If main RPG franchises like Last Fantasy launched me to RPGs, it’s the B-tier titles that made me love the style. All through the SNES, PSX, and PS2 eras of gaming, these decrease price range, heartfelt RPGs had been my bread and butter. Video games like Phantasm of Gaia (and later Terranigma), Lunar: The Silver Star Story, and Wild Arms meant a lot to me, and I’m at all times seeking titles that seize that very same inventive power. The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails might not come from that very same time interval, however it’s completely lower from that very same material.

Granted, it’s no shock that I would love this one (sorry, spoilers). The Legend of Nayuta was initially launched by Nihon Falcom for the PSP in 2012, AKA the creators of the Ys sequence. When you learn my bio on the backside of this text, you could possibly guess my emotions on the developer. And actually, The Legend of Nayuta is probably probably the most Falcom-y Falcom sport ever made. It sports activities the Trails/Kiseki moniker within the title, appears to make use of the Ys Seven engine, but performs like a mixture of Zwei: The Ilvard Revolt and Ys: The Oath in Felghana. Few video games are so tailor-made to my tastes and sensibilities as this, and I think about different Falcom followers don’t want my take to know they need to choose this one up.

Don’t fear, for the remainder of you not as eager on comparatively area of interest RPG franchises, I nonetheless have my critic hat on. And whereas I did completely take pleasure in The Legend of Nayuta, it perhaps doesn’t have the identical constant highs as Falcom’s finest work. Principally as a result of {hardware} it was initially made for.

The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails (PC [Reviewed], Nintendo Change, PlayStation 4)
Developer: Nihon Falcom
Writer: NIS America, Inc.
Launched: September 19, 2023 (NA), September 21, 2023 (EU)
MSRP: $39.99

Trails of no relation

As a fast clarifying observe, The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails is a very standalone title. The Kiseki/Trails sequence is a mammoth, however you don’t want expertise with any of these video games to take pleasure in this one. Whereas there are some references for followers right here, the consensus is that Nayuta takes place in its personal world. Granted, even when this one was tied to a larger universe, I believe you’d perceive it simply superb.

The titular Nayuta is a boy who lives on an island, and his story is a biggest hits of RPG tropes from roughly 1997 to 2005. He discovers a magical different world known as Terra that his mother and father died whereas investigating previously. His finest pal can be perhaps his rival. There’s a mysterious lady who has misplaced her reminiscence, who probably creates a love triangle with Nayuta’s childhood pal. It’s actual, actual primary, however it’s by-the-book to the purpose of feeling nostalgic. Among the later plot factors do get contrived, however in any other case I believe there’s numerous attraction right here.

A part of the attraction is much less the story itself and extra the smaller particulars. Falcom video games like Ys: The Oath in Felghana have this heat sense of group to them, and The Legend of Nayuta is not any exception. Everybody on Nayuta’s island has a reputation and a definite persona, and the best way everybody cares for one another is exceedingly healthful. Moments like speaking to everybody after saving a selected character and seeing them get tearful over all the things turning out okay is simply heartwarming, regardless of how easy it’s. And for me, whereas the plot isn’t at all times a mattress of flowers, that sense of consolation is what actually elevates The Legend of Nayuta as a complete.

Half Motion, half RPG, half Platformer

The place The Legend of Nayuta begins getting attention-grabbing is inside its precise construction. As a sport initially created for the PSP, it completely appears like a handheld sport. It forgoes open areas in favor of bite-sized ranges that every characteristic a handful of challenges to satisfy. Discover all of the secrets and techniques, open the chest(s), and fulfill a selected job like “defeat 30 enemies.” This begins to make this RPG really feel a bit like a platformer, which is becoming.

Ranges in The Legend of Nayuta usually resemble an Ys dungeon at first look. You’ll hack and slash your approach via monsters, utilizing magic and swordplay between swiftly dodging assaults. Nevertheless, there’s additionally a powerful concentrate on straight-up platforming. Leaping from platform to platform, and finally utilizing distinctive gimmicks to cross giant gaps, takes a powerful focus right here. In reality, you’ll typically see treasure chests that you may solely get hold of with powers you’ll unlock later, which imbues a little bit of Metroidvania right here as properly.

