You know, I really tried to like this game more. But when comparing it to the other games in the series I've played this year, I struggle to find pretty much anything it eclipses them in. But still, let's start with the positives: The story is well told, albeit nothing special, with the exception of the things we learn about the winged gods "tribe", which i found very interesting. I also like most of the characters, especially Geis and the three fairys really endeared themselves to me when it comes to newcomers. Callbacks to older adventures, like meeting Raba and reminiscing about adventures from Ys I & II, is always something I'm a big fan of. The weapon rotation system is fine, although it just shows how much they improved this system in Ys Origin. The visual design of some areas, especially the Ruins of Lost Time, are great as well.

You may have noticed that the positives I've listed are in regard to non-gameplay related topics, like visuals and story. That is because, in my opinion, the gameplay experience is the worst I've experienced so far in the series. Alright, maybe Ys I & II were worse, but these had the context of being games from the freaking late 80's, thus being shackled by the technical and design limitations of their time. Ys VI does not have this excuse. Enemy movesets feel terrible to play around, hitboxes are murky and lead to cheap hits constantly, especially from flying enemies like the bees and undead flying foes in Limewater Cave. Yes, Ys games can, and in my opinion, should be difficult, but in this game I struggle to find errors in my own playstyle to improve, except maybe cheesing the enemies right back. However, if it was only for the combat, the game would still be frustrating - but still tolerable.
But the plattforming, oh the plattforming. Making the acquisition of many chests and some optional bosses tied to the god-awful jumping slash to make it over bigger gaps is bad enough. But combine that with the lack of coyote time, wavey air momentum and the fact that some areas like the above mentioned Ruins of Lost Time make you do a lenghty detour every time you miss a jump make big parts of the game into a frustrating test of patience. And the thing is: When not in town, plattforming and combat naturally are the only things you do. And when both of these elements are frustrating in their own way, it makes for quite the miserable overall game experience. Call me noob idiot who didn't "get" the game all you want, but thus far, this is the worst Ys game I've played.

It's a good time, and after coming off of Ys V it was a godsend, but there's still a bit to be desired that I think the later games in this style refined. One thing I do adore though is the weapon rotating system and each one having a different element of magic as well, they're all decently balanced between each other with I guess fire probably hitting the weakest for me but still plenty of good use cases. It's also got a really unique movement system being able to use jump slashes to bridge gaps long before you're meant to in certain areas if you know how to do the tech that's very fun to me and makes a replay pretty enjoyable!

On the downside, also compared to the other games with similar systems this story doesn't do it all for me. It is fine, just kind of ends with me feeling ever so slightly dissatisfied, but I don't knock it too hard because it could just be because I remember things feeling more grand in my memory than they actually were on replay. Overall it's still a fun time and definitely worth checking out if you've played enough of the games to be a certified Yshead, can't go wrong with it!