Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy Reviews
By rejecting series traditions, Atelier Ryza 2 ends up disheartening despite boasting a stellar alchemy system.
The series tradition of scavenging for items and conjuring materials and tools with alchemy has become far more ideal and enjoyable. The plot however, felt like a quick patch up of leftover question marks from the prequel. As a fan, It still packs a wholesome gameplay experience, as you get to discover what happened to all the characters in the 3 years since the first adventure.
Review in Korean | Read full review
Reinventing a series can be a difficult task, one which the first installment did with great success. However, Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy is a great example of fixing something that was never broken to begin with.
There are some truly great parts in this game. Some of the exploration parts were really well done with the backgrounds and environment. The problem with the game overall is each system is fine enough on its own, but does not tie together in a coherent fashion. The alchemy is a little too involved for every single item, the exploration gives far too many items to actually want to sort through, and the battle system has too many small nit-picks to stop it from being great. The story is weighed down by too many trivial plots and it just lacks that 'cool' aspect others of the series like Dusk or Mana Khemia had.
Don’t think Atelier Ryza 2 is a bad game. There are lots of good things in it, in fact. The problem is that I was expecting more from a game with a full-fledged Playstation 5 build. With the exception of the fast loading times, the game doesn’t take advantage of the system’s hardware, resulting in a game that looks dated and runs as well as what I would expect from its Switch port.
Overall, Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy takes what's good about the first game and improves upon it. It's set apart from other games in its genre through its charmingly wholesome tone and low-stakes narrative that allow its characters and their relationships to shine while conveying relatably human themes filtered through an optimistic, sometimes-wistful lens. The game's systems are sometimes at odds but are each entertaining, and exploring ancient ruins with Ryza and her friends on a quest for knowledge regularly instills a hopeful sense of adventure. Atelier Ryza 2 will well-suit anyone looking for a leisurely, character-centric, self-paced, and intimate JRPG journey.
"...if you’re someone that thoroughly enjoyed Ryza’s last adventure, you’ll absolutely love Atelier Ryza 2."
Ryza 2 does little to break the mold, but what it does do is polish the existing formula.
Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy's core elements come together to make for understanding and engaging friendly JRPG. It has the option to automate complex elements and the battle system can be grasped early on without hours of learning, helped with the solo focused action.
Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy revisits Ryza and some of her friends as they deal with some of the challenges in entering adulthood.
Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends and The Secret Fairy will not be for the average gamer but will undoubtedly be a great 20-30 hour adventure for series veterans.
Atelier Ryza 2 is a new way to explore and craft.
Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & The Secret Fairy is an accessible RPG that fans of the series will appreciate. There's not a huge challenge for much of the adventure, but then Atelier Ryza doesn't bill itself as being particularly demanding. The tactics mixed in with real-time battling is a good mix, and other quality of life aspects help to move the player along the rather lengthy campaign. Hundreds of side quests flesh out the story for those who wish to be fully engrossed in the world, while those who prefer to stick to the main plot can easily do so. A lack of next-generation features isn't surprising to see this early on in the PS5's lifecycle, but at least load times are non-existent here. Atelier Ryza 2 is an easy game to enjoy without thinking too much, and sometimes that's just what the alchemist ordered.
While Atelier Ryza 2 doesn't do much to stand out other than its in-depth crafting system, the core joys of the genre are here. If you like JRPGs, you could do much worse than this.
The latest effort by Gust and Koei Tecmo is still promoted, as it really takes a step forward compared to the previous chapter. Even in the face of the limitations of the plot and some uncertainty in terms of the graphics sector, the product is completely satisfactory and offers players exactly what they expect. There is no reason to be disappointed: Atelier Ryza 2 doesn’t risk anything and can only win, and indeed it is. The future of the series is assured and even this latest entry does nothing but consolidate the tracks that are already extremely solid. We, for our part, will stay on board and see where the Atelier saga will take us, perhaps still in the company of the solar Ryza Stout.
Review in Italian | Read full review
While the characters and story may not have the most depth, the time and attention given to making the most important aspects of the game click are worth their weight in gold.
Gust have spent a little longer than they usually do with Atelier Ryza 2 and the game is much improved over the first in nearly every way.
Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy has a personality all its own with fun crafting and flashy combat, but falls into common RPG pitfalls such as constant backtracking and tedious questing.
Atelier Ryza 2 doesn't have the perfect rhythm, but is almost exactly what you'd expect from a game in Atelier series, and a JRPG in general. Atelier Ryza 2 builds on the series core elements and improves them at the same time, and is a great choice for both the fans of the series and the fans of JRPG genre.
Review in Persian | Read full review