Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream Critic Reviews

Atelier remains the comfort food of video games, and Atelier Sophie 2 is one of the more comforting snacks. With so many dense and complex games releasing around one another at the moment, having something that is light, warm, and good-natured is a nice release. I don't know if launching immediately after Elden Ring and Horizon, and immediately before Triangle Strategy works in Sophie's favour, but if you can resist making those comparisons, what you'll see here is one of the most refined and beautiful entries in this long-running and utterly wonderful JRPG mainstay. The game deserves better than to be compared like-for-like with these other titles, as it no doubt will be.

Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream is a masterpiece by Gust and the best game in the franchise so far. All elements work to perfection to deliver a rewarding experience. There's an amazing cast of characters, great story and the best combat, alchemy and exploration systems ever seen in the series.

Even as a huge fan of the series, I'm still in disbelief how incredible of a game Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream is. It's so jam-packed with outstanding gameplay and irresistible charm that it has single-handedly become the new gold standard for JRPGs.

Atelier Sophie 2 is a high point in a fantastic series. Gathering and alchemising materials has simply never been so compelling.

For a series that has been hiding in the shadows and deemed a cult classic franchise for quite some time, Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist Of The Mysterious Dream proves that even though it may be the underdog in a genre saturated with many, many entries, it can come out from the shadows and prove that it's a one of a kind experience.

Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream is an absolute gift. Sophie is just as charming and inspiring as ever, and even though the story tacks on more dimensional time-travel drama than I would've cared for, it's just as touching and cozy of an experience as the first Atelier Sophie. Gathering, crafting, and battling are all plenty of fun too, and flooded with enough layers of mechanics that it's easy to pick an area you want to focus on and purely master that one element of the game. By looking to the past, this surprise sequel has delivered a promising vision of the future of the Atelier series.

Year in, year out, the Atelier series never fails to top itself. Atelier Sophie isn’t just a check-in with beloved character — it manages to meaningfully increase our understanding of that character by giving her the chance to interact with her closest companions in an entirely new context. For fans of the franchise, this is one of the most satisfying experiences that Gust could have offered, and for anyone looking for a chill, accessible JRPG, it doesn’t get any better than this.

Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream presents an immediately engaging gameplay hook. The story is interesting and can get new players caught up fairly quickly, though the character designs can leave a lot to be desired. Battles and alchemy are a ton of fun, but the game does have trouble explaining all of its systems effectively.

ATELIER SOPHIE 2 is a hidden gem that didn’t get enough attention during the crazy first quarter of this year, and it’s not a game that pleases everybody, but it offers so much when you dig deep into it.

The new entry on Atelier Series brings not only one of the most charming main characters in the franchise on a new adventure but also the classic turn system and alchemy mechanics with new features that results in a remarkable title.

Atelier Sophie 2 picks up lovers of the genre and combines classic gameplay with a dynamic combat system that is very good for the game series. German subtitles should slowly become a must for the series in order to be really popular in German-speaking countries.

Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream is a vast improvement over its predecessor. Borrowing exploration elements from the Atelier entries while keeping its traditional turn-based combat system is a great way to help it stand out within its own franchise. On top of that, the battles have more depth than ever before. Sophie Neuenmuller’s new adventure is well worth it for veterans and newcomers alike.

Atelier Sophie 2 massively improves upon everything from the original game. It has a much more interesting story, plenty of heart-felt character interactions, and a ton of different side activities to keep you busy. Becoming a master alchemist and exploring this vibrant dream world is a fantastic way to celebrate 25 years of Atelier titles.

Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream is yet another enjoyable game from Gust and Koei Tecmo. Even if you don’t get fully invested in the story, the adventuring alone is enough to keep you playing. A great alchemy system accompanies a fun battle system, all set in a world that’s a joy to explore – with a cast of characters that you’ll undoubtedly enjoy spending time with. If you’ve enjoyed Atelier games in the past, then you’ll love this one too.

Gust and Koei Tecmo return to the Mysterious universe of Atelier, featuring Sophie and Plachta in a new adventure. This additional chapter revisits the old trilogy's mechanics in a new light, fixing the past issues and introducing some new interesting ideas to an already working formula. Presentation is stronger than ever and the new cast, albeit the stereotypical writing, grants some well-paced and relaxing Atelier experience without compromises of sort. This is what the Mysterious trilogy should have been and Gust knows it for sure.

Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream managed to captivate me as a beginner of the JRPG genre. There's a story that, though it doesn't truly stand out, left me just interested enough to be able to experience the hours of alchemy, in a sort of Next Gen Connect 4 game. The turn-based combat system is also incredibly welcoming for newcomers, and the whole campaign has this unique ingenuity about it, even when we're fighting interdimensional threats or water dragons.

A pleasant journey lies in this 2022 iteration of the Atelier saga, with old-school gameplay and new ideas. A bit weird not to find any PS5 version or french subtitles as in the last entry, but still, this is a great game for veterans and newcomers alike.

Cosy as ever, Atelier’s crafting makes you feel in control of your quest. Still somewhat budget, improvements nevertheless make Atelier’s future feel bright.

Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream is a very by-the-numbers Atelier title, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It's fun to play, has a strong cast, and is nicely polished. It doesn't try anything new or special, and it feels very much like a "safe" game. If you like Atelier titles, Atelier Sophie 2 is going to be a solid, if unexceptional, entry in your collection. It's an improvement on the original Sophie through and through, but it doesn't live up to other recent titles.

If Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream had been published before the furious revolution unleashed by the two Atelier Ryza, probably some of its imperfections would have seemed little compared to its merits. For some inexplicable reason Gust has in fact preferred to give up all the improvements devised in recent years to re-propose obsolete mechanics that have ended up obscuring the most important innovations of the package, such as Double Actions or the removal of the transitions between battle and exploration. In short, Atelier Sophie 2 confirms itself as a product designed almost exclusively for long-time fans who may not wait to embrace the crazy and at the same time tender bombarole by Kirchen Bell.