Atelier Escha and Logy

[NeoCracker]

Welp, this is the 5th instalmant of the Atelier games on the PS3, and the fifth game using this particular formula of focusing more on your day to day grind as an alchemist rather then some massive plot, though there is definatley a story building up the whole time.

How does it hold up to the others? Pretty well. The battle system more reflects that of Mana Khemia with it's six man party, three in the front and three to switch in and out. However they seemed to have dropped the varying support abilities depending upon your position to the enemy. (For example in Ayesha, Lilca's Checkmate was a defnese that could only be used if she was facing an opponents side when activated. ect.) So it gains some ground and looses some at the same time.

I'm happy Item degradation has gone, and I like the inclusion of the field events! However There are some ingredients that are just insane to get. Let me explain the crazy one.

You need to go through the four screens of this one map, and on the last map activate the field change for rare items. After that, you have to travel back to the first part of the map. And assuming you didn't already grab all the ingredients, you will use a fertilizer thing on one of the spots and tehn grab it.

That is seemingly the only way to grab this item. So once again a few steps forward, a few steps back.

Writing in Ayesha, the last one and also taking place in this ones world, was quite a bit better as well.

And dammit, why have neither this game nor the last had Pamela? Her absence depresses me. :cry:

[Ayen]

I haven't played any of the games in the series. I didn't even know it existed until I looked through new releases last month and saw this installment with all the others. Is it a hard series to jump into if you haven't played all of them?

[NeoCracker]

There are some callbacks you'll miss out on, but not really.

Some are connected though.

You won't need to play any of the Arland games (Rorona, Totori, and Meruru), as they aren't connected at all.

You can jump into Escha and Logy and get anything important in the game, though I would suggest playing Ayesha first (Only two of the DUsk games out yet, with one more to come), but even if you don't the story is pretty self contained, and you shouldn't be confused by anything, with one possible exception near the end, but nothing that should hinder the main plots enjoyment.

[Ayen]

Yeah, all the separated series when I viewed Wikipedia threw me for a loop there. Hooray for self contained plots!

[NeoCracker]

I'd suggest playing Ayesha also because it's a better title then Escha and Logy, but really either one is great.

Just know a core aspect of the game is time management, as you're on a limited amount of days to complete the game. (Effectively 4 in game years). It takes time to synthesize items, gather materials, travel, all that. Mind you, if you get a bad ending, you will essentially keep all the things you have equiped on your characters, so you can start with high end equipment on your grind to a different ending, and all your money.

I haven't checked to see what you keep from your adventure pouch, as that's an entirely new mechanic to this game.

[Ayen]

It's starting to smell like every single dating sim I've ever played in here.