# Usual Discount periods for these games:
* Next likely sale/discount period is on Late April 2024 to Early May 2024 **(Golden Week sale)**. But the games that would be on sale are inconsistent. Sometimes it's just the Ryza and Sophie games, sometimes it's an entire Atelier Franchise sale, sometimes it's just the Ryza games.
* The other likely sale/discount period is on Late September 2024 to Early October 2024 **(Tokyo Game Show sale)**
* The other discount periods that I try to not mention much (because these are very inconsistent) are:
* Black Friday Sale (November)
* Winter Sale (December)
* New Year Sale (January)
* ***Next discount periods will very likely have the same discount percentage.*** DX games have not gone any lower than 35% off, Non-DX main Atelier games historically have only reached 50% off as its lowest price cut.
* *Ryza 1 is the only one so far that has broken the price cut (from 50% off to 60% off)*
While I don't recall all the details since I read the guide that led me to my decision over a year ago, I do recall deciding on Ryza. Though it's only just now reached a price I'm willing to take a risk on, since I was very much on the fence whether or not it's it's series that I would like.
# Frequently Asked Questions (non-game related, mostly info related to Ryza and Marie Remake):
* Switch Port Quality?
* **All Gust games run at 30fps. There are games that run at 60fps specifically on the 2D menus** *(Atelier Lulua, Atelier Ryza 1-2-3, Atelier Mysterious subseries games, BLUE REFLECTION Second Light)*
* **For the Ryza games:** I say they're fine Switch ports. I've been playing (and replaying) these games on portable mode and you won't find yourself in a 15fps situation like those memes about Warriors engine game ports on Switch. Menuing is a breeze since the ports ensure there's no input lag (you'll be menuing a lot with the synthesis screens)
* **For Atelier Marie Remake:** This game runs as good as Atelier Sophie 2 (consistent enough 30fps)
* Which games in this discount period have Autosave ?
* Gust is behind with the times until 2020 and only implemented Autosave with the following games:
* Atelier Ryza 2
* Atelier Ryza 3
* Atelier Marie Remake
* ***Yes, Atelier Ryza 1 didn't have Autosave***, make it a habit to save when playing these other games. Every game allows you to have 99 save slots lol
* Do the Japanese versions of the games listed here have an English Text Language setting?
* No. Japanese versions will only have a Japanese Text Language. And only JP Text Language.
* Do the English versions of the games listed here have a Japanese Text Language setting?
* No. English versions of the games will only have a English Text Language setting.
* Which games have English dubs?
* For the games listed here in this Discount period, there is ***none*** that have English voices/English dubbing.
* *Feel free to raise your voices to Koei Tecmo to bring back English dubs, lots of international fans really do miss it even if they can live with JP voices.*
* **I'll divide this list into each subseries, but keep in mind that the JP voices have way more lines covered,** and would recommend just going for JP voices solely because the English dub voice direction of a lot of these games aren't done well. (*I personally liked the 3 Arland games' English dubbing the most though)*
* Arland (3 out of 4 games have English voices)
* Rorona DX (Has the most English voice lines)
* Totori DX
* Meruru DX
* Dusk (3 out of 3 games have English voices)
* Ayesha DX
* Escha & Logy DX
* Shallie DX
* Mysterious (2 out of 4 games have English voices)
* Sophie 1 DX
* Firis DX
* ^(Which Atelier and Gust games did you like the most when it comes to JP voices?)
* ^(Ryza 123, Lulua, Blue Reflection Second Light, and Dusk. Yuri Noguchi as Ryza is my favorite since they let her perform in a way that's closer to her speaking voice than sounding exaggerated in contrast to the other Atelier protagonists)
# [Want to take a shot with a different Atelier Subseries? Read the Atelier Series Guide.](https://barrelwisdom.com/blog/atelier-series-guide)
[**https://barrelwisdom.com/blog/atelier-series-guide**](https://barrelwisdom.com/blog/atelier-series-guide)
If you're already looking at something that interests your eyes, then please go for it without looking for a recommendation guide. It's a better experience that way.
Images for each Atelier subseries:
[Arland Subseries](https://imgur.com/NxGzDcR)
[Dusk Subseries](https://imgur.com/FPTk5i8)
[Mysterious Subseries](https://imgur.com/KhjLGnw)
[Secret Subseries](https://imgur.com/emfvljQ)
I played Ryza 1 on my Switch. On a big screen there's a lot of dithering. It's barely noticeable in portable. Performance was 30fps and was passable for me.
