Ryza 2 improves on practically everything Ryza 1 did, and then some. It seems like Gust was being highly experimental with Ryza 1 to see how they could modernize the Atelier series, but they nailed on everything that works in 2.

The unique gimmick of this game is exploring ruins to piece together what happened there a long time ago. It gives Ryza as a sub-series a very unique feel compared to the others, and is a different kind of exploration for reasons other than gathering materials. This along with the addition of new traversal tools like a rope, a giant animal to ride, and the ability to swim, the environments are much more dense and expansive which makes Ryza one of the best Atelier games to flat out explore like crazy. The main hub being a massively populated town is much more interesting than Kurken Island from Ryza 1 since there are much more NPCs to talk to and more sidequests to receive from them.

The biggest improvement is the combat, which I already felt was one of the best mechanics in Ryza 1. It's got the same core foundation, but you can now chain regular attacks into skills into other skills, and even swap party members in and out of combat mid-combo. The UI makes it far easier to execute commands in quick succession, and the change of core items being something you save up points to use in quick succession also adds a lot to the strategy of the game. It's excellent, fast, and frantic.

Synthesis is just about the same as Ryza 1, but the method of obtaining recipes are more nuanced rather than simple story progression, as you learn a lot more recipes by doing sidequests or using the skill tree to learn more recipes, giving you more freedom on what you want to create. They also more properly explain the importance of item quality to make better items.


If you liked Ryza 1, then Ryza 2 is, like I said, better in every way. There's no reason not to play this one. Might even be one of the best soundtracks in the series too.

Ryza 2 improves on practically everything Ryza 1 did, and then some. It seems like Gust was being highly experimental with Ryza 1 to see how they could modernize the Atelier series, but they nailed on everything that works in 2. The unique gimmick of this game is exploring ruins to piece together what happened there a long time ago. It gives Ryza as a sub-series a very unique feel compared to the others, and is a different kind of exploration for reasons other than gathering materials. This along with the addition of new traversal tools like a rope, a giant animal to ride, and the ability to swim, the environments are much more dense and expansive which makes Ryza one of the best Atelier games to flat out explore like crazy. The main hub being a massively populated town is much more interesting than Kurken Island from Ryza 1 since there are much more NPCs to talk to and more sidequests to receive from them. The biggest improvement is the combat, which I already felt was one of the best mechanics in Ryza 1. It's got the same core foundation, but you can now chain regular attacks into skills into other skills, and even swap party members in and out of combat mid-combo. The UI makes it far easier to execute commands in quick succession, and the change of core items being something you save up points to use in quick succession also adds a lot to the strategy of the game. It's excellent, fast, and frantic. Synthesis is just about the same as Ryza 1, but the method of obtaining recipes are more nuanced rather than simple story progression, as you learn a lot more recipes by doing sidequests or using the skill tree to learn more recipes, giving you more freedom on what you want to create. They also more properly explain the importance of item quality to make better items. If you liked Ryza 1, then Ryza 2 is, like I said, better in every way. There's no reason not to play this one. Might even be one of the best soundtracks in the series too.