Ys Memoire: The Oath In Felghana Review Mini – Review Mini

I first played Ys: Oath in Felghana via the PSP version more than a decade ago and it blew my hair back. I wouldn’t call myself an Ys guy, but after Oath in Felghana, I checked in on the series consistently over the years and largely enjoyed my time with all of the games, but I would always speak so fondly of Oath in Felghana. I was ecstatic to hear Ys Memoire: The Oath in Felghana was coming to Switch in 2025, but playing through it was a reminder that this series has continued to improve and refine in the 20 years since this remake of the third Ys game originally came out in Japan.

This action RPG has snappy combat, as you take control of series protagonist Adol Christin and bounce around the land of Felghana taking down hordes of enemies with sword combos and magic abilities. It’s not a crazy in-depth system, but it feels good and the consistent stream of level ups, weapon improvements, and more boosts do enough to keep it varied. Difficulty spikes still hit, but Ys Memoire adds some difficulty options and even a frenetic “Turbo” mode that helps speed up parts of the game.

This new version also adds in voice acting for Adol, some visual refinements, and different character illustrations and music options. The rock stylings of the game’s original soundtrack still hit well for me, and it’s fun to have some of the old music from the original versions of Ys III available. This is still clearly an upgraded version of an older game, but it doesn’t really feel as old as it actually is.

A lot of that feeling comes from how good the combat feels. The action in Oath in Felghana is just consistently enjoyable, especially when you get to bosses that tax the limits of the combat in a way that is challenging but not unfair. I have fond memories of the story from when I initially played this, but during this playthrough, Adol and his partner Dogi’s quest was a little less compelling. The action drives the fun, which makes this 10-15 hour adventure a pleasant journey that doesn’t really overstay its welcome.

While I’m a little less over the moon about this game in 2025, I’m still very happy that Oath in Felghana is out on a modern console in the west. From the era of its release, it’s one of the best action RPGs of its style and even to this day, it’s still a very enjoyable one. I might recommend some of the later Ys games ahead of this one, especially if you want a more true 3D adventure, but if your goal is to check out the highs of the storied Ys series, Oath in Felghana is a must-play.