Atelier Shallie: Alchemists of the Dusk Sea

 PlayStation 3
Metascore
76

Generally favorable reviews - based on 26 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 26
  3. Negative: 1 out of 26
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  1. Digitally Downloaded
    Mar 10, 2015
    100
    If there was any justice in the world a game like Atelier Shallie would be considered in the same breath as the latest Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, or the Souls game. Because it is that good.
  2. RPG Fan
    Mar 31, 2015
    91
    A heartwarming, low-stress alchemy adventure with a standout soundtrack.
  3. Worth Playing
    Apr 16, 2015
    85
    Some minor flaws aside, Atelier Shallie doesn't break the mold and is an excellent ending to the Dusk trilogy. While the presentation lacks a little polish, it has the most refined and enjoyable version of the core franchise mechanics to date.
  5. NZGamer
    Apr 1, 2015
    85
    Much more than meets the eye here - an RPG for RPG fans.
  6. PlayStation LifeStyle
    Mar 15, 2015
    85
    Atelier Shallie is a game both fans of the series and traditional RPG fans can enjoy alike. As someone new to the series myself, I most certainly did so.
  7. GamesBeat
    Mar 10, 2015
    84
    While the industry seems to have moved on from both the PlayStation 3 and traditional role-playing games, Atelier Shallie: Alchemists of the Dusk Sea is good enough to bring players back.
  8. Digital Chumps
    Mar 18, 2015
    82
    I'm happy that this staple JRPG series is evolving. Dusk Sea brings with it several key gameplay changes that should keep series fans happy while making itself more accessible and interesting to others.
  9. Playstation Official Magazine Australia
    May 26, 2015
    80
    Still pretty niche as far as JRPGs go, but well presented and packed with multiple paths and replayability. [May 2015, p80]
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  10. Hardcore Gamer
    Apr 25, 2015
    80
    Fans of the series, as well as newcomers looking for a different style of JRPG owe it to themselves to try Atelier Shallie: Alchemists of the Dusk Sea.
  11. RPGamer
    Apr 6, 2015
    80
    I adored my time with Atelier Shallie, though I feel a bit let down that the story didn't have as much closure as I was hoping. Still it's easy to get swept up in the world, characters, systems, and combat.
  12. PlayStation Universe
    Mar 20, 2015
    80
    A solid title that ends the Dusk trilogy on a positive note. New and altered gameplay mechanics will determine if you rank this above or below Escha and Logy, but either way it is still a must-have for Atelier and TK RPG fans.
  13. COGconnected
    Mar 15, 2015
    80
    The overall presentation of the game has been refined and polished into something even more admirable that makes the game not only more enjoyable, but easier to get accustomed to.
  14. God is a Geek
    Mar 13, 2015
    80
    If you like an RPG but want something slower and more thoughtful from the norm then this could be for you.
  15. Vandal
    Mar 11, 2015
    80
    It’s a small but solid step forward for the franchise. It relies on improving what we played on the previous episode, but if you enjoyed other Atelier games before, this deserves a try.
  16. Meristation
    Mar 11, 2015
    79
    Here we are two years after we started this journey. It has been three chapters with different characters, locations and stories, but the same mechanics and universe. This time we are in this kind of buddy JRPG alchemy story with two girls that can use a friendly but deep crafting system. Quick battles, no time-limit this time and the sense that this is the end of the journey, at least of the Dusk trilogy and the series on PS3. We'll see you on PlayStation 4, Gust.
  17. LaPS4
    Mar 30, 2015
    75
    We welcome PS3's last Atelier franchise game, changing certain mechanics like the flow of time, but with no further evolution. Free camera and a slightly bigger map are fair enough to put an end to the series on PS3.
  18. 3DJuegos
    Mar 16, 2015
    75
    Yet another fun and intriguing JRPG from Gust Co. Atelier Shallie: Alchemists of the Dusk Sea is a deep and satisfying JRPG experience. Not the best, but a good one.
  19. Hobby Consolas
    Mar 10, 2015
    75
    If you like the concept, this Atelier entry will keep you satisfied.
  20. Multiplayer.it
    Apr 8, 2015
    73
    This is a good RPG every fan of the saga will love.
  21. SpazioGames
    Apr 8, 2015
    70
    Even though it can alienate longtime fans, the removal of the time management mechanic gives Atelier Shallie Alchemists of the Dusk Sea much more room to breathe, welcoming newcomers and pleasing the ones who like to take their time.
  22. Everyeye.it
    Mar 25, 2015
    70
    The Atelier saga begins to show its considerable age, both in the graphics and gameplay wise. Fans of the brand will find this chapter interesting anyway, but will probably feel a lack of new elements in the formula. Something truly has to be done in the next future to assure the survival of this saga.
  23. GamesVillage.it
    Mar 18, 2015
    70
    Atelier Shallie: Alchemists of the Dusk Sea is basically a more of the same, which is not necessarily a bad thing. If anything, we'd have appreciated more attention to the old fans of the saga, rather than making things simpler for newcomers.
  24. Push Square
    Mar 10, 2015
    70
    Atelier Shallie: Alchemists of the Dusk Sea is the perfect end to an enchanting and mysterious trilogy, reaching the high point that the series has been leading up to.
  25. We Got This Covered
    Mar 23, 2015
    60
    Atelier Shallie is the best yet in the long-running series, but will only appeal to selective gamers. While beautiful in sight and sound, there is no drama or purpose in the narrative, and the careful spirit and repetitive nature of fighting, collecting, and crafting make bore some. Still, for those new to JRPGs or fans of the Atelier, this serves as a worthwhile diversion.
  26. ZTGD
    Mar 16, 2015
    60
    It saddens me to see one my favorite game series put forth such a weak effort and at the same time see it be localized so poorly with little effort and consideration.
  27. 4P.de
    Mar 18, 2015
    39
    In theory this is the best Atelier in a rather bleak PS3-apperance of the series. Even visuals and level design are above the rest of the franchise. But with serious frame rate issues and a game-stopping freeze bug that can damage the console data system I suggest you wait until Gust releases a patch.

