History VideoGame / ExaPico

** [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] in the second game with [[spoiler: Infel intentionally sealing off any knowledge regarding to]] the Infel Phira, the Song Server that has the vital role in the creation of Metafalica, to avoid the knowledge about [[spoiler: the [[KillSat Replakia]] and [[MassHypnosis Messela]] Mode which won her the war against the Goddess]] from getting leaked out. This doesn't stop the technology itself from being rediscovered by Alfman and Cloche getting the administrative privilege over the Infel Phira, [[spoiler:since Infel reluctantly gave her a chance and granted said privilege while her own mind was uploaded into the Infel Phira itself]].

* TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt: The franchise has several of this in spades.
** Ar Ciel was covered in the Sea of Death 700 years ago due to the Grathnote Inferia that had occurred at the end of the First Era, rendering the [[AfterTheEnd planet itself uninhabitable ever since]], leaving the three Towers [[AfterTheEnd as the only habitable place in the planet]]. [[spoiler:And it didn't only end there, as the planet itself would've died by the end of the third game in the non-true ends, taking all the life in Ar Ciel with it.]]
** Sol Ciel had the Right Wing of Horus (the floating continent near the First Tower of Ar tonelico) fell apart during the Reyvateil rebellion instigated [[spoiler:by Mir]], destroying the old capital of El Elemia in the process. Likewise, in Metafalss, a significant part of the Rim (the drafter plate at the Second Tower of Ar tonelico) was dropped when the First Tower was temporarily suspended.
** It nearly happened several times throughout the trilogy as well. Between the repeat of the tragedies mentioned above[[labelnote:*]]Ayatane nearly managed to destroy the Plasma Bell during the story. Additionally, keeping Shurelia asleep in normal ends would've rendered the entirety of the Rim to fall apart, killing off a large amount of Metafalssians living there[[/labelnote]], [[spoiler:if Mir was not freed, the Heart of Gaea wouldn't have reached the third tower (at least not in time), thus dooming the entire planet.]] The second game had Frelia running out of power to maintain the Rim, forcing her to periodically drop parts of it, on top of ''two'' [[AssimilationPlot assimilation plots]]. The third game also has the Human Evolution Project, which would transform everyone[[labelnote:*]]who has the Active Reyvateil genes disseminated by Archia several centuries ago, effectively turning all of their descendants into demi-Reyvateilic Medleys[[/labelnote]] in Sol Cluster into [[BodyHorror grotesque human-Antibody]] slaves at the expense of killing the Reyvateils there.
** [[spoiler:This had nearly happened in one of the side stories, as Crew Atha had attempted to revive another Neo-Pureblooded Beta Reyvateil called Midir with rather questionable means (with Claire as the UnwittingPawn), causing Midir to be filled with negative emotions and nearly destroyed the world with EXEC_NULLASCENSION once she awakens.]]
** This had happened to Ra Ciela as well, as the planet itself had survived five world-ending disasters alongside the Genoms, only to be sacrificed by the humans that had migrated to the planet five millennia ago as the energy source for a last-ditch migration to save the people from the doomed planet. [[spoiler:And it was in vain due to the migration itself was foiled by Nero as she attempted to take over Ion in a desperate attempt to carve her way back to her home dimension.]]

** The completion of all cosmosphere levels could be referred to as this. Cosmosphere levels, especially the lower ones, represent a reyvateil's issues, where they act out inner conflicts and have not been able to resolve them. The job of a cosmosphere diver is essentially to act as a SelfInsertFic MartyStu character, breaking the Reyvateil out of a hopeless cycle and encouraging them to reach a good ending.

** [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] in the second game with [[spoiler: Infel intentionally sealing off any knowledge regarding to]] the Infel Phira, the Song Server that has the vital role in the creation of Metafalica, to avoid the knowledge about [[spoiler: the [[KillSat Replakia]] which won her the war against the Goddess]] from getting leaked out. This doesn't stop the technology itself from being rediscovered by Alfman and Cloche getting the administrative privilege over the Infel Phira, [[spoiler:since Infel reluctantly gave her a chance and granted said privilege while her own mind was uploaded into the Infel Phira itself]].

