Thank you Marvelous USA/XSEED Games for sending us this game to review!

Back in 1989, Falcom had experimented, in a rather Zelda II-like way, to make a side scrolling Ys game. This did come out in the west, as Ys III: Wanderers from Ys a few years later. While not a terrible game, it was often called the 'black sheep' of the series. Of course Falcom knew this as well, and in 2005, released a total remake from an overhead perspective for Windows PCs called Ys: The Oath in Felghana. They made a PSP release a few years later in 2010. In 2012, XSEED Games got permission to update and release that PC version on Steam and a few other stores like GoG. I reviewed that PC version way back in 2014, so if you see a lot of references and comparisons between them in this review, that's why.

Interestingly, XSEED did PC gamers a big favor and released a free patch to their PC release by adding in almost all of the PSP enhancements to the Windows PC release as an unexpected patch in 2020. With these additions, the PSP version's advantages are primarily an extra boost level and some small quality of life changes. I believe it also has widescreen versions of the videos rather than the original 4:3 versions, and has a museum mode. I'm not sure what else there might have been since I don't own the PSP version. It did offer full voice acting to most of the main storyline sequences except for Adol who remained a silent protagonist. The other major addition was getting to choose between the fantastic (and recommended) Original soundtrack, and the PC-8801 and X68000 versions of the music. All are great, but I am personally partial to the hard rock and modern-sounding arrangements of the Original.

For the longest time, The Oath in Felghana was locked to PC and PSP. While the PC platform is certainly popular today, and you can still buy the game as of this writing, the PSP version can't be played on any modern hardware. Falcom decided to release the game once again on Nintendo Switch in Japan in 2023, and then again on PlayStation 4 and 5 in 2024. They called this new release Ys Memoire: The Oath in Felghana. XSEED Games has taken those releases, consolidated them to one release date, and taken them to the rest of the world once again.

Ys Memoire: The Oath in Felghana is more of a remaster and port than a dramatic re-release. This release for Switch and PlayStation is based on the PSP version, which has the added voice lines, soundtrack options, and a few other minor improvements over the PC original as mentioned before. As you might hope, this release does offer 60 frames per second (fps), even on Nintendo Switch. This alone makes it feel quite a bit better to play than the PSP's 30 fps, but the PC release technically supports much more (though I understand there are bugs in a few places if the frame rate is too high). This new release is fully voiced, as it was on PSP, but this time they added some voice lines for Adol. You can choose to listen to the narrator from the PSP/PC release or Adol himself with a toggle in the options. I will say the classic narrator has more to say than Adol, which just says a quick thing like 'here ya go' rather than full explanations. While on the field and attacking, Adol also has new voice grunts and occasional proclamations as he fights with gusto. This reminds me a lot of how it is in the latest Ys game, Ys X: Nordics.

There is a new quality of life feature, though this game really doesn't need it, and that's Turbo mode. I found that it gets in the way, as I would accidentally press in on the right stick and activate it. I honestly don't understand why it's here, since this game is really fast paced, offers teleportation later on, and the platforming is far too precise and the action too intense to really benefit from it. One quality of life feature that is handy though is that the PSP version added the ability to retry bosses on easier difficulty levels, and the Switch version kept that. Now that's helpful!

Ys Memoire: The Oath in Felghana, which takes place after the events in Ys: Memories in Celceta, is the story of the adventure Adol has with his best pal Dogi back in Dogi's home town of Redmont, in Felghana. Dogi had not been home in eight years, and while many were very happy to see him, it quickly became clear that things are not as they should be. The rulers in nearby Valestein Castle don't have Redmont's best interests in mind. On top of that, monsters in the area are getting more and more aggressive, making travel outside of the village very dangerous. Of course, a hero is inevitably needed, and Adol happens to fit the bill perfectly.

Like most Ys games, the story always takes a back seat to gameplay. This game is 3D rendered, and has a combination of top down and quasi side scrolling segments where you can move to the left or right, but also has a certain amount of depth you can travel. There is an interesting mix of hack and slash action, jumping, and platforming. There is also magic to wield, items to collect, and weapons and armor to gather and forge. This is a solo adventure, with Adol forced to take on all of the forces of evil himself.

There are several areas in a somewhat dungeon-like format to explore. Each area has lots of enemies to slash into bits, as well as at least one epic boss to battle. And they are definitely epic. And seriously hard. The PC and PlayStation versions have an achievement/trophy called 'Consult an FAQ Already!', which is earned by dying over ten times on a single boss and it's very easy to get.

Every boss is definitely beatable, and as you fight them over and over, you begin to notice their patterns and quickly learn to avoid their attacks and properly pummel them. This is yet another Ys game that not only is incredibly satisfying to beat, but also makes you a better gamer. But it definitely does not pull any punches. Well, the PC version doesn't pull punches. On this release, there is a 'retry on an easier difficulty' option if you can't beat it as is. This lowers the damage you take dramatically, making that 'hard' difficulty level I picked much more manageable.

