A marked improvement over the first game, Ys II feels a lot more modern than its predecessor. The small adjustments to the Bump system and the addition of the magic system help freshen things up. I never thought I'd say it but it I'll miss the Bump system of combat now that I'm done with this duology.

It's not without its flaws, though. The game does feel a lot more cryptic in how it litters information with its NPC's than Ys I does, making you fumble around backtracking continuously in order to figure out how to progress. I also feel like the build up of the final dungeon didn't have anywhere near the impact of the first game, with characters you're not really familiar suddenly being propped up up as important lore-centric figures right as the story is about to reach its conclusion. Curious how Origin expands on the barebones story.