Ys 7 is the first party-based action game after Origins, the one that would become the base for the next games and remake (Celceta, Lacrimosa and Monstrum Nox). Though obviously a PSP title, it controls really well, I was expecting some jank as most PSP games felt slightly clunky in some ways, this one does not.

Adol arrives in a boat, this time without shipwrecking, thanks to being accompanied by his best friend, Dogi. Immediatly you visit the city of Altago. A new grand adventure on a new continent, following the exact same formula as Napish and Felghana story-wise, you arrive, help around a bit and then you are pushed into adventure outside the city, beating monsters and gathering materials and gold. The story is your usual Ys stuff. You arrive, help around, stuff happens, time to save the day. However this one did have some twists and turns I wasn't expecting.

This entry not only features Adol, obviously, it has a cast of playable characters, each with its own moveset and weapon type. Weapon types are divided on Slash, Blunt and Pierce. Each character, with the exception of Adol, is assigned one. Some monsters are resistant to all but one. By the end of the game, your party of will have 7 total characters to choose from, you guessed it, 2 slash, 2 blunt and 2 pierce. Depending on the weapon you equip to Adol, his moveset will change just like it did on previous games alongside his damage type (obviously at the very tail end of the game you can get a sword thats all types). Theres even a returning character that joins you too from one of your previous adventures!

The party feature is the main selling point of the game, obviously. As you travel around the different tribes and villages, characters from said places will join you. My favorite one to play was the one with the gigantic hammer. Always satisfying to smash enemies with it. Besides this, you can equip up to 4 skills to each character to use, though if controlled by the AI they'll use whatever skills you haven't blacked out, as well as an EX skill that deals massive damage. You get SP by hitting enemies and you use skills to deal even more damage, simple enough. You can now also craft weapons, armor, trinkets and consumables via the synthesis system at any store in the game. If you ever feel like your damage is low or you receive too much damage, maybe its time to craft or buy some new weapons and armors!

The gameplay overall, is not as refined as the previous games where you just played as Adol, you can't even jump. You will be glued to the ground. Not a bad thing per say, but a strange change. As for exploration its also a bit more limited than in those but just like Origins and Felghana, no guide is needed as the game always points you in the right direction.

I feel like a broken record, but again, the OST of Ys is fantastic. The game is filled to the brim with bangers, starting with the very first track you hear in the first battle zone, Mother Earth Altago to the final zone and the great boss themes.

As for complaints however, I disliked the bosses at the wind temple. They were really annoying. As well as the final boss... mainly the first part of it, without spoilers, make sure sure everyone in your party is level appropriate (around lv 58), as in, all characters. The first part of the final boss was the worst part of it because you can only damage when its limbs go down and the window to do so is very small. Afterwards the next parts are way easier. But still, was very annoying, and the game does not do a good job explaining the "Flash Guard" mechanic, turns out you can guard by pressing L2 and R2 at the same time. Its not well made, put or even explained. I didn't like this mechanic much, its a parry mechanic that nullifies damage and gives you SP, but as said, its not explained or told to you in any of the tutorials, I mostly relied on dodging like in the previous games...

As for difficulty, I played it on normal, and considering how spongy the bosses are in HP despite not being that difficult, I'm not sure I would recommend playing above normal for a first timer, definitely not as engaging as Felghana on normal though. I mean, I only died once in the entire game and it was against the final boss because some of my characters were not used that much lol.

This isn't the best entry in the franchise, but as usual Ys games are great. So far not a single one has dissappointed me. I recommend~

🎶 Game :- JRPG
Enjoyable
Story :- Good
Graphics :- Good
Difficulty :- Balanced
Battle system:- Good