Ys (pronounced ‘ease’) is a long-running action adventure game series, but most people outside of Japan don’t know about it very well. But thanks to XSEED, you can now play a few of the Ys games on US PSPs, and the latest is Ys: The Oath in Felghana.

Back in the Super Nintendo days, one of the Ys titles did make it out on the US SNES. Ys III: Wanderers From Ys was a 2-D sidescrolling adventure game that came out early in the SNES life cycle (I’m not familiar if it was on any other system in the US, so forgive me if I missed something). Since most Ys games are viewed from a top-down perspective, Ys III was a bit of a departure. Anyway, The Oath in Felghana is a remake of Ys III, except now it’s viewed from a top-down perspective like the others. It has the same story, characters, and locations as the old 2-D title, but the new view makes it feel like a totally different game!

In Oath of Felghana, Ys star adventurer with fiery red hair Adol is traveling with his friend Dogi. They decide to stop off at Dogi’s hometown in Felghana, only to run into some problems. The once prosperous mining town has been taken over by an evil empire who is out searching for ancient powerful artifacts. It’s up to Adol to stop the empire’s sinister plans and save Dogi’s homeland.

Like other Ys games, play as Adol as you run around various locations and dungeons while fighting off monsters in real time. It’s like a more action-based Zelda game. Adol will learn magic spells that not only help him defeat enemies, but bypass obstacles and solve puzzles. Since Oath in Felghana was originally a 2-D sidescroller, Adol can jump and there are some light platforming elements paying homage to the old game.

There are a few minor problems with this Ys remake, though. The voice acting is spotty in places, but luckily you can turn the volume down on the talking. You don’t get any healing items, so fighting some of the bosses might be tricky for some. Although there are special moves and tricks you can use to heal yourself, plus you can retry boss battles and there are plenty of save points. As Ys games usually go, this new one is a bit short. And the slightly muddy graphics sometimes make it hard to see dropped items and hidden treasures. Plus, sometimes goals can be a little unclear, especially in some of the dungeon mazes.

But other than that, Ys: The Oath in Felghana is a fantastic action adventure game with smooth controls, quick gameplay, and awesome music. I think I enjoyed Ys Seven a teensy bit more, so I’d recommend that one first (it’s one of the best games I’ve played all year). But if you love the Ys series and are hankering for some more, this new one will be right up your alley. XSEED even has a Limited Edition version with a CD soundtrack, calendar, and other extra goodies!

Kid Factor:

Ys: The Oath in Felghana is rated T for Teen with ESRB descriptors of Blood, Fantasy Violence, Mild Language, and Suggestive Themes. The language is used in the text sparingly, and the suggestive themes come from some of the townsfolk, like the shopkeeper, who wears a low cut dress and talks in a sultry voice. The violence is pretty mild. You do hack and slash enemies who burst into bits when defeated, but the old-school graphics keep things from looking very realistic. I’d be OK with kids younger than teens playing this. Even though there is spoken voice, reading skill is helpful for the text and wading through menus. There are several selectable difficulty levels, from ridiculously easy to nightmarishly hard, so players of all skills can enjoy it. But younger gamers may still get frustrated at some of the trickier bosses and confusing dungeons.

Tags: Game Reviews