Atelier Rorona Plus: The Alchemist of Arland

 PlayStation Vita
Atelier Rorona Plus: The Alchemist of Arland Image
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79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 12 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 52 Ratings

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  • Summary: The alchemic RPG franchise from Gust carries on the tradition of the Atelier series, using alchemy as the main focal point. Atelier Rorona Plus focuses on the exploits of Rorolina Frixell, one the most beloved characters of the Arland trilogy (Ateliers Meruru/ Totori/ Rorona), a young girlThe alchemic RPG franchise from Gust carries on the tradition of the Atelier series, using alchemy as the main focal point. Atelier Rorona Plus focuses on the exploits of Rorolina Frixell, one the most beloved characters of the Arland trilogy (Ateliers Meruru/ Totori/ Rorona), a young girl who is assigned to complete alchemy tasks over 3 years in order to keep her alchemy workshop and not be banished from the kingdom of Arland. Players can craft new items and also battle enemies using the power of alchemy. As all games in the Atelier series, this title is set against an anime-like background with 3D graphics and is characterized by an elaborate crafting and synthesis system. … Expand

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Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 12
  3. Negative: 0 out of 12
  1. Digitally Downloaded
    Jul 1, 2014
    100
    This is a very rewarding game, with something like 30 different endings to experience, depending on how well you play, and more side quests, optional missions and challenges and places to explore than most other JRPGs out there.
  2. Gamers\' Temple
    Jun 25, 2014
    93
    While Vita's Persona 4 Golden fanbase and acclaim is beyond huge, I think Sony's portable system just found its second best RPG experience in the outstanding Atelier Rorona (and by extension, Totori and Meruru).
  3. Worth Playing
    Jun 24, 2014
    80
    Atelier Rorona Plus is a great introduction to the franchise for beginners in terms of plot and mechanics. It might not be the best of the Atelier titles, but it's still a big improvement over the PS3 original.
  4. Hyper Magazine
    Aug 12, 2014
    80
    It's forceful, gotta give it that. [Issue#251, p.82]
    All this publication's reviews
  5. Gaming Age
    Aug 4, 2014
    75
    Those people who already love the series will find everything continues on here as it should, while if you're never played an Atelier game before, then the relatively streamlined gameplay should make Rorona easier to get into.
  6. IGN Italia
    Jul 21, 2014
    71
    Atelier Rorona Plus is a great Japanese role-playing game with some elements which nicely enhance its structure.
  7. Eurogamer Spain
    Jul 13, 2014
    70
    This Plus version has nice improvements in its user interface and combat systems but it's still far behind other games of this genre.

See all 12 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 7
  3. Negative: 0 out of 7
  1. kyoycz
    Aug 15, 2014
    9
    A fun and light-hearted experience that manages to strike an addicting balance between item synthesis and exploration. I highly recommend thisA fun and light-hearted experience that manages to strike an addicting balance between item synthesis and exploration. I highly recommend this to all Vita owners!… Expand
  2. midipon
    Nov 19, 2014
    9
    This game is addictive. It feels great to synthesize and gather items. Everything is easy to get a handle on but it has a lot of depth forThis game is addictive. It feels great to synthesize and gather items. Everything is easy to get a handle on but it has a lot of depth for those who want to have their best runs. The character designs are cute and the art style is unique. The overall world is oddly intriguing and the writing is lighthearted despite some of the more serious events. Atelier Rorona is great for those who are well versed in JRPGs but want a different kind of game from the normal shtick, but that's not to say that even those who aren't into the genre at large won't enjoy this game.

    Despite all this, I have to take points off for the ridiculous difficulty of some bosses and the game being a little too easygoing about some light references to molestation.    … Expand
  4. Leonballard
    Jul 9, 2014
    9
    This game is awesome, my first Atelier experience and it is wonderfull, just too much ecchi but besides that, a very wonderful adaptation toThis game is awesome, my first Atelier experience and it is wonderfull, just too much ecchi but besides that, a very wonderful adaptation to the PS Vita and a example on how JRPG should be alongside Persona 4 Golden.-… Expand
  5. StaticSpine
    Dec 24, 2015
    8
    A fun JRPG with decent characters and nice alchemy system, but a pretty plain and repetitive combat system. The visuals are okay, the voiceA fun JRPG with decent characters and nice alchemy system, but a pretty plain and repetitive combat system. The visuals are okay, the voice acting is good (you can choose Japanese or English), the soundtrack is annoying at times, but you can change it to music from other Gust games, which is a cool feature. Overall - good, but not great.… Expand
  6. Ogie
    Apr 25, 2016
    7
    Ateliers are really good JRPGs series especially for PSV. I really like these games. Atelier Rorona is first game of Arland series which is aAteliers are really good JRPGs series especially for PSV. I really like these games. Atelier Rorona is first game of Arland series which is a bit behind newer games (especially comparing to Dusk series where Gust made nice progress into 3D dialogues, etc.). Graphics in this game are really good even with some minor issues I can say it is well looking game. Gameplay is a bit more simple than in newer games of the serie but still it is good, especially if you like gathering, crafting and exploring stuff. A bit weaker here is story which is not too serious like in other games in the serie. Basically I could say nothing much is happening here so it may look a bit less catchy than other Atelier games. As a result I like Rorona even I would say it is one of the bit weaker Atelier games.

