Koei Tecmo has revealed that the English release for the upcoming Atelier Lulua: The Scion of Arland will come in Spring 2019. Both the Japanese and English releases will come sometime next spring. Koei Tecmo has been steadily closing the gap between Japanese and Western releases, cutting down the year or more gap between releases down to a few months. Atelier Lulua will be the 20th mainline game in the Atelier series, which celebrated its 20th-anniversary last year with Atelier Lydie and Suelle. Atelier Lulua: The Scion of Arland will release next year for the PS4, Switch and on Steam.
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Starring the daughter of one of the former Atelier protagonists, Atelier Lulua: The Scion of Arland is a return to the familiar Arland lands. Elmerulia Fryxell, or just Lulua is the daughter of alchemist Rorona, star of her own game. Atelier Lulua is set several years after the events of Atelier Meruru. While Lulua isn't yet a full-fledged alchemist, studying with her tutor gives her an opportunity to follow in the footsteps of her mother. The character designs are once again done by Mel Kishida, designer of Arland's characters, as reported by Gematsu.
Promising a blend of the Mysterious trilogy's mechanics with the world of the Arland games, Atelier Lulua seeks to continue the already successful Arland trilogy. The Arland games were the first Atelier titles to make the jump onto the PS3, with all three selling quite well upon release. All of Atelier Rorona, Atelier Totori and Atelier Meruru were later remade as "Plus" versions for the Vita, with Atelier Rorona getting a Japan-only 3DS remake as well. As if that weren't enough, all of the Arland games are coming as part of the Atelier Arland Deluxe Pack, releasing in Japan earlier this year, and coming to the West for PS4, Switch and on Steam on December 4th.
The Arland series is what put the Atelier series on the map after a number of PlayStation and PS2 games. All of the games are known for their laid-back attitude and stories and their charming approach to battling and alchemy. Instead of stories about saving the world from monsters or evil organizations, they're more about the girls growing up and learning better alchemy. Even the Dusk trilogy, which is set in a world sliding slowly towards extinction, the stories told are personal, the challenges more down-to-earth. Now developer Gust's primary series, Atelier shows no sign of slowing down any time soon. You can check out the Atelier Arland Deluxe Pack when it hits Western stores on December 4th, or Atelier Lulua: The Scion of Arland when it comes West next year.
