The next game in the Atelier franchise and the start of a new series of games.
The collection system has been redesigned, the items found are the same but different tools or actions will be required to find them at collection points.
The crafting system has been updated and a new item making system has been added, to be revealed at a later date.
The turn-based combat is getting changed in some fashion to make it more tense, also to be revealed later.
Atelier Ruza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout is a rather meditative story about friendship and mutual assistance, which abandoned timers, cruel search for rare components and a too complex system of alchemy. All errors can be corrected, death in battle returns you home with a slightly reduced number of components collected, and songs and dances...
In a bid to move the series forward towards a new direction, Atelier Ryza presents a new exciting combat engine and one of the best takes on alchemy yet, but falters with its plodding pace and a cast of forgettable characters.
Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness and the Secret Hideout brings the Atelier series to a new trilogy and this time, the leap brings us towards a marvelous game that pushes the quality threshold to a higher level, thanks to its fantastic combat system, exquisite art style and soundtrack and an accessible gameplay that improves the experience for everyone.
As an old-school gamer, there’s just something about Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout that checks a lot of boxes for me. Maybe it’s the game’s colorful visuals and fantasy setting. Perhaps it’s the ability to use alchemy to craft all sorts of gear and items from the materials that I gather from the field. Or it could be its likable cast...
Though it may require a bit of patience to get to the sweet stuff, Atelier Ryza is a wholesome and addicting experience that RPG fans will gleefully gulp down, even if they've never dabbled with the Atelier franchise before. Thanks to the strong visuals and countless gameplay features, now is the best time to jump in on this niche series, which may...
