Atelier Rorona: The Alchemist of Arland

« Rorona continues the grand tradition of creating an RPG experience that is all about the simplicities of life, coupled with the usual great cast of characters, and is a complete must for fans of the series. »

« I know that while I definitely enjoyed this game, it was difficult to work within the time constraints. There was more I wanted to enjoy, but I wouldn't be able to; not without repeating a lot of the same stuff in a second or third play through the game. »

« Atelier Rorona: Alchemist of Arland is a darn good RPG with an admitted emphasis on item creation, which won't be alien to those familiar with the Mana Khemia or past Atelier titles. »

« Atelier Rororna should appeal to series fans and newcomers alike. Gust did a fine job with this game and it's well worth your consideration if you're in the market for a solid JRPG. »

« The gathering and creating of items, weapons, and armor are what really makes this game addicting, much like a toned down version of Monster Hunter. »

« I really wish the storyline left me feeling like I'd accomplished something. And the game is like a big fetch-and-make quest over and over again. But you still find yourself wanting to play just one more day. »

« A comparatively shallow RPG, but fun and accessible. [Issue#198, p.94] »

« The move to a new console is rarely without a few bumps, but Gust seems to have weathered the transition nicely; as such, I'm happy to recommend Atelier Rorona to anyone looking for a good JRPG or slice-of-life sim on the PS3. »

« This game sure made me mad at some points since its hard but its characters and positivity sure make the game worthwhile. The Story is pretty weak but i love the world and Characters in it. »

« Breaking down the parts of the game to understand why the game ****. Story: Zero originality, cliched story about a useless girl attempting to do alchemy and succeeding. Many endings, but, as nonsensical as they come. The story didn't got me interested. I felt more of a chore to complete the tasks and even I felt bored while playing. 0/10 points in this department. Graphics: While they look nice, I do not like the way they were done and how they were used more for giving fan service. 0/10 Music: I'll be honest, I didn't listen to the intro at all... boring music and boring intro. 0/10 Characters: The heroine is bland, boring and cliched. While some have quirks they quickly fall into pre established cliches. 0/10 Overall: This game started the descent of the series into degenerating into games released only to please otakus or people that like fan service. I will deny that the Atelier Iris ever came to Ps3 and continue to state that the GOOD Atelier Iris games stopped at Mana Khemia 2. »

« I like this game. It is my first atelier game, and I dont normally play that type of game. But I really liked the lightness of it, it's a great break from action and difficult titles that I am used to playing. The characters are the main part of this game I think, and they are great. The rumours really are true about Gusts character design. The gameplay, well the combat was average. I think its a common problem with these types of games also, but you can't really play them without reading a guide looking for the "flags". The alchemy system is pretty good and deep, because the games emphasis is on it. Yeah... I want to write more, but theres not much to really write about. It's just a nice break from normal games, very cute and charming with a light storyline. Many endings for people who like that, but personally I dislike that level of grinding. »

« No normal story script. More and more "grinding" endings and a pack of "grinding" character endings. When they finally come to that one and the same gameplay for 10-40 hours and a billion and one ending of 1 minute is not fun! It looks like Atelier Iris 2 was the last good game. Atelier Iris 3, Atelier Annie, Mana Khemia monotonous, plotless garbage. If theirs gameplay have sense in Atelier Annie, because Annie is portable on NDS, bu in the game for $60 for the PS3 is a little too carelessly. Only music and 2D art is good. »

« The Gust games have become a true favorite of mine, and Atelier Rorona is one of my absolute favorites among all RPGs for combining a fun and engaging alchemy system to play with while flooding the world with lovable and humorous characters. The Atelier games are, at their core, probably more aimed at a female crowd than most RPGs, (and Rorona isn't just a female lead, she even wears pink!) and it's obvious that not everyone seems to care for trying something different, but if you have ever enjoyed a game's crafting system for its own sake rather than just to get something out of it, then this game is built specifically to cater to the player who enjoys building more than smashing things. (As well as humorous vignettes about pies that come to life and attack their creator afterwards.) Overall, there are few flaws with this game, (It does become annoying to try to get all the endings, since you have to go back a whole third of the game to try to unqualify yourself for some of the endings to see the endings that have lower priority.) but I can happily call it one of the most engaging games I've ever played, and something that any serious RPG player should try, just to experience something different. In many cases, most of the negative reviews I see for this game are based simply upon its difference, and it's a shame to see it that way. Rorona and Gust in general have a lot to teach the RPG community, and it's a pity that the game isn't approached with a willingness to try something a little different. »

« Although graphically poor, Atelier Rorona is quite innovative since no Atelier game made it to Europe before. The crafting system is really hooking and makes your brain overheat at times. Character design is fabulous (NISA really rocks for that). The sense of humor is brilliant, I had a lot of laugh quite of few times, which doesn't happen that much in today's JRPGs. Time and progession system are also pretty good, since it makes the difficulty very well balanced. »

« Absolutely charming. The looks might be simple in terms of graphical tech but the art direction is great and the characters are really fun and charming plus the OST is amazing. This game focuses on character relations (also determines multiple endings, which adds lots of replay) and synthesizing. The synthesizing is deep and very addicting but does incorporate time management, so if you hate time management better stay away. Combat is very minimal and used only to simulate light dungeon crawling to gather materials to synthesize. If you are expecting a more traditional fight oriented JRPG like the atelier iris games you might want to look elsewhere as the iris series is completely different focus, this game is more like the original atelier games. Also this a planned trilogy so if you like it you can watch your fav characters grow and see new characters added to the family with each installment. If you enjoy simple relaxing story with slice of life feel, great character interactions and addictive gameplay then you should check it out. This game was just a relaxing refreshing experience and very welcome to this gen. I loved it. »

« I'm not going to lie I haven't played the pre-Iris days of this franchise. Mana Khemia was what got me into this series. Now I don't mind not having to save the word or playing a game where I'm not going on some grand quest. For the most part you'll be finding ingredients to make a bunch of things for a kingdom, some of your friends, and other people. And I'd be perfectly content doing that. However this game walks in with a serve injury that cripples it the entire time. The imposing time limit which is attached to everything you do. I could only play this game for 4 hours before the seer claustrophobic feeling made never want to touch it again which really is a shame since I might have liked everything else the game had to offer. Now for those who can handle the overbearing feeling of time may enjoy this but I wouldn't recommend this game purely for how overbearing the time limits are. »