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Atelier Ryza 3 - Alchemist of the End & the Secret Key |OT| Thighs Thicker Than A Gold Puni

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
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Story
After the events of Atelier Ryza 2, Reisalin Stout and the gang return for one final summer to uncover one final secret. Experience the thrilling conclusion to the Atelier "Secret" Trilogy.

Platforms
PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4
Nintendo Switch
Windows (Steam)

Genre
Alchemy RPG
Turn Based Combat
Crafting

Players
Single Player

Voices
Japanese

Subtitles
English

Release Date
March 24th, 2023

Trailers







Screenshots
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Synless

Member
I own the first two on switch, but I really wish I bought these on ps4/5… However I feel obligated to continue buying this trilogy for switch.

I am torn.
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
I own the first two on switch, but I really wish I bought these on ps4/5… However I feel obligated to continue buying this trilogy for switch.

I am torn.
For what it's worth, if your system detects save data from either of the previous games (or Sophie 2!) then you'll get bonus costumes unlocked.


Scroll down for info
 
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Celcius

°Temp. member
I think these games look gorgeous artistically but I've never played them. Is this a regular JRPG or does the alchemy twist mean that you have to spend a lot of time in puzzles or menus?
Too bad there's no demo...
 

night13x

Member
Heard they included a minigame where you put a man's face between Ryza's thighs to see how much pressure it takes before his eyes pop out. Thick thighs kills lives is the name if the game.

Kidding aside, looks like they are going more open(ish) world this time. Great to see them actually progressing the Atelier games.
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
I think these games look gorgeous artistically but I've never played them. Is this a regular JRPG or does the alchemy twist mean that you have to spend a lot of time in puzzles or menus?
Too bad there's no demo...
They're essentially regular JRPG games, though these titles have a pretty hefty reliance on crafting. Crafting itself is kind of a type of puzzle / mini-game, but once you learn a recipe you can just auto-create. So the puzzle aspect comes from finding the right ingredients to mix up to make the right thing - but most of this comes from trying to find the right ingredients themselves (either in the field, or dropped from monsters, etc.) It's a pretty central point of the plot, but it's actually pretty cool and fun once you get the hang of it. Most of the time, if you're stuck on one of these, you can just go farm materials or find the special thing you need from a monster drop or explore a new area or start a new side quest or

Earlier games in the series had this weird timer nonsense, like you have to do certain things in a certain order or you miss out on stuff, etc. These games in the "secret" series (Ryza games) ditched that and they're much better for it.
 

Danjin44

The nicest person on this forum
They're essentially regular JRPG games, though these titles have a pretty hefty reliance on crafting. Crafting itself is kind of a type of puzzle / mini-game, but once you learn a recipe you can just auto-create. So the puzzle aspect comes from finding the right ingredients to mix up to make the right thing - but most of this comes from trying to find the right ingredients themselves (either in the field, or dropped from monsters, etc.) It's a pretty central point of the plot, but it's actually pretty cool and fun once you get the hang of it. Most of the time, if you're stuck on one of these, you can just go farm materials or find the special thing you need from a monster drop or explore a new area or start a new side quest or

Earlier games in the series had this weird timer nonsense, like you have to do certain things in a certain order or you miss out on stuff, etc. These games in the "secret" series (Ryza games) ditched that and they're much better for it.
What like about its crafting is that it also makes exploration fun, you get excited when you get to the new areas because you discover new material for crafting and you can also craft new tools that lets explore further and tools that lets gather new materials. Every system nicely working together to make battles, crafting and exploration fun.
 

Paltheos

Member
I tried Ayesha many years back and bounced off it but the crazy hype around Ryza and the much improved visuals are inviting me back in (edit: and with me nearing the end of going through all of Falcom's modern catalogue, I need something to fill the anime hole). It's surprising to me that Gust can make games that look this good. I've always kinda looked down my nose at their stuff.

I have noticed though that it seems their games don't really go on sale lol. I looked at Ryza during the seasonal Steam sale, checking its price history, and noticed that these games have basically been full $60 for the past two years with very infrequent and meager price cuts. I'll probably just have to bite the bullet to dip my toes back into Atelier.
 
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jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
I have noticed though that it seems their games don't really go on sale lol. I looked at Ryza during the seasonal Steam sale, checking its price history, and noticed that these games have basically been full $60 for the past two years with very infrequent and meager price cuts. I'll probably just have to bite the bullet to dip my toes back into Atelier.
You'll catch the first two games on sale on Steam typically for 50% off. I think they skipped the latest sale because a) they knew people would be hyped for the new game and b) they actually did a Koei weekend sale last month where the first two games in the series were $29.99 each. If you've waited this long to play these, I'd say you can hold out a bit more because there were a total of 6 times in the past year that the games were on sale (for a limited time).


