Developer: Gust, Koei Tecmo Games
Publisher: Koei Tecmo Games
Platform: PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
Tested on: PS5
Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land – Review
We have seen quite a few Atelier games being released during the last few years, with the last two being the conclusion to Ryza’s adventures in Atelier Ryza 3: Alchemist of the End & the Secret Key, and Marie’s reappearance in the remake of Atelier Marie Remake: The Alchemist of Salburg. While the Ryza trilogy catered a bit more to modern audiences, Atelier Marie was a fun blast from the past, albeit more limited in scope. Today, however, we are taking a closer look at a brand new adventure in the Atelier franchise, namely Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land. With a reworked combat system, building options outside of the protagonist’s atelier, and a completely open world to explore, we were curious to see if Atelier Yumia modernised some of the series’ aged systems.
Story
Atelier Yumia is a bit more grim and dark compared to prior entries in the series, as Alchemy is a forbidden art. A great calamity has caused the continent of Aladiss to be covered in harmful mana, and its inhabitants have been wiped out. Yumia, an alchemist who is looked down upon, has joined the Aladiss Research Team to uncover what has happened to Aladiss and hopefully prove that Alchemy can also be used for good. She, of course, also has her personal motives to join the expedition. She has to do her duties under the watchful eyes of Isla and Viktor, who are assigned to her by the chief. Isla and Viktor also have their own motives and gradually open up to Yumia.
The overall flow is quite nice, and the game never feels too slow. You can determine the pace yourself, as you’re free to explore as much as you want. Of course, certain parts of the map are gradually unlocked the further you progress, but there is still quite a lot of side content to plow through if you wish to do so.
Graphics
Graphically, Atelier Yumia is a very pretty game, albeit with quite a few rough edges. Even though we hoped for a true next-gen Atelier game, it seems that time hasn’t come just yet. Atelier Yumia is a multiplatform release for both the current and previous generation of consoles and PC. As a result, the game never pushed our PlayStation 5 to its limits. The world is a lot of fun to explore, and there is a reasonable amount of variety when it comes to the different sceneries. The same can be said about the varied cast of main characters, who are very colorful, likable, and detailed. Sadly, the NPC lack variety, as for every region, the NPC models are always limited to a handful of different designs. If you complete several side quests in a row, you might always get the same NPC, albeit with a different name, offering you the quest. Some more variation would have been nice here.
We liked the overall design of the menus, and they are very intuitive. We could easily navigate the different menus, and there’s also a proper guide to look up things. Some items could have used a clearer description, but that’s just us nitpicking. We found the map to be somewhat deceptive at times, as some areas looked as if there was a road or a path, only for a cliff to be in the way.
Sound
As a whole, the sound design of Atelier Yumia is great. The soundtrack is captivating and adapts perfectly to the mood. The SFX are decent as well, with combat probably having the most standout sound effects. Attacks pack a proper punch, and some audio variety can be found here. Nonetheless, the voice acting is what truly steals the show here. All key dialogues are fully voiced, and the voice cast does a fantastic job bringing their respective characters to life. It would have been even more fun if smaller dialogues were voiced as well, but you’re already getting a lot of voiced content here.
Gameplay
Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land is a JRPG that somewhat strays from the traditional format of a lot of the previous Atelier titles. Don’t worry though, as you’ll still be collecting loads of materials for synthesizing new items and goodies, and there is still a lot of combat to spice things up. The ways Atelier Yumia is different is mainly because you’ll always be on one big open map, combat feels faster and flashier, synthesizing feels a bit different, and you can even build bases and decorations in designated building zones. Atelier Yumia is a jack of all trades, and while this could be considered a good thing, there are still quite a few cracks in the foundation. Even so, the offset is straightforward, and the end result is still highly entertaining.
Battles in Atelier Yumia are rather explosive. Instead of a traditional turn-based system, you’ll have different attacks and items you can use that have several charges. You can use these freely and in rapid succession, but when the charges run out, they go on cooldown. You can switch between close range and long range to use even more attacks. Depending on the enemy, long-range might dish out more damage to their shield, triggering a stun quicker, for example. Things get more complex when you add friend actions to the mix, dodging, as well as counters, and quite a few other mechanics. This makes the combat feel rather dynamic and perhaps a bit hectic, but it does work well and feels really accessible. Early in the game, combat can devolve into button mashing, but as fights get longer, it’s certainly worth trying out some of the finer mechanics.
Yumia isn’t limited to synthesizing in her remote atelier; she can actually build bases on designated building lots, and there are quite a few smaller camping spots and tiny buildable areas as well. Thanks to this, you can always have a chest nearby to store the materials you gathered, or you can synthesize at a base that isn’t that far away. Of course, quick travel already solves a lot of issues, but if you’re right next to a camp with a workbench, then you don’t have to bother with quick travel. It’s a fun concept, and you can also choose to decorate your bases quite a bit. This creates an Animal Crossing-esque vibe, which is much appreciated. Sadly, the building mode is a bit clunky, and a lot of the items clip through each other. It’s also hard to place items precisely, especially when you’re building in a very small building spot. In the building mode, you have to stay within the confines of the building area. Due to this, you sometimes cannot position an item the way you want because you’re blocked by the invisible boundary.
For the most part, Atelier Yumia is a very accessible title. While some finer mechanics will take you some time to master, practicing Alchemy is fairly easy. You’ll collect loads of materials during your adventures, and with these materials, you can create new items. Synthesizing, as the game calls it, requires you first to have the recipe of the item you want to make. Recipes gradually unlock as you progress through the story or via exploration. The game does lock a few items behind progress, forcing you to revisit earlier areas if you want to fully explore them. That being said, synthesizing is very easy. You can opt for the game to do all the heavy lifting by adding ingredients automatically based on your preferences, or you can meticulously craft your items the way you want them, focusing on a mix of stats. It’s a fun system to mess around with.
Conclusion
Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land is a great new Atelier adventure, but it does have a few rough edges. While we love that older platforms can still enjoy this title, we feel that this franchise really needs a true next-gen release, as it would allow these titles to look even better than they currently do. That being said, we thoroughly enjoyed what Atelier Yumia had to offer, thanks to its exploration gameplay, flashy combat, building mechanics, and, of course, its likable cast. If you’re a fan of the series, we’re sure you’ll enjoy this one as well.
No Comments