History YMMV / AtelierSeries

** The first was between the first two games, ''Marie'' and ''Elie''. ''Marie'' was a very simple game produced on a tiny budget, and it showed in how relatively simple and light the content was. ''Elie'' was produced [[CashCowFranchise after the money from Marie rolled in]], and not only features a ton of engine improvements but features approximately ''three to four times'' the story content of the previous game, making it, until recently, the fan favorite of the series in Japan.

* BrokenBase: The Arland games have a tendency cause this. Certain fandom sections often describe the Arland games (and thus the wider franchise) as "[[HGame eroge without the actual ero bits]]" and are mostly in it for [[{{Fanservice}} the girls]] and, uh, [[ADateWithRosiePalms what they can do]] [[{{Squick}} with them]]. This makes many older ''Atelier'' fans '''bristle with rage''', as the games have ''never'' been intended to be erotic; [[MsFanservice Marie's odd chest... thing]] aside, the hottest any pre-Iris game got was having Lilie in a nightgown for one scene. [[note]]And really, the hottest any ''post''-Iris, pre-Arland game got was a chest-and-up BarbieDollAnatomy scene of Lita in a tank in ''Iris 1''.[[/note]] The actual Arland games don't help ''at all'', either; on the one hand, there's the occasional scene with, uh, [[http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/atelier_tentacle_ohdear_5207.jpg what can only be called "overtones"]] (possibly nsfw), but on the other hand many scenes seem dedicated to making ''fun'' of this kind of nonsense in the same way ''VideoGame/ArTonelicoMedlodyOfEtemia'' does, and to boot has less fanservice than equivalent [=JRPGs=] of equivalent kinds. At this point many people aren't quite sure what to think, but the debate [[FlameWar rages on]] even today.

* BrokenBase: The Arland games have a tendency cause this. Certain fandom sections often describe the Arland games (and thus the wider franchise) as "[[HGame eroge without the actual ero bits]]" and are mostly in it for [[{{Fanservice}} the girls]] and, uh, [[ADateWithRosiePalms what they can do]] [[{{Squick}} with them]]. This makes many older ''Atelier'' fans '''bristle with rage''', as the games have ''never'' been intended to be erotic; [[MsFanservice Marie's odd chest... thing]] aside, the hottest any pre-Iris game got was having Lilie in a nightgown for one scene. [[note]]And really, the hottest any ''post''-Iris, pre-Arland game got was a chest-and-up BarbieDollAnatomy scene of Lita in a tank in ''Iris 1''.[[/note]] The actual Arland games don't help ''at all'', either; on the one hand, there's the occasional scene with, uh, [[http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/atelier_tentacle_ohdear_5207.jpg what can only be called "overtones"]] (possibly nsfw), but on the other hand many scenes seem dedicated to making ''fun'' of this kind of nonsense in the same way ArTonelico does, and to boot has less fanservice than equivalent [=JRPGs=] of equivalent kinds. At this point many people aren't quite sure what to think, but the debate [[FlameWar rages on]] even today.

* {{Woolseyism}}: There have been a few in the games that have crossed the sea so far; the aforementioned ESRB Joke is practically the [[{{Lunar}} Clinton Joke]] of the Noughties at this point.

* BrokenBase: The Arland games have a tendency cause this. Certain fandom sections often describe the Arland games (and thus the wider franchise) as "[[HGame eroge without the actual ero bits]]" and are mostly in it for [[{{Fanservice}} the girls]] and, uh, [[ADateWithRosiePalms what they can do]] [[{{Squick}} with them]]. This makes many older ''Atelier'' fans '''bristle with rage''', as the games have ''never'' been intended to be erotic; [[MsFanservice Marie's odd chest... thing]] aside, the hottest any pre-Iris game got was having Lilie in a nightgown for one scene. [[note]]And really, the hottest any ''post''-Iris, pre-Arland game got was a chest-and-up BarbieDollAnatomy scene of Lita in a tank in ''Iris 1''.[[/note]] The actual Arland games don't help ''at all'', either; on the one hand, there's the occasional scene with, uh, [[http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/atelier_tentacle_ohdear_5207.jpg what can only be called "overtones"]] (possibly nsfw), but on the other hand many scenes seem dedicated to making ''fun'' of this kind of nonsense in the same way ArTonelico does. At this point many people aren't quite sure what to think, but the debate [[FlameWar rages on]] even today.