50% is about the best you could hope for though, they're unlikely to sell it below that. The newer games are actually being sold and discounted on third party sites now at least, so you might have some luck there. For example, this new game is on Green Man Gaming for about $10 off:


It's worse for physical copies though, especially on the Switch. It's like they only make 1,000 of them or something. They usually sell out everywhere within a few weeks, and never get reprinted. Ebay prices for used copies usually go for $80 and up. Sealed copies can go for a lot more. That's not normal for a game series that's still releasing new games.
 

Paltheos

Member
You'll catch the first two games on sale on Steam typically for 50% off. I think they skipped the latest sale because a) they knew people would be hyped for the new game and b) they actually did a Koei weekend sale last month where the first two games in the series were $29.99 each. If you've waited this long to play these, I'd say you can hold out a bit more because there were a total of 6 times in the past year that the games were on sale (for a limited time).


50% is about the best you could hope for though, they're unlikely to sell it below that. The newer games are actually being sold and discounted on third party sites now at least, so you might have some luck there. For example, this new game is on Green Man Gaming for about $10 off:


It's worse for physical copies though, especially on the Switch. It's like they only make 1,000 of them or something. They usually sell out everywhere within a few weeks, and never get reprinted. Ebay prices for used copies usually go for $80 and up. Sealed copies can go for a lot more. That's not normal for a game series that's still releasing new games.

Oh cool. I was just using a bad tracker then. Nice. I'll hold for now and keep an eye out for a sale. Thanks for the heads up.
 

Chastten

Banned
Getting my copy in this afternoon and can't wait to start playing it tonight. Had a great time with the first two games so finishing this story is something I've been looking forward to for quite a while.
 
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Synless

Member
Got my copy yesterday. It’s going in backlog for a bit but I did end up going with Switch to complete the trilogy in that console. Odds are that will be the first version that sells out like the other two games, so getting it day one was the only choice.
 
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JayK47

Member
I have to wait until Monday apparently. I used to get these on the day of release or even in some cases a day early.
 

Isa

Gold Member
Got it for my PS5, just want to play more RE4 first, the struggle is real. Great time to be a gamer with so many quality titles out. Also got a bunch of sketchbooks for my own tabletop game I'm making/running for me and my girl. So little time lol. I love the ambition involved in Ryza 3, if anything its one of the biggest improvements to world exploration I've seen in the series and bodes well for future titles should they continue with similar quality going forward. I'm really interested to see the next character(s) lol, hopefully they can match the success of Ryza and friends.
I tried Ayesha many years back and bounced off it but the crazy hype around Ryza and the much improved visuals are inviting me back in (edit: and with me nearing the end of going through all of Falcom's modern catalogue, I need something to fill the anime hole). It's surprising to me that Gust can make games that look this good. I've always kinda looked down my nose at their stuff.

I have noticed though that it seems their games don't really go on sale lol. I looked at Ryza during the seasonal Steam sale, checking its price history, and noticed that these games have basically been full $60 for the past two years with very infrequent and meager price cuts. I'll probably just have to bite the bullet to dip my toes back into Atelier.
For me Gust is an efficient budget dev, but is fairly consistent. I really enjoyed the Nights of Azure games despite their seriously limited budget, and the Blue Reflection games are quite good for what they are which has a beautiful color palette I love. Obviously Atelier is their bread and butter and I think they are worth it for sure. Its great to see them get some success and recognition, and unlike some companies they've seemingly put those extra resources into their games slowly but surely improving them with each iteration. Congrats and respect for making it through glorious Falcom's stuff. That's a serious time investment but a great one.
 

Chastten

Banned
Well, spent around 20 hours over the past 3 days in Ryza 3 and so far its a worthy sequel.

I did notice I didnt do jack shit damage after a while so spent tonight actually creating some decent items. Went from most stats ~100 to most stats ~400. I like how actually leveling doesnt really do much in this game stat wise. Keeps the gameplay loop of collecting ingredients and creating new and more powerful items and gear balanced.

Not sure how long this game is but so far as seems to be more Ryza 2 lenght (60 hours) than Ryza 1 (30 hours) but that might just be me. Enjoying it so far anyways so keep it coming!
 

Danjin44

The nicest person on this forum
Well, spent around 20 hours over the past 3 days in Ryza 3 and so far its a worthy sequel.

I did notice I didnt do jack shit damage after a while so spent tonight actually creating some decent items. Went from most stats ~100 to most stats ~400. I like how actually leveling doesnt really do much in this game stat wise. Keeps the gameplay loop of collecting ingredients and creating new and more powerful items and gear balanced.

Not sure how long this game is but so far as seems to be more Ryza 2 lenght (60 hours) than Ryza 1 (30 hours) but that might just be me. Enjoying it so far anyways so keep it coming!
Yup. that big part of what this all about and what makes exploring and crafting that much satisfying compare to other games with crafting.
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
This game is great so far, the first couple of hours are really just a tutorial and a way of reminding you how the systems in the game work. There's also a movie you can watch from the main menu that recaps the first two games.

