The Atelier franchise has been a favorite of mine for ages, hence the number of Atelier reviews on Phenixx Gaming. However, Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream stands out for a variety of reasons. Certain things are a return to form after the Atelier Ryza games, while other things are improved overall. It is a welcome next stage in the franchise that shows promising signs of where the franchise could go next.

Atelier Sophie 2 puts you in the shoes of Sophie Neuenmuller, a protagonist from other entries in the “Mysterious” set of Atelier games. She becomes separated from her friend and mentor Plachta and finds herself in the world of Erde Wiege, a land of dreams. Her goal quickly becomes trying to find her way back to Plachta, making new friends along the way.

The gameplay for Atelier Sophie 2 isn’t all that different from other entries in the franchise. However, there are a few new additions. As far as exploration goes, environments now have “weather states” where you may need to change the weather in an area to reach new locations you haven’t been able to reach before. There are also new traversal and gathering tools with which to reach new areas or harvest items.

Old favorites such as the fishing rod, bug net, and grass sickle return. On top of that, a new “Major Gathering” mechanic has been introduced which allows you to gather a large number of items all at once by doing a minigame associated with whatever tool you are using. On one hand, it makes the major gathering spots a little more engaging, but on the other hand, some of the minigames (fishing) are annoying.

Alchemy has gotten a few improvements too. The alchemy retains Atelier Sophie’s puzzle-esque ingredient placement, matching elements, etc. However, now there are link nodes, which allow you to raise elemental amounts and affinities, as well as increase the rate of “super success” synthesis. A Super Success increases the overall quality of the item synthesized by a wide margin.

Truth be told, I really like the synthesis system in this. Each recipe is a puzzle all its own. Different ingredients let you get closer and closer to making that truly powerful version of the item, with a feeling of accomplishment when you finally make a great one. Of course, there are stores to buy recipe books and ingredients from, as well as the option to duplicate or restock synthesized items.

Another new element is that each alchemist in your party has an independent alchemy level, and synthesizing with each character has unique benefits. Sophie has access to a lot of medicine-type item recipes, while Plachta is more suited for weapon crafting and a few other special recipes. It gives you an incentive to change up who is doing the synthesizing, which is cool.

Each character also has access to certain recipes that are unique to them. There are also unique “party quests” where you can unlock ability points for each character by doing various things. Sophie may have a quest to use 10 items, while Olias might want you to use a specific ability a certain number of times.

Combat has returned to the turn-based idea from before the Atelier Ryza games, which I am very happy about. However, they have added a few unique elements, such as twin actions. If you have more than 3 people in the party, you can have two paired characters do a twin action, changing up their position in the battle line, while also doing a large amount of damage.

Each character can use certain items, and the combat is back to being both strategic, but also dynamic at the same time. Ryza and Ryza 2 had chaotic combat that I didn’t really enjoy, but this feels fresh and yet familiar. For a game that is meant to celebrate the 25^th anniversary of the Atelier franchise, this one really feels like it celebrates both the origins of the series and the future ahead. Granted, I wish the game had English voice acting, as the Japanese voice acting is somewhat inaccessible for some people even with subtitles.

Overall though, the environments are gorgeous, there is a lot of content including side quests, and Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream is a great experience. If you’re a fan of the franchise I think you’ll absolutely love it, though even if you are new, this is a great entry point as well.

A Nintendo Switch review copy of Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream was provided by Koei Tecmo for this review.

Phenixx Gaming is everywhere you are. Follow us on Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.

Also, if you’d like to join the Phenixx Gaming team, check out our recruitment article for details on working with us.

Phenixx Gaming is proud to be a Humble Partner! Purchases made through our affiliate links support our writers and charity!

Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream

$59.99

9.5

Score

9.5/10

Pros

• Alchemy Puzzles Are Great
• Turn-Based Combat is Fluid and Fun
• Beautiful Environments
• Cute and Colorful Characters
• Lots of Content to Enjoy

Cons

• No English Voice Acting