And if you hold down X and then hit up/down on the dpad, you'll select an entire row of your inventory at once. Bliss!
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Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout |OT| Adventure, Alchemy, and Summer Memories
- Thread starter Luminaire
- Start date
And if you hold down X and then hit up/down on the dpad, you'll select an entire row of your inventory at once. Bliss!
OP
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Yus! I found this after....maybe 700 items being turned in.....
Duping Cauldron? Is there a duping bug in the game or is there an actual device that lets you duplicate items (probably by using gems)?
The latter. You find one via a story event, and it works pretty much the way you imagined.
Alright! Finally beat the game yesterday and I must say I enjoyed it quite a bit.
The story was nothing to write home about, which I kind of expected but it had some potential.
I think the Underworld was underutilized and the "threat" looming on the other side was not really credible.
You never saw the Queen who is supposed to be the main antagonist until the final fight and her underlings didn't really do all that much.
If Lila & Stitch (I keep forgetting his name...) didn't explain what was going on it would seem like you are invading the Underworld just to fuck up their shit on the other side. Actually, that would be hilarious...
That was kind of my problem with the story. Most of the stuff we learned about was told through Lila & Stich instead of actually learning about those things by encountering them yourself.
I also think the progression could use a little tweaking. You get the recipes for all the gathering gear pretty early on and then they just sit there and taunt you for most of the game until you're finally able to craft them.
Once you get those items they're barely used for something meaningful.
I love that certain paths were blocked until you got the correct item to progress but most of the time it just resulted in you finding a small spot to gather a few new resources and maybe a chest with meaningless contents. I think there was even a path blocked by rocks that you could only destroy with the Bomb Rod but the story gave me access to the area on the other side before I got the rod, making that blockade pretty redundant. They could have just used the old excuse of locking the patch behind story progression with the characters turning around because the path seemed too dangerous.
I would have loved finding completely new areas after getting the gear required to access them even if they were just small caves with some special ingredients.
I didn't really get much into creating super overpowered endgame gear so from a casual crafter point of view, most of the alchemy equipment seemed kind of pointless.
I know this might seem like I'm shitting on the game but I really did enjoy it despite the shortcomings. The gathering and crafting was actually really fun and the combination of naturally finding higher quality ingredients and being able to craft better and better gear was handled really well.
This was my first time playing an Atelier game and I can't wait to see where they take things from here. I'll definitely come back and check out their next game.
I've heard they usually do spiritual trilogies? Do they use a similar cast across those games or do they share other aspects of each other?
Also, what's in the DLC? I might bite if there are new areas to explore but if it's just a few new crafts and enemies then it might not be worth it for me.
The story was nothing to write home about, which I kind of expected but it had some potential.
I think the Underworld was underutilized and the "threat" looming on the other side was not really credible.
You never saw the Queen who is supposed to be the main antagonist until the final fight and her underlings didn't really do all that much.
If Lila & Stitch (I keep forgetting his name...) didn't explain what was going on it would seem like you are invading the Underworld just to fuck up their shit on the other side. Actually, that would be hilarious...
That was kind of my problem with the story. Most of the stuff we learned about was told through Lila & Stich instead of actually learning about those things by encountering them yourself.
I also think the progression could use a little tweaking. You get the recipes for all the gathering gear pretty early on and then they just sit there and taunt you for most of the game until you're finally able to craft them.
Once you get those items they're barely used for something meaningful.
I love that certain paths were blocked until you got the correct item to progress but most of the time it just resulted in you finding a small spot to gather a few new resources and maybe a chest with meaningless contents. I think there was even a path blocked by rocks that you could only destroy with the Bomb Rod but the story gave me access to the area on the other side before I got the rod, making that blockade pretty redundant. They could have just used the old excuse of locking the patch behind story progression with the characters turning around because the path seemed too dangerous.
I would have loved finding completely new areas after getting the gear required to access them even if they were just small caves with some special ingredients.
I didn't really get much into creating super overpowered endgame gear so from a casual crafter point of view, most of the alchemy equipment seemed kind of pointless.
I know this might seem like I'm shitting on the game but I really did enjoy it despite the shortcomings. The gathering and crafting was actually really fun and the combination of naturally finding higher quality ingredients and being able to craft better and better gear was handled really well.
