Atelier Firis - The Alchemist and the Mysterious Journey, is the 18th title in Gust's "Atelier" series, and the 2nd title in the "Mysterious" series. Take control of Firis, a girl who has spent her whole life behind the door of a mining town built inside a mountain. Firis dreams of seeing the outside world, until one day Atelier Sophie (from the previous entry in the Atelier and Mysterious series) breaks the door down and begins teaching you alchemy. You spend the next month trying to solve the problems of the townspeople with alchemy, attempting to prove that you are capable of leaving the mining town to start a world-wide, year-long adventure in an attempt to gain your alchemy license. Along the way you will meet a varied cast of characters, explore a large open world, and gather items to craft new equipment to aid you on your journey. You must receive 3 letters of recommendation from other alchemists along the way, otherwise you wont be allowed to take the test and will fail your mission. Lots of events happen along the way, and receiving the alchemy license will only actually start the game. Lots of new events, quest lines, and characters only show up after the credits have rolled. Luckily, the timer disappears after the license exam; allowing you to spend as long as you want on main and side quests. This is when you will be grinding for battle levels, spending months (in-game) crafting some legendary items, including a fake sun to melt all the snow off the mountains and other creative items that can increase your exploration and open up new areas previously unseen. The main story can take around 20-30 hours to gain your license, and afterwards potentially another 60+ hours depending on how deep you want to go. If you want a relatively linear RPG with turn-based combat, this is a great entry; however, you may decide to put it down after the credits roll as the story becomes very fragmented and you will spend a ridiculous amount of time going from zone to zone attempting to gather highly specific materials to build end-game items. This, of course, is not required; as the game considers itself "complete" after you gain your license. Truthfully, if you make it that far you will probably be invested enough to want to see some of the high-level side quests be completed. I really enjoyed the cameos from older Atelier games; playing games with Escha and seeing when she met Logy is fun, and a treat that I didn't expect. This type of cameo is common, but wont break your experience if you don't know who any of the previous characters are. Just a good nod to loyal fans. People often complain about the movement speed of Firis, but there is a fast-travel system that allows you to skip to any vantage point, important building, or campfire instantly using a small amount of FP. FP is used as you run around, or gather items, and is recharged by sleeping at an inn or resting in the Atelier at a campfire. Pros: - Simple and intuitive JRPG - Deep and interesting crafting system - Compelling story that continues long after the credits roll - Lots of options for battle customization - World timer disappears after completing first half of the game (main quest) - Lots of cameo's by other Atelier characters, some appear as child-versions of themselves - Large open world to explore Cons: - World timer for first half of the game (main quest) - Many of the quests can be difficult to determine exactly what needs to be done - Tutorials for new game play mechanics even after the credits roll - Credits roll well before the end of the game - The end goal is much simpler than implied and is almost impossible to fail - Game pretends to have one main goal, then moves the goalposts continuouslyRead full review
Verified purchase: No
The best way to buy/play this game is getting the PS4 version. This game is a wonderful addition to your games especially if youre an Atelier fan
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
The Atelier games were something different that I was very satisfied when I discovered them, they're so unique.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
I'm addicted thank you
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
A1 quality
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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