Convince me to keep playing.

[Cryemore]

I want to love this game. I convinced myself to buy it yesterday despite the high price of entry, but I'm thinking of requesting a refund.

The combat is just weird. I'm not sure how to put it otherwise, the combat system is weird. It's kind of a mess and I don't see that changing. It's not tactical like a turn based system, yet it's not reactionary or proactive like an action combat system. It honestly reminds me of the combat from Lightning Returns for the most part.

Exploration, movement and resource collection is basically a worse version of what is common in open world gacha games. I don't think I need to go deep into this. It's fine, but it is about as far from being unique as you can get and isn't really a draw on it's own besides. I can't comment on the overall world design as a whole because I haven't seen enough of it to do so. What I can say is that so far it is pretty standard. It's fine.

Graphics are good, great even. I am very much a fan of anime art style in games. While i have seen complaints about optimization I have the power to brute force most anything so performance in this game is fine for me.

My one hope for this game and what may keep me playing is the story and characters. i love dark stories. The setup in the beginning about Alchemists being ostracized and feared for causing a great catastrophe could be great. If they leaned into this heavily they could have an intriguing narrative with mid game betrayals and truly dark moments stemming from the hatred and mistrust of alchemy.

Basically I put my controller down at 91 minutes and decided to take a step back. On the one hand I want this game to succeed based solely on what it is. On the other the $75 I spent on this is a lot of money that could otherwise be spent on games I will enjoy more. The story premise seems dark on the surface, but it seems like characters will become accepting of Yumia and Alchemy rather quickly. These are meant to be lighthearted games and I realize that, however the darker tone is kind of all this game has going for itself at this point. Everything else is just fine. Not great, not bad really, just fine.

If this were $40 I would not hesitate to keep it. But $75 is a lot of money for a game that's just fine.

If I keep playing will the story surprise me? As it stands it seems this will very quickly devolve into a friendship overcomes everything type of story. Which is fine.

Just fine.

EDIT:

Alright, I've decided to return the game.

Responses seem to mostly agree with what I said. It's an okay game, but $75 is a lot of money to spend on an okay game. I do think this is a perfectly fine $40 game and will buy it again when it goes on sale.

Thank you everyone for remaining positive and not turning this thread into a weird argument.

[Mael]

If you are feeling conflicted enough to write such a wall, then just refund it

[Cryemore]

Originally posted by Mael:

If you are feeling conflicted enough to write such a wall, then just refund it

Your argument could also apply in favor of keeping the game.

[Tasty]

there are some twists in the story you might enjoy but its rather standard for the genre, the combat doesnt really progress much beyond what youve already played so if you dislike it now chances are you might still do so by the end

[小龙马]

I also requested for a refund, the game is a ARPG like Ryza rather than the usual Atelier RPG.
I know it is an ARPG to begin with, but since i love Atelier series, I thought I would give it another swing.

The graphic is Good, the main character i like, especially her mole beneath her eye and her sl*tty/foxy(a plus in my book but forgive me for such a crude language, no offense meant) demeanor makes her super sexy.
The loading screen/bar seems a bit outdated. And as what the OP said, the resouce collection also seems subpar compared to the previous iteration.

The alchemy part, i just tried on a few items, seems a bit confusing, maybe i just need more time to familiarize.

I am not saying the game is bad though, probably just not for me as my Atelier preference will always be RPG style.

[Tasty]

Originally posted by 小龙马:

I also requested for a refund, the game is a ARPG like Ryza rather than the usual Atelier RPG.
I know it is an ARPG to begin with, but since i love Atelier series, I thought I would give it another swing.

The graphic is Good, the main character i like, especially her mole beneath her eye and her sl*tty/foxy(a plus in my book but forgive me for such a crude language, no offense meant) demeanor makes her super sexy.
The loading screen/bar seems a bit outdated. And as what the OP said, the resouce collection also seems subpar compared to the previous iteration.

The alchemy part, i just tried on a few items, seems a bit confusing, maybe i just need more time to familiarize.

I am not saying the game is bad though, probably just not for me as my Atelier preference will always be RPG style.

it doenst really play or feel like an atelier game they went too far, it might as well be called tales of yumia or yumia the memoria witch or something its very dissapointing, also dont worry about the alchemy it is simplified to the point almost no input is required
yumia is an ok rpg but a bad atelier game

[Ryuukaze]

I love, love, love the Atelier series.