The sport often controls properly, although it does perhaps chew off greater than it may well chew in some regards. Extra on this later.

Don’t fear although, the RPG facet of issues is right here too. It veers on the easy facet, with primary stats and gear that primarily serve to make you look completely different and do greater injury numbers. However preventing baddies and leveling up is as a lot of this expertise as any sport, with a couple of different RPG-y programs thrown in too. Therapeutic objects come via cooking, which makes use of objects you discover throughout your journey to make. Additionally, you’ll discover all kinds of spells to degree up and equip as you see match. These programs work properly, particularly because the quantity crunching is much less necessary than your reflexes.

Changing into Adol Christin

The fight system in The Legend of Nayuta evolves in an interesting approach. In comparison with Ys video games, Nayuta controls far more slowly than Adol Christin in the beginning. It veers in the direction of Zwei’s extra informal focus, with simply the correct quantity of requisite dodging to maintain issues attention-grabbing. Nevertheless, as Nayuta progresses via the story and completes these non-obligatory challenges, his fight capabilities enhance. Earlier than it, you have got distinctive aerial assaults, a devoted parry button, cost assaults that use a selected meter, combo chain bonuses, and extra.

I finally hit a degree the place I used to be enjoying Nayuta equally to how I’d play Adol in one thing like Ys: Lacrimosa of Dana. Enemies get quicker and stronger to match Nayuta, which actually gave me that Ys-style rush within the later ranges. That stated, the sport by no means actually veers into particularly exhausting territory. I performed on the tougher issue, and whereas I did die a couple of instances, it was largely as a result of I forgot to make use of my very own therapeutic objects. It is a very approachable sport, however I used to be by no means bored.

The boss design could be a bit hit-or-miss, however when it hits, it actually hits. There may be one encounter on this sport that’s so large and bombastic that I’m shocked they match it into what was initially a PSP sport. Positive, it comes at a second the place you’d count on one thing like that, however I nonetheless received that “hell yeah!” feeling as I used to be preventing. Falcom motion video games run this superb line of feeling each fashionable and retro on the similar time, and The Legend of Nayuta follows in that proud custom. Followers of Ys Origins, The Oath in Felghana, or The Ark of Napishtim shall be thrilled.

Extra Falcom jams

Talking of Falcom staples, I’d be remiss if I didn’t gush in regards to the soundtrack right here. The humorous factor is, I don’t even assume this one hits fairly as exhausting as Ys does on common. Nevertheless, even the Olympic Bronze Medalist remains to be a formidable athlete, and The Legend of Nayuta slaps within the audio division.

Accompanying the escalation of sport mechanics, the soundtrack equally evolves as you play. In the beginning, the music takes a slower, friendlier vibe to lull you into a way of safety. Actually, some tracks really feel like they’re intentionally knocking off one thing like Tremendous Mario Galaxy. They’re high quality songs, however positively a change of tempo from Falcom’s normal work. However as you progress, the music begins to match the depth of the fight and veers in the direction of the kind of stuff that you just’d hear in one thing like Ys or Mega Man X. It’s earworm after earworm with this sport, particularly in the event you’re into the stronger, catchier hooks synonymous with retro titles.

Even with out that gameplay cohesion, I might write a complete assessment speaking about how good the soundtrack is right here. The miniboss theme is healthier than it has any proper to be, particularly since I solely managed to listen to its rocking second half within the later phases of the sport. Even the slower tracks, like your peaceable city theme, are simply nice to take heed to. Even when you’ve got no plans to play The Legend of Nayuta, you need to take heed to this soundtrack. It’s high quality online game music to a tee, and I count on to take heed to this whereas I work for the foreseeable future.

Unlucky moveable origins

Sadly, The Legend of Nayuta does have one noticeable Achilles’ Heel: it was initially a PSP sport. Falcom had a slightly strong run of titles on the PSP, and The Legend of Nayuta was their closing sport on the hand-held. I get the sense that they handled this sport as one thing of a culminating work, in order that they crammed it with as many concepts as doable. Sadly, this strategy hasn’t let The Legend of Nayuta age fairly as properly.