* MemeticMutation: HIGH IMPACT SEXUAL VIOLENCE (shocked-character-reaction.gif). This began as a Totori-exclusive meme but has become something of a general meme for the franchise among the English-speaking fanbase. It usually takes the form of the line, and then a character, often one of the leads, making a shocked or scared expression taken from a game or promotional art.[[labelnote:Explanation]]The meme originates from the Australian ratings board giving the UpdatedRerelease of Totori its harshest rating possible, usually reserved for explicit pornography, with the attendant note about, in fact, the "high-impact sexual violence" within. This immediately became memetic because it is patently ridiculous; while the Arland games do crank up the {{Fanservice}} dial a good deal compared to the rest of the franchise, even the raunchiest moments of Totori or Meruru are light-hearted, silly and fluffy, and the games bear no actual resemblance to other products with that descriptor. And the characters, in fact, would probably be rather embarrassed to be in such a game. Ergo...[[/labelnote]]

* BrokenBase: In some ways, the Arland games cause this. Certain fandom sections, like those found at Sankaku Complex, basically describe the Arland games (and thus the wider franchise) as "[[HGame eroge without the actual ero bits]]" and are mostly in it for [[{{Fanservice}} the girls]] and, uh, [[ADateWithRosiePalms what they can do]] [[{{Squick}} with them]]. This makes many older ''Atelier'' fans '''bristle with rage''', as the games have ''never'' been intended to be erotic; [[MsFanservice Marie's odd chest... thing]] aside, the hottest any pre-Iris game got was having Lilie in a nightgown for one scene. [[note]]And really, the hottest any ''post''-Iris game got was a chest-and-up BarbieDollAnatomy scene of Lita in a tank in ''Iris 1''.[[/note]] The actual Arland games don't help ''at all'', either; on the one hand, there's the occasional scene with, uh, [[http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/atelier_tentacle_ohdear_5207.jpg what can only be called "overtones"]] (possibly nsfw), but on the other hand many scenes seem dedicated to making ''fun'' of this kind of nonsense in the same way ArTonelico does. At this point many people aren't quite sure what to think, but the debate [[FlameWar rages on]].
* CrowningMusicOfAwesome: Gust Sound Team is only ''slightly'' less well-known than [[VideoGame/{{Ys}} Falcom's JDK Band]] in this regard in Japan. For organizational purposes, their work [[AwesomeMusic/NipponIchi gets lumped in with NIS stuff]] on TVT, but good lord, this series has had a ''lot'' of good music, especially from the second game on. The Iris games in particular produced some amazing vocal and boss themes, and ''Atelier Violet'' is basically one huge crowner for the entire team.

** The one most Americans will be familiar with is Veola from ''Atelier Iris 1''; there are [[EpilepticTrees suspicions]] that said game might have started life as "Atelier Veola" and then gotten development shifted partway through into what it is now. The result, though, is that this one shopkeeper, who doesn't seem all that important initially, has as much story content tied to her as the ''main plot'', and many find it ''more'' engaging than the actual plot of AI 1. A lot of people don't play the game for Klein or Lita, they play it for Veola, and she's far and away the most popular character both in Japan and overseas.

