Preview: Ys Memoire: The Oath to Felghana seems to be in great shape

Although it is debatable these days whether or not Yes retains the status of Nihon Falcom’s flagship series that it has enjoyed for so long, there is no doubt that it remains an important part of the publisher’s history. Ys X: Nordicsthe latest in the series, is in many ways the largest and most comprehensive entry, and it appears to have been well received by fans. That said, there is some appeal to the earlier, simpler, more direct entries. Ys Memory: The oath at Felghana offers an upgraded version of a classic entry, and I had the chance to get hands-on with the first hours of this action-RPG which launches for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4/5 early next year.

First, the mandatory general information. In 1989, Nihon Falcom decided to change things up for the third game in its successful series. Yes action-RPG series. While the first two matches were played from a top-down perspective, Ys III: the wanderers of Ys opted for a side-scrolling view similar to that of Falcom’s 1985 hit Xanadu: Dragon Slayer II. Despite this drastic change, the game was warmly received by fans and was ported to a number of computers and consoles. Subsequent Yes games returned to the familiar top-down style, leaving The wanderers of Ys like the weirdo of the family.

When it came time to redo The wanderers of YsNihon Falcom chose to use the original game’s framework and completely rebuild it. The then recent Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim‘s engine served as the basis for this effort, which was eventually released for Windows PCs in 2005 in Japan under the title Ys: The oath in Felghana. Although many locations and beats from the main story have been retained, almost every aspect of the game has been significantly expanded. The story and characters were richer, the dungeons bigger and more complex, and the action faster and more furious. Japanese fans were thrilled, but it would be a long time before Western players could officially get their hands on it.

Nihon Falcom bet more than most publishers on Sony’s PlayStation Portable, and part of that meant porting many of its PC games to handheld. In 2010, Ys: The oath in Felghana was released on the platform, with a localized version coming from Xseed Games. Although it is largely the same game as the Windows PC version, the PSP port added some small quality of life features and some minor additional dialogue with some NPCs. A few years later, in 2012, Xseed Games localized the Windows PC version of the game.

From what I’ve played so far, Ys Memory: The oath at Felghana appears to be based on the PSP version rather than the Windows PC original. This is mostly for the better, but those with keen eyes and plenty of experience with the PC version might notice slightly lower quality textures here and there. As for new features, you can now choose to play with the original game by Mieko Ishikawa. The wanderers of Ys The PC-88 soundtrack, Masaki Kawai’s charming X68000 soundtrack or Yukihiro Jindo’s arrangements for The oath at Felghana. There are new character portraits, with the option to use the originals if you prefer. Adol also speaks in this version of the game, with new lines inserted where there once was only silence.

The version I played was the Nintendo Switch version, and I can happily report that it runs smoothly and has minimal loading times. As well shouldbut one can never know in our time. The game plays very well, although it’s a little strange that you have to use the directional buttons to navigate some menus while Adol’s movement is locked to the stick. Although I suspected that this might be a lingering quirk from the PSP version, a quick check showed that this was a mapping choice new to this version. Still, you can find vestiges of the game’s original age here, like the inability to skip most cut scenes. The visuals are rendered at a higher resolution and have had some cleaning up, but at its core, this is still a game with roots dating back to the early 2000s.

However, truly great games transcend time and I firmly believe Ys: The oath in Felghana be such an example. The action is so fast-paced, and that speed is quite refreshing in an age where slower, more deliberate combat is the order of the day. Adol Christin is like a little red-haired Tasmanian devil in this game, flying around like a whirling dervish of destruction. As you gain new abilities and level up, its ability to chew through enemies only grows. Bosses require a more strategic approach, but their pace is no less frenetic. There’s a bit of platforming here, just enough to break things up without imposing too much on the action.

The story is just as quick in its pacing. There’s enough meat here to give context to the adventure and make the stakes more real, but you’ll move from one quest to the next without much downtime to worry about. There are side quests to find and complete, but they are brief jaunts compared to those in many other games. Ys Memory: The oath at Felghana is a game that asks you to keep moving, and the result is one of the most exciting action RPGs you can find.

Although more modern Yes the games have a lot of excellent qualities, sometimes it feels like something from that era of the series has been lost. Revisit this exceptional classic via Ys Memory: The oath at Felghana only reinforces that in my mind. So far, this seems like a solid update of a classic of the genre. If the rest of the game proves to be as strong as what I’ve played so far, this could prove to be a great way to ring in the new year.

Ys Memory: The oath at Felghana will be released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on January 7, 2025.

---