Atelier Ayesha: The Alchemist of Dusk is the first in the Dusk trilogy of Atelier games. It was originally for the PS3 but was later ported to the Vita with all DLC included. The game's world and story is not connected to the Arland trilogy of games. It stars Ayesha who is a novice alchemist. She sees the spirit of her sister who was thought to be dead. A mysterious character appears and tells her to follow the way to become a true alchemist, and in doing so, will be able to help her sister. This inspires Ayesha to get out of her workshop (which is in the middle of nowhere) and travel the lands. As is traditional for the series, the player is given a timeline for the main objective. In this case, we get three years to save Ayesha's sister. During that time, Ayesha meets various other characters, some of which can join her party. The structure of the game will be familiar to anyone who has played an Atelier game but the requirements for specific story scenes have been loosened. The game is much easier to complete and you're less likely to run out of time and get the bad ending.
Tying into the time limit is how every action takes time. Travel takes time, gathering items takes time, fighting takes time, and alchemy takes time. In the beginning, days pass by quickly but soon you're able to craft certain items to help reduce the time each action takes. You're eventually unlock a limited form of fast travel which is handy. If you're very efficient, you can actually finish the main story within two years and play around doing whatever you wish for the remainder (which is more boring than it sounds). In each small area there are gathering points for items used to alchemize as well as enemies roaming around. The camera angles are fixed although getting into a battle will transition you into a separate battle screen. The combat system is turn-based with a slight focus on positioning, allowing for critical hits if you strike an enemy from behind. Only Ayesha can use items while other party members can use skills. Each character can also perform support abilities such as follow up attacks and taking damage for another character. The battle system while basic and functional, is actually not too bad.
The alchemy system has also been simplified in terms of the effects of each item. At first it is confusing to figure out how it works but you'll soon uncover the nuances. Most items now take only one day to alchemize, making it easier to manage time. The game features cel-shaded graphics and is basically the same as previous games. Therefore, some areas look stunning while others look really bland and drab. Despite that, the game often suffers from framerate drops. One of the main sidequests is fetch quests where NPCs request specific items for you to synthesize. You accept the quests directly from the NPC rather than a request board. You'll also gain points for completing story requirements and completing requests which can be used to permanently upgrade your stats and provide other gameplay bonuses. This is actually an addictive system. Tying into this are mini-objectives in each area that typically requires you to defeat all enemies and collect from all harvest points.
While you're only allowed three characters in your party, inclusive of Ayesha, there are seven to choose from in the end. All the characters, including the side characters, are designed to be overly cute but are fairly forgettable overall. Each character has their own chain of events and they can be highly missable which can be annoying. This aspect is the major source of sidequests for the game. The story is small in scale compared to other JRPGs. Ayesha is not saving the world; rather she is exploring the lands, meeting new people, finding new experiences, and without much urgency, finding a way to save her sister. All in all, it can be forgettable and doesn't quite have the same personal touch as Atelier Totori did (with her mother) or with Atelier Meruru (with her kingdom). While combat is secondary to the alchemy, there are a few powerful bosses to fight. When you meet them, they are much more powerful than the common enemy. You will have to prepare well as up until that point you would have easily gotten by with just equipment dropped by enemies. These bosses will require you to craft items to put useful traits into your equipment.
Tying with the side characters' story events is the multiple endings aspect. Which ending you unlock will depend on which characters' events you have completed. However, unlike the Arland trilogy, you don't have to have multiple saves and worrying about ending priorities. You can have just the one save to reload and pick the ending you have fulfilled the requirements with, which is a lot more user friendly. Lastly, the soundtrack is above average. The battle themes are amazing especially the final boss theme. The vocal tracks are also pleasant to the ears, the soundtrack is a lot more memorable than the Arland trilogy. Overall, despite some changes, Atelier Ayesha: The alchemist of Dusk is an addictive game mixing item crafting with exploration. The drop in difficulty arising from the loosening of the time limits helps make this a relaxing game. While parts of the story and the characters are forgettable, there is enough charm here for it to be an extremely enjoyable experience.
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