* {{Sequelitis}}: Even the most die-hard Gust fanboy has to admit that, with no less than one release every year, the franchise has ached at times due to all of its sequels; even attempts to legitimately mix up the franchise such as ''Mana Khemia'' or ''Atelier Annie'' (which added a little SimulationGame to the mix, with its focus on helping to develop an island) sometimes came off as a bit stale, and quality assurance took a ''precipitous'' dip in the [[TurnOfTheMillenium late Noughts]], as evidenced by ''Atelier Liese'' and ''Mana Khemia 2'' and their '''evisceration''' in the Japanese gaming press (to say nothing of [[https://shop.salburg.com/lise_switch/index.htm Liese's terrifyingly massive published bug list and gamecard-swap program]]). The series is currently on a roll again, but there are fears it could burn out again if not given a chance to rest.

* ThatOneBoss: Beginning with Prism, almost everyone in the latter half of ''Atelier Iris: Eternal Mana'' and the Slaith Reincarnation in ''Atelier Iris 2''. Averted in the third Iris game wher Shadow Stalker, the One Boss, is completely optional (although you'll miss out on the Luplus Blades.)

** Finally, some are claiming that the Arland series, ''Atelier Meruru'' in particular, is this to ''most of the franchise''. As [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PS3]] games which went nearly full-on 3D while still bringing the old alchemy-centric gameplay back to consoles after half a decade out in the cold, a lot of gamers on both sides of the Pacific took a shine to what the games did. The fact that the Arland games were [[CashCowFranchise first time since the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation PS1]] era that the franchise sold six-figures consistently]] is not hurting this perception.

** Another was ''Judie'' to ''Violet'': ''Judie'' was a fairly disappointing game that took away some of the elements of previous games in an apparent attempt to broaden franchise appeal (and failed badly); ''Violet'' took the few good things from Judie, wedded them to the systems of the older games, and is generally seen as being in a dead heat for "Best PS2 Atelier Game" alongside ''Mana Khemia''.

** Finally, some are claiming that the Arland series, ''Atelier Meruru'' in particular, is this to ''most of the franchise''. As PS3 games which went nearly full-on 3D while still bringing the old alchemy-centric gameplay back to consoles after half a decade out in the cold, a lot of gamers on both sides of the Pacific took a shine to what the games did. The fact that the Arland games were [[CashCowFranchise first time since the PS1 era that the franchise sold six-figures consistently]] is not hurting this perception.

* BrokenBase: In some ways, the Arland games are causing this. Certain fandom sections, like those found at Sankaku Complex, basically describe the Arland games (and thus the wider franchise) as "[[HGame eroge without the actual ero bits]]" and are mostly in it for [[{{Fanservice}} the girls]] and, uh, [[ADateWithRosiePalms what they can do]] [[{{Squick}} with them]]. This makes many older ''Atelier'' fans '''bristle with rage''', as the games have ''never'' been intended to be erotic; [[MsFanservice Marie's odd chest... thing]] aside, the hottest any pre-Iris game got was having Lilie in a nightgown for one scene. [[note]]And really, the hottest any ''post''-Iris game got was a chest-and-up BarbieDollAnatomy scene of Lita in a tank in ''Iris 1''.[[/note]] The actual Arland games don't help ''at all'', either; on the one hand, there's the occasional scene with, uh, [[http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/atelier_tentacle_ohdear_5207.jpg what can only be called "overtones"]] (possibly nsfw), but on the other hand many scenes seem dedicated to making ''fun'' of this kind of nonsense in the same way ArTonelico does. At this point many people aren't quite sure what to think, but the debate [[FlameWar rages on]].

* {{Fanon}}: There's a few bits worth noting. The biggest involves Totori and Mimi: it is a ''sniff'', a ''hair's breadth'', from 100% universally-accepted Fanon that Totori and Mimi are in a long-term, monogamous romantic relationship. ''Atelier Totori'' itself gives Totori several fairly-equally-weighted "romantic" options, but all others are virtually nonexistent in fandom, on both sides of the Pacific. In ''Atelier Meruru'', Gust gave these fans [[ArmedWithCanon some additional canon to arm themselves with]], while still not outright saying the two are a couple (partially to ensure the Gino option from Totori wasn't totally invalidated).

