First of all they went back to the way alchemy traits worked pre-Ryza, where instead of stacking the same trait to get it to max, you actually combine certain traits to get a stronger one. This makes alchemy so much more fun, where you have to figure out a route to get the trait combination you want. Especially when you can put as many items in a slot in Ryza as the games allows you to, instead of a set amount of items you can put in.(Which Sophie 2 has again)
Not only are we back to turn based again (which imo fits the best for the series since its focus on items), we have the dynamic front and back-row system that Mana Khemia, E&L and Shallie had, albeit in a different way. It doesn’t have the backrow system L&S or Lulua had, which was a bit too restrictive and automatic to my liking.
Weirdly enough a feature that I didn’t expect they would be bringing back are minigames during gather sections, which was a thing in Mana Khemia? It is a very neat feature of bringing back, which can make some parts of gathering a bit more engaging and reliable if you have the skill. (Though they aren’t very difficult)
Alchemy system is really cool, it starts out a bit weak, but once you get access to catalysts you can spend a long time playing the grid game to get the best outcome you want. It felt actually like a puzzle you had to solve while doing it. Definitely the way I want Atelier alchemy want to be (I can’t stress enough how I am not a big fan of the way Ryza alchemy does things)
The characters were fun, I liked the group dynamics and they all had something to them, even if it can be simple. Battle stuff like the Dual Attacks adds those little touches they have in their dynamic. Like Ryza, the party members take part in the main story, so it gives them room to get more screen time, which is great.
Story isn’t much to write home about, but I guess it works. I usually don’t play these games for the story, so as long as it isn’t annoying I have no complaints.
Sad thing is the game has less unique CGs than previous games, I hope they do it like they used to in the next few games, it can make certain scenes more memorable. (Also good closure to character events)
Anyway, this game added a LOT of quality of life features across the series, has one of the strongest battle system in the series, one of the strongest alchemy in the series once it gets going, has a really good OST and overall REALLY fun to play. So many callbacks and old mechanics from the series that it makes sense it is an anniversary game. (Though I wish it was more like a cross-over than just another Sophie game)
Somehow exceeded my expectations and didn’t disappoint in the slightest. One of my favorite games now and my favorite Atelier game in the series
Not only are we back to turn based again (which imo fits the best for the series since its focus on items), we have the dynamic front and back-row system that Mana Khemia, E&L and Shallie had, albeit in a different way. It doesn’t have the backrow system L&S or Lulua had, which was a bit too restrictive and automatic to my liking.
Weirdly enough a feature that I didn’t expect they would be bringing back are minigames during gather sections, which was a thing in Mana Khemia? It is a very neat feature of bringing back, which can make some parts of gathering a bit more engaging and reliable if you have the skill. (Though they aren’t very difficult)
Alchemy system is really cool, it starts out a bit weak, but once you get access to catalysts you can spend a long time playing the grid game to get the best outcome you want. It felt actually like a puzzle you had to solve while doing it. Definitely the way I want Atelier alchemy want to be (I can’t stress enough how I am not a big fan of the way Ryza alchemy does things)
The characters were fun, I liked the group dynamics and they all had something to them, even if it can be simple. Battle stuff like the Dual Attacks adds those little touches they have in their dynamic. Like Ryza, the party members take part in the main story, so it gives them room to get more screen time, which is great.
Story isn’t much to write home about, but I guess it works. I usually don’t play these games for the story, so as long as it isn’t annoying I have no complaints.