Unlike most Ys games, there is no save anywhere in this game, but save points you must reach. There is a whole lot of strategy involved in pressing on towards the next area vs. backtracking to survive. You see, there are no healing items, and until very late in the game, no way to gain health back on your own. The only way to heal is to beat up on enemies, and sometimes they drop healing items. So while it is a given that you have to memorize boss battles to survive, it is also the case that you can't just rush through normal enemies. If you do, you may find yourself either underleveled for that boss, or with far too few hit points left and a whole lot of dungeon ahead of you to the next save point. I will say that this new version does make this easier than the old PC version, as instead of being forced to reload when you die, you can retry from the state you were in when you entered that room. If you had low health when you walked in it stays that way, so you still need to be careful!

A single level can make a huge difference in how much damage you do and receive, so I found myself grinding to level up several times when things got tough. From what I can tell, it seems that you are expected to grind somewhat; some bosses are near unbeatable without that extra level or two.

Normal enemies can also be a challenge, especially if they gang up on you. There are also enemies that can only be defeated from behind, above, or in the air. There are flying enemies that you have to jump and attack. As you gain magic spells, there are also certain enemies that can only (or only easily) be defeated with magic as well. Fortunately, magic refills very quickly, making this, along with the rest of the game, very fast paced.

The game doesn't clip along just because you walk quickly, which you do, but there is a combo system upon connecting with your foes that increases damage, defense, magic regeneration, and the rate of experience gain. This can really pay off while leveling, as getting up to 1.99x experience for defeating many foes in a row can really help leveling go much faster. There is a boost gauge that allows you to pound in your enemies even faster than normal, while also helping to rack up those combos once unleashed. Eventually there is a double boost unlocked which is even more powerful, and even helps heal you. (Double boost in not in the PC version.)

The Oath in Felghana has one of the best soundtracks period, not just for Ys. I bought the soundtracks for several Ys games, and I have been loving every minute of them. They feature everything from peaceful flute and violin-filled town music, to absolutely killer hard rock battle themes. Please, for your own aural enjoyment, look up the soundtrack on YouTube. You won't be disappointed. Now, imagine rocking out to those tracks, while exploring or facing truly epic boss battles; it really brings the experience together.

The graphics, while dated, are perfectly serviceable and have aged fairly well. The environments are fully rendered, with the characters and many enemies being 2D sprites. It may sound strange but it works just fine. Unfortunately, in this area the PC release does look noticeably better, though it really shouldn't. The main issue here is that the textures are tiled, which is certainly common enough, but the tiles don't always line up perfectly, leaving a noticeable line in between. It's a shame, as without that it would not only look a lot better, but some textures look touched up a bit and it might otherwise look superior to the PC original.

As fun as the game is, it's not without appropriateness concerns. First of all, there is violence. Bad guys die when hit enough times, and when they die they dies in a poof of blood. (This is much less blood than the PC version, which would splash everywhere.) There are also a few story sequences with blood. There is some language, like '*ss', 'd*mn', 'h*ll', 'b*tch', and 'b*stard'. One character at the pub is shown drinking alcohol. There is some sexual innuendo; your pal Dogi points out how his childhood friend, now a young lady, has 'filled out nicely'. He also points out how he hopes to have a chance with her; after all, he has that childhood friend thing going for him. Humorously, he realizes that Adol always get the girls to fall for him anyways. There is also cleavage on a woman, and at least one female boss is rather exposed. There is an achievement called 'legacy pervert' on the PC and PlayStation versions (doesn't apply to Switch) which you can trigger by crowding out a lady you are escorting. It's a reference to an easter egg in Ys I & II; there is no in game text referencing the action, just the achievement.

Interestingly, in this game there is a very Catholic-like church, which is shown in a mostly positive light, at first. As the game goes on, *spoilers* some of the leaders betray you, but not all. They go on a power trip, and get their power from a rather more demonic source. *end spoilers* Despite this, they are shown to be pillars of the community, and those who remain stay strong to each other in times of crisis, and come around the town and church community in doing so. God is named, in reference to the/a deity, and usually with respect or reverence. There is also a story of pain, revenge, and redemption woven throughout that I thought had, on balance, a positive moral lesson.

One thing that is common to Ys games is the magical items that grant Adol (and others) power are all from whatever religion predated the church in the region. So, while a strong sense of community is seen through the Catholic-like church, and at least some of the church leadership is shown as being consistently good and holy people, no obvious spiritual power is shown. A case could be made that the ancient religions of the region are more 'real' than the current one, though you could probably also argue that a God who works through His creation and doesn't require a constant physical presence to impact the world is indeed more powerful. It is only conjecture to say if the developers had an agenda here or not. It's all a fantasy world anyway; it just inspired some thought.

Ys Memoire: The Oath in Felghana is, in many ways, a purified action RPG. As time has gone on, this entry in particular has been shown to be one of the best action RPGs of its kind, and a top-rated entry in the Ys series. It runs great on Nintendo Switch, though it is less expensive on PC; you can't go wrong with either version. It's not a particularly long adventure, as the average time to beat it is around twelve hours, though it could be more or less depending on skill level. It's a tightly woven, action packed experience that just keeps on moving, with stellar boss battles, despite occasional difficulty spikes. It does have some appropriateness issues to consider, and I don't want to minimize that. That aside, if you have any appreciation for action RPGs, and want a good challenge, and are looking for a game that has that classic feel, then look no further than Ys Memoire: The Oath in Felghana. It's a rush from start to finish.