Atelier Meruru Plus: The Apprentice of Arland (PS VITA)

GUST Corporation has once again proven themselves worthy of praise by releasing yet another grander than grand tale about an apprenticing female alchemist. Using their usual methods of incorporating previous characters from the series into the plot, and adding new ones into the mix GUST aims to introduce to us a tale about a princess whose dreams of seeing the world are limited by her royal duties. With her childhood friends Keina, and Lias by her side though princess Meruru strives to make the most of her position as royalty, and aims to prove herself as a worthy princess as well as an adventuring alchemist like her teacher Totooria Helmold (Totori). By combining her skills as an alchemist she fully intends on blending her two worlds as she tries to better her community, and her status within.

Being the grand tale that it is you'll find plenty to do as you try your best to maintain a properly timed schedule. Things like monster hunting, alchemy recipe making, material gathering, material delivery, and even community development play a huge role in your daily activities as the Kingdom of Arls' princess. As usual you are not alone in your tasks though as you'll find friends amongst the many shop owners, and citizens as well as a couple of friends from your childhood who are more than willing to aid you in your journey of discovery. You'll also be glad to know that everything in the game is well explained through in-game tutorials, and accompanying visual references. Keep in mind though that this time around the stakes are set much higher as your timed schedule includes many more tasks than before as well as a popularity scale that has been put into place to let you know if you are doing your job correctly.

Within the Kingdom of Arls Meruru will need to visit various locales, and people in order to maintain a healthy popularity. Among the places of interest are Totori's workshop in which all your alchemy recipes will be realized, the Tavern which is once again run by the shy yet perverted guild receptionist "Filly", The Weapons Shop which is once again run by the burly Hagel, The Town Outskirts where other in-game friends contribute to the tale, and the newly introduced castle study where you, and your butler Rufus will be discussing, and developing Arls' kingdom expansions. The development portion of the game is definitely where the most new features come into play, and is the one feature that I will spend quality time explaining.

Development in Arls is as one might expect. It includes the development of various buildings (Schools, Walls, Training Facilities, Press ...) whose main purpose is to make way for a growing population. When the game begins, and everything is explained you'll find that you have a three year time span in which to prove your worth as an alchemist to the King. A huge portion of this responsibility lies on your success at expanding the kingdom as well as your popularity gained from doing so.

The development portion of these tasks ultimately involves the clearing of lands (killing of monsters, gathering of ingredients) to make way for new development areas as well as the creating of supplies needed to help the people of the kingdom make the most of their land, and it's offerings. By successfully doing what is asked of you you will earn points that can be applied to building new kingdom structures which in turn will make room for the growing population. Different structure developments will have different benefits in gameplay including MP boosts, as well as outright population growth (+250, +500, +1,000). As such kingdom development is certainly your ultimate goal in this particular game. Popularity on the other hand takes a second place spot in the grand scheme of things.

When it comes to improving upon your community popularity within "Atelier Merurur Plus" there are various ways of going about it. Such things as completing guild requests via the tavern will add points to your popularity meter. Gathering materials needed for alchemy recipes will also add to your popularity. Among the most significant ways to increase overall popularity status in the game though is by completing the tasks required for land development, and land improvement. By tending to the peoples' needs associated with the development of Arls you will either gain their favor, and gain popularity points, or lose their favor, and lose popularity points.

Keep in mind that your provided alchemy materials' quality also plays a huge role in the outcome of your praise, or lack thereof. As with Totori Plus all alchemy items have a quality as well as an alphabetical grade letting you know whether it's worthy of giving, or not. You'll also find that some development requests require a certain number of materials as well as a certain quality of said material, so it's best you combine things properly when creating recipes. The fact that the game is run on a timed schedule, and that you ultimately need please the King with your progress only further complicates the tasks at hand, so getting things right is a must if you hope to succeed.

As far as new features go there were some things worth mentioning. New features that were introduced this time around include an opening cinematic video with the same art styles as that of the in-game offerings, a revamped alchemy, and combat system as well as a special prologue feature contained within the game's main menu that explains both Totori's, and Rorona's origin stories through narrated cinematic sequences. As far as the alchemy system goes it is visually more impressive, and is much easier to understand than that of Totori Plus's offerings. The same goes for the battle system. While it acts, an reacts in pretty much the same way as in Totori Plus things like choosing actions on the go are simplified by the use of small pop-up icons. Also the battle order is placed on the side of the screen, and looks completely different from Totori Plus's offerings. The functions are very much the same though, so in that respect it's not like dealing with something entirely new.

Other features include the game's detailed sub-menus in which you can still glance over the many in-game offerings. You'll find your chosen characters' usual apprentice cards complete with detailed info, and their current standings as far as your progress as an alchemist, or adventurer goes. Things like the dressing room in which you can change Meruru's outfit (Headdress, Dress), and the monster bestiary are still very much in place. You can even access, and listen to all the music contained within the game should you desire to do so. If you buy this particular version of the game (assuming it's still available when this review is posted) you'll even be treated to a complete Rorona, and Totori outfit with which to dress Meruru up with. It's what put's the "Plus" in "Atelier Meruru Plus".

Now on to the verdict ...

I have to honestly say that I didn't expect the vast improvement that was applied to this Atelier game. After playing "Atelier Meruru Plus" Totori Plus looked meeker in scale to me. Everything about this game has been revamped, and improved upon in a way that makes it both visually grander as well as more functional than any installment of the series has ever been. The alchemy seemed much more simple than before, and even the battle system was more impressive as a whole. The visual style, while pretty much the same aesthetically seemed more theatrical in nature as well which in turned enhanced the quality/mood of the story being told. To me the characters were fleshed out more than before, and were more relatable. The fact that GUST included a cinematic prologue for the previous two Arland games made the game more complete, and even made it so that "Atelier Meruru Plus" could be a standalone title for any RPG gamer looking to jump right into the series.

Being the RPG fan that I am I cannot express enough how great this game really is. Even with it's feminine appeal I found the story to be quite the engaging experience. That coming from a straight as an arrow dude says a lot for the game too. I thought the cute plot, and characters as well as the individual personalities of each character shown brought the game to life in a rather delightful way. It was a pleasant escape from the doom & gloom of the real world. Seeing the character's quirky expressions come to life onscreen, and hearing their Japanese voice-overs brought some much needed moments of joy, and laughter to my life. One can help but sympathize with Princess Meruru's longing to better her world, and enjoy all that it has to offer.

As with Totori Plus, Meruru Plus also contains an underlying moral about responsibilities. In this case the responsibilities are more about bettering your community, and yourself as a person than anything else. Like the real world we too must maintain our own status within our communities, and make the most out of the situations we've become a part of. I believe it is this message that the developers at GUST Corporation are trying to share with the gaming community. In that sense "Atelier Meruru Plus" is not only a great game, but is also a great lesson for our growing youth who will one day move out into the world on their own. For that reason alone I think this game is a must have.

If you are looking for a quality RPG series to jump into, and have been thinking about getting into the Atelier series then this game would be a great first step in to experiencing it. Not only do you gain a completely new, and impressive RPG with underlying morals, but you also get a prologue that will help you better understand where the game is in the grand scheme of the Atelier Arland series. The quality is there, the fun is there, and the price is right. What's not to like?