This was my first time playing an Atelier game and I can't wait to see where they take things from here. I'll definitely come back and check out their next game.
I've heard they usually do spiritual trilogies? Do they use a similar cast across those games or do they share other aspects of each other?
Also, what's in the DLC? I might bite if there are new areas to explore but if it's just a few new crafts and enemies then it might not be worth it for me.
Hate to say it but it was just on sale last week at BB and if you have gamer club is was under $40.
It was on sale on Amazon for 49 dollars to all week. I see it at 49 all the time, was hoping for a larger sale.
And I don't have GC, it's not 1941 anymore ;)
Your right, $40 was the right spot for me. but nothing lower that I've seen.
OP
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Nice! Hopefully they do the same for Dusk and dip back into previous entries. Music is the #1 thing always on point in Atelier.
I'm also glad I can follow Asano now. He's my favorite composer.
Right that is a great deal, I'm jealous.
I wasn't expecting a sale really with the game releasing recently, but I was hoping maybe I'd get lucky. I got a bunch of PSN credit so was hoping maybe on there.
The Empel and Lila DLC story was meh like the others but the Ryza event is actually pretty cool. Gives you a whole new small island to explore which is basically a vacation-themed island. Lots of good opportunities for photos using the new swimsuits which match the setting perfectly.
I think it depends on the bottle/material used but none of them truly open up like the main game.
I was a little disappointed with the system myself once I realized how restricting the worlds are.
Looks like Ryza has a small discount on PSN Christmas sale. The Deluxe Edition has a slightly larger discount.
Not great but it's better than nothing if you were looking to buy digital.
Not great but it's better than nothing if you were looking to buy digital.
I'm still pretty early in and just now heading to Meteor Castle. Team is level 28-29? But the monsters I'm fighting (the pink rock golem things) seem to take a while to kill. I'm trying to figure out if it's my gear or if I'm just doing the battle system wrong? Is there any decent guide or video that does a decent job of explaining the process of building up power?
What difficulty are you playing on? I assume Normal which isn't too hard until you hit the boss battles.
If at any point you can't progress due to battle just make sure you craft upgraded gear for your squad. Levels don't really matter as much like other JRPG's, it's all about the gear in this game. Make sure you build up the tech level, attack weaknesses, and utilize the parties action orders and extra orders when the enemy is stunned/aggro. Also make sure everyone has some sort of healing item that you can use if someone gets low HP.
How long is a while? The golems are strong defensively, especially to physical damage, so it's normal that you will kill them more slowly than other enemies. Aside from crafting better items, you can also use Ryza's magic attacks or simply avoid them if you don't need the materials they drop.
I just bought the game on Switch because of the nice reviews to be honest. I saw few videos and I was curious about the battle system. And wtf?? The game is epic!!! The battle system is maybe the best I have seen in RPG's with ATB system. So clever, so brilliant!! I liked Xenoblade 2 system but this is even better. There are many strategics to make to succeed in a battle.
Apart from that, the Alchemy system is interesting too. Characters, story, sidequests....you are never bored when you play that game. Congrats to Gust!!! I have already 15 hours and I can't wait to continue my story.
Apart from that, the Alchemy system is interesting too. Characters, story, sidequests....you are never bored when you play that game. Congrats to Gust!!! I have already 15 hours and I can't wait to continue my story.
The battle system definitely took me by surprise. It can be confusing at first and can get messy at time but damn is it fun and keeps you engaged during fights. I would love if other JRPG's adopted a similar system.
I really want to play Ryza but I'm afraid doing so will make the Mysterious games less fun so I'm probably going to start with Sophie. About to finish up Cold Steel and move to that!
Reading this post is making me want to pull the trigger.
Is the deluxe edition worth the extra $9 dollars or should I just get the standard edition?
So, having a bit of buyers remorse here. I started with Atelier Sophie and I'm just not feeling the game. The alchemy is pretty fun but the combat is god awful in this game. It's incredibly basic and yet overly difficult as well? I'm constantly getting wrecked by random enemies that suddenly leveled up 4 levels because I picked some flowers nearby....and often when I do defeat these hard enemies, I'm rewarded with shit items and 1/8th of a level of exp.....awesome.