* [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff Americans Love Mana Khemia]]: In Japan, the two Mana Khemia games received a fairly lukewarm reception from the established fanbase, and ''Mana Khemia 2'' received a lot of flak from reviewers. In the West, on the other hand... well, just take a gander at which of the dedicated game pages is longest and which one received so much attention as to warrant its own character page (and reportedly sold ''better'' in the West than it did in Japan). ''MK 2'' also got a ''much'' warmer reception from the Western press than it did in Japan, scoring slightly ''higher'' on average than ''MK 1'' did. (This may have something to do with those {{Game Breaking Bug}}s getting fixed for us, though.)
* BrokenBase: In some ways, the Arland games are causing this. Certain fandom sections, like those found at Sankaku Complex, basically describe the Arland games (and thus the wider franchise) as "[[{{H-game}} eroge without the actual ero bits]]" and are mostly in it for [[{{Fanservice}} the girls]] and, uh, [[ADateWithRosiePalms what they can do]] [[{{Squick}} with them]]. This makes many older Atelier fans '''bristle with rage''', as the games have ''never'' been intended to be erotic; [[MsFanservice Marie's odd chest... thing]] aside, the hottest any pre-Iris game got was having Lilie in a nightgown for one scene. [[note]]And really, the hottest any ''post''-Iris game got was a chest-and-up BarbieDollAnatomy scene of Lita in a tank in ''Iris 1''.[[/note]] The actual Arland games don't help ''at all'', either; on the one hand, there's the occasional scene with, uh, [[http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/atelier_tentacle_ohdear_5207.jpg what can only be called "overtones"]] (possibly nsfw), but on the other hand many scenes seem dedicated to making ''fun'' of this kind of nonsense in the same way ArTonelico does. At this point many people aren't quite sure what to think, but the debate [[FlameWar rages on]].

** Flay Gunnar (AKA "Gunnar Damm") of ''ManaKhemia'' certainly qualifies as well. People identified with him quite a bit more than with the main heroes of the first game, and the response to him in both Japan ''and'' America was so overwhelmingly positive that he got a spot in ''Mana Khemia 2'' almost by force.

* UnfortunateImplications: The games do occasionally tread on this ground. The desert natives in ''Iris 2'' look and act just like Native Americans, which might be unfortunate depending on your point of view... and in the early games, you can hire "fairies" to help you around your atelier with item creation, resource gathering, etc. Except the black-colored ones are the cheapest, least efficient, and laziest. Oh dear...
** This is made even more disappointing in that, by and large, the series contains some of the most progressive depictions of female lead characters in the history of the medium. Even then they're, uh, [[MightyWhitey all Caucasian]], however.
*** Justified (kind of, anyway) in that there wasn't exactly a lot of skin color variation in Renaissance Germany, on which the setting of the early games is based.

** Gillian Clout of ''Atelier Annie'' is another good one; her name was initially given in Japanese sources as "Jalia '''''[[UnfortunateImplications Kraut]]'''''". Thankfully NISA had the good sense to put that to bed quick-smart.

* MemeticMutation: HIGH IMPACT SEXUAL VIOLENCE (shocked-character-reaction.gif). This began as a Totori-exclusive meme but has become something of a general meme for the franchise among the English-speaking fanbase. It usually takes the form of the line, and then a character, often one of the leads, making a shocked or scared expression taken from a game or promotional art.[[labelnote:Explanation]]The meme originates from the Australian ratings board giving the remake of Totori its harshest rating possible, usually reserved for explicit pornography, with the attendant note about, in fact, the "high-impact sexual violence" within. This immediately became memetic because it is patently ridiculous; while the Arland games do crank up the {{Fanservice}} dial a good deal compared to the rest of the franchise, even the raunchiest moments of Totori or Meruru are light-hearted, silly and fluffy, and the games bear no actual resemblance to other products with that descriptor. And the characters, in fact, would probably be rather embarrassed to be in such a game. Ergo...[[/labelnote]]

