Atelier Resleriana: The Red Alchemist & the White Guardian Interview – Gust on Expanding Resleriana's World and More

RPG Site: What led to the decision to release a home console game that uses the world and timeline of Atelier Resleriana: Forgotten Alchemy and the Polar Night Liberator?

Yasunori Sakuda: After Resleriana's announcement, many fans of the Atelier series expressed they would like to enjoy the world of Resleriana on consoles as well.  When considering how we could expand the Resleriana world while also providing players with a new experience, we heard this feedback from the community and decided to create a version for consoles.

RPG Site: There will be players that understandably be hesitant in trying Atelier Resleriana: The Red Alchemist & the White Guardian because they haven’t played Atelier Resleriana: Forgotten Alchemy and the Polar Night Liberator previously. Will there be any features in Atelier Resleriana: The Red Alchemist & the White Guardian that helps introduce newcomers into the world of Atelier Resleriana?

Yasunori Sakuda: This game takes place within the same setting as the previous Resleriana, so we partially used its system as reference. However, this is a completely new title for consoles with a plot that takes place within the same timeframe as the mobile game, but in a different region. Those who have not played the mobile game can enjoy this as a completely new game.

For example, the area surrounding Hallfein, which players explore early in the game, will be a completely new place, which means even newcomers will be able to step into it without issues. In all directions beyond Hallfein are different maps so it's definitely worth exploring.

RPG Site: How do you balance taking player feedback into account from previous Atelier series titles, while staying true to your own design goals with an entry like Atelier Resleriana: The Red Alchemist & the White Guardian?

Junzo Hosoi: It would be difficult for me alone to encompass everyone's opinions, so the entire dev team does the overall research, and we consider and discuss the points with the most feedback. We take that into consideration for each game's design and the final decision is made after the director and assigned leaders carefully go over it.

RPG Site: What are your thoughts on the time limits we had in earlier games in the Atelier series? Do you think we will ever see those make a return in any way?

Junzo Hosoi: The time limit itself is an aspect that makes games more interesting, however, we must make sure it matches the user's needs, the game system and the setting.

If we are able to meet those requirements, we might be able to produce a game that reintroduces the time limit.

RPG Site: Are there any plans to add enhancements for Atelier Resleriana: The Red Alchemist & the White Guardian for Nintendo Switch 2 and are there any considerations to release an Xbox version?

Junzo Hosoi: As this title was developed for the Nintendo Switch, there are no major changes.

We currently have no plans to port it for the Xbox.

RPG Site: Tell us more about the shop management system in Atelier Resleriana: The Red Alchemist & the White Guardian. What led to its inclusion, and how much control does the player have over it; for instance, can players individually set different prices on each item?

Yasunori Sakuda: With Atelier Yumia, we aimed to include global trends, such as an open field, to evolve the Atelier series. On the other hand, this title is being created to follow the experience of past Atelier series, such as turn-based combat, while also introducing modern technologies. Additionally, within the traditional minimum loop of the Atelier series, we have added the "town development" and "shop management", intuitive content that allows new players to discover what kind of game Atelier is, while also keeping it simple for series' fans.

As for shop management, players will be able to sell items and the town will develop according to these sales. Instead of choosing what kind of buildings they want to place, players will need to think about which items they should sell in order to raise the level of a specific section of the town. The items sold are completely up to the player. As the level of a specific section increases, new characters will appear and new events will take place, and with that, the story will progress. Additionally, there are fairies that can help you around the store. By doing so, your profits and influence over the town will change.

RPG Site: Atelier Resleriana: The Red Alchemist & the White Guardian features Sophie, Totori, and Wilbell from past Atelier games, and even Raze from Mana Khemia 2. Why did the development team choose these specific characters for Atelier Resleriana: The Red Alchemist & the White Guardian?

Junzo Hosoi: There are a lot of series within the Atelier series, so we wanted to include as many different characters from them as possible. For Raze in particular, we created his first 3D model for the original Resleriana, so we selected him since we wanted fans to enjoy this. Another reason is that the story of this title takes place at the same time as the second half of the first part of the original Resleriana, so we chose characters that could be in Hallfein during that time.

We also selected them considering the balance in a party. If only alchemists were chosen it would become unbalanced, so gave characters such as Raze and Wilbell, a swordsman and a witch respectively, an attacker-like role.

RPG Site: As previously established in Atelier Resleriana: Forgotten Alchemy and the Polar Night Liberator, the world of Atelier Resleriana contains many characters from the Atelier games because they’ve drifted into it from their own timelines. Will these characters also make an appearance in Atelier Resleriana: The Red Alchemist & the White Guardian?

Yasunori Sakuda: Though they won't participate in battles, many 'legendary' characters will visit Hallfein. Players will learn what they have been up to in the world of Resleriana, so look forward to it.

RPG Site: General Producer Hosoi mentioned that Atelier Resleriana: The Red Alchemist & the White Guardian is a return to the “old-school Atelier experience” and one of the key ways it establishes that is through more linear environments and turn-based battles. Meanwhile, Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land was a deliberate departure that featured an open world and real-time action combat. Do you believe these fundamental differences are indicative of how Gust will approach developing future Atelier games moving forward, as one entry aims to deviate from traditional Atelier games while a subsequent entry caters to series fans that prefer the expected Atelier experience?

Junzo Hosoi: We are constantly thinking about how to grow the Atelier series. There's a lot we can learn from trying something new and from continuing what has been done in the past. There’s a discussion regarding which one we should focus on, but both are essential for the Atelier series. So we would like to, as much as possible, continue with the current approach.

Our background and culture were created alongside our users, so we would like to tackle that with sincerity.

RPG Site: How do you like your coffee?

Junzo Hosoi: Japan's summer is unbelievably hot, but drinking an iced coffee is what I love most when under this blazing sun!