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I’ll be the primary to confess video games that closely function crafting as a key part are usually an enormous turn-off for me, so I used to be initially cautious of Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Reminiscences and the Envisioned Land’s give attention to it. Be it in survival video games like Minecraft or Sons of the Forest, and even different RPGs like Final Fantasy 14 On-line, I normally discover it laborious to interact with crafting programs; the tedium of all of it rapidly units in, making me very desirous to get again to gameplay that’s only a bit extra thrilling.
Overview data
Platform reviewed: PC (Steam)
Out there on: PS5, PS4, Xbox Collection X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Change, PC
Launch date: March 21, 2025
This, surprisingly, has not been the case with developer Gust’s Atelier Yumia. From tools and equipment to useful gadgets and placeable furnishings, a lot of this RPG’s (role-playing recreation) gameplay revolves round its alchemical crafting system.
However that grew to become the precise motive why I grew to like the sport. In Atelier Yumia, you’re not simply crafting issues for small, quickly useful good points. Every merchandise you synthesize offers significant recreation and character development. Whether or not that’s rising the efficiency of a therapeutic merchandise through the use of higher-quality gatherables or making a model of a weapon that permits you to slot in further traits, there are all the time a number of avenues of customization and outfitting your celebration members with instruments that fit your playstyle.
Pair this with an extremely slick and trendy battle system and an open world that drastically incentivizes exploration, and in Atelier Yumia, you may have a recreation that may simply be thought-about top-of-the-line RPGs of 2025. Barring some presentational points and the occasional little bit of obtuse map design, the sport is solely a near-constant pleasure to play.
The not-so-wicked witch
Whereas not an completely darkish narrative by any means, Atelier Yumia grounds issues in a world the place alchemy is drastically feared and shunned, having been answerable for a fantastic many accidents all through historical past.
Our titular protagonist, Yumia, is one such alchemist and, regardless of solely wanting the very best for the world and its individuals, is often met with mistrust. Even when she makes use of alchemy for the advantage of others.
Thus, Yumia units out on a journey of reality and discovery with a celebration of trusted comrades. With the objective of discovering the secrets and techniques of the fallen land that after thrived beforehand, Yumia goals to show that alchemy can be utilized for good and doesn’t should be one thing that’s inherently damaging.
From begin to end, Atelier Yumia’s story is a reasonably easy trip, however one which’s nonetheless pleasing. Components of maturity are current, particularly when exploring Yumia’s previous. However the recreation usually retains the tone light-hearted and there’s loads of bubbly dialogue and humor to take pleasure in. Total, it’s an easygoing, usually cozy story, however one which isn’t afraid to get critical because the state of affairs calls for.
A stroll within the park
What Atelier Yumia will get proper for almost all of its runtime is pacing – one thing that’s normally fairly uncommon within the open-world area. The sport’s story not often drags its heels, permitting gamers to actually take issues at their very own tempo.
That tempo, between all the sport’s programs and mechanics, is normally very brisk. That’s very true of exploration in Atelier Yumia. Whilst you may initially balk on the abundance of Ubisoft-style query marks dotting the map, in actuality, these are nearly all extraordinarily fast diversions. Non-obligatory factors of curiosity like this embrace small ruins to discover, monster breeding grounds or hubs for explicit supplies, caves containing treasures, and containers you’ll be able to rapidly nab talent factors from.
Whereas there’s definitely a lot to do in every of Yumia’s 4 predominant areas, you’re in a position to discover it at a comparatively fast tempo. Darting between undiscovered factors of curiosity on the best way to the subsequent story goal all the time felt pure, and by no means like I needed to significantly exit of my approach until I expressly wished to.
Finest bit
Atelier Yumia’s tackle the sequence’ alchemy system is arguably its finest but. Whereas definitely very deep and boasting an amalgamation of its personal mechanics, it’s nonetheless extremely easy. Crafting high-quality gadgets like weapons, equipment, restoratives and extra is a moreish endeavor, particularly as you proceed to refine and make them more practical as you progress by means of the sport.
That very same snappiness applies to Atelier Yumia’s battle system. Like alchemy, there’s lots to the battle system, however it’s all very straightforward to select up and study. The fundamentals are that your celebration of three can interact enemies with combo assaults, set to every of the 4 face buttons. These combos can be utilized to place enemies in a weakened state, at which level you need to use battle gadgets and accomplice assaults to use elemental weaknesses for large harm.
Battle gadgets are additionally a way more integral a part of the expertise, and have been streamlined to a level. They’ll grow to be everlasting additions to your fight loadout, solely restricted by a cooldown timer between makes use of. You’ll solely want to switch them in the event you want to craft higher variations of them with extra properties and extra harm or therapeutic efficiency.
