As noted in the name, Ys Seven is the seventh game in the Ys JRPG series, released exclusively on the PSP. It takes place in the kingdom of Altago, following Adol and his partner Dogi as they go through the country and gain powers. It starts off with an old shrine being uncovered during an earthquake, naturally, Adol goes to investigate and gains some special powers. After seeing the king, they are then tasked to go to all five dragon shrines where Adol is joined by more friends and gaining a new power each time he visits a shrine. Adol is special in that he is the only one the dragons will speak to and bestow their power. At the same time, Altago is starting to get into shambles with unusual happenings. Giant monsters known as Titanos are making more and more frequent appearances, destroying buildings and taking lives. This is the premise but the story turns into a world saving affair (as it does in these types of games) and ultimately, Adol will defeat the antagonist and save the world from destruction.
The story tends to drag during the middle of the game, as JRPGs do, but it is interesting enough to keep you going. The ending was solid and it tries to pack in an emotional punch, safe to say it succeeds in this aspect. The graphics are modest, even by PSP standards. They aren't that amazing but does its job well. Unfortunately though, pop in is a massive issue in the game. Monsters constantly appear and disappear when you're a short distance from them, it could be a conscious decision but it's annoying. The game focuses upon exploration so the environments are expansive and maps are big. While the game is linear and the maps direct you to where it wants you to go, you don't get the feeling of being cramped and allows you enough freedom to be fun. Ys Seven is an action RPG with the classic Ys battle system. If you've played a Ys game before then it won't be too hard to pick up. You have one button to attack, which you can mash to combo. A combination of the right shoulder button and one of the face buttons executes a special move which uses up SP.
Each character can learn various special moves which you can map to a face button (meaning a maximum of four that you can use at one time), these can be leveled up through usage to gain power. You earn SP through attacking monsters. Pressing the left shoulder button executes the Extra move, which is like the character's ultimate move. In addition, you can dodge and this is a key feature because you will not survive for long if you don't dodge. Lastly, you can switch characters at will through your three member party. You will want to switch characters because there are three different types of weapons: pierce, slash and blunt. Monsters are usually weak against one, strong against another or altogether immune. You can only control one character with AI controlling the other two, but they are generally smart. However, AI controlled characters do not do as much damage per second compared to if you controlled them, that's why it is important to constantly switch to characters who the monster is weak against. Each character uses a different weapon and provides enough variety such that they play differently. There are a total of seven playable characters in the game.
Boss battles are a highlight of the game, which usually pits you against huge monsters. They have large health bars and generally, you need to learn the boss's attack patterns. Then you can dodge, attack, dodge, attack, until you whittle their health down to zero. The bosses usually gain additional powerful attacks when their HP is low enough. The game is good in that you aren't forced to grind in order to defeat an absurdly powerful boss. Unfortunately, when the second half begins, bosses have an absurd amount of HP so instead of it being short and epic, it becomes a boring grind to finally reduce their HP to nil. The final boss is a decent length and if you are unprepared, it is very difficult. However, with good preparation and some grinding, it becomes a cakewalk. There are four difficulties to choose from depending on how skilled you are. Nightmare is not recommended for your first round because you will get killed easily and quickly.
Chests are scattered in the environment for you to loot and pick up some goodies. As well as that, you can collect materials in certain spots as the game has a simple synthesizing system. You basically select an item you want to make as long as you have enough ingredients and some money. However, what's a RPG without equipment and a leveling system? You earn experience through defeating monsters and level up, which boosts your stats, very simple. Equipment can be synthesized or bought with money. Once half the game is over, you will need to return to previously visited dungeons, so while the world seems huge at the start, it feels stunted and cramped towards the end. Although it is still not bad because it opens up new areas within the "old". It is just annoying in that when you're trying to go to the place you are required to, the normal way is blocked and you need to find a new one, however, it's not obvious where to go to find the new path. Overall, Ys Seven is a nice action RPG. It has a solid story, good battle system and is genuine fun to play, recommended if you have a PSP or Vita.
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