Sad thing is the game has less unique CGs than previous games, I hope they do it like they used to in the next few games, it can make certain scenes more memorable. (Also good closure to character events)
Anyway, this game added a LOT of quality of life features across the series, has one of the strongest battle system in the series, one of the strongest alchemy in the series once it gets going, has a really good OST and overall REALLY fun to play. So many callbacks and old mechanics from the series that it makes sense it is an anniversary game. (Though I wish it was more like a cross-over than just another Sophie game)
Somehow exceeded my expectations and didn’t disappoint in the slightest. One of my favorite games now and my favorite Atelier game in the series
Elden Ring looking kinda different
the elden ring killer
My initial thoughts based on about 20 hours with the game I originally posted here will be quoted at the end of this but I'm now done so I can actually talk about it. Purely on a mechanical level, this is absolutely one of the better games in the series, but that's the one level I can say that. It's just so vacuous and inconsequential on every other front that by the end what I felt playing it was an obligation to finish it more than anything. When this game was announced, I wanted it to be set after Lydie and Suelle. A more mature Atelier protagonist would have been a fun spin on the series, especially for an anniversary game. But instead we get a weird interquel between Sophie and Firis, and that leaves Sophie's character so flaccid and uninteresting. She cannot be allowed to develop because that would ruin the mystique of her maturation in Firis and LySue. She can't entirely go back to the clumsy and airheaded self from the original game either! She developed from that. So we're left with a strange flanderisation. Ramizel is the heart of the game and she's great. Partly I believe this game exists for Ramizel, someone really wanted to make a young hot cool version of Sophie's grandma, hats off to them. Plachta from the past is enjoyable, but she too is mostly static or slightly transforming into the Plachta we already know. It's limiting and dull. That's what the construction of this game is on the conceptual level, limited and existentially dull. And too long. Almost as long as LySue which is also too long but with imaginative locales and interesting scenarios and a genuinely affecting core narrative. All of which this game lacks. Ugh. The biggest backhanded compliment I can give it is that it's the least worst version of a game I didn't want to exist. If this is what I was missing from not playing the Ryza games I'm thankful.
Initial observations:
"I'll save my full thoughts for after having finished this but this is a solid enough game but retains all the thematic uninterestingness of the Mysterious subseries. I got into Atelier with the Dusk series, and what I found really compelling about Dusk was how empathetic and understanding it was of young people. How sensitively it treated depression and loss without even explicitly pointing it out as lesser games aimed at audiences these games are aimed at might do. Dusk was a world dying its second death, but within it, it had a place for people who were torn apart like Ayesha, people who were failed like Logy and people who were broken like Miruca. It expected you to see these people for who they were and accept them as people worth life and love. The world of the 'Mysterious' series has no place for people like that - only 'good' people who want to 'become better'. And nowhere is this more obvious than in the setting of this game, a dream utopia where 'good people' with 'good dreams' can take forever to achieve them. And this is arguably fine. It's comfy and chill and ふわふわ and all that. I also recognise that Dusk was born during and out of the 2011 disasters and it's unfair and impossible to expect them to consistently revisit that trauma just because I find it more compelling. oh well, I suppose. Play Blue Reflection Second Light."
Initial observations:
"I'll save my full thoughts for after having finished this but this is a solid enough game but retains all the thematic uninterestingness of the Mysterious subseries. I got into Atelier with the Dusk series, and what I found really compelling about Dusk was how empathetic and understanding it was of young people. How sensitively it treated depression and loss without even explicitly pointing it out as lesser games aimed at audiences these games are aimed at might do. Dusk was a world dying its second death, but within it, it had a place for people who were torn apart like Ayesha, people who were failed like Logy and people who were broken like Miruca. It expected you to see these people for who they were and accept them as people worth life and love. The world of the 'Mysterious' series has no place for people like that - only 'good' people who want to 'become better'. And nowhere is this more obvious than in the setting of this game, a dream utopia where 'good people' with 'good dreams' can take forever to achieve them. And this is arguably fine. It's comfy and chill and ふわふわ and all that. I also recognise that Dusk was born during and out of the 2011 disasters and it's unfair and impossible to expect them to consistently revisit that trauma just because I find it more compelling. oh well, I suppose. Play Blue Reflection Second Light."