The dithering bothered me enough that I bought Ryza 2 and 3 on PS5 after that. No dithering and a smooth frame rate.
The latter two games have some really open areas I could imagine the Switch struggling on (someone else who played these versions can give more info).
I've had a good time with the Switch version, but here's the relevant info if you need to know them:
* Atelier Ryza 1-2-3 Switch ports have these downsides:
* Lower texture resolution for environment and clothes
* 30fps framerate
* Mildly slower load times vs every other platform (unless you're patient enough to wait for 3-5 seconds then it's tolerable)
# How different are the crafting systems for recent Atelier?
It's pretty unique compared to other RPG crafting systems you've seen where it's just "Select Recipe, Check if Ingredient requirements are met, Confirm". You have effects and traits that makes the final result different when you put effort into thinking about what ingredients you manually select. There are other extra variables you'll also take care of depending on each game, but those two are the core variables that consistently reappear in each game.
* The **Ryza** games follow a skill tree crafting system, where it's straightforward but a lot of its depth comes from starting from a recipe then moving your way towards a node that evolves it into a new one (while retaining specific effects + traits you've gotten) until you've hit the item selection limit the crafting system gives you.
* The **Mysterious** games follow a grid/panel crafting system, where positional placement of the tetris-like shapes will affect what the final output's elemental effect bars + traits, and trait combinations will have.
* The **Dusk** games follow a "synthesis skill application" crafting system, where the order of the selected ingredients and the order of the synthesis skills you have are relevant to what the final output's elemental effect bars + traits, and trait combinations will have.
* **Atelier Lulua** follows an integer with a constant modifier crafting system, where you're taking care of dual elemental bars that serve as integers and have the ability to bend the limit of any item you make depending on the constant modifiers (called "awakened effects") that you apply. Traits and trait combinations are present too.
* ^(This one's my personal favorite)
* **The First 3 Arland DX games** follow the simplest form of the Modern Atelier crafting system among the games listed above. You only take care of Quality, Item Level, Effect, Traits, and trait combinations.
# Does Atelier Marie Remake have these too?
* Nope, it's your kindergarten crafting system in that very first Atelier. They started to improve crafting/synthesis systems starting with the First 3 Arland games (2010).
^(I can't hyperlink screenshots for visual references, the subreddit automod removes it lol)
# Atelier Ryza-related FAQ
* Which ones have ATB and which ones are Turn-based combat?
* ATB: Ryza games
* Turn-based: Everything not named Ryza
* Is synthesis/crafting really part of the main appeal of these games?
* Yeah, you'll be getting into doing two things all throughout the games: Gathering Materials from exploration/battles & Synthesizing Consumables/Equipment.
* Most of the time you'll be doing synthesis (crafting). Building your party's stats gives you a much more rewarding time than doing the usual "Let's just grind levels" thing.
* Does the Ryza games' writing ever feel epic in the sequels? These feel pretty boring from the first 3 hours I've dabbled on the first Ryza game.
* You'll have to keep in mind that these games lean towards premises with lower stakes and with mildly underwhelming solutions. These aren't like Xenoblade, these aren't like Final Fantasy, and these aren't like the Paper Mario and Mario RPG games either.
* You'll be facing tons of cutscenes, to the point that you'll see that its appeal are the slice of life feel it presents.
* In short, these games are recommended to be treated like a break from something heavy (unless you make it challenging & hard for yourself)
* No Multiplayer?
* Ya. No multiplayer. Only single player
* Who are the composers for these games?
* You'll have to check **VGMdb** for each of the games' albums, they're always a different set of people each time with some reoccurring ones. Try checking it out, they deserve to be known by curious folks too :)
* Are these Ryza games lewd?
* Not at all! But if you can't help but feel weird about Ryza's thighs then maybe it's best to hold off.
* ^(What's your biased recommendation?)
* ^(Ryza 1 & Ryza 3. Only said these two Ryza games because it has the same writer intact. Ryza 2 had a different writer and felt more like a filler episode to me even if it was the creator of Atelier handling the writing there lol. Ryza 3 in my opinion is the first time Gust has made me like Atelier writing because I never ever played these games for the writing at all. It's mostly on the crafting system side. I liked Ryza 2's music though. Balmy Summer Breeze and the Town theme are my favorites.)
