Good news, everyone! Ys: Memories of Celceta, once only available in North America on the PS Vita (AKA the little handheld that could) is now available to play on the PlayStation 4. Since we reviewed the game back in 2013 when it debuted on the Vita, this review is more of a re-review as I’ll be focusing on any differences between to the two versions, not necessarily talking specifically about content that already came out seven years ago.
Return to the Great Forest
This updated port of the fourth canonical Ys game may not have enhanced the graphics, however, it does run much more smoothly. Bumping up to 60 frames per second vastly improved the flow of both boss battles and map encounters. Maybe it’s just me but the increase in frames has me pulling off more flash moves and flash guards than I can remember doing in the Vita version. This is so important when it comes to those boss battles. More frames has made it easier for me to watch their patterns and time my attacks.
Since part of Ys: Memories of Celceta‘s storyline (and a trophy, of course) is tied to the completion level of the world map, the increased frames seem to also make it easier to fill it out. Sure, I’m still hugging the edges of each area as I fight my way through. Perhaps it’s all in my imagination. It’s pretty hard to remember every moment of a game I played six years back.
Double-Edged Swords
Voice-overs of JRPGs have long divided most players; you are either Team Dub or Team Sub. I’ve seen many a comment section up in arms when they announce that a Japanese game will only have English audio. This Ys: Memories of Celceta port includes both, so you can play with whichever grunt noises you choose. Not every important text scene is fully voiced-over, which is still weird to me. You’ll sometimes hear a voice-over when meeting a new character and suddenly a line or two is dropped in the middle.
And if you were thinking about how much you loved this game on the Vita and were eager to chase down all of the trophies again, I’m sorry to break this news. The trophy list appears to be linked to your PS Vita version’s trophies. This is great news for people who packed up or maybe traded away their Vita copies without completing the list. Just not so hot news if you wanted a second platinum from it.
Much of our original reviewer’s thoughts are ones I agree with. Ys: Memories of Celceta is fun and pretty straightforward for a JRPG. These characters don’t have explosions of personal growth, mostly sticking to their given roles in Adol’s tale. Russell’s original review did note frame rate issues which are no longer a problem in the PS4 port. That 60fps is the best quality of life update the game could ask for. Do yourself a favor, head back to the Great Forest and discover the secrets within over your summer break.
Ys: Memories of Celceta PS4 review code provided by publisher. Version 1.01 reviewed on a standard PlayStation 4. For more information on scoring please see our Review Policy.