But this isn't the best entry in it. The complaints that they watered down the Alchemy are *real*. I'm quite disappointed in it.

I'm still very much enjoying the game, and I will probably get 100% of the achievements, just like I've done every Atelier game recently.

But you're correct about the exploration, too. It's pretty much bog-standard.

And while I think the stories are okay in Atelier games, I don't think they'd save this experience for you. And I haven't been inspired by this story at all, and I'm a lot further in than you.

I say refund it. If you keep wanting to play it, there will eventually be sales, and you can pick it up again.

It's that, or accept it for what it is. It's a decent JRPG with decent combat, decent exploration, decent story, and above-average crafting.

Ryza doesn't necessarily have better *exploration*, but the resource gathering technique relies more on the alchemy system, and it feels a lot more interesting. I actively looked forward to improving my ability to gather there, rather than the skill-tree here.

Sophie (and Sophie 2) are pretty freaking good. I also really liked the Dusk series.

[Gnollmar]

I prefer turn-based over this, I don't hate it, but you can pretty much win based on rhytmgame skills and being willing to put in enough time. "very hard" seems to mainly give enemies a bunch of hp too. Basically, its a spamfest of skills, with the 100% chance of dodging making the strength of enemies meaningless when you understand the system.

[Tasty]

Originally posted by Ryuukaze:

I love, love, love the Atelier series.

But this isn't the best entry in it. The complaints that they watered down the Alchemy are *real*. I'm quite disappointed in it.

I'm still very much enjoying the game, and I will probably get 100% of the achievements, just like I've done every Atelier game recently.

But you're correct about the exploration, too. It's pretty much bog-standard.

And while I think the stories are okay in Atelier games, I don't think they'd save this experience for you. And I haven't been inspired by this story at all, and I'm a lot further in than you.

I say refund it. If you keep wanting to play it, there will eventually be sales, and you can pick it up again.

It's that, or accept it for what it is. It's a decent JRPG with decent combat, decent exploration, decent story, and above-average crafting.

Ryza doesn't necessarily have better *exploration*, but the resource gathering technique relies more on the alchemy system, and it feels a lot more interesting. I actively looked forward to improving my ability to gather there, rather than the skill-tree here.

Sophie (and Sophie 2) are pretty freaking good. I also really liked the Dusk series.

werent you in other threads some time ago defending the game?

[Solidus PL]

I'm currently struggling whether to return the game, it's my first attempt at the series, the game is quite chaotic, building a base/house is a plus, but I have quite mixed feelings. I mainly play like Elden ring/KCD II, but Atelier Yumia is a small escape from seriousness, but $75 is lot of money and you can buy something better than this. But from what you write I would return it if I were you and wait for a sale in some time

[Cryemore]

Alright, I've decided to return the game.

Responses seem to mostly agree with what I said. It's an okay game, but $75 is a lot of money to spend on an okay game. I do think this is a perfectly fine $40 game and will buy it again when it goes on sale.

Thank you everyone for remaining positive and not turning this thread into a weird argument.

[acewing]

Atelier series is in general not great for people that prioritize combat. But if you want to try an Atelier game with a proper turn based combat system, try Sophie 2. (There are no Atelier games with a proper action combat system)

[Sage Pirotess]

This is not a grind, it is Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning 2.0. Enjoy it!

[Sou Kurosawa]

Ain't gonna read all that king,
just stop play and that's it

[Ryuukaze]

Originally posted by Tasty:

werent you in other threads some time ago defending the game?

I don't know if I was "the one", but yes, I do like this game and "defend" it when appropriate.

I paid for Deluxe, and I'm happy with my purchase and am still playing.

But if someone doesn't like the game, they shouldn't force themselves to try to like it. They'd be better off playing one of the other games first, especially if there's a sale, and then coming back after they have a taste for the series.

It's not the best game in the series, but that doesn't mean it isn't fun.

[Rocky Mountain Oyster]

Originally posted by Ryuukaze:

It's not the best game in the series, but that doesn't mean it isn't fun.

And this is the kicker. It's ok to release an "ok" game that runs and plays well rather than try to make the next #1 and fall on your face.