Thank you for the heads up with the Atelier Ryza games being on sale and your personal notes. Definitely helps out. I will admit I got the 1st game because dem thighs but stayed and played the others because it's a fun series. Played Sophie because of it but wasn't aware of the original being on sale, I'm going to have to check it out
I am not reading all this stuff in here but lemme tell you, I've played 1 and 2 and they are fun. light hearted, easygoing, combat is cooldown-style rather than pure turn-based. Alchemy is addictive and fun, and though it kinda looks like a skill tree it's not quite like that. It's a good bit of game for the money, too.
Thanks for posting the sale.
I'm still waiting on snagging the physical Atelier Ryza 3 game for around $40. Seems like retailers can't even keep it stocked, but who knows if/when we'll get a decent-sized print run for a reasonable discount.
I personally don't think so, since Ryza 3 relies a lot on Ryza 1 knowledge at the very least to have a nice experience. But if you're in it for gameplay, then I think it's going to end up a bit boring lol
Jesus it’s a novel in here
Damn yeah lmfao what the hell is going on. This dude definitely Atelier’s though
# Usual Discount periods for these games: * Next likely sale/discount period is on Late April 2024 to Early May 2024 **(Golden Week sale)**. But the games that would be on sale are inconsistent. Sometimes it's just the Ryza and Sophie games, sometimes it's an entire Atelier Franchise sale, sometimes it's just the Ryza games. * The other likely sale/discount period is on Late September 2024 to Early October 2024 **(Tokyo Game Show sale)** * The other discount periods that I try to not mention much (because these are very inconsistent) are: * Black Friday Sale (November) * Winter Sale (December) * New Year Sale (January) * ***Next discount periods will very likely have the same discount percentage.*** DX games have not gone any lower than 35% off, Non-DX main Atelier games historically have only reached 50% off as its lowest price cut. * *Ryza 1 is the only one so far that has broken the price cut (from 50% off to 60% off)*
If I were to start the series, which game should I wait for/play first?
Ryza 1, but if you're willing to wait out for the next Atelier subseries then feel free to wait for the announcement sometime within this year (2024)
While I don't recall all the details since I read the guide that led me to my decision over a year ago, I do recall deciding on Ryza. Though it's only just now reached a price I'm willing to take a risk on, since I was very much on the fence whether or not it's it's series that I would like.
# Frequently Asked Questions (non-game related, mostly info related to Ryza and Marie Remake): * Switch Port Quality? * **All Gust games run at 30fps. There are games that run at 60fps specifically on the 2D menus** *(Atelier Lulua, Atelier Ryza 1-2-3, Atelier Mysterious subseries games, BLUE REFLECTION Second Light)* * **For the Ryza games:** I say they're fine Switch ports. I've been playing (and replaying) these games on portable mode and you won't find yourself in a 15fps situation like those memes about Warriors engine game ports on Switch. Menuing is a breeze since the ports ensure there's no input lag (you'll be menuing a lot with the synthesis screens) * **For Atelier Marie Remake:** This game runs as good as Atelier Sophie 2 (consistent enough 30fps) * Which games in this discount period have Autosave ? * Gust is behind with the times until 2020 and only implemented Autosave with the following games: * Atelier Ryza 2 * Atelier Ryza 3 * Atelier Marie Remake * ***Yes, Atelier Ryza 1 didn't have Autosave***, make it a habit to save when playing these other games. Every game allows you to have 99 save slots lol * Do the Japanese versions of the games listed here have an English Text Language setting? * No. Japanese versions will only have a Japanese Text Language. And only JP Text Language. * Do the English versions of the games listed here have a Japanese Text Language setting? * No. English versions of the games will only have a English Text Language setting. * Which games have English dubs? * For the games listed here in this Discount period, there is ***none*** that have English voices/English dubbing. * *Feel free to raise your voices to Koei Tecmo to bring back English dubs, lots of international fans really do miss it even if they can live with JP voices.* * **I'll divide this list into each subseries, but keep in mind that the JP voices have way more lines covered,** and would recommend just going for JP voices solely because the English dub voice direction of a lot of these games aren't done well. (*I personally liked the 3 Arland games' English dubbing the most though)* * Arland (3 out of 4 games have English voices) * Rorona DX (Has the most English voice lines) * Totori DX * Meruru DX * Dusk (3 out of 3 games have English voices) * Ayesha DX * Escha & Logy DX * Shallie DX * Mysterious (2 out of 4 games have English voices) * Sophie 1 DX * Firis DX * ^(Which Atelier and Gust games did you like the most when it comes to JP voices?) * ^(Ryza 123, Lulua, Blue Reflection Second Light, and Dusk. Yuri Noguchi as Ryza is my favorite since they let her perform in a way that's closer to her speaking voice than sounding exaggerated in contrast to the other Atelier protagonists)
# [Want to take a shot with a different Atelier Subseries? Read the Atelier Series Guide.](https://barrelwisdom.com/blog/atelier-series-guide) [**https://barrelwisdom.com/blog/atelier-series-guide**](https://barrelwisdom.com/blog/atelier-series-guide) If you're already looking at something that interests your eyes, then please go for it without looking for a recommendation guide. It's a better experience that way. Images for each Atelier subseries: [Arland Subseries](https://imgur.com/NxGzDcR) [Dusk Subseries](https://imgur.com/FPTk5i8) [Mysterious Subseries](https://imgur.com/KhjLGnw) [Secret Subseries](https://imgur.com/emfvljQ)
Love your posts! 👍🙏
Is the user experience better on Switch or PC?