    GRAPHIC - 7
    GAMEPLAY - 7
    LASTING APPEAL - 7
    EXECUTION - 7

    OVERALL - 7    … Expand
  7. Luahanseng
    Sep 22, 2021
    7
    Atelier Rorona on PS Vita
    Game completed : September 3, 2021
    Playtime : 15 hrs This is my first Atelier game i can say i have high    Atelier Rorona on PS Vita
    Game completed : September 3, 2021
    Playtime : 15 hrs

    This is my first Atelier game i can say i have high expectation of this game because its  my first among the 11 titles i just bought together brand new :).  I am disappointed  for alot of reasons : it is surprisingly linear in my opinion and there isnt much story in here. Nothing is really standing out. It is not a good sign for being my first in tje series. But it is still a descent game the concept well you can never go wrong, and it is still really really fun. The art style is amazing. Art Style : 9/10
    Gameplay : 8/10
    Story : 6/10
    Addictive : 8/10    … Expand
  8. ryuzaki57
    Jun 29, 2014
    7
    I discovered the Atelier series with Atelier Rorona. The game didn’t look very great in 2010, but I knew I had just unearthed somethingI discovered the Atelier series with Atelier Rorona. The game didn’t look very great in 2010, but I knew I had just unearthed something amazing, that would become my favorite series this generation. Four years later, Gust uses a youth potion on its very first HD title.

    Atelier Rorona is a lot more light-hearted than the following Atelier games : no world to be saved, no hideous monster to repel, no member of the family is missing, just a tiny shop to keep afloat by making and delivering alchemy objects for the kingdom and the people. The interest therefore lies down to the vicissitudes of Rororina Fryxell, young apprentice left to do all the job by her lazy master. Although the unscrupulous minister Meriodus will constantly try to get in your way, but it’s always in a humorous point of view. More than ever, it is your own affinity with the series that should dictate your choice.

    One of the points of this remake is the change in graphics to make the game more modern. Not quite like the spectacular jump made in Atelier Escha&Logy, Rorona + borrows the 3D engine from Meruru + with more or less success. Dungeons are still unimpressive, but water is well rendered. Most characters are really well made ( Rorona, Cuderia, Lionela, Esty, Totori et Meruru), but Sterk and Astrid are pretty much failed imo. Animations have improved tenfold and do have very nice effects. In short, the title is quite correct for Vita, but maybe a bit weak on PS3.

    As for the game system, and it’s actually surprising, Atelier Rorona + is not totally up to date. Understand by this that you still have to use MP for alchemy, which is a hassle, costs a great deal of time and makes your sortie with Rorona having low MP! In parallel, you also will be paying your companions. Okay, it matches with some joke thrown in Atelier Totori, but frankly I would have tolerated incoherence because paying friends is plain stupid. While annoying, those details don’t weight that much given the qualities of the remake.

    More importantly, alchemy and battle make a time travel to Atelier Meruru +. Changes made for Dusk series (Ayesha, Escha&Logy) are not taken into account : alchemy is back in hardcore mode in which ou have to synthesize each object one by one, although with the possibility to register some in shops in order to resupply faster. Alchemy consumes a lot of time and deadlines are the same as before (up to 1 month in the game). It is hard to achieve balance between alchemy, delivery, battle and gear-making. Furthermore, popularity and cash appear incompatible, which is a real problem by the end of the game. Despite that, the main story is not difficult to clear since there’s a great deal of tolerance on objectives. Fights lose the possibility to flank enemies, but are still dynamic enough thanks to the return of assists in full. It is strategically still way above average compared to other RPG s since you have to make your own stuff from scratch. That said, events looked difficult to trigger : in Dusk, it’s pretty natural to reach each characters’ ending, but here event flag conditions seem atrociously complex and far-fetched. It’s almost like you have to progress with an eye constantly on walkthroughs.

    Last but not least, Rorona + adds a long chapter after the main story : in the wake of another of Astrid’s failed experiments, Meruru and Totori and sent in the past. It’s quite a nice idea and a real pleasure to have the three heroines in the same team, but the highly punitive difficulty level is likely to make a lot of people kill time in the atelier.After 7 hours drawing blueprints of weapons, armor, accessories, potions, clocks, and at least as many utter defeats, I had to throw the towel. There’s still a lot to be done of the main story, and the race to ultimate strengh and flawless strategy is still hypnotic. To conclude on something more positive, let’s stress that Rorona + has in-game quite some well-crafted outfits, and a additional character for the main story (Esty like she appears in Atelier Meruru).

    Atelier Rorona + is a very good remake : a lot richer than the original, it is also quite satisfying visually speaking. In fact, maybe it’s the game itself that looks a bit old-fashioned after Dusk or the Arland sequels. Consequently, it is destined for Atelier veterans.    … Expand

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Awards & Rankings

18
#18 Best PS Vita Game of 2014
38
#38 Most Discussed PS Vita Game of 2014
31
#31 Most Shared PS Vita Game of 2014