Koei Temco sent out a press release today detailing the June arrival of Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book in North America and Europe This follows the yearly trend of an Atelier game being localized to English, the first being Atelier Iris: Eternal Mana in 2005 for the PS2. However, this is the first time that the RPG series will appear on the PS4 (as well as a Vita port) and developer GUST has made a few changes to commemorate this special occasion. Aside from the obvious graphical upgrade, Atelier Sophie will have dynamic weather and flowing time that will tie into the fantastical story of a young alchemist and her possessed book/mentor. The famous alchemy system is also getting a complete overhaul but details on this are scarce. NIS America has a limited edition version of the game for PS4 available for preorder now. The LE contains the OST, an art book and a poster made of cloth. The press release and a gallery can be found below.
Set against a vibrant background reminiscent of a medieval European town, the Atelier series’ latest standalone installment follows the exploits of a young novice Alchemist, Sophie, who discovers she is the owner of an enigmatic book imbued with a soul. This Mysterious Book seems to hold all the secrets to the art of Alchemy, even going on to become Sophie’s mentor. As Sophie improves her Alchemy skills throughout the story she unravels forgotten memories, and eventually sets out to uncover the strange tale of the book’s origin.
The development team at GUST consider Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book to be the new standard for the Atelier series, as the studio has channelled all of its creativity into rebuilding the series’ signature Alchemy system from the ground up and into crafting a visually stunning world full of well-rounded characters and beautiful illustrations. In a series first, there are two key illustrators involved in the making of Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book – NOCO and Yuugen. Their distinctive work brings the in-game world to life and creates a dynamic environment where time, weather, and relationships play a key role in the adventures of the young new Alchemist and her trusted allies.
To commemorate the announcement of Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book, KOEI TECMO America has unveiled a first batch of assets illustrating the game’s key characters and background art, as well as a teaser trailer that recounts the series’ history and introduces key features of this exciting and mysterious new chapter of the Atelier brand.
Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book will also receive a limited edition release available exclusively through the NISA online store, which is now available for pre-order at http://store.nisamerica.com/atelier-sophie-limited-edition. This must-have collector’s edition will include:
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PS4 version of Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book
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2-disc original soundtrack featuring 38 tracks of original music from the game
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48-page hardcover art book, including illustrations and sketches of the characters, creatures, and background art of the game
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Set of 5 5″ x 7″ beautiful mini art prints
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40″ x 26.8″ cloth poster
Atelier Sophie The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book will be headed to the PlayStation 4 and digitally on the PlayStation Vita on June 7. The PlayStation 4 limited edition can be found here.
