II Chronicles+