* UnluckyChildhoodFriend: Or VictoriousChildhoodFriend. Misha can wind up as either, but it's up to the player.

* LostTechnology: Since the stories of Ar tonelico takes place AfterTheEnd, the Towers and their administrators are essentially relics from the First Era. And the plot of the series themselves of leads to the rediscovery of these technologies, culminating in the revival of the planet itself]].
** Invoked in the second game with Infel intentionally sealing off any knowledge regarding to]] the Infel Phira, the Song Server that has the vital role in the creation of Metafalica, to avoid the knowledge about [[spoiler: the [[KillSat Replakia]] which won her the war against the Goddess]] from getting leaked out. This doesn't stop the technology itself from being rediscovered by Alfman and Cloche getting the administrative privilege over the Infel Phira, [[spoiler:since Infel reluctantly gave her a chance and granted said privilege while her own mind was uploaded into the Infel Phira itself]].

** Actually, only the first game features a proper FloatingContinent, while the second game's plot is

** Ar Nosurge have the same guard commands, but you can only defend three times when the enemy bosses may attack more often than that. You do have more leeway in time however.

** Ar Ciel was covered in the Sea of Death 700 years ago due to the Grathnote Inferia that had occurred at the end of the First Era, rendering the planet itself uninhabitable ever since, leaving the three Towers as the only habitable place in the planet. [[spoiler:And it didn't only end there, as the planet itself would've died by the end of the third game in the non-true ends, taking all the life in Ar Ciel with it.]]

** It nearly happened several times throughout the trilogy as well. Between the repeat of the tragedies mentioned above[[labelnote:*]]Ayatane nearly managed to destroy the Plasma Bell during the story. Additioally, keeping Shurelia asleep in normal ends would've rendered the entirety of the Rim to fall apart, killing off a large amount of Metafalssians living there[[/labelnote]], [[spoiler:if Mir was not freed, the Heart of Gaea wouldn't have reached the third tower (at least not in time), thus dooming the entire planet.]] The second game had Frelia running out of power to maintain the Rim, forcing her to periodically drop parts of it, on top of ''two'' [[AssimilationPlot assimilation plots]]. The third game also has the Human Evolution Project, which would transform everyone[[labelnote:*]]who has the Active Reyvateil genes disseminated by Archia several centuries ago, effectively turning all of their descendants into demi-Reyvateilic Medleys[[/labelnote]] in Sol Cluster into [[BodyHorror grotesque human-Antibody]] slaves at the expense of killing the Reyvateils there.

* FloatingContinent: The setting of all three ''Ar tonelico'' games, given most of the world has been engulfed in the Sea of Death.

* GuideDangIt: Getting all the talk options with the Reyvateils, which have requirements ranging from making a certain item to going to certain places or talking to the other girls a certain number of times in a row. Made worse with the fact that a great deal of talks can be LostForever. Thankfully they can be aquired via multiple playthroughs. Otherwise, it would be impossible (not that all the topics are required to clear the game or the Cosmospheres).

** Shurelia also has her moments; her 'cosmosphere' is chosen specifically because she wants to experience 'normal' life.

** The various Hymn Crystals grant songs to those who use them. The Hymns (the song sung) vary depending on the singer, but the effects do not.

%%** Surge Concerto series have the Genoms, which allows their Synchronized partner to use [[MagicMusic Song Magic]], essentially working as a Song Server plugin into their mind.

** It nearly happened several times throughout the trilogy as well. Between the repeat of the tragedies mentioned above[[labelnote:*]]Ayatane nearly managed to destroy the Plasma Bell during the story. Additioally, keeping Shurelia asleep in normal ends would've rendered the entirety of the Rim to fall apart, killing off a large amount of Metafalssians living there[[/labelnote]], [[spoiler:if Mir was not freed, the Heart of Gaea wouldn't have reached the third tower (at least not in time), thus dooming the entire planet.]] The second game had Frelia running out of power to maintain the Rim, forcing her to periodically drop parts of it, on top of ''two'' [[AssimilationPlot assimilation plots]].

* TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt: This franchise has several of this in spades.
** Ar Ciel was covered in the Sea of Death 700 years ago due to the Grathnote Inferia that had occurred at the end of the First Era, rendering the planet itself uninhabitable ever since, leaving the three Towers as the only habitable place in the planet. [[spoiler:And it didn't only end there, the planet itself would've did by the end of the third game in the non-true ends, taking all the life in Ar Ciel with it.]]

* MoreFriendsMoreBenefits: Played with, While Lyner could reach the deepest Cosmosphere level with all three heroines in the first game, the subsequent games averts this by limiting the access of the girls's Cosmospheres which the hero didn't have the RelationshipUpgrade with, especially in the second game where the cutoff is at Level 5 out of 9, for a very good reason.

* TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt:
** It's happened twice in the past- the first being the Grathnode Inferia, the second when Reyvateils on Ar tonelico revolted against humans and destroyed about half of the floating continent as well as the civilization on it.
** [[spoiler:Part three extends this to all ends where Mir is not freed: Without her involvement in the second game, the Heart of Gaea wouldn't have reached the third tower (at least not in time), thus dooming the entire planet.]]

** Third Generation Reyvateils get nifty song magic and all, but after coming into their powers, they have to take a substance called Diquility every three months just to ''continue living''. This stuff is expensive and the Installation is equivalent to a first time.

** Lyner defying this trop in regards to [[spoiler:viruses, like Ayatane]] is pre-condition for the good ending.

** Taken UpToEleven with Saki, as she creates a [[spoiler:new Will of the Planet to succeed her role this way]].

** Averted with Origin and Beta type Reyvateils, who get ''Stronger'' song magic and ''very'' extended lifespans (Betas have about 150 years and the Origins are over 700 years old each, implied to be immortal for as long as their tower exist).

* DataCrystal: The Hymn Crystals contain the information for songs.

* JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind: Diving into a Reyvateil's Cosmosphere both helps them craft new song magic and is an excellent form of psychotherapy. Unfortunately, it can be hazardous to the diver's health.

* MachineWorship: A far more benign version than usual, but everyone outright worships or at least acknowledges the [[ArtificialHuman Reyvateil Origins]] as gods.

* NoBiologicalSex: The Sharls are apparently this. Kanon describes them as all looking androgynous, although the models for them look more on the end of feminine.

** The Migratory Starship Soreil in ''Ar nosurge'' is powered by the extradimensional energy harnessed from Ar Nosurge Tube through the Surge Concerto Terminal.

* SoundStone: Hymn Crystals contain songs.

* TranslationConvention: According to the creators, neither English or Japanese exist in Ar Ciel, and instead, everyone communicates through a common language called "Shell".

%%* {{Underboobs}}: Ayano.

%%* VaporWear: Ayano.
* WidgetSeries: A textbook example of the trope, as the things it parodies are already a bit weird in Japan. In Americans this means the reactions tend to range from bemusement to astonishment to abhorrence.

* KillEmAll: According to the myths, Sieryek, son of an El nemesys sovereign, killed the King of his own kingdom and some other ruling sovereigns which included his own father. However, he couldn't kill Princess Liarsha due to his love for her, instead telling her go free. In the end, the love that she had once shared with Sieryek turned to hatred and she eventually killed him and then herself immediately afterwards. Obviously, nobody survived.

* MachineWorship: A far more benign version than usual, but everyone outright worships or at least acknowledges the [[ArtificialHuman Revyateil Origins]] as gods.

* LoveMakesYouCrazy: The lower levels of the Cosmosphere do this to everyone. Justified in that the lower levels (starting at level 5) are said to be closer to the Reyvateil's subconscious/unconscious levels, meaning they're a lot less restrained in expressing their emotions and...ahem..."desires."

