The Atelier Dusk Trilogy! I am an alchemist
February 13, 2025
It's been a good minute, but not too long ago I finished the last game in the Atelier series' Dusk trilogy, Atelier Shallie.
I had said some time ago how I played Ayesha and loved it, and I'm proud to say that the love has only grown from there. Ohhh it has grown. The whole trilogy has been a blast! Cute and cool designs, intense struggles, deep mechanics, fun writing. Gritted teeth at times from the challenges, but smiled on the way in and on the way out.
After Ayesha's journey, the second game in the trilogy I played was Atelier Eschatology. It pretty much immediately stuck out to me due to focusing on two protagonists instead of one, and from what I gather Logy is an unusual protagonist in the Atelier series. He's very battle shonen protagonist-esque, in comparison to how so far the Atelier protagonists have been very magical girl-like! This game's strengths are also quickly clear on a writing level; the story is built around Escha and Logy's dynamic, with Escha being a cheery, friendly and somewhat ditzy girl (from what I am gathering ditziness is pretty much a requirement to be an Atelier protagonist), and Logy being the stoic, serious sort. It also has a completely different setup; whereas Ayesha had a road trip-like structure, with Ayesha traveling the world and meeting people as she goes between locations, Eschatology is built around the two carrying out assignments for the government, so there's instead a central hub that you sometimes venture out from in order to complete certain tasks.
Linca as she appears in Atelier Eschatology. She's one of the best characters in the series for sure 🥹
It has a totally different feel that makes both games equally worth experiencing; While I found in the end I resonated more with Ayesha's lone journey, Escha & Logy are such a lovable pair and the unique structure of that game gives it a very fresh vibe. There's some great new characters as well as even more of some old favorites (Linca is absolutely wonderful here), and a surprisingly emotional conclusion. But that's just the writing! Mechanically, Eschatology felt like it pretty much improved on Ayesha in every way. The combat was better and much more challenging in terms of difficulty, and the crafting is better explained and manages to become even more addictive somehow. Some (me!) may prefer the writing, atmosphere and storytelling of the first game more, but on a gameplay front Eschatology feels like it pulled out all the stops in learning from the previous game.
I wish I could've said the same for Atelier Shallie though, which I might go as far as to say is the weakest in the trilogy. It was still a wonderful time, with all the same things I'd come to expect after the past two games; likable characters, solid combat, deep crafting. But it's a more disjointed product that feels like Gust buckled under the pressure of needing to "justify" the third entry, and as a result made a bunch of changes just for the sake of it. The time limit system the past two games used is no longer present, and what it's replaced with is awkwardly implemented and makes the game feel too fast. The alchemy system is altered almost entirely and due to the skewed pacing you have to do a level of grinding you didn't have to do prior. The new characters are enjoyable but suffer due to the game bringing back and juggling a large cast of returning characters. Even the localization feels distinctly weaker than the others; there's loads of typos and even a scene where the wrong voice actor says a character's lines!
Shallie is absolutely not without merits, though! For being what I might say is the weakest, it's still a ton of fun. One thing I can say with certainty is that the combat is at its absolute most fun; Shallie adds in a Burst system which elts you buff your damage through racking up combos and chain powerful passive abilities together, as well as alters its systems so you can rapidly cycle through a party of 6 people during a fight (notable as in Ayesha you only had 3 people max). The Shallies are hampered quite a bit by a story that doesn't quite feel like theirs, but they're sweet and endearing characters who have some great allies too (Miruca and Jurie my beloved!). Just about every single prior Dusk protagonist (and even those who aren't protagonists, like Wilbell) returns in this game as aplayable party member, and it's super awesome to see everyone interacting with each other. An older Ayesha, Escha, and Logy appear and act as seniors to the greener Shallies, and it's really sweet and lends to some unique scenes that feel like a real treat for the devoted.
Shallie is a total union between the stories of the Atelier Dusk series, acting as pleasant payoff for those invested in its world.
Shallie also succeeds as a decent conclusion to the story underpinning the world of Atelier Dusk. All three games take place in a beautiful post-apocalypse that is slowly and subtly approaching total ruin. Despite this, it's a cozy, pleasant world full of friendly faces where everyone works together to do right by each other. There is a strong environmentalist element with the series, as mankind's folly and the way we harmed the earth is touched on more and more. The vivid art direction paints such a wonderfully dreamlike picture, too... Atelier Dusk as a whole is an aesthetic treat, and for being light on story has such a compelling world and atmosphere. Shallie wraps up the trilogy's threads in a way that isn't too crazy (I quickly learned that Atelier games are not really about the stakes), but feels appropriate for everything experienced so far while also leaving things open for the future.
Bottom line is that Ayesha was good! Eschatology was better! Shallie was up and down! But a somewhat shaky third game didn't do anything to undermine the immense, deep enjoyment I had for these games as a whole. I finished them, and before I knew it I was missing these characters, this world, and exploring and engaging with it. I loved following the sweet-natured and plucky Ayesha as she stayed resolute in her journey for the truth. I loved watching the odd yet heartfelt bond between Escha & Logy unfold. I loved seeing the Shallies cross paths and change each other for the better. I loved getting destroyed by a boss, only to spend hours in the crafting screen in the name of creating my strongest items, and then return for sweet revenge. I love so so much of what these games offer, the few gripes I have are nothing in the grand scheme of it all. I played through the second and third game with my dearest, and even replayed the first for them, and so they not only embody meaningful experiences for me on their own, but they embody meaningful experiences I had with someone close to me. As silly as it sounds I even started cooking for myself more in part because that's the closest thing I'd get to doing real life "alchemy"! I've just fallen in love. I love Atelier Dusk. And most importantly:
I love that goddamn OST.
It's weird to work backwards, but I will be playing Atelier's Arland trilogy soon. In the mean time, I'll be dreaming of all my good friends in the World of Dusk and making bombs in my head.