It is safe to say that there are few games on the PS2 that are like Ar Tonelico: Melody of Elemia. The only game that even comes close is the PSOne RPG Thousand Arms, and even that didn’t go as far as Ar Tonelico. From the start, the game is heavy on the “dating sim” side, so if the idea of wooing digital women isn’t your thing, you probably won’t like it. However, if you enjoy quirky Japanese RPGs, Ar Tonelico might be worth a look.

Ar Tonelico is comparable to the visuals seen in most Gust productions. The game is comprised mostly of sprites with a few 3D elements thrown in when needed. Characters are big, bright and well animated. Many of the special effects are just as colorful. Some, like an attack involving an army of stuffed animals, are fun to watch.

Both Japanese and English voice tracks are available, but neither is all that good. Lines are either overly delivered or lack any type of emotion to them. Music is a strange mix of multiple genres. The variety of types is nice, but the game never establishes its own music identity, causing the entire soundtrack to sound like a bad mix tape.

Ar Tonelico takes place on a world that has been destroyed twice, leaving the ground uninhabitable. The sky isn’t much better, leaving people to live in a floating city that surrounds a giant tower that is more or less the only thing that keeps life going. The Tower is split into two areas, the Upper world and Lower world. You are Lyner, a knight who is charged with finding a way to defeat a seemingly indestructible virus.

Gameplay feels much like Gust’s Atelier Iris games. You control Lyner as he explores areas dotted with platform jumping and items that he can interact with, usually by using special magical songs. Ar Tonelico also features a simple to use alchemy process called Grathmeld. After collecting materials on list, you can combine them to create new items. Although you need to stick to the recipe, better materials can be added which can make the resulting item even stronger. Once created, items can be used or converted into crystals, which can then be added to equipment to improve their stats.

During battle, you can have up to four members in your party: three humans and one Reyvateil. Human members act like your standard RPG characters. They can use items, attack and use skills. The Reyvateil, on the other hand, hangs out behind your party. However, their role in battle is more important than the three guys in front.

Reyvateils use song magic, which is just what it sounds like. As the Reyvateil sings, their songs create powerful spells. These are a constant effect and can be changed at any time. The longer the song goes, the more powerful the spell becomes, introducing a few balancing issues. In short, Reyvateils are too powerful. Even at lower levels, their songs do more damage than your other party members can at higher levels. The only limitation is that songs drain magic points, but the damage output is so great that the risk involved with letting songs run isn’t that great.

Reyvateil songs also gain strength based on your other character’s attacks. Whenever your other members hit an enemy, the Ambience of the level increases. Battles begin at zero and can increase up to level three. The higher the level, the more damage songs cause.

Harmonics are another influential aspect of combat. The longer party members and Reyvateils fight in battle together, the more their Harmonic level builds. As this increases, new, more powerful combat abilities are unlocked. Also, at higher levels enemies drop better items. Harmonics are a great idea, but don’t blend well with the combat system. In order for the system to actually be of any use you, need to do as little damage as possible prolonging the battle long enough that the level increases high enough to be useful. All this really does is make battles long and tedious.

Ar Tonelico trends towards the easy side of things. Early on the battle system is a bit complicated, though it doesn’t take long to realize that your frontline members aren’t as important as your Reyvateil. Everything goes towards building up really big song attacks that can wipe out nearly every enemy you come up against.

The only major downside to Reyvateils is their low health. Reyvateils are incredibly fragile and one attack is usually enough to kill them. Fortunately, they can only be hurt by special attacks that can be blocked by your other three party members. In addition, the special attacks take forever, sometimes making it possible to kill the enemy targeting the Reyvateil before the attack goes off. It is uncommon to see a Reyvateil die in battle.

Reyvateils learn new songs as their relationship builds with Lyner. Relationships are built both in battle and through conversations. Here’s where the game’s “dating” elements come into play.

During battle, you can earn Dive Points. These allow Lyner to enter a Reyvateil’s inner thoughts, called the Cosmosphere. The deeper Lyner travels, the more powerful the songs he’ll unlock. Although you do walk around each area, they are mostly story-based and reveal information about the Reyvateil’s past. Sometimes you are presented with multiple paths that require Dive Points to unlock. There isn’t much to these areas since the more expensive path is usually the correct one. Some sequences can prove to be too much for the Reyvateil and require an additional Dive Point cost.

The Cosmosphere is broken into several layers. Solving one story arc unlocks another, allowing you to travel deeper into their mind. Completing levels unlocks new costumes for your Reyvateil that, when equipped, boost certain spells and the Reyvateil’s stats. By traveling deep into the Cosmosphere, Lyner can also install crystals, adding even more of a boost to song spells and stats.

It is worth mentioning that Ar Tonelico is packed with innuendo and mature content. Some of the outfits that are unlocked are a bit risqué and even come awfully close to getting into the whole fetish thing. In addition, some of the dialogue is incredibly suggestive. For older players this won’t be much of a problem, but it is still worth noting, especially given the game’s anime look and T rating.

Ar Tonelico: Melody of Elemia isn’t a terrible game; it just isn’t a good one – especially when compared to other games put out by Gust. In a sense, its similar to when an A student turns in C work; it is better than your typical C, but not up to their usual standards. Still, if you can manage to get past the rocky battle system and quirky nature, it is still fun.