Atelier Iris 2: The Azoth of Destiny

"So many items! Where am I supposed to keep them all?"

2D games seem to be a rarity these days, with the focus of gaming always pushing toward 3D, and hyper-realism. It's a pity, since there is so much you can do with 2D that just can't be conveyed through 3D. That's why it's always nice to have companies like Gust and Nippon Ichi here to bring us some good, wholesome, two dimensional goodness. Today I'll be talking about their most recent release outside of Japan. Atelier Iris 2: The Azoth of Destiny. Though the game has actually been out a little over a year now in Japan.

The Atelier series is one of the many series that America and the like have seen recently, that have actually been around for a long time, but are only now starting to be brought over to the rest of the world. Centering around alchemy, they are turn-based RPGs with an emphasis on item collection, and combining items into all manner of various tools and supplies that you can use. This is the second game in the series to be released outside Japan, the first being Atelier Iris: Eternal Mana, also for the PS2.

Graphics: 9/10
These are some of the finest 2D visuals I've seen, period. Large, expressive sprites with many frames of animation. Lovely bold pictures to go along with their dialogue. Plus, some very attractive anime styles cutscenes, though few and far between, are definitely worth noting. There are a wide range of different characters, with a small amount of repeats in the various towns.

On the negative side, though there is plenty of character animation, at this point in the generation, I think they could still do a bit more. Some little things that could be expanded upon, mostly little things like someone giving an item to someone else could have been improved, but overall the visuals and animation are a beautiful example of 2D graphics at their finest. The graphics, for the most part, could easily be labelled as "cute." They are. Even enemies like the Punis and the Mountain Pigs are cute to the point that you might even feel bad blasting them with your alchemic items.

Music/Sound: 8/10
Though almost fully synthesized, the soundtrack managed to work wonderfully. The last Atelier game had a good soundtrack, but many of the tracks were rather unmemorable. With this, on the other hand, I found myself leaving the game on in the background while doing other things, just to listen to the music. The music that plays in several cave-like areas, and a certain battle theme particularly stick out in my mind. For the most part, the score is quite lighthearted, even travelling through enemy infested forests and mountains, the music still manages to keep a jovial feel to it, which may even be a bit distracting. All in all, this game has a wonderful soundtrack, synthesized or not, with a lot of very infectious tracks that will likely get stuck in your head for a while after you turn the game off.

As far as the sound effects go, there's nothing terribly outstanding here. The sounds get the job accomplished, and occassionally interject a bit of additional humor into the scene. There's not much to say here outside of that.

The voice acting is, in general, acceptable. The voices all fit well enough, and there are really no awful voices that I can think of off hand. For those not used to Japanese games, the occasional high-pitched female voice might grate on you a bit, but there's nothing that will make your ears bleed. All in all, the voice acting is more than acceptable, and if you still can't stand them, you can always switch to the Japanese. Or even turn them off.

Gameplay: 8/10
The central theme of the Atelier series, like stated before, lies in the alchemy system. Basically, the ability to combine, or modify various items or elemental essences to create an entirely new item. There are literally TONS of different items to collect in this game, everything from common things like plants or common household goods, to armor and accessories, to mystical tools of pure alchemic destruction. Basically, you find recipies for various items, and you can modify these recipies with similar items to change the effects of the final result somewhat, or even sometimes create something entirely new. There is a lot of trial and error involved in trying to create original items, and some items can be very rare, or expensive so that can occassionally be frustrating. Either way, for those players (like myself) who can't get enough of trying to collect eeeeverything, this game will give you plenty to do. Certain recipes may have three or four totally different items you can make as an end result, that you just have to discover through experimentation. It certainly potentially adds a ton of extra time to the game, just sitting in your workshop, coming up with new combinations.

The battle system is a fairly traditional turn-based battle system. They throw a few kinks in there though, to keep things interesting. Instead of something like Magic Points, the costs of spells and special skills are taken from a community charge bar that fills up as you attack. When attacking you can choose to either hit them normally which fills up the bar a certain amount, or use an attack that can potentially halt the enemy's turn temporarily giving you a big advantage. In fact, if you're set up well, you can proceed to juggle one, or even a whole group of enemies repeatedly, never taking a hit, and also getting huge XP bonuses for your combos. You can use items from your inventory, or any number of special alchemy items that you can't buy, but your alchemist can make using other items, or the essences of various elements you find scattered all over the land. The only complaint I might have, is that for the most part, battles are really easy. If you're capable of juggling the enemy with combos well enough, there may be points where even powerful enemies or even bosses may never get the chance to touch you.

Another interesting idea thrown into the mix, is the fact that you constantly switch between two seperate characters. One, Viese, is an alchemist in the land of Mana. Her segments of the game generally involve collecting items and elemental essences, forming pacts with elementals in order to expand the types of items you can make, and finding various new recipes. Early in the game, you become able to transfer items between the two groups, giving her the ability to support the other party from the safety of her workshop. The other character, Felt, is more combat oriented. He will gather a party of characters, and travel across the land seeing new lands and fighting all sorts of battles. His is definitely the real "meat" of the main game, and where most of the plot progression will take place. All in all, they made plenty of GOOD changes to the formulas of the orignal Atelier Iris to keep things fresh, and a lot of extra things to find and make to keep you occupied for many hours.

Overall: 8/10
Atelier Iris is definitely not a game for everyone. It's very item collection based, and 2D, which will of course drive plenty of potential players away. If you take a chance, or were a fan of the first game, or other Nippon Ichi releases, Azoth of Destiny has a whole lot to offer you. Many hours worth of things to do, and although the main plot is a smidgeon on the shorter side, all the additional things stretch the experience out much longer. All things considered, I think this is a fine show of 2D RPGs, and their ability to still stand strong in a 3D focused era. If you're a fan of good, light-hearted RPGs, I would definitely recommend giving this game a buy.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 06/05/06