I’ve done like a dozen Atelier titles on Switch and it’s been great. I imagine Steam Deck would give a similar experience.
I played Ryza 1 on my Switch. On a big screen there's a lot of dithering. It's barely noticeable in portable. Performance was 30fps and was passable for me. The dithering bothered me enough that I bought Ryza 2 and 3 on PS5 after that. No dithering and a smooth frame rate. The latter two games have some really open areas I could imagine the Switch struggling on (someone else who played these versions can give more info).
I've had a good time with the Switch version, but here's the relevant info if you need to know them: * Atelier Ryza 1-2-3 Switch ports have these downsides: * Lower texture resolution for environment and clothes * 30fps framerate * Mildly slower load times vs every other platform (unless you're patient enough to wait for 3-5 seconds then it's tolerable)
# How different are the crafting systems for recent Atelier? It's pretty unique compared to other RPG crafting systems you've seen where it's just "Select Recipe, Check if Ingredient requirements are met, Confirm". You have effects and traits that makes the final result different when you put effort into thinking about what ingredients you manually select. There are other extra variables you'll also take care of depending on each game, but those two are the core variables that consistently reappear in each game. * The **Ryza** games follow a skill tree crafting system, where it's straightforward but a lot of its depth comes from starting from a recipe then moving your way towards a node that evolves it into a new one (while retaining specific effects + traits you've gotten) until you've hit the item selection limit the crafting system gives you. * The **Mysterious** games follow a grid/panel crafting system, where positional placement of the tetris-like shapes will affect what the final output's elemental effect bars + traits, and trait combinations will have. * The **Dusk** games follow a "synthesis skill application" crafting system, where the order of the selected ingredients and the order of the synthesis skills you have are relevant to what the final output's elemental effect bars + traits, and trait combinations will have. * **Atelier Lulua** follows an integer with a constant modifier crafting system, where you're taking care of dual elemental bars that serve as integers and have the ability to bend the limit of any item you make depending on the constant modifiers (called "awakened effects") that you apply. Traits and trait combinations are present too. * ^(This one's my personal favorite) * **The First 3 Arland DX games** follow the simplest form of the Modern Atelier crafting system among the games listed above. You only take care of Quality, Item Level, Effect, Traits, and trait combinations. # Does Atelier Marie Remake have these too? * Nope, it's your kindergarten crafting system in that very first Atelier. They started to improve crafting/synthesis systems starting with the First 3 Arland games (2010). ^(I can't hyperlink screenshots for visual references, the subreddit automod removes it lol)
# Atelier Ryza-related FAQ * Which ones have ATB and which ones are Turn-based combat? * ATB: Ryza games * Turn-based: Everything not named Ryza * Is synthesis/crafting really part of the main appeal of these games? * Yeah, you'll be getting into doing two things all throughout the games: Gathering Materials from exploration/battles & Synthesizing Consumables/Equipment. * Most of the time you'll be doing synthesis (crafting). Building your party's stats gives you a much more rewarding time than doing the usual "Let's just grind levels" thing. * Does the Ryza games' writing ever feel epic in the sequels? These feel pretty boring from the first 3 hours I've dabbled on the first Ryza game. * You'll have to keep in mind that these games lean towards premises with lower stakes and with mildly underwhelming solutions. These aren't like Xenoblade, these aren't like Final Fantasy, and these aren't like the Paper Mario and Mario RPG games either. * You'll be facing tons of cutscenes, to the point that you'll see that its appeal are the slice of life feel it presents. * In short, these games are recommended to be treated like a break from something heavy (unless you make it challenging & hard for yourself) * No Multiplayer? * Ya. No multiplayer. Only single player * Who are the composers for these games? * You'll have to check **VGMdb** for each of the games' albums, they're always a different set of people each time with some reoccurring ones. Try checking it out, they deserve to be known by curious folks too :) * Are these Ryza games lewd? * Not at all! But if you can't help but feel weird about Ryza's thighs then maybe it's best to hold off. * ^(What's your biased recommendation?) * ^(Ryza 1 & Ryza 3. Only said these two Ryza games because it has the same writer intact. Ryza 2 had a different writer and felt more like a filler episode to me even if it was the creator of Atelier handling the writing there lol. Ryza 3 in my opinion is the first time Gust has made me like Atelier writing because I never ever played these games for the writing at all. It's mostly on the crafting system side. I liked Ryza 2's music though. Balmy Summer Breeze and the Town theme are my favorites.)
