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| Corey Romeyn |
Watch a pair of the game's protagonists explore the world map.
04.15.14 - 1:21 PM
On Friday, a live broadcast on NicoNico brought gamers their first glimpse of gameplay in Gust's latest entry in the Atelier series, Atelier Shallie: Alchemists of the Dusk Sea.
Sallistera and Shallotte are the playable heroines, and in the video below we have the opportunity to view a couple of towns and some field exploration. It appears that monsters are visible and able to be engaged on the map. However, we are not treated to what the battle system looks like. Based on the trailer, the game features some pretty gorgeous environments. On the field, Shallote can fish and clean, which can both yield items for her, while Shallistera can utilize a dowsing item to increase her inventory.
Aside from the two women noted above, three other characters have been revealed: Kortes, Nady Elminus, and Teokhuga.
Kortes has known Shallistera since they both were children and she looks up to him as an older brother. Kortes is skilled in martial arts and hails from a family of warriors who serve as ship guards. Prior to the journey, Kortes lived in Strard, experienced modern life and has even witnessed alchemy. Because of this, he is beginning to doubt the traditions and customs of his family heritage.
Nady Elminus worked at a firm in Strard before she became Shallote's mother. Her husband died suddenly and unexpectedly, leaving Nady to raise their daughter on her own. Nady trusts her daughter but has been known to follow Shallote when she starts working. Nady is not skilled in the ways of alchemy.
And then there's Teokhuga. At 58, Teokhuga is everyone's senior and comes from a family of shipbuilders. He will act as Shallistera's escort during her adventure. He has watched over Shallistera since she was an infant. He has a breadth of knowledge regarding legends surrounding his family's ships.
Last but not least, two aspects of Atelier's gameplay mechanics have been announced. The first is called the "Life Task System." Thought bubbles will appear in the upper-left corner of the screen and the content of these bubbles varies based upon what your focus is in the game. For instance, if you've been a battle-hungry player as of late, your thought bubbles will be reflective of that, but if you've been doing other things in the game, or even things outside of what your Life Task bubble directs you to do, the bubble will adjust to what you've been doing and address you accordingly. Even field exploration can be enhanced by completing Life Task objectives. You can end up changing the types of monsters which appear in a given area, harvest points, and collect items.
Be sure to also check out our brand new gallery for the game below. Atelier Shallie: Alchemists of the Dusk Sea is set to release on June 26 in Japan for the Playstation 3.