Full video review: https://youtu.be/lQTfwfo_P_Q
Another year, another Atelier game - this is now the 23rd entry in the series and it might just be the best yet.
Do I need to play the first game?
As someone that literally finished the first a couple weeks ago and then played through this sequel - I wouldn’t say it’s really all that necessary. Not that the first game is bad, but just that its story is particularly weak for an Atelier game and the fact that the entire thing can be summed up in a roughly four minute recap video tells you all you need to know about how complex the story was there.
So if you do want to jump in right here, it’s completely fine and the recap video will serve you well enough.
Crafting
The Tetris system makes its return and is somehow even better than it already was. Now, instead of having to swap cauldrons around to do things like rotate ingredients, you’re able to do that right off the bat and in its place you get some other neat features like link pieces, super successes, catalysts, and even an outright second alchemist to use.
It’s somehow much easier to understand and pick up than in the first game, yet maintains that same level of complexity - if not more so. The bulk of this is likely due to the new UI, which makes it much easier to identify ingredients, elements, etc. Whatever the case, I found myself really getting into it, trying to get the perfect ingredient spread to fill up all the spaces without overlapping, rotating the pieces just right to get the maximum number of links, and really just trying to min-max my way to some stupidly powerful items.
Honestly, it might be the best I’ve seen in the series yet and this is coming from someone that has played nine entries.
Gathering & Game World
Taking cues from Ryza, the game world is now this big, inter-connected thing. It’s not necessarily open world, but each area is large enough on its own that it kinda gives that impression. It’s not one of those “empty” open worlds though. There’s hills, forests, caves, ruins, and these are all flooded with enemies, items, treasure, and other stuff to find.
Ingredients are actually visible on the map this time and the combat now takes place without any loading screens. The game may have dropped some of the additional exploration tools introduced in the last Ryza game, but in its place introduced a new weather system.
The weather system was pretty cool at first, but I can’t deny that I became a bit iffy on it as the game went on. Having to cycle around the different weather settings to get to where I needed to go can be a bit tedious and it doesn’t help that the weather items have a set number of uses before being depleted.
The game does provide waypoints on the map that can be traveled to once activated, so it is not as annoying once you’ve explored an area, but I would say this new addition is okay at best.
Graphics
Compared to some other genres it might not be the best, but for an Atelier game the graphics are absolutely some good stuff and comparable to the quality we got in the past two Ryza games. Actual level geometry, buildings that aren’t just giant blocks, and the character models are noticeably more crisp. Great news, as Sophie might just be my favorite Atelier protagonist design-wise.
Combat
Combat is yet again another area of improvement and it feels really nice to finally get back to the tried and true turn-based formula of past Atelier games. For one, it’s fast-paced. Because entering combat requires no loading screens, you’re thrown right into it and can immediately start duking it out. Animations can be sped up to 2x and that was pretty much the default for me. The animations are already fast enough, but keeping it at 2x makes battles go significantly faster and you can easily get the materials you need from certain monsters within a matter of seconds.
And if you do want to take it slow, there is a good bit of depth here. Twin actions, type matchups, skills, abilities, changing the weather mid-battle, and of course, all of the different items that can be crafted and then used in battle. It doesn’t go too out there in terms of complexity, but it’s not this dead simple thing either.
Game Loop
In the first Sophie, it felt like I was constantly doing the same basic process over and over - unlocking a new recipe, crafting it, then having to hunt down the next recipe to craft and so on. There was little actual story content until the end and a lot of the time I was doing guesswork trying to figure out which NPC, item, area, or whatever triggered the next recipe idea to allow me to progress.
Sophie 2 pretty much does away with this system entirely. Recipe ideas are still there and get triggered as you do stuff, but I hardly ever found myself locked behind some mystery gate for hours trying to figure out what to do. Instructions are not as vague, relevant NPCs, items, and monsters are marked on the map, and the game in general doesn’t waste your time grinding out recipes.