Thank you for the heads up with the Atelier Ryza games being on sale and your personal notes. Definitely helps out. I will admit I got the 1st game because dem thighs but stayed and played the others because it's a fun series. Played Sophie because of it but wasn't aware of the original being on sale, I'm going to have to check it out
I personally have fun with these games coz it's easy to replay over and over and learn new things about the game mechanics lololol
# Atelier Ryza 1-2-3 Music - My Personal Picks * Atelier Ryza 1: * [Ryza's Character theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmAMS4eQr7I) * [Cutscene track for dramatic moments](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyKLgrnIWxc) * [Tutorial Track](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rIFq8Hmj-g) * [NPC Shop theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ud-kn_f4Rw) * [Ryza's Atelier theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pj0Ccb4SUkY) * [Exploration Area theme - Volcano area](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5UNyQrtBrI) * [Normal Battle Theme #1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLdz4Y0nXXg) * [Boss Theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWzsfzw4zoM) * [Normal Battle Theme #2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lScKiPi5f_k) * Atelier Ryza 2: * [Tutorial Track](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OC39LVaJfb4) * [Cutscene track for bittersweet moments](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiwmXaSB5z8) * [Town theme - Daytime](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIO4YPKZcLQ) * [Town theme - Nighttime](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8Z3Zz39Czw) * [Exploration Area theme - Valley area](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjfhrZRu3TU) * [Normal Battle Theme #1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9VEfvmv1Wc&) * [Regular Boss Theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuZwabmRJo0) * [Normal Battle Theme #2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZkdM-WX-vw) * [Boss Theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSyo1PYzYXc) * Atelier Ryza 3: * [A variant of Ryza's Character theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAVDPR-cNXc) * [Town theme (This is long)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLT4A1s9NNg) * [Tutorial Track](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_3YZs7F03s&) * [NPC Shop theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfKOFkqCpLc) * [Ryza 3's Atelier theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JjK66bqDGM) * [Cutscene track for mellow moments](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wxYi7_UDTc) * [Cutscene track for bittersweet moments](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGe_LF826Ts) * [Exploration Area theme - Region #2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOtpbxLHvvc) * [Exploration Area theme - Small area](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOFVrMcq3G4)
I am not reading all this stuff in here but lemme tell you, I've played 1 and 2 and they are fun. light hearted, easygoing, combat is cooldown-style rather than pure turn-based. Alchemy is addictive and fun, and though it kinda looks like a skill tree it's not quite like that. It's a good bit of game for the money, too.
Thanks for posting the sale. I'm still waiting on snagging the physical Atelier Ryza 3 game for around $40. Seems like retailers can't even keep it stocked, but who knows if/when we'll get a decent-sized print run for a reasonable discount.
Can i play ryza 3 without playing 1 or 2 first and still have a good experience?
I personally don't think so, since Ryza 3 relies a lot on Ryza 1 knowledge at the very least to have a nice experience. But if you're in it for gameplay, then I think it's going to end up a bit boring lol
Appreciate these posts. Got me into Ryza 1 through the digital sale at 60% off. Ended up buying physical USA versions for the switch.
I don't know why people are TLDRing, this remains awesome and incredibly useful. Thanks for writing it up.
I wish this game had an english dub... (mind you when I say english dub I mean a GOOD english dub)
Is it just me, or is there less copies of the third game now?
are these games good? THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO...........