Omake - Review
Here, I give my own opinions on the game. I won't say that you'll agree with me, but you're not the one who's running this website.
Story and Plot
Atelier Iris 2 has an interesting concept dividing the traditional RPG and the alchemy system, the latter being what the Atelier series is most well known for. The only real annoying thing about it was that in order to switch characters, you had to go to a save book... and whenever I wanted to save my game, I kept on accidently switching my characters. The story's pacing is a little slow to begin with, but that's to be expected.
Felt, the main character is a little bland... then again, main protagonists tend to be like that. If you try to give them any depth, they become huge angst machines *coughcoughCloudStrifeSquallLeonhartTiduscoughcough*. Therefore, I actually don't really mind; the supporting characters more than make up for it.
Rather than just saving the world, though, it was refreshing to play a game concentrating on saving a single kingdom. The scenario is rather well paced after the first few episodes; the episodes slip by quickly. This is the Atelier Team's second attempt at a story-driven adventure RPG, and it's a tremendous improvement over the first game in the story part.
I'm not going to lie, though; at some parts, specifically Viese's portions, will be boring to some players. However, rest assured, they're very short since Viese doesn't get any battles until, like, the nineteenth episode.
Gameplay and Graphics
The battle system has been drastically improved upon! Replacing MP is the Charge Gauge system, which works very well in my opinion, as well as fits in with the story since at that point in time Belkhyde doesn't have mana. Battles are quick-paced, which is wonderful compared to the menial chore that battles were in the first game. They also improved on the experience point sharing system, which was just plain painful in the first game. Also, the break attacks and battle gauge remind me of Grandia's battle system, and I love Grandia's battle system. The added battle bonuses to get extra EXP is also great. Battles actually reward you!
I am also very glad that they upped the item limit to being more than just holding nine of an item. That was one of my major pet peeves about the first game.
The graphics are simply beautiful. I love the hand-drawn backgrounds and environments; they're all works of art, really. The 2D sprites are very nice as well, in my opinion. It goes to show that 3D doesn't have to define current gaming; 2D can be done just as well, and just as, if not more, beautifully.
The art style differs slightly from the first game, and is now more anime-like and cell-colored. It's not good or bad, but different. In the first game there were more shades of colors and such in the character portraits.
Sound and Music
The voices, for the most part, were done very well. Though I first found Noin's voice annoying, her English voice is actually an improvement on her Japanese voice. They don't have any of the sound glitches found in the first game, thank goodness.
The music is beautiful. The background music really does add on something to the entire experience. I have to admit though, the opening theme falls a bit short when compared to the first game's opening theme. Though a full version is available, it really sounds like the singer is straining herself all over the place, especially at the beginning. The arrangement is nice and all, but falls short. The ending theme... sorry, just doesn't do it for me. I usually love Japanese music, but yeah. Nothing to brag about.
Overall
Overall, I love this game; so much about it is simply gorgeous. It's fun, to boot. It's a good mix of gameplay and story, and I believe that everyone should at least give it a chance. If the Atelier Iris series keeps on getting better, I definitely can't wait until Grand Fantasm comes out over here.