Difficulty/ies tried so far: Hard
Notes: I began playing after the major patch in January, so I didn't get to experience the bugs previously plaguing the release.

Now that I finally completed the game, guess I can write my full impression at last.

Excluding Ys IX since I'm not sure whether we'll get English release any time soon...I'll say this is THE best entry of the series so far, especially among the party-based Ys games. This is not to say I don't have my personal gripes against the entry, however, mainly in terms of story and music.

Good
> There are a lot of things to do in the game aside from the usual monster-slaying and filling out maps, all of which fit nicely to the setting of the game. Some aspects are still rough around the edges (e.g. not having full control on Dogi's squad during beast raids and hunts), but they are nevertheless welcomed additions for me.
> This is definitely the most story-rich Ys game so far. Having the playable and side characters being MUCH more involved in the story compared to previous games really helps - not to mention the characters are eventually becoming tight-knitted as the game progresses. The story is overall cohesive and well-planned, though there are some pacing issues especially in Chapter 2 and final parts of the game.
> Dana - being the "main girl" of the game - not only plays very important role in the story, but also being very proactive in her way of shaping the story as a whole instead of being there as "important side character". The game is as much of HER story as much as Adol's.

Neutral
> Current difficulty tried so far (Hard) provide adequate challenges and are mostly balanced. Enemy attack patterns are fairly easy to read to perform Flash Guards and Flash Moves since they're necessary to do with what limited healing items you have. However....
> ...some later areas and hunts are just plain mean. Large enemies' placement in some night exploration area can be ridiculous since they can overwhelm you easily and make running away not an option...in times when you're actually encouraged to run away.

Cons(?)
> Some story aspects of the series introduced in the game may not sit well with long-time players since they may change things related to the worldbuilding, such as the entire world of Ys is actually one gigantic dream of the Earth Goddess.
> Not enough Night Exploration areas.
> While the soundtrack fits the overall setting well, I personally feel it is the least memorable among the series. It just...doesn't have the same impact as previous games' tracks.
> Monster entries not including the area where they are -mainly- located, since it could have given better hints on possible locations to find the remaining missing entries (especially the ones caught through fishing).

The game is nevertheless the best of the series so far, and is definitely worth playing. I won't go so far recommending the game for newcomers of the series, though - if anything, the game should be saved for last due to the sheer size and the changes/improvements compared to its predecessors.

On lighter final note, my other complaint is that we were robbed from playing as the awesome elderly fellows. WHERE ARE MY PLAYABLE THANATOS AND SILVIA. D"8

[b]Difficulty/ies tried so far:[/b] Hard [b]Notes:[/b] I began playing after the major patch in January, so I didn't get to experience the bugs previously plaguing the release. Now that I finally completed the game, guess I can write my full impression at last. Excluding Ys IX since I'm not sure whether we'll get English release any time soon...I'll say this is THE best entry of the series so far, especially among the party-based Ys games. This is not to say I don't have my personal gripes against the entry, however, mainly in terms of story and music. [b]Good[/b] > There are [i]a lot[/i] of things to do in the game aside from the usual monster-slaying and filling out maps, all of which fit nicely to the setting of the game. Some aspects are still rough around the edges (e.g. not having full control on Dogi's squad during beast raids and hunts), but they are nevertheless welcomed additions for me. > This is definitely the most story-rich Ys game so far. Having the playable and side characters being MUCH more involved in the story compared to previous games really helps - not to mention the characters are eventually becoming tight-knitted as the game progresses. The story is overall cohesive and well-planned, though there are some pacing issues especially in Chapter 2 and final parts of the game. > Dana - being the "main girl" of the game - not only plays [i]very important[/i] role in the story, but also being very proactive in her way of shaping the story as a whole instead of being there as "important side character". The game is as much of HER story as much as Adol's. [b]Neutral[/b] > Current difficulty tried so far (Hard) provide adequate challenges and are mostly balanced. Enemy attack patterns are fairly easy to read to perform Flash Guards and Flash Moves since they're necessary to do with what limited healing items you have. However.... > ...some later areas and hunts are just plain mean. Large enemies' placement in some night exploration area can be ridiculous since they can overwhelm you easily and make running away not an option...in times when you're actually encouraged to run away. [b]Cons(?)[/b] > Some story aspects of the series introduced in the game may not sit well with long-time players since they may change things related to the worldbuilding, such as [spoiler]the entire world of Ys is actually one gigantic dream of the Earth Goddess[/spoiler]. > Not enough Night Exploration areas. > While the soundtrack fits the overall setting well, I personally feel it is the [i]least[/i] memorable among the series. It just...doesn't have the same impact as previous games' tracks. > Monster entries not including the area where they are -mainly- located, since it could have given better hints on possible locations to find the remaining missing entries (especially the ones caught through fishing). The game is nevertheless the best of the series so far, and is definitely worth playing. I won't go so far recommending the game for newcomers of the series, though - if anything, the game should be saved for last due to the sheer size and the changes/improvements compared to its predecessors. On lighter final note, my other complaint is that we were robbed from playing as the awesome elderly fellows. WHERE ARE MY PLAYABLE THANATOS AND SILVIA. D"8