* MoreFriendsMoreBenefits: While Lyner could reach the deepest Cosmosphere level with all three heroines in the first game, the subsequent games limits the access of the girls's Cosmospheres which the hero didn't have the RelationshipUpgrade with.

* MachineWorship: A far more benign version than usual, but everyone outright worships or at least acknowledges the [[ArtificialHuman Revytail Origins]] as gods.
* MagicFromTechnology: Reyvateil songs are referred to as magic, but it's actually tapping into the shared power source of the local tower and forming it based on commands in Hymnos. Channeling this kind of energy is not something the human body is built for, so reyvateil/human hybrids (as in, basically every Reyvateil alive) tend to have very short lives even with life extending drugs.

** This trope isn't played straight until II with [[spoiler: Cocona, a reyvateil who is also a front-line fighter.]]

* ''VideoGame/ArTonelicoMelodyOfElemia'' (PS2): Centers around the region of Sol Ciel around the First Tower of Ar tonelico. A knight named Lyner Barsett is sent by the tower's administrator, Shurelia, to investigate an outbreak of creatures called Viruses. Along the way, he's accompanied by a number of friends including two Reyvateils: Aurica, a member of the Church with low self-esteem, and Misha, Lyner's ForgottenChildhoodFriend. Lyner's investigation, meanwhile, seems to indicate that there may be more to the source behind the Viruses than meets the eye. This is the first game in the franchise and a fairly straightforward turn-based RPG.
* ''VideoGame/ArTonelicoIIMelodyOfMetafalica'' (PS2): The region surrounding the Second Tower, Metafalss, falls to a Reyvateil-exclusive epidemic called I.P.D., which only worsens an ongoing conflict between two factions regarding the goddess Frelia and a failed attempt at creating a mythical paradise called Metafalica centuries past. Protagonist Croix Bartel is sent to protect the current Holy Maiden, Cloche, only to be thrown deep into the mystery about what happened during the failure centuries ago, the true nature of the faction war, and the true natures of Cloche and Croix's girlfriend, Luca. This game overhauls the battle system and divides it into two phases, "Attack" and "Defense", the former in which the party attacks as quickly as they can and the latter in which they defend the Reyvateils in the back charging up their Song Magic.
* ''VideoGame/ArTonelicoQogaKnellOfArCiel'' (PS3): In Sol Cluster, the region around the Third Tower, Reyvateils hold a firm grip on the human population by regularly culling their population and brainwashing them. A human named Aoto comes upon a mysterious Reyvateil named Saki with various inexplicable abilities on the run, and runs away with her for her safety. Befriending others along the way, including an equally mysterious Reyvateil named Finnel, they soon get involved with the history behind the Third Tower and potentially the fate of the entire planet of Ar Ciel. This game completely eschews the turn-based system in favor of an ActionRPG, and is the first in the series to be in 3D.

* ''VideoGame/ArNosurgeOdeToAnUnbornStar'' (PS3/Vita): Thousands of years later, a colony of people on the starship Soreil struggle against the hostile Sharls, and the population is split between two factions that support or defend themselves against them. Among the latter group is the amnesiac Delta Lantonoil and his Song Magic-using childhood friend Casty "Cass" Rianoit, and their fate - along with the fates of everyone on Soreil - quickly becomes intertwined with the appearance of Ion and her robot companion Earthes. Originally released on the PS3, it was eventually ported to the Vita under the name ''Ar nosurge Plus''. The game largely resembles an ''Ar tonelico'' game, with a hybrid turn-based/action-based battle system somewhat similar to ''Ar tonelico II'''s, but changes things up in a few ways such as having the functional "party" be restricted to four characters in two pairs which the player can swap between.

* LimitBreak: In the first game, these can be activated after guarding a Reyvateil.

