Ys I is seriously frustrating near the end

[SoulflySolid]

This boss is so freaking frustrating! I had to stop for a bit as I just can't beat it. It's so hard to tell if you're going to get hit by the spinning orbs, and you die so quickly. Not to mention you have to alternate your attacks between the two heads. And I can't even use a heal potion.

Any tips would be appreciated.

!

[CrackTiger]

Much easier than the SMS version.

If I remember correctly, you just get inside of one ring and go nuts when the heads cross.

[SoulflySolid]

Much easier than the SMS version.

If I remember correctly, you just get inside of one ring and go nuts when the heads cross.

Hmmm, I will have to try that. I kept going back and forth and it didn't work too well.

[SignOfZeta]

Is it possible to get the 400 XP you need to level up? When it comes to bosses every level is hugely helpful in this game. It directly shifts the ratio of how many times you can take a hit versus how many times the boss can take a hit. Bosses are way easier when you are at the highest reasonable attainable level for that part of the game.

[OldMan]

If I remember correctly, you just get inside of one ring and go nuts when the heads cross.

It's been a long time, but I remember just spamming the fire thingy for that guy.

When it comes to bosses every level is hugely helpful in this game.

Absolutely. It seems like you need a minimum level for some monsters, or they kick your butt.
Gaining 1 level can often make a hard boss quite easy to beat.

And when you are farming the enemies and getting only 1 xp, it's time to move on

[MisterCrash]

I would agree with leveling up. In the halls of mirrors, I would go back and forth defeating enemies until I had at least 160 hp before proceeding, if I recall correctly.

[Johnpv]

I'm going to echo what everyone else is basically saying, level up.  It's a common theme in the Ys games, if a boss is kicking your ass, you need to go up a level or two.  Sometimes going up two levels will take you from getting your ass kicked to holy crap that boss was a joke.  In the entire franchise I can only think of two really frustrating as hell bosses that leveling doesn't help, and that's the last two bosses of Ys IV Mask of the Sun.  Seriously, what the fuck at them.

[SoulflySolid]

Thanks for the help on this, I'm going to go back and level up some more

[NecroPhile]

+1 on leveling up.  One extra level often means the difference between farkin' hard and no problem.

[NE146]

Yeah man.. Ys is all about the grind. Grind it up

[CrackTiger]

I've beaten every boss in Ys SMS and I, II & IV for PCE on the minimum level that you can hurt them. I love challenging myself like that, even though I also enjoy over grinding during other playthroughs as well. So leveling makes things easier, but every boss can be defeated using skill and by understanding the mechanics of the fight.

The boss that is the most challenging for me since I stopped having as much time to play games regularly, is the final boss fight in Dawn of Ys. I have no problem with it mentally, but the first couple stages wear out my thumb physically. Same as playing Zangief in SFII.

[exodus]

I have a harder time getting through the stupid maze at the end of Ys II! So look forward to that!

[TurboXray]

Level up there, buttercup.

[SoulflySolid]

Leveled up and killed it almost instantly. What a crazy difference a few levels makes

[seieienbu]

Congrats on beating the masks; you're well on your way to finishing the game.  You might find it fun to go back and play the game a second time at some point and try to beat the whole thing at a lower level.  Ys is challenging yet fair; if you learn the pattern to a boss you should be able to win with skilled play rather than brute force.

[EmperorIng]

A final point that makes a huge difference: setting the speed between Slow and Fast.

When you have things on Fast, not only do you move twice as fast, but all the enemies do too.

For the final boss (or for any hard boss) make sure that you have the speed set to Slow before you start the fight, to increase the amount of reaction time at your disposal.

[SoulflySolid]

Finished part 1, now onto part 2. The cinematic sequence in between games was awesome.

[TurboXray]

I found the 2nd part of the game a little more balanced, if I remember right. Particularly when it comes to leveling system and the number of levels you can gain.

[seieienbu]

I found the 2nd part of the game a little more balanced, if I remember right. Particularly when it comes to leveling system and the number of levels you can gain.

If memory serves, isn't the max level in Ys 1 the same as it is in Ys 2?  I had way more problems beating Dark Fact on SMS due to the fact that you couldn't just over-level for the sequel during the first one.  Max level in Ys 2 puts you at a reasonable strength to beat Potential-spoiler meaning you can't over level unlike with the first game.

[EmperorIng]

The levels carry over from Ys 1 to Ys 2 in the Turbo version, if I remember correctly (e.g. beating the first at lvl 24 means you start at that in the second). Though practically speaking, you're starting from the ground up at the beginning of Ys 2.

[seieienbu]

That's what I was thinking.  I haven't played the Turbo version in a long while and couldn't quite recall.

[wildfruit]

Well done. Now if you can figure out the god damn room in book 2 god damn evil bell I salute you.

[TurboXray]

I don't remember exactly. Maybe the levels do carry over. But you can max out in the first game, in a given area, fairly quickly and it doesn't do you any good. Not max out overall, but max out for the area.. in the later areas (first half of part 1 is easy). The Bat boss in the mines is a bastard because of this. I recently played through the first part and mostly into the second part, so maybe the numbers look the same but the leveling system is not as balanced as the second part. The leveling, related to the area, related to the boss for the areas, was more even in the second game IMO. Though the second part has its own different set of challenges.

 Then again.. maybe I'm just imagining all of this ;>_>

[xcrement5x]

I don't remember exactly. Maybe the levels do carry over. But you can max out in the first game, in a given area, fairly quickly and it doesn't do you any good. Not max out overall, but max out for the area.. in the later areas (first half of part 1 is easy). The Bat boss in the mines is a bastard because of this. I recently played through the first part and mostly into the second part, so maybe the numbers look the same but the leveling system is not as balanced as the second part. The leveling, related to the area, related to the boss for the areas, was more even in the second game IMO. Though the second part has its own different set of challenges.

 Then again.. maybe I'm just imagining all of this ;>_>

No that, bad boss is a bastard.  Always has been.

Every version I've played I dreaded that boss fight.

[MisterCrash]

When I played Ys I & II Chronicles on the PSP, I started off a game on Hard difficulty. I figured that having passed the game a dozen times on multiple platforms, I should be OK. I got to the bat boss, and spent fifteen minutes trying to beat him, but couldn't do it. I leveled myself to the max, made sure I had the best equipment I could get, and tried again. After another hour of trying to beat him, I never got him down below 1/3 health. I ended up abandoning the game and starting over on Normal difficulty.