Awards & Rankings

5
#5 Best PS3 Game of 2015
3
#3 Most Discussed PS3 Game of 2015
8
#8 Most Shared PS3 Game of 2015

User Reviews

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User Score
7.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 53 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 35 out of 53
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 53
  3. Negative: 7 out of 53
  1. ryuzaki57
    Mar 10, 2015
    6
    Atelier Shallie is the 3rd (and last?) episode of the Dusk trilogy started with Atlier Ayesha and Atelier Escha&Logy. That's the first problemAtelier Shallie is the 3rd (and last?) episode of the Dusk trilogy started with Atlier Ayesha and Atelier Escha&Logy. That's the first problem of this game, because it ends the trilogy in a rather awkward manner. None of the questions raised in the past two games finds a definitive answer : Linca's story is barely hinted at, the truth behind the drought that plagues the world is hardly explainded, we are still waiting for an clear illustration of Alchemy's past mistakes, and Ayesha and Logy are MIA.

    Story-telling its faulty too. This sequel looks more like a spin-off that borrows some characters from before. It's composed of two separate stories : Shalistella's and Shalotte's (both called Shallie). Shalistella is your average Atelier heroine whereas Shalotte, more dynamic and lively, introduces a more moe approach. Unfortunately, neither side has been well executed, and the slim differences between the two adventures doesn't make replay value very valuable. Generally speaking, the story never takes off and stays as a series of events half-serious, half-humoristic. The tone seems mainly light in the end, because any attempt of the game to get more serious sounds really off.

    Because of low stakes and an astonishing lack of intensity, but also surprisingly shallow characters. Of all the newcomers, Miruca is the only one that shows a bit of work : only her has a solid backstory and thus the only one you sympathize with. The others feel almost invisible given the low interest of the events they're in.

    In its gameplay, Atelier Shallie changes radically. First thing, it drops the limited time frame to go for a classic progression system in chapters in which you have all the time you want. To make it further accessible, Gust opted for the Xillia method and now difficulty settings can be changed any time. Wise decision, because even though most of the game felt easy, difficulty surges at the very end. This episode adds a morale gauge, but after 70h and 2 playthrough, I'm still wondering what it is for and how it works...