Story
The story this time is actually NOT terrible. Not only is the writing better, but the plot is weaved in and out of the gameplay in a manner that doesn’t require it to all be dropped at the end to wrap up in the time remaining. From the start you are constantly getting new cutscenes, character backgrounds, story events - the entire slate. There is much more dialogue this time around, but I also found it to be more interesting.
I won’t sit here and tell you that it’s the best around - I mean, Atelier games generally aren't known for their writing - but it was engaging enough that it didn’t feel like an interruption to the otherwise excellent gameplay.
PC Port
Running at max settings, 1440p and 144 fps on my 3080 Ti was fine and I didn’t have any stability issues there, but the UI has this weird bug (I assume it is a bug) where whenever certain menus open or close, the game dips to 30 fps for a split second, resulting in a visible slowdown.
This is best demonstrated when opening a recipe for crafting or opening your storage container to view ingredients. Doing so immediately dips the fps before climbing back up again once the menu is visible. However, I also noticed the issue when gathering items on the map. When doing so, items are listed on the left side of the screen for a few seconds before disappearing and, unfortunately, when they do vanish from the screen, the game microstutters.
Otherwise, the PC port is fine. Runs well, no crashes, and even has a good amount of settings to change - at least for a Koei Tecmo port. Controls on a controller are flawless, but the keyboard and mouse controls were practically unplayable for me. There is no mouse cursor for menus, the mouse is not locked to the game window when controlling the camera, and it jitters constantly. This is definitely not a game I would recommend if you do not have a controller to play it with.
Overall
Atelier Sophie 2 is the best in the series yet, combining the elements that made the first Sophie fun with the recent advancements in Ryza to deliver a familiar, yet modernized Atelier experience. In-depth crafting, fun turn-based combat, great graphics and music, a story that is actually not terrible - there’s a lot of good to say about this game even if it may have a few technical flaws and some iffy elements. For newcomers, it still might be best to start with Ryza, but Sophie 2 is an easy next best choice.
Another year, another Atelier game - this is now the 23rd entry in the series and it might just be the best yet.
Do I need to play the first game?
As someone that literally finished the first a couple weeks ago and then played through this sequel - I wouldn’t say it’s really all that necessary. Not that the first game is bad, but just that its story is particularly weak for an Atelier game and the fact that the entire thing can be summed up in a roughly four minute recap video tells you all you need to know about how complex the story was there.
So if you do want to jump in right here, it’s completely fine and the recap video will serve you well enough.
Crafting
The Tetris system makes its return and is somehow even better than it already was. Now, instead of having to swap cauldrons around to do things like rotate ingredients, you’re able to do that right off the bat and in its place you get some other neat features like link pieces, super successes, catalysts, and even an outright second alchemist to use.
It’s somehow much easier to understand and pick up than in the first game, yet maintains that same level of complexity - if not more so. The bulk of this is likely due to the new UI, which makes it much easier to identify ingredients, elements, etc. Whatever the case, I found myself really getting into it, trying to get the perfect ingredient spread to fill up all the spaces without overlapping, rotating the pieces just right to get the maximum number of links, and really just trying to min-max my way to some stupidly powerful items.
Honestly, it might be the best I’ve seen in the series yet and this is coming from someone that has played nine entries.
Gathering & Game World
Taking cues from Ryza, the game world is now this big, inter-connected thing. It’s not necessarily open world, but each area is large enough on its own that it kinda gives that impression. It’s not one of those “empty” open worlds though. There’s hills, forests, caves, ruins, and these are all flooded with enemies, items, treasure, and other stuff to find.
Ingredients are actually visible on the map this time and the combat now takes place without any loading screens. The game may have dropped some of the additional exploration tools introduced in the last Ryza game, but in its place introduced a new weather system.
The weather system was pretty cool at first, but I can’t deny that I became a bit iffy on it as the game went on. Having to cycle around the different weather settings to get to where I needed to go can be a bit tedious and it doesn’t help that the weather items have a set number of uses before being depleted.