** Much of the history of the world of Ar Ciel (and the greater {{Multiverse}}, Exa Pico) is explained in supplemental material that is only available in Japanese.
** Yay [[http://artonelico.isisview.org/wiki/index.php/Ar_tonelico for]] [[http://artonelico.wikia.com/wiki/The_Ar_tonelico_Wiki wikis]]. Also, a GeniusBonus as a lot of the technology in the series is blatantly based off computers.

Developed by Gust of ''Franchise/{{Atelier}}'' series fame as the brainchild of the studio's sound team head Akira Tsuchiya, the series is known for its ''incredibly'' expansive WorldBuilding and in-series mythology, its indulgent use of {{Magitek}}, and its outstanding soundtrack involving singers with their own distinctive styles that give the series its own unique touch (seriously, just look at the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKvconPM0No openings]] for the ''Ar tonelico'' games courtesy of series regular Akiko Shikata).

* AllThereInTheManual: Much of the history of the world of Ar Ciel (and the greater {{Multiverse}}, Exa Pico) is explained in supplemental material that is only available in Japanese.

* BilingualBonus: Having some knowledge of Hymmnos makes the Hymns that much better and show how they fit in the story, even hinting at things that haven't been revealed yet. Alternately, finding the lyrics online works just as well.

* {{Conlang}}: [[http://conlang.wikia.com/wiki/Hymmnos Hymmnos]]. There are even different vocabulary words depending on region, and vastly different grammatical structures for Central Standard Note/Metafalss Note and New Testament of Pastalie Hymmnos. Yes, half of that page is dedicated to being a dictionary. [[ShownTheirWork A lot of thought was put into making the language]].

* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: The English releases so far follow the pattern of ''Melody of (X)''.

* TheMagicGoesAway: The temporal shutdown of Ar Tonelico in the first game has severe implications for the next one's plot:
** [[spoiler: Namely, Metafalss, the FloatingContinent which also doubles as the setting of the second ''Ar tonelico'' game, ''requires'' song magic to stay afloat, and shutting down Ar Tonelico forces Frelia to draw from her own reserves, which was why she was so powerless in the second game, despite being an Origin.]]

* NonSingingVoice: Each Song Magic user has an assigned "Star Singer" who sings all of her significant plot-related songs, while a voice actress does all her dialogue. This is justified both in-universe and out; in-universe, at least in the ''Ar tonelico'' series for Reyvateils, the Tower is what actually processes the songs and it stands to reason that the songs may not necessarily reflect what their actual vocal cords produce, while as far as production is concerned the real-life singers used in the franchise have distinctive signature styles that form the crux of the series' soundtrack itself (Akiko Shikata in particular composes her own songs). Within the games, whenever characters aren't singing with to any major degree (singing to themselves, ''Ar nosurge'''s synthesis songs, etc.), it's usually the voice actor instead.

* PowersAsPrograms: The various Hymn Crystals grant songs to those who use them. The Hymns (the song sung) vary depending on the singer, but the effects do not.

* OneHundredPercentCompletion: Getting full completion on the Cosmospheres. Like the average VisualNovel, picking the wrong responses will have you kicked out and disliked by the Reyvateil. However, when attempting to see all of the dialogue (as is a requirement for one of the trophies in Qoga), many guides [[TakeAThirdOption usually insist to]] [[ModernWarfare DO EVERYTHING]] instead.

* [[ImMelting I'm Melting]]: [[spoiler: what happens to the Beta Reyvateils when they die, and also, what happens to any Beta or Origin that dares to leave the area effect of her Song Server.]]
* OneHundredPercentCompletion[=/=]GuideDangIt: Getting full completion on the Cosmospheres. Like the average VisualNovel, picking the wrong responses will have you kicked out and disliked by the Reyvateil. However, when attempting to see all of the dialogue (as is a requirement for one of the trophies in Qoga), many guides [[TakeAThirdOption usually insist to]] [[ModernWarfare DO EVERYTHING]] instead.

* UnluckyChildhoodFriend / VictoriousChildhoodFriend: Misha can wind up as either, but it's up to the player.