Quickinfo:
Genre: JRPG
Platform: PS3
Developer: Gust
Publisher: NISA
Release date: March 15 (NA) / March 25 (EU)
Ratings: ESRB Mature / PEGI 12 / USK 12 (funny, that)
Box art:
Why should you care? (Or: game features)
- The setting is extremely well developed and unique. From the geography, over the history and to the fully realized language, alphabet and grammar, it's far beyond what you'd expect from most games -- eastern or western. See the links below for more information.
- Like its predecessor, there is a nice variety of gameplay systems. This includes a spell creation system that also alters battle music, a variety of talk/banter options (with all party members this time around, not just Reyvateils), and of course the return of the ADV-like diving system.
- The series is known for its fantastic music, as is fitting for a setting where music and sounds can have a direct effect on reality. Though many hard-core fans consider AT3 to be slightly weaker in this regard than its predecessors it still features a large number of great compositions.
- Yes, it has multiple-personality girls you can dress up and who can cast song magic that gets stronger if they remove parts of their clothing. The same is true for the male characters in your party by the way.
- From the first impressions it seems like NISA didn't mess up the localization this time around, or at least not to a degree remotely comparable to the second entry in the series. Rejoice! Also, dual audio support as you would expect from any decent blu-ray release.
- It has 4xMSAA. Yeah, the graphics do allow that easily, but for most Japanese devs that's not enough of a reason to actually do it. Support sanity and image quality! And 60 FPS by the way.
- You can jump! What can I say, I like jumping.
Battle System
This time around, the battle system is a fully realtime 3D somewhat Star Ocean / Tales-like affair. You can have one active Reyvateil (that's a song magic caster for all those new to the series) in your party and much of the battle revolves about protecting her and keeping her happy. By doing that and/or attacking in tune with the music you can increase the "purge level", thus unlocking high-level spells and attacks.
Diving
The "diving" system is a staple of the series. It allows you to enter a Reyvateil's mind (their "Cosmospere") and get to know her character as well as unlock abilities in a ADV-like framework. This installment mixes things up by introducing multiple personalities for the Reyvateils, as well as unlocking song magic fragments called "Hyuma", which are used to "program" Reyvateils.
R.A.H. System
The Hyuma gathered from diving serve a dual purpose: when programmed they boost a Reyvateil's stats and influence the battle music. Different Reyvateil personalities harmonize with different Hyuma, and better harmonics will lead to higher bonuses. To program high-level Hyuma you need a higher level of trust with the Reyvateil (personality) in question, achieved through diving, conversations and gifts. And yes, before you ask, all of this potentially leads to the taking off of clothes.
Synthesis
It wouldn't be a Gust game without synthesis. While much simpler than the Atelier games' systems, the events where the girls name your creations make a return (those were often hilarious), and you can now synthesize battle moves in addition to items.
- Ar Tonelico 3 Theme Song (with translations)
- Opening Animation
- Official Website - Has some pretty in-depth explanations and character information.
- Hymmnoserver - More information about the Hymmnos language(s) than you ever thought possible.
- The Ar Tonelico Wiki - A great resource. Full of spoilers, particularly for the first 2 games. Some interesting pages:
- Ar Ciel (The setting)
- Wave Theory
- Reyvateil
(I actually wanted to flesh this thread out a lot more, particularly with background information about Ar Ciel and Song Magic, but (a) I don't have that much time currently, (b) it would have been mostly information available elsewhere, and (c) it would have been huge. Please peruse the Wiki linked above if you're interested, or the official page for the characters)
Edit: Some more screenshots
In order: cutscene, dungeon exploration, city map, cosmosphere diving, battle, inn.
