No issues running the game at 60FPS on a 1920x1080 resolution.

Atelier Lydie & Suelle is, far and above, the most satisfying Atelier title to date. I've completed every Atelier released in the West, and as far as I'm concerned, Gust deserve praise for what they have accomplished here.

Atelier titles are character-focused, crafting-heavy, comfy adventures. This has been well-established over the years. L&S improves upon these core traits by introducing a hefty helping of humor that has been scarce until now. I'm fairly difficult to please on that front, but found myself regularly entertained by the interactions between the sisters and the supporting cast. Speaking of which, the secondary and tertiary characters were all an absolute pleasure—from Roger to Lucia. Returning characters like Ilmeria, Sophie, and Firis have really come into their own, and we're fortunate enough to witness the evolution of their relationships. Oh, it is worth mentioning that the legendary Hagel is back.

The protagonists, Lydie and Suelle, are a pair of striking, endearing personalities, each unique in her own right, who are oftentimes the centerpiece of a great skit. Firecracker Suelle with her straight-shooting (sometimes scathing) honesty, amusing phobias, and aversion to studying. Assiduous Lydie with her quiet rage, romance novels, and hands-on-cheeks goofiness. Both manage a formidable deadpan, and are delightfully flippant.

What's more, L&S has the trappings of a slightly more bleak narrative. It is still very much a light-hearted game. However, the journey of Lydie and Suelle is underscored by a sort of grief the likes of which we haven't seen since Totori, and with a far greater presence in the story. This never struck me as heavy-handed, but lent to the sincerity of the sisters' ambitions. It is bittersweet at times, uplifting at others.

Sometimes, a new title will attempt to innovate or improve upon series mechanics and fall dreadfully flat. This is not the case with L&S. Mechanically, it is the culmination of those that came before. It seems to me that Gust tossed out problem ideas (such as Firis' recipe unlocking) while introducting interesting and player-friendly advancements. Synthesizing, which naturally makes up much of the game, is as smooth as ever, and has finally found the sweet spot for the grid system. The Battle Mix mechanic, a sort of simple mid-battle synthesis that augments existing items or uses materials to create impromptu items, works swimmingly.

Typically, the areas in an Atelier game aren't worth mentioning. L&S approaches them a bit differently by inserting the more fantastical zones into paintings and keeping the more mundane in the overworld. I think this makes those zones stand out all the more, and the zone design for paintings is better than I'm accustomed to besides. The animated brush stroke frame was a nice touch, too.

Gust is going to have a hard time topping this one.

[i]No issues running the game at 60FPS on a 1920x1080 resolution.[/i] [b]Atelier Lydie & Suelle is, far and above, the most satisfying Atelier title to date.[/b] I've completed [i]every[/i] Atelier released in the West, and as far as I'm concerned, Gust deserve praise for what they have accomplished here. Atelier titles are character-focused, crafting-heavy, comfy adventures. This has been well-established over the years. L&S improves upon these core traits by introducing a hefty helping of humor that has been scarce until now. I'm fairly difficult to please on that front, but found myself regularly entertained by the interactions between the sisters and the supporting cast. Speaking of which, the secondary and tertiary characters were all an absolute pleasure—from Roger to Lucia. Returning characters like Ilmeria, Sophie, and Firis have really come into their own, and we're fortunate enough to witness the evolution of their relationships. Oh, it is worth mentioning that the legendary Hagel is back. The protagonists, Lydie and Suelle, are a pair of striking, endearing personalities, each unique in her own right, who are oftentimes the centerpiece of a great skit. Firecracker Suelle with her straight-shooting (sometimes scathing) honesty, amusing phobias, and aversion to studying. Assiduous Lydie with her quiet rage, romance novels, and hands-on-cheeks goofiness. Both manage a formidable deadpan, and are delightfully flippant. What's more, L&S has the trappings of a slightly more bleak narrative. It is still very much a light-hearted game. However, the journey of Lydie and Suelle is underscored by a sort of grief the likes of which we haven't seen since Totori, and with a far greater presence in the story. This never struck me as heavy-handed, but lent to the sincerity of the sisters' ambitions. It is bittersweet at times, uplifting at others. Sometimes, a new title will attempt to innovate or improve upon series mechanics and fall dreadfully flat. This is not the case with L&S. Mechanically, it is the culmination of those that came before. It seems to me that Gust tossed out problem ideas (such as Firis' recipe unlocking) while introducting interesting and player-friendly advancements. Synthesizing, which naturally makes up much of the game, is as smooth as ever, and has finally found the sweet spot for the grid system. The Battle Mix mechanic, a sort of simple mid-battle synthesis that augments existing items or uses materials to create impromptu items, works swimmingly. Typically, the areas in an Atelier game aren't worth mentioning. L&S approaches them a bit differently by inserting the more fantastical zones into paintings and keeping the more mundane in the overworld. I think this makes those zones stand out all the more, and the zone design for paintings is better than I'm accustomed to besides. The animated brush stroke frame was a nice touch, too. Gust is going to have a hard time topping this one.