The dialogue in this game is....wow, not good...I went into this knowing it was a budget title from a company that specializes in making budget titles, but damn....some of the lines are just plain stupid.
I'm about 12-15 hours into the game I suspect and at this point every time I play it I'm just wondering why I'm not playing Cold Steel 2 in the back of my head the entire time. I'm starting to have doubts I'll even finish the first game let alone make it to Ryza.
The dialogue in this game is....wow, not good...I went into this knowing it was a budget title from a company that specializes in making budget titles, but damn....some of the lines are just plain stupid.
I'm about 12-15 hours into the game I suspect and at this point every time I play it I'm just wondering why I'm not playing Cold Steel 2 in the back of my head the entire time. I'm starting to have doubts I'll even finish the first game let alone make it to Ryza.
You probably need to improve your gear. Generally in Atelier games, your character levels/XP aren't nearly as important as the weapons, armor, accessories and consumables (bombs, healing items, etc.) you bring into a fight. The franchise, after all, is all about making things using alchemy! So maybe take a look at what gear you're using and if you can make better versions of what you have now.
Dialogue and story have never been super strong points of the franchise but the Mysterious trilogy is the worst for this kind of thing. Ryza would've been a better place to start if those things were important to you, sad to say. The best advice I can give is try not to focus on that stuff too much, but I can definitely see why someone who's also playing Cold Steel 2 would feel like maybe they should be playing that instead.
The combat stuff, at least, is something you can solve. So focus on that. Even if you can't make higher-level gear than your current equipment, you can make the same gear you're already wearing but with effects and traits transferred from ingredients you've found in the wild. Stat-boosting traits are especially useful throughout the game.
The only Atelier game I've played to completion has been Ryza (only played like an hour of Rorona) and if you're not feeling the older games you might as well just move to Ryza and see if you like that instead. There's really no reason to start with the older games since Ryza is its own thing and has zero link to any of the other games in the series.
So I tried this and it helped a good bit. Mostly I crafted some accessories that have moderate health regen and that shit made a HUGE difference. I'm still not LOVING the game but hopefully I can get through the game now that I am enjoying it a good bit better. I just spent like 6 hours playing and I think I'm getting a long a good bit in the story at this point.
OP
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If it helps any, all Atelier games roll out the combat system a bit slowly. They always seem boring and basic at first. Before you know it you'll have a bunch of mechanics that flesh out the combat system and give you a fully realized picture of things rather. One thing about Sophie that I noticed is that its incredibly aggressive.
I bought the standard edition just to play the game. Now I am looking for the limited edition but it is out of stock in Europe :(. If I were you I would buy the limited edition.
Ryza for some reason had weird distribution in Canada compared to Lulua and Nelke. I don't think it ever showed up on Best Buy, for example, and it doesn't look like VGP stocks it either, which is weird given that they usually get the niche stuff.
Your best bet, if you have one, might be to check out a local video game store instead. They're usually better at getting in the niche stuff. A local EBGames may also have physical copies; I know I've managed to buy previous Atelier games that way, though I've never tried this late after release.
Thanks, I'll check into it then. Sucks about the weird distribution, I hope it won't be too difficult to find a copy locally (for a reasonable price, anyway).
Edit:
I have to post this.
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Thanks for posting this, it sounds amazing! :D The 16bit GBA Ryza game I see right now before my mental eye looks glorious too, I would be all for a demake! :P
I know! I'd totally play a demake as well, the 8-bit nostalgia for me is too strong (and I haven't even played Ryza yet). I did bite te bullet and order a copy of the Switch version online, so I'll hopefully remedy that situation soon enough!
Maybe one day some indie-developer tackles the relative void of 8bit-16bit full on JRPGs and is inspired by Atelier! (I know there are many 8bit-16bit-styled indie-RPGs already but most seem to go with a more western-oriented artstyle) And nice that you managed to grab a copy, I'm super sure you'll have a blast with the game, share your impressions when you play it :)
So I never did end up beating this game even though I was pretty close to the end. Got sidetracked with Pokemon Sword and then the holidays which is funny because after beating Sword, I like this game a lot more as a JRPG. I am glad I waited a bit though since the DLC is all out now. I downloaded the island DLC which is nice; it being an isolated episode with set levels and gear helped me get the rust off with the battle system and yeah, I still love the combat in this game.
