Review: Ys Seven

Xseed Games and developer Nihon Falcom Corporation have done something phenomenal. Their latest title Ys Seven is both a satisfying old-school-styled action RPG and an easily-digestible portable title. While the game might not win any awards for originality, this latest entry to the Ys series has plenty to offer both for series veterans and newcomers alike.

Players follow the journey of Adol, a young adventurer with flaming red hair, and his muscular friend Dogi. The game starts with Adol and Dogi arriving via boat in Altago, a port town that seems to be under serious distress. The number of monsters surrounding the city has been increasing, people have been getting sick, and humongous beasts called Titano have been settling uncomfortably close to the town. Thus the duo becomes swept up in local affairs, choosing to investigate the strange occurrences for the benefit of the city and its citizens.

Their adventures take them to other towns and introduce them to several other characters that can join them in battle. Among these are a feisty princess, a rambunctious youngster, a hotheaded town elder, and a blind prophet. Needless to say, each of these characters bring a different humor and personality to the overall quest, among other things.

In addition to back stories and ties to the plot, these extra characters also have their own weapons, and hence, their own specific uses in battle. Blunt weapons (like the type used by Dogi) work well against armored enemies, slashing weapons work better on softer enemies, and only distance attacks prove effective against flying enemies. In order to use these different attacks, players only need to swap between the active party members using the circle button. The other two characters are controlled by the AI, which fortunately does a great job of staying on point without taking needless damage. Because of the excellent AI, players need to only focus on the HP of the active party member. This system provides the comfort of having backup in tense fights while also allowing some of the bosses to inflict enormous damage on the player.

Beyond the different types of attacks, each of the characters also have their own special attacks. These attacks are learned through the variety of different weapons made available in the game. At first, these skills can only be used if the weapon is equipped. However, once the character has earned enough experience to level up the skill, a new weapon can be selected and the character will still be able to use the ability. It’s a fun if not familiar system made all the better by the pacing in which the skills become available.

Special attacks drain SP, or Skill Points, from a meter in the lower right-hand side of the screen. While the SP meter becomes slowly filled by stringing together successful attacks, the player is able speed up the rate in which the SP gauge fills by chaining together charged attacks. Many of the battles are difficult without using the more powerful skills, and thus, the player must balance out normal and charged attacks with the amount of special attacks needed to take down their adversary.

The game has a number of different items that the player collects through battles and exploration. Some of the items are special trinkets that give unique abilities; others are weapons, armor, healing items, or raw materials. From shops, the player can use their raw materials to create all manners of items. Simple plant extracts and water can form healing items, while bones, claws, hides, and other materials can be used to craft unique weapons and armor. Some of the skills in the game can only be learned by custom-crafted weaponry, giving a good reason to track down all of the little bits that explode out of freshly-fallen enemies.

As the plot progresses, players come across different artifacts that enhance or alter the way players move around their surroundings. One object acts a light by which to see in a dark cave, while another allows the characters to float on gusts of wind, literally taking the exploration to new heights. Most importantly, one specific artifact allows quick travel between previously-discovered destinations, saving players from a large amount of dreaded backtracking and battles with low-level fiends.

The pacing of Ys Seven is absolutely perfect for a game on a portable system. Cutscenes and dialog segments don’t ever last uncomfortably long, and most of the dungeons can be conquered in around an hour, sometimes less. Players also have the ability to save wherever they want from within the game’s menu, eliminating entirely the worry that comes with having to return to the real world at an inopportune moment.

The plot segments are neatly broken up by bouts of exploration, fighting, and the occasional side quests. Most of the side quests are the usual RPG fair, ranging from bringing specific items to a windmill operator needing to make repairs to finding a rare type of water for a cook looking to add zest to his restaurant’s menu. Since a lot of the battling needed to find these items also rewards the player with materials needed to synthesize some of the better weapons and armor, the side quests can be quite easily accomplished without too much hard or needless work.

Or, rather, the collection side quests don’t take too much hard work. Ys Seven also features some of the most insane optional bosses I have ever encountered. Players who feel the need to complete games to the fullest degree will have plenty of grinding and equipment optimization to look forward to.

Much like the game’s traditional storyline, the visuals of Ys Seven feel just a bit familiar. While environments, monsters, and characters are crisp in design, the look and feel of the world is something that just doesn’t often stand out. Many of the locations are quite charming, including a handful of rather scenic vistas; these rare moments actually had me pleasantly surprised, if only for a moment. Unfortunately, most of the areas in-game just aren’t really noteworthy or inspiring. Still, the style is something basic and instantly familiar to JRPG fans, and won’t ever really feel out of place.

Of all of the things that a classically-styled JRPG can offer, Falcom hit the nail on the head with regards to the sound design. The music sets a perfect mood for the events that unfold, from the energetic battle and exploration themes to the smooth, calming tunes played within the towns. The short lines uttered by characters being swapped never becomes irritating, nor do the clashes and clangs of edged and blunt objects meeting the different textures and consistencies of the realm’s adversaries.

I’d be hard-pressed to find something wrong with this title aside from a problem that many RPGs and JRPGs have in common: it can become incredibly easy to forget just what was happening, and where the player needs to go next. This is especially true for Ys Seven, as the game is meant to be picked up and played in bite-size segments. It never took me more than ten or so minutes to figure out what was needed next, but I’m a bit embarrassed to say that I lost track of where to go next more than a couple of times. Again, this is a bit of a common problem, but for being the first game Falcom has developed strictly for the PSP, a hint system or quest log would have been a very useful addition for players that have to put the game away suddenly.

Another trait shared with other games is a degree of backtracking. Players will have to return to previously-conquered dungeons later in the game, which may or may not be problematic depending on the gamer’s patience for that sort of thing. Luckily, watchful players will know exactly where they need to return to at later points.

Ys Seven is a game that has shown me that classic RPG formulas still exist and can still be entertaining. It manages to find a comfortable spot between familiar and fresh without ever becoming dull. Falcom and Xseed have brought to the table a game that is a true spiritual successor to the amazing 32-bit era titles of years past. Put simply, Ys Seven is one of the best role-playing games I’ve played in quite some time.

Ys Seven
PlayStation Portable
	Publisher: Xseed Games Developer: Nihon Falcom Corporation Genre: Action RPG Release Date: August 17, 2025 MSRP: $29.99 ESRB Rating: T for Teen