The Atelier franchise is an easily overlooked series that I have loved for a very long time. Lisa (Managing Editor here at Phenixx Gaming) got me into the series when I was young, and since then I’ve played practically every single game released in the west. Atelier Ryza 2 carries the series on its shoulders, but brings some new ideas to the table and refreshes some things that didn’t work in the first Atelier Ryza adventure.

Without getting into spoiler territory, Atelier Ryza 2 picks up three years after the first game. Ryza finds herself on another adventure, trying to discover secrets of lost civilizations. Along the way she discovers Fi, a mysterious creature who is the key to helping her and her allies uncover the secrets of the ruins.

Atelier Ryza 2 plays similarly overall to its predecessor (and other Atelier titles) in that you spend a lot of your time in two particular phases. The first is the gathering/exploration phase, where you search field environments, fight enemies, and gather ingredients. The second main aspect of the game involves crafting items using alchemy in Ryza’s workshop and spending time in town interacting with various characters.

Both of these aspects of the franchise have seen a few changes in this release. Notably on the exploration side of things, you can do so many more things out in the field than ever before. Swimming, climbing, swinging on a magic rope, and so many other actions are now available to Ryza. This lets you explore areas in a much more dynamic way than ever before.

There are also ruins that you will explore that are a whole series of mechanics by themselves. In order to uncover all the mysteries of a particular ruin, you will have to find memory fragments and solve various puzzles related to the history of a particular place. As you piece together things, you’ll unlock new areas in the ruin and will receive various treasures and rewards as well as “Synthesis Points” which I’ll get into momentarily.

Aside from the exploration, dungeon crawling, and everything it entails, the Synthesis system in Atelier Ryza has gone through some changes as well. The Material Loop system has returned, though the method in which you learn recipes has shifted. There is a whole skill tree dedicated to alchemy, which uses SP (Synthesis Points) to learn new recipes, enhance your gathering skills, learn new alchemy methods, and more.

Synthesis points are gained by a variety of methods, such as crafting items, doing jobs for the townsfolk, and investigating ruins. You can also learn recipes through the “Recipe Morph” method you eventually unlock. Recipe Morph allows you to craft a new item by slightly altering an existing recipe with new ingredients.

This may seem complex, but it is actually fairly simple. Certain recipes will have certain recipe morph options that will open up as you acquire new ingredients. Overall, the alchemy systems at play are easy to learn and understand, though I still haven’t quite unlocked everything myself. The discovery is part of the fun, so there won’t be any spoilers here.

I briefly mentioned the jobs/side quests involving helping the townsfolk earlier. This is a mechanic that has been in a lot of Atelier games over the years. However, this entry in the franchise freshens it up by adding reputations to various factions of the town. By doing jobs for a specific group, your reputation with them will increase, thus getting you discounts in shops and other benefits. All of these jobs are located in one central location, though exploring the town periodically does unlock some other side quests, which are fun.

The main thing about Atelier Ryza 2 that doesn’t exactly thrill me is the combat. Now, with the multiple difficulty options that are in the game, combat isn’t hard if you play on a lower difficulty. However, I personally dislike the “real-time tactics” style of combat for a few reasons.

The first is that you have three party members, but can really only control one of them. You can switch between them on the fly in battle, and you can alter whether they are more aggressive or take a support role, but it lacks the strategy of the turn-based Atelier games. I personally find that even though they did make it easier to understand and execute special “order” abilities where an ally backs you up, the general pace of combat is a bit too complicated and fast-paced for my taste.

Don’t get me wrong, for people who lack the patience for turn-based combat, or people who like fast-paced battles I think it will be an absolute treat. It also isn’t something that entirely ruins my experience with the game either. They figured out a way to balance it a little more from the first Ryza game, and I think I can tolerate it more here.

In truth, I think that is the main takeaway with Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & The Secret Fairy overall. It is an elevated, more balanced version of the first game. They have taken things we loved about the series, added onto them, and even polished things that weren’t so great. If you liked Atelier Ryza, this will be right up your alley.

Even if you haven’t played an Atelier game before, I think this might be a really great entry point, especially if you were intimidated by the alchemy mechanics. I really applaud Koei Tecmo for bringing such a high-quality RPG to the Switch. It is gorgeous, and though I wish they had added English voice acting, it is still an absolutely stellar experience.

A Nintendo Switch review copy of Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & The Secret Fairy was provided by Koei Tecmo for this review.

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Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & The Secret Fairy

$59.99 USD

9

Score

9.0/10

Pros

• Easy to Understand Synthesis
• Deep Progression Systems
• Gorgeous Environments
• Lots of New Exploration Options
• Tons of Side Quest Content

Cons

• No English Voice Acting
• Combat is Chaotic