In consequence, whereas celebration members have their very own weapons and base stats, how one can set them up is impressively versatile. For instance, kitting Yumia out with elemental battle gadgets can flip her into a sturdy mage, whereas the shield-bearing Viktor may maintain quite a lot of stat-boosting gadgets, basically making him a stalwart assist unit. It’s a bit Xenoblade-esque in that regard, supplying you with the instruments crucial to construct and equip characters in a approach that works for you.
I require your strongest potions
As I discussed on the high, alchemy is the system that ties all the things collectively in Atelier Yumia. Whereas at your atelier – or inside a delegated constructing zone on the planet – you’re free to carry out synthesis to create something from battle gadgets to benches. You’ll after all want supplies to craft these things, however you’ll discover plentiful gathering spots all through the world and also you’ll naturally accumulate an abundance of elements by merely exploring.
All synthesis initiatives start by deciding on an Alchemy Core as your base merchandise, of which there are numerous sorts – together with one that gives an total high quality enhance or one other that permits you to slot in traits for added modifiers. You’ll then add supplies to assist broaden the core’s resonance space. The bigger this space, the extra drifting mana can be captured inside its affect. The extra mana you accumulate, the larger the merchandise’s high quality, thus boosting its total efficiency. Plus, utilizing supplies of a better grade will lengthen the ceiling of any given merchandise’s potential energy.
What makes alchemy so nice is that it truly is as much as you with reference to the way you form these things. Supplies have their very own distinctive properties, and utilizing particular ones can present secondary or tertiary bonuses. A tough-hitting battle merchandise could present different bonuses this fashion, akin to therapeutic or offering numerous buffs. Or, you’ll be able to simply go all-in on energy, making gadgets that hit as laborious as doable.
As you progress by means of the sport, you’ll step by step unlock new recipes for synthesizing completely new gadgets. These ‘recall recipes’ will be created and upgraded at your atelier utilizing several types of Reminiscence Vials you could find on the planet. Upgrading recipes could make them much more highly effective, akin to rising their variety of makes use of earlier than happening cooldown, or rising their base high quality.
As I stated, you’re not simply restricted to battle-oriented gadgets. Synthesis will be achieved to create potions, armor, equipment, and extra. And in the event you don’t need to get too misplaced within the weeds, useful fast synthesis choices exist the place the sport will neatly assign supplies routinely based mostly in your preferences – whether or not that be the naked minimal, or going for as a lot high quality as doable.
Synthesis doesn’t cease there, both. Workbenches will mean you can create housing gadgets like benches, crops, or archways. These can then be freely positioned as designated constructing spots all through the world, letting you create your personal bases or homesteads. There are such a lot of choices right here, and it feels nice having the ability to go away your personal marks on the world to a drastically private diploma. Positive, it’s not fairly Minecraft ranges of freedom, however there’s a lot right here that’ll mean you can get misplaced in hours of creativity.
One stroke ahead, two strokes again
In my Atelier Yumia playthrough, actually the one factor that bugged me was the sport’s total visuals and presentation. They’re under no circumstances unhealthy, however I do really feel like developer Gust usually went a contact overboard relating to post-processing results. Bloom throughout dawn and sundown will be eye-searingly vivid, washing out the world to an often uncomfortable diploma. Climate results additionally aren’t notably convincing, with an instance being rainfall instantly coating the world in a very moist and glossy look.
In higher information, efficiency in Atelier Yumia is implausible. On PC, I used to be in a position to preserve a rock-solid 60fps (frames per second), and cargo occasions are phenomenally quick – even when quick touring from one finish of the map to a different. I discovered this to be essential given the comparatively fast-paced nature of the sport, and I’m glad that Gust actually took the time to optimize its world with this in thoughts.
Do you have to play Atelier Yumia?
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Do not play it if…
Accessibility
There’s a good quantity of accessibility options discovered inside Atelier Yumia’s choices menu. Textual content measurement and background opacity will be adjusted, in addition to have three colorblind settings (deuteranopia, tritanopia, and protanopia) utilized to them.
Varied battle choices exist that may make hitting sure instructions simpler, too. These embrace an auto-guard operate for incoming assaults and an ‘straightforward precision counter’ that swaps you to a random character after efficiently guarding or evading on the proper time.
How I reviewed Atelier Yumia
My playthrough of Atelier Yumia lasted round 35 hours, taking me by means of the primary quest line, a ton of optionally available map exploration, and a handful of aspect quests.
I spent a lot of that point getting absorbed by merchandise synthesis, discovering it to be the sport’s crowning achievement and one thing I used to be prepared to place a lot time into to be able to craft high-quality battle gadgets and equipment. I performed the sport on PC by way of Steam with an Nvidia RTX GeForce 3060 Ti graphics card, an AOC Gaming 24G2SP monitor, and the Razer Wolverine V3 Pro controller.
First reviewed March 2025