The large, ever-present concern right here is the digicam. Presumably to suit the unique smaller display, The Legend of Nayuta tends to zoom in fairly shut on its protagonist. This works nice in fight, not a lot for all that platforming. At forks within the highway, it was typically exhausting to inform which approach continued the vital path or led to secrets and techniques since I couldn’t see that far forward of me. Different instances, I’d scour ranges for a secret I missed, solely to seek out it was someplace simply out of my viewing space. This isn’t an enormous concern, however it does start to grate after some time.

Moreover, whereas I do respect how bold Nayuta’s package turns into, a number of the concepts right here begin to really feel janky. One sticking level was the flexibility that permit Nayuta hookshot to rotating gears within the sky. This simply by no means felt that good to me, and generally led to tumbles down cliffs as a result of I by chance used a hookshot after I didn’t imply to. Moreover, since many of those talents are tied to a meter, I bumped into moments the place I’d want to attend round and let it refill simply to advance sure elements.

Ahead and again, after which ahead and again

I additionally do really feel the necessity to point out that The Legend of Nayuta is, by design, fairly repetitive. One among its main gimmicks is that you just’ll unlock numerous seasons throughout its different world as you progress. Altering the season transforms ranges, which provides you incentive to replay them with a slew of recent enemies and challenges to beat. These do change issues up significantly, however they nonetheless contain repeating phases to clear the sport. It’s a intelligent approach of doing it, however it’s price noting all the identical.

Moreover, the sport will intentionally funnel you again into phases you’ve already cleared as properly. Some sidequests, for example, can have you observe down sure objects in a cleared stage. You would possibly discover this stuff in your first run, however solely with the correct quest are you able to choose them up. In different instances, you’ll come throughout a problem on a stage that requires its personal devoted run to clear. As an illustration, challenges like “clear with solely defeating three enemies” are functionally inconceivable in your first try, merely since you’ll must defeat issues to entry different secrets and techniques.

This kind of repetition will not be an enormous deal to followers of say, Ys Origin, which required enjoying the sport 3 times to earn its true ending. Nevertheless, The Legend of Nayuta doesn’t area out these returns to older ranges or offer you new characters to play like Ys Origin did.

I really don’t say this a lot as a damaging as a lot as a normal heads up. This kind of design clearly match the sport’s handheld origins, so I like to recommend enjoying The Legend of Nayuta that approach. With fast pick-up-and-play sections, you’ll hardly discover this as a fault. When you marathon the sport for hours, it turns into extra noticeable. I felt this was an ideal match for my Steam Deck, the place it seemed and ran nice. So in the event you’re out there for a very good moveable sport, positively give this one a glance.

That stunning B-tier

Once more, I must make clear that I actually preferred The Legend of Nayuta. Even with the minor frustrations right here and there, I usually loved this one from begin to end. In any case, it’s exhausting to really feel vexed by repeating ranges when the action-platforming-RPG core of the sport is that this rock strong. The Legend of Nayuta leans into these retro sensibilities that usually checks your gaming prowess, with sufficient RPG components to create a extra informal expertise if that’s what you need.

For many, I think about The Legend of Nayuta would possibly seem like a kind of “I’ll get it on sale” forms of video games. Particularly because it’s technically a decade-old sport with a recent coat of paint. Nevertheless, the standard of the expertise on supply right here is totally price that full worth. Beating The Legend of Nayuta took me about 20 hours, and beating The Legend of Nayuta took me about 25. I received’t elaborate on what meaning. Moreover, there’s some strong New Recreation Plus content material right here, making this the proper sport to return to over a month or so. Actually, even in the event you don’t play it like that, I believe The Legend of Nayuta is strong. I believe it simply hits hardest in the event you deal with it that approach.

The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails is pure gaming consolation meals. Its mixture of motion, platforming, and RPG is simply too nice to withstand, particularly accompanied by its incredible soundtrack. It actually exhibits its age, and particularly its moveable origins. However that apart, Nayuta’s story captures an genuine spirit of traditional RPGs that I discovered as charming as I did entertaining. I’m certain followers of Falcom’s work have this one pre-ordered already, however even in the event you aren’t in that fandom, give this one a glance.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}