Well, it seems that so far, nobody has written a review of an Atelier game here on vizzed.com, well, it's time to change that, I know that Atelier in general isn't exactly the best example when it comes to series with suggestive content of fan service, but that doesn't mean that this game doesn't have fan service in the slightest, in fact, it actually contains a little bit of it in the form of...several things, actually, including the ability to play through at least most of the game with pretty much every playable female character wearing a swimsuit, there are also a few instances of suggestive dialogue or what might be innuendo, the dialogue can be hilarious actually, at least to me (''That sounds like it would look cool, but someone might see my undies. So... No.''). Anyway, I have the european version of the game, but the european version and american version of Atelier Shallie Plus should be pretty much the same, for some reason, the american version of Atelier Shallie Plus has a higher age rating in America compared to the original PS3 version, the PS3 version is rated E10+ but the Plus version for PS Vita is rated T...and it has less content descriptors...anyway, let's begin.

Story: it might be difficult to properly grade this category because of a specific detail: Atelier Shallie Plus contains two different protagonists that you can choose, very early in the game, you can choose if you want to play as Shallistera, or if you want to play as Shallotte, yes, they have the same nickname. In any case, perhaps it's fine to give this category a 9 because I really liked the story, at least one part of the story, because as I said, you can (and must) choose between two different characters. I went with Shallotte, Shallotte Elminus, and what can I say? This game has an amazing story. The story begins with Shallistera, who is on a quest to save her village from the Dusk, a phenomenon that is now affecting not just her village, but also most of the world, she arrives to Stellard, a city where the supply of water is dwindling, directly or indirectly because of the Dusk, she believes that in Stellard she can find a way to save her village, there she meets Shallotte, a cheerful and optimistic girl who will help her in her quest, if you go with Shallotte, one of the first things you see is she going to work, even if it's just ''picking up the trash, for almost no cash'', she'll do whatever she can to get money in order to help her mother, Nady Elminus, and maybe, get rich someday. Eventually shallotte meets Shallistera, the other girl who has the same nickname, and after that, Shallotte Elminus will get involved in much bigger jobs than just picking up trash or delivering pieces of leather. It's really nice seeing how Shallotte Elminus develops as a character, and even though at the end of the game she has learned a lot and has changed a little in personality and understanding of things, she mostly retains her cheerful personality and still has big dreams, she's a character who is impossible to hate honestly, and considering that some events in the game aren't particularly...pleasant for Shallotte Elminus, and sometimes other characters, you actually feel bad not just for Shallotte Elminus, but other characters as well, overall, as someone who hasn't played other Atelier games besides this one, I can say that Atelier Shallie Plus has a great cast of characters...perhaps I should go with Shallistera for my second playthrough...

Graphics: Typical of Gust Games, Atelier Shallie Plus looks really nice and it has better graphics than other PS Vita games, although the game might not be on the same level as Hatsune Miku: Project Diva X, Uncharted: Golden Abyss and Killzone: Mercenary when it comes to graphics and being impressive, for example, it's still a game that looks great. The 3D models look better than any Neptunia game on the PS Vita and, while I don't like the 2D art as much as the Neptunia art (I love Tsunako's style, as I've said before), I still can't deny that it's a beautiful art style, some textures don't look particularly nice, and the environments don't look that great at times, but the great 3D models, really nice 2D art, and some textures and maps make up for it, the Castle of Mirages is especially beautiful.

Sounds: The music is amazing at times, with several vocal songs in the game including the great boss theme Contours of Thirst, it's true that I'm not a fan of a few songs, I'm not the biggest accordion fan which is why I don't like the music that much at times, however, amazing themes make up for that, Soaring Clouds, Drifting Haze is a boss theme that sounds more climatic and intense than many final boss themes out there, and overall, it's a great soundtrack, for the most part. Unlike many games published by Koei Tecmo America and/or Europe, Atelier Shallie Plus has dual audio, which I really like, even if it's not the best English dub of all time, I mean, it's true, in English, Shallistera's voice actress did...a good job, but even if her acting wasn't very good at times, the rest of the cast has fitting voices and the acting was mostly very good, Wilbell is voiced by Cristina Valenzuela, and she did a great job, Shallotte Elminus is voiced by Sarah Williams, she's also a great voice actress, Escha is voiced by Marieve Herington and...I don't know if it's just me but I love Solle's voice, Solle has an accent which I really like for some reason, maybe Ray Chase used that accent for the character, I don't know if his natural voice sounds more or less like that or not, but yeah, I can't get enough of Solle's voice...

Addictiveness: Atelier Shallie Plus is a turn-based RPG where the combat isn't exactly the main focus, yes, Atelier Shallie Plus has several boss battles, many if we count optional bosses, but for this game and most games in the franchise, this game is mainly about alchemy more than anything else. Unlike other reviews where I really go into detail about the gameplay, for this review...let's just say that the battle system is easy to use, and that it's fun to press another button during an attack to switch with another character who also attacks, Variable Strikes are satisfying to do and see...however, the alchemy system is the main meat of the game...in the context of the Atelier games, making things with alchemy means mixing ingredients (items) in a cauldron in order to make something else, it can be pretty much anything, in RPGs, in order to get better equipment, usually it's a case of ''you have to buy it'', but in Atelier Shallie Plus, and Atelier games in general, it's a case of ''you have to make it yourself'', at least for the most part. The alchemy system can be confusing at first, and perhaps I would be right if I said that it's actually a little complex, but with practice, it's very functional and kind of fun to use. There are a few things to consider when making things with alchemy, but I'm still not sure if there is really a difference when different items with the same attributes and whatnot are used, because for the most part, you can use a lot of different ingredients to make the same item. There is also the fact that you learn skills as you level up your alchemy level...overall, it's clear that when it comes to gameplay, the alchemy system is the main attraction, and yes, I spent many hours using the alchemy system throughout the game, and as I said, the alchemy system is kind of fun to use.

Depth: The game is longer than other RPGs and it's not the longest RPG of all time, but if we remember that there are two protagonists in the game, the game actually offers a lot, I'd say that finishing the game with both Shallies takes some time, and if you really try to level up your characters and alchemy level, not to mention the optional bosses...the experience lasts a lot. Atelier Shallie Plus also has a lot of unlockable content.

Difficulty: There are different difficulty levels, I played on ''Game fan'' difficulty, and I lost a lot of times, mainly with fights against optional bosses and a specific boss near the end of the game (I defeated the final boss on my first try, somehow). The game can be challenging or easy depending on the difficulty, but comparing this with the recent RPG Dark Rose Valkyrie...I'd say that Dark Rose Valkyrie is even harder.

I can recommend Atelier Shallie Plus even if you have never played an Atelier game before, after all, Atelier Shallie Plus is the only Atelier game I've played (those few hours of Atelier Firis don't count), and yes, I liked it, even if it's another RPG that gets only a 7.2/10 from me. I don't plan to play more Atelier games for...several reasons, but I don't regret playing Atelier Shallie Plus.