One question if anyone knows: How do I reduce elemental resistance on enemies? I keep getting that order from my party but I don't actually know what kind of item I need to synthesize to do it.
Anyway, here's a random FFVII-inspired screen I took with photo mode:
Oh that's good. I love this game's soundtrack.
One question if anyone knows: How do I reduce elemental resistance on enemies? I keep getting that order from my party but I don't actually know what kind of item I need to synthesize to do it.
Anyway, here's a random FFVII-inspired screen I took with photo mode:
Oh that's good. I love this game's soundtrack.
About to finish this up and really enjoyed it, first Atelier i've played since Sophie (played Escha & Logi and Shallie before that) and was looking at the PSN sales ending soon in EU. The main ones I was looking at are Firis, Lydie & Suelle and to a lesser extent Lulua (I only played Totori from Arland) and Nelke (I know this is a spinoff). Any recommendations on what to go for?
Quick caveat: Ryza plays differently from previous Atelier games, mostly because the battle system is real-time but also because alchemy works differently from prior titles (Gust tends to change the system with every trilogy). This probably won't be a big deal for most people but thought it was worth noting.
My recommendation here would be Lydie & Suelle. Prior knowledge of the Mysterious trilogy would be helpful, which you sort of have in Sophie, but it's not necessary. Honestly, Firis feels kind of different here than in her own game anyways, so the biggest thing you'd be missing out on is Lianne not being a one-note caricature. (She's got at least one and a half notes in Firis.)
Lydie & Suelle is my favourite of the Mysterious trilogy for a few reasons: the protagonists are more interesting than in previous games, and I especially like the relationship the two sisters have, where they kind of fill in each other's weaknesses and whatnot. It's simple and obvious, really the most basic way to write a pair of siblings/twins, but it works. I also think the game is better at guiding you to a particular goal than Sophie or Firis were, and for me I think it strikes the best balance of story progression versus openness: there's always something in the story to do if you just want to get on with things, side tasks to perform if you want to take a break, and the usual minmaxing of items and gear if you just want to do alchemy for a few hours.
About Firis: it's the most divisive Atelier game in a while. I think its pacing is terrible and the open-world aspect doesn't work as well as it should, but there's still a solid Atelier game underneath. Definitely still worth playing, but I'd probably save this one for later unless you want to play the Mysterious trilogy in order. And keep in mind when you play that the game will feel like it's missing substantial portions of the Atelier experience (like getting to know your party members and going on side quests for them) for a surprisingly long time.
About Lulua: it's fine. Works better if you have nostalgia for the Arland series, which lots of people have but you probably don't. Not my favourite Atelier game but not bad by any means, I'd probably rank it in the middle somewhere.
About Nelke: I really liked it (more than the other two Atelier games released last year, even) but it's not a traditional Atelier game and works better the more games in the series you've played because of its setup. I did enjoy the characters I hadn't gotten to know yet, so it's not like you can't have fun, but it might be worth saving for later.
This is what I was looking for, thanks for the really detailed write up. I do remember buying Firis at launch because I really enjoyed Sophie but for some reason dropped it pretty quickly and I can't remember why for the life of me. Think I might go ahead and get Lydie & Suelle out of that list and keep an eye out for Nelke down the line.
Avoiding any spoilers here: I think Firis feels like more of a slog to play, at least at the start. The gathering areas are way bigger and quasi-open-world (they're technically all separate sections but clearly intended to be one continuous area), which is fine once you unlock some better travel options but means a lot of running across vast fields at the beginning of the game. Plus there's all the stuff you have to do in your starting village before you can leave, in a game that's supposedly about going on a long journey and experiencing adventure for the first time.
Lydie & Suelle is much more similar to how Sophie plays, so hopefully you'll get more out of it.
The new update broke my icon-mod so here's an update :) https://github.com/Skyyblaze/Atelier-Ryza-PS4-Switch-Button-Replacement/releases/tag/1.4
Does anyone know what the new update added? I got more songs for the BGM DLC but I don't know if that was it or if there was more. Was kind of hoping they'd fix the volume for the BGM feature. Most of the songs from other games are much quieter than the the default music.