Nelke & the Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World

Nelke & the Legendary Alchemist is a wonderful celebration of past Atelier games, all while bringing something genuinely new and different to the table. While many of the RPG elements have been greatly toned down, the town-building aspects are so addictive and entertaining that you can forgive the simplicity. A light and breezy atmosphere topped off with so many charming character interactions make Nelke's story an undeniably pleasant adventure.

A spin-off title of the niche Atelier series, Nelke may provide some neat cameos for long-time fans, but otherwise isn't a very interesting game to play.

Nelke & the Legendary Alchemists is a decent crossover game for the Atelier franchise, linking 20 years of the series together.

Nelke & the Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World is a small breath of fresh air for the Atelier series, featuring a town-building experience that's different from anything that has been seen in the series before. The mechanics, while not particularly deep, are quite solid and they manage to make the gameplay loop quite engaging, together with the excellent character interaction. The game is clearly aimed at longtime fans of the series, but even those with a more generic knowledge of the Atelier games will find something to like. Just don't expect anything outstanding or revolutionary.

Nelke & the Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World is not the most complex city management game ever devised, but it is quite enjoyable.

As a first attempt at a new genre, Nelke & the Legendary Alchemists is not a complete failure. Everything functions as it should, and outside of the time limits it's not an overly complicated game. However, it ultimately fails as a celebration of Atelier's 20th anniversary. The hallmarks of the series such as exploration and synthesis have been simplified drastically, and the characters taken from previous games are underutilised by both the story and gameplay. This might not be the worst way to introduce someone to town building and simulation games, though it will likely fall short of Atelier fans' expectations.

The name of the game is simplicity. Nelke and the Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World offers an experience that takes aspects of many genres and boils them down to the basics, for better and for worse.

Nelke and the Legendary Alchemists adds a city simulation component to the Atelier series and brings a wealth of interaction between the series' characters, which will be thoroughly enjoyed by Atelier fans. It doesn't break any significant grounds and some of its goals feel repetitive in a short time but its mechanics are simple to learn and the game's wide variety of characters will be certainly welcomed by anyone who enjoys the series.

Nelke & The Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the World is a unique look at the Atelier franchise’s worl outside of the mainstream titles. Lighthearted as it may be, it still feels shallow, though well-designed and full of things do to on a casual level. While fun, interest easily wanes after an hour or two, though its art, voice acting, and overall scope should not be taken lightly. Nelke & The Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the World is a niche title best suited to those that are deep in the fandom of the Atelier Franchise.

Instead of a glorious celebration of all things Atelier, Nelke & the Legendary Alchemists comes off more like a misguided attempt at creating a spinoff by toning down all the elements that makes Atelier games enjoyable in the first place.