* BrokenBase: In some ways, the Arland games are causing this. Certain fandom sections, like those found at Sankaku Complex, basically describe the Arland games (and thus the wider franchise) as "[[{{H-game}} eroge without the actual ero bits]]" and are mostly in it for [[{{Fanservice}} the girls]] and, uh, [[ADateWithRosiePalms what they can do]] [[{{Squick}} with them]]. This makes many older Atelier fans '''bristle with rage''', as the games have ''never'' been intended to be erotic; [[MsFanservice Marie's odd chest... thing]] aside, the hottest any pre-Iris game got was having Lilie in a nightgown for one scene. [[hottip:* :And really, the hottest any ''post''-Iris game got was a chest-and-up BarbieDollAnatomy scene of Lita in a tank in ''Iris 1''.]] The actual Arland games don't help ''at all'', either; on the one hand, there's the occasional scene with, uh, [[http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/atelier_tentacle_ohdear_5207.jpg what can only be called "overtones"]] (possibly nsfw), but on the other hand many scenes seem dedicated to making ''fun'' of this kind of nonsense in the same way ArTonelico does. At this point many people aren't quite sure what to think, but the debate [[FlameWar rages on]].

* CrowningMusicOfAwesome: Gust Sound Team is only ''slightly'' less well-known than [[VideoGame/{{Ys}} Falcom's JDK Band]] in this regard in Japan. For organizational purposes, their work [[CrowningMusic/NipponIchi gets lumped in with NIS stuff]] on TVT, but good lord, this series has had a ''lot'' of good music, especially from the second game on. The Iris games in particular produced some amazing vocal and boss themes, and ''Atelier Violet'' is basically one huge crowner for the entire team.

* {{Sequelitis}}: Even the most die-hard Gust fanboy has to admit that, with no less than one release every year, the franchise has ached at times due to all of its sequels; even attempts to legitimately mix up the franchise such as ''Mana Khemia'' or ''Atelier Annie'' (which added a little SimulationGame to the mix, with its focus on helping to develop an island) sometimes came off as a bit stale, and quality assurance took a ''precipitous'' dip in the [[TheOughts late Noughts]], as evidenced by ''Atelier Liese'' and ''Mana Khemia 2'' and their '''evisceration''' in the Japanese gaming press (to say nothing of [[https://shop.salburg.com/lise_switch/index.htm Liese's terrifyingly massive published bug list and gamecard-swap program]]). The series is currently on a roll again, but there are fears it could burn out again if not given a chance to rest.

** While not nearly as popular as the above two, Poe of ''VideoGame/{{Atelier Iris| The Azoth of Destiny}}'' also has quite a following, due to his bravery, charm, and [[{{BFG}} insane courage involving his absurdly massive firearm]].

** While not nearly as popular as the above two, Poe of ''AtelierIris2'' also has quite a following, due to his bravery, charm, and [[{{BFG}} insane courage involving his absurdly massive firearm]].

** The earlier "free-form alchemy" games, as well as their most recent successors, can hit you with this out of nowhere, too, given their non-linear nature. [[spoiler: A good example is Gillian in ''VideoGame/AtelierAnnie''; for most of the game she's a [[TheSlacker lazy]], happy-go-lucky LethalChef who is easy to get along with... and then you find out just ''why'' she's so obsessed with herbal health drinks.]]

* {{Sequelitis}}: Even the most die-hard Gust fanboy has to admit that, with no less than one release every year, the franchise has ached at times due to all of its sequels; even attempts to legitimately mix up the franchise such as ''Mana Khemia'' or ''Atelier Annie'' (which added a little SimulationGame to the mix, with its focus on helping to develop an island) sometimes came off as a bit stale, and quality assurance took a ''precipitous'' dip in the [[TheNoughts late Noughts]], as evidenced by ''Atelier Liese'' and ''Mana Khemia 2'' and their '''evisceration''' in the Japanese gaming press (to say nothing of [[https://shop.salburg.com/lise_switch/index.htm Liese's terrifyingly massive published bug list and gamecard-swap program]]). The series is currently on a roll again, but there are fears it could burn out again if not given a chance to rest.

