User Score
7.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 18 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 18
  2. Negative: 4 out of 18
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  1. Jan 1, 2021
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. If you wanted to know why Gust stopped making Atelier Iris or games with similar style in general then this game could probably answer your question why, though I'll write a review about why this game sucks & deserved to fail & be forgotten like it already is .

    Story: Boring, predictable & cliché, the story could pass as a generic harem anime since most of the girls in this game are dressed in a weird outfit & all the guys other than the protagonist are portrayed as either a villain, a joke, a pervert, or a side characters. Even the Arland games which many considered to be "girly" have a far more interesting & well-written male characters.

    Exploration: There's only 5 dungeons in this game with a lot of backtracking & repetitive fetch quest, every dungeon also have a time limit which will automatically kicks you out after a few minutes exploring, if you think that the time limits from the PS3 games are bad then you'll likely hate this game even more.

    Battle System: Only 3 playable characters with a barebone job system called Blades, in battle you also have a shared skill gauge system which is really limited & makes the battle extremely boring since most skills are useless because of this.

    Others: Really annoying soundtracks & generic character designs, anyone could probably tell that the protagonist of this game are just a dollar store knockoff of Cloud Strife and the third party member you got looks like that she designed only for fanservice.

    TL;DR: If you wanted a repetitive JRPG with harem anime story, annoying soundtracks, boring gameplay, and bad dungeon design then you might enjoy this game, otherwise just stay away.

    Though I'll give this game a 0/10 since I can't understand why some people would like it unless they're around 13 years old or this is their first JRPG ever, I recommend people to get Atelier Ryza or Atelier Sophie instead since those games are almost similar but infinitely times better.
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Awards & Rankings

63
54
#54 Most Discussed PS2 Game of 2007
66
#66 Most Shared PS2 Game of 2007
Metascore
63

Mixed or average reviews - based on 34 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 34
  2. Negative: 4 out of 34
  1. Play Magazine
    75
    Grand Phantasm is capable of scratching that RPG itch with its enjoyable Afterworlds, innovative battle system, and exceptional soundtrack, but its thin quest won't linger in your memories for long. [May 2007, p.64]
  2. PSM Magazine
    70
    Fans will undoubtedly want to check Fantasm out, but there isn't much here that hasn't been seen before. [June 2007, p.82]
  3. Electronic Gaming Monthly
    48
    An epic adventure is hiding in here somewhere, but AI3 doesn't bother getting around to it till it's done boring you. [June 2007, p.91]