Ys Memoire: Revelations in Celceta stars the unlucky hero Adol Cristin, who has apparently taken a brief break from his usual habit of getting caught in shipwrecks, only to end up with a particularly nasty case of amnesia instead, courtesy of the mysterious forest of Celceta. What the mind forgets, the body remembers, and after an incident involving monsters at the mine of a town Adol happens to wander into, his adventurous spirit quickly kicks back into gear. Teaming up with an information dealer named Duren, he takes on the arduous task of mapping the forest.

Silver-haired con man, meet confused red-haired man.

It isn’t long before Adol begins piecing his memory back together, gradually unraveling the mystery of the forest and, naturally, getting swept up in a plot involving a god, the Mask of the Sun, and an ancient race. Just another day at the office for our red-haired hero.

The story is genuinely engaging and moves at a refreshingly steady pace, something Falcom’s Trails series has not exactly built its reputation on. While there is still plenty of meaty narrative to dig into, the Ys series has always placed a stronger emphasis on the adventure itself rather than obsessing over the “why” behind every event, and Ys Memoire: Revelations in Celceta strikes that balance between story and adventure brilliantly.

It is worth mentioning that this is considered the “canon” version of Ys IV. Before this release, there were two different versions of Ys IV developed by separate companies, and this iteration pulls elements from both to create a more coherent story. It is also worth noting that if you played Memories of Celceta on the Vita or PlayStation 4, no story changes have been made here.

Ys Memoire: Revelations in Celceta is an action RPG very much in the mold of the Zelda franchise, but with the combat dialled up to 11. Battles are fast, challenging, and consistently engaging, paired with an addictive mix of exploration, side questing, and a genuinely interesting world to uncover, both within the forest itself and the surrounding regions.

Exploration is very much the standard formula, but when the formula works, there is not much reason to reinvent it. You will gradually open up more of the world through newly acquired items, do a healthy amount of backtracking, and watch Adol and his crew grow stronger along the way. It is an unapologetically traditional adventure, so expect hidden switches, the occasional puzzle, and of course, plenty of fetch quests and “defeat x number of monsters” side content doing their part to stretch the runtime.

Movement in Ys Memoire: Revelations in Celceta is incredibly fluid and blisteringly fast. It is honestly difficult to properly describe just how quick yet precise the game feels if you are unfamiliar with the series. You will be sprinting everywhere, pulling off split second dodges, and carving through enemies in a game that feels completely uninterested in slowing down or wasting your time. It almost feels like an arcade take on the adventure RPG formula, and that is very much a compliment.

Combat is where the gameplay truly shines. In Ys Memoire: Revelations in Celceta, you can switch between characters on the fly, which ties directly into the enemy weakness system, as certain monsters can only be effectively damaged by specific weapon types. Adol’s sword might make short work of one enemy, while Duren’s knuckle weapons are needed to crack through another.

You also have a dodge ability that lets you quickly get out of harm’s way, but if you time it just right, you trigger a Flash Dodge, slowing time and giving you a brief window to absolutely unload on whatever was trying to ruin your day. The same mechanic applies to blocking with Flash Block, which keeps you right in the action and in the perfect position to keep dealing damage, but naturally comes with the added risk of mistiming it and getting promptly smacked in the face for your trouble.

Magic is part of your toolkit as well, with options like fireballs and healing spells, though true to the rest of the game, these are deployed quickly and seamlessly rather than interrupting the flow. It all adds to the impressively Sonic-like sense of momentum the game maintains. On top of that, party members unlock special abilities that act as stronger attacks, perfect for capping off a combo, and once you have built enough meter by attacking enemies, you can unleash a devastating super move that hits hard across a wide area. These are usually best saved for bosses, unless you are feeling particularly dramatic.

On the subject of bosses, the ones in Ys Memoire: Revelations in Celceta are absolutely fantastic from the very first encounter. Every fight feels engaging, putting everything you have learned, and how well you have learned it, to the test. Whether you are squaring off against towering behemoths or the far more unsettling human-sized opponents, the boss fights consistently deliver and are often the highlight of the entire experience.

As for what is actually new in this particular release, the additions are fairly modest. The visuals have been cleaned up slightly, but this is still very much a Vita-era game at heart, and it shows. The biggest addition is the remixed soundtrack, which you can swap between and the original version at any time, a nice touch for those with strong opinions about their battle music. That said, if you already own a previous version of Adol’s adventure through Celceta, there is a good chance you can comfortably sit this one out unless the portability of the Switch version is enough to tempt you back.