The RPG enthusiast website, RPGSite, recently released their hands-on preview of the upcoming Xbox JRPG, Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land (or Atelier Yumia for short). This preview also included an interview with Junzo Hosoi, the game’s producer for the Atelier series and president of Gust Corporation, the studio responsible for the Atelier franchise.
During RPGSite’s interview, Junzo Hosoi disclosed insightful information on his plans to make the Atelier franchise more popular in the West and how his love for the Xbox platform may have been partially responsible for how Atelier Yumia became the first Xbox title in the series.
RPGSite’s interview began with Junzo Hosoi stating that the Gust Corporation plans to make Atelier Yumia one of the most financially successful entries in the franchise, following up the breakout success of the Atelier Ryza trilogy. He declares this while not forgetting that Atelier Ryza ultimately saved the franchise from cancellation after it suffered a streak of tumultuous releases.
Atelier Ryza released in a situation where if it hadn’t been a success, it might have spelled the end of the series.
RPGSite’s interview with Junzo Hosoi, the president of Gust Corporation
Part of Junzo Hosoi’s strategy to make Atelier Yumia a success is by participating personally in international preview tours, while bringing it to other platforms such as Xbox because previous games were only released on PlayStation and PC platforms.
However, the interview then gives an interesting piece of info that implies Atelier Yumia’s inclusion on Xbox may not been purely for business because it reveals that Junzo Hosoi is a huge fan of the Xbox platform.
I really love Xbox; I’ve been a user since the original, and I’ve always wanted to release something for the platform
RPGSite’s interview with Junzo Hosoi, the president of Gust Corporation
Junzo Hosoi backs this statement up by saying that he’s a huge fan of the Halo franchise. He says he was even inspired by the relationship between Master Chief and Cortana to create Flammi, a sentient survey-assistant device that will accompany the Atelier Yumia’s main character, Yumia on her journey.
Junzo Hosoi also mentions that he would’ve liked to have seen the Atelier Ryza trilogy get Xbox ports but it wasn’t until after those games became successful in Japan that he was able to justify releasing them worldwide. Plus it was easier to make the case for Xbox ports for a new Atelier trilogy of games, rather than port an existing one.
On a side note, Junzo Hosoi briefly mentioned that he’s sad to hear that Halo has fallen out of favor with the general public as it is more interested in other titles like Valorant, Counter Strike, and Apex Legends.
Junzo Hosoi also mentions that he’s into FPS games and he’s looking forward to playing Borderlands 4. He was a fan of the first two Borderlands games but admitted that Borderlands 3 left him disappointed.
RPGSite’s interview then transitions into its hands-on preview section where it describes how Atelier Yumia aims to be one of the biggest titles of the series that will please longtime fans while being a good entry point for newcomers.
Color me intrigued in Atelier’s Xbox debut adventure
For those who have never heard of this game, Atelier Yumia is the latest upcoming entry in the Atelier series. These games are generally light-hearted JRPGs where you play as atelier alchemists traveling the world to craft items, uncovering ancient secrets, and making new friends along the way.
As someone who’s never played an Atelier game before, upcoming Xbox title and upcoming PC title does sound very intriguing judging from RPGSite’s preview.
The game has a giant fantastical open-world world to explore, its cast of characters look fun and interesting, and it has an in-depth real-time combat system with an emphasis on player positioning in order to execute special attacks that will break an enemy’s defenses.
Not to mention the Atelier series’ trademark crafting system is back and bigger than ever as Atelier Yumia will allow players to create hundreds of items, gear, artifacts, and even entire buildings with the millions of crafting materials you will find on your journey.
Plus, RPGSite has confirmed that Atelier Yumia’s PC version is already running great as they were able to run it at 1440p/60fps to 4K/120fps on PC, and it ran a solid 30fps on Steam Deck.
I’ve often heard good things about the Atelier games from a couple of my friends who loved the Atelier Ryza trilogy. When Atelier Yumia launches, I might check it out to see if has what it has the potential to be one of the best Xbox JRPGs alongside modern classics like the Persona series, Metaphor: ReFantazio, and the Like a Dragon series.
Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land, the Atelier franchise’s first-ever Xbox title, is scheduled to be released on March 28, 2025, for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam.