* {{Sequelitis}}: Even the most die-hard Gust fanboy has to admit that, with no less than one release every year, the franchise is starting to hurt for all of its sequels; even attempts to legitimately mix up the franchise such as ''Mana Khemia'' or ''Atelier Annie'' (which added a little SimulationGame to the mix, with its focus on helping to develop an island) come off as a bit stale, and quality assurance have taken a dip recently, as evidenced by ''Atelier Liese'' and ''Mana Khemia 2'' and their '''evisceration''' in the Japanese gaming press (to say nothing of [[https://shop.salburg.com/lise_switch/index.htm Liese's terrifyingly massive published bug list and gamecard-swap program]].)

** The first was between the first two games, ''Marie'' and ''Elie''. ''Marie'' was a very simple game produced on a tiny budget, and it showed in how relatively simple and light the content was. ''Elie'' was produced [[CashCowFranchise after the money from Marie rolled in]], and not only features a ton of engine improvements but features approximately ''three to four times'' the story content of the previous game, making it probably the fan favorite of the series in Japan.
** Another was ''Judie'' to ''Violet'': ''Judie'' was a fairly disappointing game that took away some of the elements of previous games in an apparent attempt to broaden franchise appeal (and failed badly); ''Violet'' took the few good things from Judie, wedded them to the systems of the older games, and is generally seen as the best PS2 Atelier game.

** Finally, some are claiming that ''Atelier Rorona'' is this to ''most of the franchise''. As a PS3 game which goes nearly full-on 3D while still bringing the old alchemy-centric gameplay back to consoles after half a decade out in the cold, it seems a lot of gamers (in Japan, at any rate) have really taken a shine to the game and like what it does. The fact that the game is [[CashCowFranchise selling better than any installment of the franchise on the PS2]] is not hurting this perception.

* TearJerker: Friggin' ''everything'' in ''Helmina & Culus''. [[spoiler: It chronicles how Helmina became friends with the first homun'''[[MeaningfulName culus]]''' she ever made, and how it's doomed to live a short life, and how this traumatic experience turns her into the bitter, jaded, sarcastic, and frankly ''evil'' woman we see in ''Atelier Elie'' and ''Atelier Judie''. And then they make a snowman together, [[OcularGushers oh god]]. How could it ''not'' have content that constantly rips at your heartstrings?]]

* BrokenBase: In some ways, the Arland games are causing this. Certain fandom sections, like those found at SankakuComplex, basically describe the Arland games (and thus the wider franchise) as "[[{{H-game}} eroge without the actual ero bits]]" and are mostly in it for [[{{Fanservice}} the girls]] and, uh, [[ADateWithRosiePalms what they can do]] [[{{Squick}} with them]]. This makes many older Atelier fans '''bristle with rage''', as the games have ''never'' been intended to be erotic; [[MsFanservice Marie's odd chest... thing]] aside, the hottest any pre-Iris game got was having Lilie in a nightgown for one scene. [[hottip:* :And really, the hottest any ''post''-Iris game got was a chest-and-up BarbieDollAnatomy scene of Lita in a tank in ''Iris 1''.]] The actual Arland games don't help ''at all'', either; on the one hand, there's the occasional scene with, uh, [[http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/atelier_tentacle_ohdear_5207.jpg what can only be called "overtones"]] (possibly nsfw), but on the other hand many scenes seem dedicated to making ''fun'' of this kind of nonsense in the same way ArTonelico does. At this point many people aren't quite sure what to think, but the debate [[FlameWar rages on]].