I'm about 8 hours in and I have to say that the story is just not here... even the characters in the plot tell you they have no idea what's going on, and it's not like a 'let's figure this out' and more forcing you to do stuff 'just because'

Gameplay is a carbon copy of the previous game, and game mechanics are a carbon copy as well (Dogi even tells you this when explaining his role on the team, which SPOILER is the exact same as the previous game)

There is also a ton of reused Cutscenes like old 90s cartoons.

I played to long to get a refund so I am going to try and finish it in hopes that I am wrong and something later suprises me but I'm not expecting that based on what I see.

******************************EDIT*****************************************

Finished the game with near 100% completion. The game doesn't get any better. If you'd like a Ys game worth your money go buy Ys 8 and wait for this to be on sale. This whole game was such a reskin it's insulting.

One thing it does do good is it rewards people who have played all the Ys games with easter eggs and homages. But for the price, this game is not worth it (Unless you haven't played 8 )