What sucks though, is that the game seems pretty unoptimized on PC. My laptop is a few years old (mobile 2070 / 2019), and I just can't seem to hit 60fps - even if I change the quality to low and the resolution down to 720p. Something is definitely wrong there - I'm going to have to investigate further.
 

STARSBarry

Gold Member
honestly I used to buy all of gusts games at launch, but recently I just wait for the DX releases when they bundle all the games in a series together in a pack with all the DLC etc, still not cheap (those triple packs are expensive) but considering how much a single game + DLC of these costs these days, id rather wait.

looking forward to giving these ones a go though in a new months (years)
 

Danjin44

The nicest person on this forum
Once again I’m gonna be addicted to this, the crafting and exploration I even better here.
 

Chastten

Banned
MWMpEB6.jpg


Okay, so I kinda broke the game. :p

I'm just at the start of the third area, and I noticed I really wasn't doing much damage, except for with consumable items, which were the only items I had put a lot of effort in into making them. So I grinded a few hours, got some much needed recipies and crafted/copied 4 full sets of gear, and now I basically beat every opponent in a matter of seconds, and even the strongest opponents hit me for a single HP at most. Previously most stats were roughly at 200, this is where I'm at now :p

Anyways, continuing with exploring and with the story tonight!
 

JayK47

Member
I am not a fan of the realtime combat. I do prefer the older games with proper turn based combat. I just started, but the combat doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me. I just got done playing a turn based combat game (Yakuza Like a Dragon), and that is the only way to do it. Either turn based or action like the Tales series. At least Ryza still has her boring flat ass. Thankfully the DLC outfit covers it up.
 
The release of this made me restart the first game for the third time. I enjoyed it for a bit, but quit at roughly the same spot (just after beating the dragon).

This is not an Atelier game. Compared to the prior games, this is just a regular JRPG with crafting. I never feel like an alchemist. I’m just a random girl (Ryza feels like she is 20-24 years old, so I don’t get why she is treated as a child) doing random stuff.

Time means nothing despite having a day/night cycle and a clock. Alchemy means nothing since combat is extremely easy yet you can min/max everything at will.

Games like Rorona and Ayesha made me feel like I was an alchemist trying to open my own shop, or to learn alchemy to help find my sister. There was a sense of urgency. The game didn’t need to tell you to go hang out in your room for a day to progress the story. It just… progressed the story as you naturally discovered new things and played the game normally.

The overly frantic and overwrought combat system is the final nail in the coffin. The turn based combat in othe Gust games was nearly perfected. I went back to Blue Reflection from 2017, and I am stunned as how clear and enjoyable combat is.

I’ve given this series a fair shake. Going to sell off my copies of 1&2 and crack open something like Totori or Escha & Logy.
 

JayK47

Member
Agreed. Atelier has been turning into a standard jRPG more and more with every iteration. I fell into the series with Ayesha and loved it for being different and also far more reasonable in content. You could beat the games in 20 to 40 hours. When the time limit went away and the games went more mainstream, they also got more bloated. I definitely prefer the older PS3 games. I also liked how each game had a new lead character, but you may see previous characters pop in or even be part of the team. They made more sense since the main characters was always learning alchemy and started at a low level with no knowledge of alchemy. I am playing the 3rd Ryza game and she is weak and hardly knows alchemy. Brain drain? Lazy? And back to the same area as the first game, but with more areas to explore. Just started the game and I am bored of the same old city. Hopefully it picks up and a new city appears.
 
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Chastten

Banned
I feel like this is kinda the same discussion as people had 10 years ago when Fire Emblem Awakening released. It was the first game in the series that got mainstream attention by changing things up from the previous games, but by doing that, it alienated the longtime fans of the series.

For me personally, I absolutely hate time limits in videogames so I had never played an Atelier game before and I love Ryza. I am absolutely looking forward to playing the remake of the first game this summer to see where the series started however.
 
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Chastten

Banned
Okay, so apparently nobody on this board plays this game but I just finished it after 64 hours and some change!

While the game does drag a little towards the end, it's an incredibly satisfying conclusion to this 4 year long story. Every character gets a nice ending to their story and the entire thing was just a really nice trip down memory lane.

Anyways, really enjoyed both this game and the trilogy as a whole. The gameplay loop of gathering and crafting is really addicting and the entire vibe of the game is really comfy. Looking forward to the Marie remake this summer!
 

JayK47

Member
I am playing. If it takes over 60 hours it may take me a month to beat it. I am getting better with the combat, but I still prefer turn based. I am focused on the bottom right of my screen the entire time monitoring when my turn is and health. I am completely missing the action. Turn based I can better see what is going on. The combat is sort of a worst case mix of action and turn based. If someone dies I can't switch them out quick enough to save myself. Usually if one person falls the battle is over.
 
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