    You no longer get experience points in battles (or very few). XP should be gained by doing Lifetasks, objectives comparable to Atelier Ayesha's. Some of those challenges are immediate (make a specific object, do a specific action, get some alchemy trait, beat X monsters, explore maps, etc.), but others are to be achieved on the long term. Even without the time parameter, management is still there because you'll often have 10, 20, 30... tasks available at the same time, an varied enough. The ones you complete constantly trigger others, so it's a never-ending managerial frenzy, let alone the fact that you still have to manufacture your gear from scratch. That said, there's no denying that gameplay has grown poorer. Just one example that thunderstruck me : the characters decide to hold a cake contest at some point. So I do expect to spend some hours in my atelier making the ultimate sweet. Far from that, the event launches right away and a get the free trophy without doing any action... I realised that clearly the Atelier I knew was no more. The exploration of the world map is also made boring by the infinite time, the rigidity of the progression system and the bland level-design. Exploring doesn't have the thrill it used to.

    Atelier Shallie introduces a combat system called Burst : every time you hit an enemy, a burst jauge is getting filled. When this one reaches 100%, you can deal a lot more damage. It brings nothing but wasted time between Burst sequences. Worse still, the enemy can slower your Bust jauge if you are hit too often, which in some cases (fortunately rare) is horribly irritating. Despite that little blunder, let's stress that if you meet certain conditions, you can trigger the Field Burst, kind of magical circle that boost your stats for the time of the Burst : a nice idea to further vitalize combat. The rest of the fighting is directly inherited from Dusk, that is to say equally tactic and nervous to keep interest until the end. Be warned though, the game is fairly easy until the very end, even in hard. This being due to the multiplication of super-powerful healing spell that makes the manufacturing of healing items almost useless.

    The good news is that the game has been further polished visually, as it has been the case for 4 years. Although backgrounds are still mostly bland, the battles show artistic and technical mastery : modeling is refined to the extreme, the level of detail is more than satisfying and the animation wonderful! The various moves of the 8 characters are varied, and spectacular. On design, Hidari's illustrations are as good as ever and the OST quality stays high, especially on battle themes.

    Alchemy still has the skills divided into the 4 elements, save that they are even clearer and intuitive, which makes the system extremely precise and enjoyable without any loss in complexity.    … Full Review »
  2. deadlysilentbob
    Mar 20, 2015
    10
    Finaly the atelier games have found perfection.

    let me explain for those of you who now want my blood. The atelier games originally were    Finaly the atelier games have found perfection.

    let me explain for those of you who now want my blood. The atelier games originally were designed to be clean, simple and light rpg games. meaning they are not weighed down with too much story, too much lore, too many characters, too many bosses etc ad nausium. Unfortunately in the last 5 games (rorona, totori, meruru, ayesha and esha & logy) they artificially tried to push in some difficulty with the time mechanic to appease a select few hard core Japanese gamers who wanted something hard.

    To any of you who are in the know (or are capable of reading between the lines) you could see that this move hurt the series overall. I am NOT saying that the aforementioned games are bad. I did enjoy them. and i would have loved to enjoy them for longer than the forces 20 hours of play i had.

    shallie fixes that. I can play for as looooong as i want and advance the story as leisurely as i want to. this is how rpg's should be.

    Possitives: graphics are good, 360 camera is a nice addition, music is realy nice, i love the character shalotte as i always found the series could use a punky/mildly alt heroine to balance the mostly girly ones, the search and gather system is awesome (think manakhemia inspired battles with sleek visuals) and the usable items replenish when you return to town (not too necessary a feature without a time limit to restrict synthesis but hey, ill take it)

    Negatives: the areas you visit seem a little bland (never did like desert scapes too much), the quests seem a little repatative and the layout of the quest menu is a bit of a step back from the ease of the one in ayesha.

    overall i recomend this to alllll rpg fans    … Full Review »
  3. LadyAshe
    Apr 4, 2015
    10
    The best RPG game I've ever played in years. a true RPG game. real RPG. hard core RPG. this game is soooo addicting! I've been playing it forThe best RPG game I've ever played in years. a true RPG game. real RPG. hard core RPG. this game is soooo addicting! I've been playing it for days now none stop! the moment you start the game it's too late! it's so hard to put down the controller! goodbye my social life!
    thank you Gust for listening to your fans and remove the frustraiting time system from the game. finally an atelier that is wide OPEN since atelier landed on PS3, yey!    … Full Review »
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