Ys IV: Mask of the Sun
Encyclopedia
is an action role-playing game
developed for the Super Famicom
, and is the fourth game in the Ys video game series. Ys series creators Nihon Falcom Corporation licensed its development to Tonkin House
.
Mask of the Sun was released in 1993 and was one of two games released under the title of "Ys IV", the other being Hudson Soft
's Ys IV: The Dawn of Ys
for the PC Engine
. The two games share the same basic story, but many changes were made in the Hudson-produced Dawn of Ys. Of the two, Mask of the Sun is the official Ys IV storyline. Originally a version of "Mask of the Sun" was also planned by Sega
for Mega Drive and later Mega-CD under the Sega-Falcom joint development agreement, but this version was ultimately canceled.
In 2005, Taito Corporation
developed a remake of Mask of the Sun for the PlayStation 2
, titled Ys IV: Mask of the Sun - A New Theory.
.
After returning to the town of Minea, Adol comes across a message in a bottle. The message is from the far-off land of Celceta, asking for help. Adol decides to take the offer and boards a ship to the land of Celceta.
In this version of Ys IV, Adol's departure occurs immediately at the start of the game; there are no initial events occurring in the actual town of Minea, as there were in The Dawn of Ys.
The PlayStation 2 remake of Mask of the Sun only used the original Ys IV music, with none of the tracks composed for the Super Famicom version being present. This version's usage of the music also differs from the original Mask of the Sun and The Dawn of Ys in many places.
No soundtrack releases exist for Mask of the Sun, as all Ys IV music releases were published under the The Dawn of Ys title.
versions were done by Hitoshi Okuda
and Nozomu Tamaki
.
Action role-playing game
Action role-playing games form a loosely defined sub-genre of role-playing video games that incorporate elements of action or action-adventure games, emphasizing real-time action where the player has direct control over characters, instead of turn-based or menu-based combat...
developed for the Super Famicom
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
, and is the fourth game in the Ys video game series. Ys series creators Nihon Falcom Corporation licensed its development to Tonkin House
Tonkin House
Tonkin House is the brand name "Beijing" , such as "Tokyo" in Chinese as "Tonkin" is derived from what it was pronounced.-Summary:Tokyo Shoseki himself initially "Tokyo Shoseki" that there was also the launch of a computer software family with the brand name PC, Tokyo, Ltd...
.
Mask of the Sun was released in 1993 and was one of two games released under the title of "Ys IV", the other being Hudson Soft
Hudson Soft
, formally known as , is a majority-owned subsidiary of Konami Corporation is a Japanese electronic entertainment publisher headquartered in the Midtown Tower in Tokyo Midtown, Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with an additional office in the Hudson Building in Sapporo. It was founded on May 18, 1973...
's Ys IV: The Dawn of Ys
Ys IV: The Dawn of Ys
is an action role-playing game developed for the TurboGrafx-CD, and is the fourth game in the Ys video game series. Ys series creators Nihon Falcom Corporation licensed its development to Hudson Soft....
for the PC Engine
TurboGrafx-16
TurboGrafx-16, fully titled as TurboGrafx-16 Entertainment SuperSystem and known in Japan as the , is a video game console developed by Hudson Soft and NEC, released in Japan on October 30, 1987, and in North America on August 29, 1989....
. The two games share the same basic story, but many changes were made in the Hudson-produced Dawn of Ys. Of the two, Mask of the Sun is the official Ys IV storyline. Originally a version of "Mask of the Sun" was also planned by Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
for Mega Drive and later Mega-CD under the Sega-Falcom joint development agreement, but this version was ultimately canceled.
In 2005, Taito Corporation
Taito Corporation
The is a Japanese publisher of video game software and arcade hardware wholly owned by publisher Square Enix. Taito has their headquarters in the Shinjuku Bunka Quint Building in Yoyogi, Shibuya, Tokyo, sharing the facility with its parent company....
developed a remake of Mask of the Sun for the PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
, titled Ys IV: Mask of the Sun - A New Theory.
Plot
Ys IV is an interquel which takes place in between the events of Ys II and Ys III: Wanderers from YsYs III: Wanderers from Ys
is an action role-playing game developed by Nihon Falcom Corporation. It is the third game in the Ys series.Ys III was initially released for the NEC PC-8801 and NEC PC-9801 in 1989, and versions for the MSX 2 and Sharp X68000 soon followed. In 1991, a number of console ports were produced:...
.
After returning to the town of Minea, Adol comes across a message in a bottle. The message is from the far-off land of Celceta, asking for help. Adol decides to take the offer and boards a ship to the land of Celceta.
In this version of Ys IV, Adol's departure occurs immediately at the start of the game; there are no initial events occurring in the actual town of Minea, as there were in The Dawn of Ys.
Gameplay
Ys IV returns to the style of play used in Ys I and II. Adol is viewed from a top-down perspective, and he attacks enemies by running into them to cause damage. Adol gains experience from defeating enemies, and gaining experience serves to raise his strength, as in the previous games. A new Magic system is introduced as well, in which Adol can equip elemental swords to cast various types of attack spells.Music
The original Ys IV music was composed by Falcom's Sound Team JDK, and it was arranged for the Super Famicom by the Cube Corporation sound team. Mask of the Sun generally draws from the same source music as The Dawn of Ys, though much of it is used differently between the two games. In addition, there are a number of new compositions which are used exclusively in Mask of the Sun.The PlayStation 2 remake of Mask of the Sun only used the original Ys IV music, with none of the tracks composed for the Super Famicom version being present. This version's usage of the music also differs from the original Mask of the Sun and The Dawn of Ys in many places.
No soundtrack releases exist for Mask of the Sun, as all Ys IV music releases were published under the The Dawn of Ys title.
Other media
A novel prequel was written by Waku Ōba and two different mangaManga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
versions were done by Hitoshi Okuda
Hitoshi Okuda
is a Japanese manga artist, most famous for his characterizations and stories set in the world of Tenchi Muyo!.Okuda got his start as a doujinshi artist before debuting professionally, studying under Nobuteru Yūki and Yutaka Izubuchi....
and Nozomu Tamaki
Nozomu Tamaki
is a Japanese manga artist whose Dance in the Vampire Bund was licensed in English by Seven Seas Entertainment and adapted into a 12 episodes anime series by the studio Shaft.-Works:*Femme Kabuki...
.