The game does provide waypoints on the map that can be traveled to once activated, so it is not as annoying once you’ve explored an area, but I would say this new addition is okay at best.
Graphics
Compared to some other genres it might not be the best, but for an Atelier game the graphics are absolutely some good stuff and comparable to the quality we got in the past two Ryza games. Actual level geometry, buildings that aren’t just giant blocks, and the character models are noticeably more crisp. Great news, as Sophie might just be my favorite Atelier protagonist design-wise.
Combat
Combat is yet again another area of improvement and it feels really nice to finally get back to the tried and true turn-based formula of past Atelier games. For one, it’s fast-paced. Because entering combat requires no loading screens, you’re thrown right into it and can immediately start duking it out. Animations can be sped up to 2x and that was pretty much the default for me. The animations are already fast enough, but keeping it at 2x makes battles go significantly faster and you can easily get the materials you need from certain monsters within a matter of seconds.
And if you do want to take it slow, there is a good bit of depth here. Twin actions, type matchups, skills, abilities, changing the weather mid-battle, and of course, all of the different items that can be crafted and then used in battle. It doesn’t go too out there in terms of complexity, but it’s not this dead simple thing either.
Game Loop
In the first Sophie, it felt like I was constantly doing the same basic process over and over - unlocking a new recipe, crafting it, then having to hunt down the next recipe to craft and so on. There was little actual story content until the end and a lot of the time I was doing guesswork trying to figure out which NPC, item, area, or whatever triggered the next recipe idea to allow me to progress.
Sophie 2 pretty much does away with this system entirely. Recipe ideas are still there and get triggered as you do stuff, but I hardly ever found myself locked behind some mystery gate for hours trying to figure out what to do. Instructions are not as vague, relevant NPCs, items, and monsters are marked on the map, and the game in general doesn’t waste your time grinding out recipes.
Story
The story this time is actually NOT terrible. Not only is the writing better, but the plot is weaved in and out of the gameplay in a manner that doesn’t require it to all be dropped at the end to wrap up in the time remaining. From the start you are constantly getting new cutscenes, character backgrounds, story events - the entire slate. There is much more dialogue this time around, but I also found it to be more interesting.
I won’t sit here and tell you that it’s the best around - I mean, Atelier games generally aren't known for their writing - but it was engaging enough that it didn’t feel like an interruption to the otherwise excellent gameplay.
PC Port
Running at max settings, 1440p and 144 fps on my 3080 Ti was fine and I didn’t have any stability issues there, but the UI has this weird bug (I assume it is a bug) where whenever certain menus open or close, the game dips to 30 fps for a split second, resulting in a visible slowdown.
This is best demonstrated when opening a recipe for crafting or opening your storage container to view ingredients. Doing so immediately dips the fps before climbing back up again once the menu is visible. However, I also noticed the issue when gathering items on the map. When doing so, items are listed on the left side of the screen for a few seconds before disappearing and, unfortunately, when they do vanish from the screen, the game microstutters.
Otherwise, the PC port is fine. Runs well, no crashes, and even has a good amount of settings to change - at least for a Koei Tecmo port. Controls on a controller are flawless, but the keyboard and mouse controls were practically unplayable for me. There is no mouse cursor for menus, the mouse is not locked to the game window when controlling the camera, and it jitters constantly. This is definitely not a game I would recommend if you do not have a controller to play it with.
Overall
Atelier Sophie 2 is the best in the series yet, combining the elements that made the first Sophie fun with the recent advancements in Ryza to deliver a familiar, yet modernized Atelier experience. In-depth crafting, fun turn-based combat, great graphics and music, a story that is actually not terrible - there’s a lot of good to say about this game even if it may have a few technical flaws and some iffy elements. For newcomers, it still might be best to start with Ryza, but Sophie 2 is an easy next best choice.