The Last Alchemist Review
A cozy game that makes you think!
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Title: The Last Alchemist
Platform: PC
Reviewed on: PC
Developer: Vile Monarch
Publisher: Marvelous Europe
Release: July 12, 2024
Time Played: 8 Hours
Genre: Management Crafting Puzzle
ESRB: N/A
Intro:
The Last Alchemist is an indie game selling itself as a relaxing alchemy simulation, sure it has cute characters and cozy environments, and most of the game can be relaxing, however a large part of alchemy requires quite a bit of focus to get done. So, before you go out and check out the game for yourself join me while I explain a few of the mechanics before giving this game a final rating. It may just change your mind one way or the other.
Where it starts
A nasty plague had inflicted your village, forcing you to leave in the hopes of discovering a cure through alchemy. You return home after lengthy hiatus to find an empty village and your old master’s notes, close to the discovery of a cure. Your first attempt doesn’t quite go as planned, blowing up most of the equipment you had on hand, and drawing out the local Agari who had taken residence in your old home. With the new locals and your alchemic know how you will start a journey of discovery, mixing this and that attempting to find your cure!
Can the kids watch
The Last Alchemist offers soothing environments and charming characters to interact with. Most of the dialogue is read through text, with only a couple cutscenes involving voice actings. There was no combat in the game, but there was some talk of death due to the vicious plague that fell upon the village. The biggest issue I can see with the kids would be you trying to focus and figure out how to make an essence with outside distractions pulling your brain all over the place.
The Alchemist
You will be playing the game as The Alchemist, an older man who left town and lost his leg due to the plague, eventually returning to an empty home to figure out a cure. Using the teaching of your old master you will build equipment that will help you breakdown materials and meld together essences required to open the blocked paths throughout the valley.
The Agari
A unique fungal species known as the Agari had moved into the valley while you were gone. Those little guys have been around and know the land, you’ll need to befriend them for their assistance with creating more tools or answering some of the mysteries of the valley. They are willing to help after you accomplish minor tasks for them such as building special furniture or hunting down certain materials.
Foraging
The valley is full of plants, rocks, and other natural products that you will need to get for your alchemy. Most of the plant materials can be obtained using your sickle, but the bigger materials require special alchemic mixtures to be sprayed on them before you can pick them up. After scanning a new product, you will know the requirements necessary to harvest it.
Essences
Everything you find can be broken down into a basic essence. The essences come in all shapes and colors with connecting points where more essences can attach to make a whole new essence. These are the building blocks of all alchemy needed to combine some materials together to make complex items like pulleys.
Combining Essences
After creating the required workstations, you will have the ability to combine or break down complex essences. Some materials will need upwards of four basic essences combined in a certain way for success. Some essences have multiple connection points so throwing them together in a machine could produce a random and wrong essence. Thankfully eventually you can unlock a microscope, after throwing two essences in there you can identify all possible outcomes, giving you a formula to attached to your machine, making the outcome you want one hundred percent successful.
Your Journal
There were a lot of different materials and essences to play with in the game, making it somewhat difficult to accomplish a big task without a pen and paper handy. There is a journal available, that I’m sure you will end up looking at a lot, inside you can find every discovered material and essence making it easier to decipher what you need to create. You can pin specific items for quick access while searching through the rest of the journal. I spent a good portion of my time inside the journal comparing smaller essences to the greater puzzle I needed to make.
Outro:
If you’ve played this game I would love to hear about your experience, or if you have any questions, I may be able to help, let me know in the comments below!
The Last Alchemist ended up being a lot more complex than I would have expected. I was thinking it would be a simple game gathering materials and putting them together to finish quests and customize a cozy little home. Near the end I was staring at my journal working my little brain to its max trying to figure out what I had to do. If you’re into puzzles, this game offers a lot of different puzzles to solve.
The Visuals were excellent, simple but elegant. The Agari were cute, and the environments were very well put together. The bright smooth colors were pleasing while exploring the world. I’m giving it a four.
There was a story to the game, however it was overshadowed by the complex crafting system. I understood that the ultimate goal was to find a cure, but getting there was more focused on creating something to move forward, not a lot of focus on why. It’s getting a two.
I was very impressed with the gameplay, there was a lot of great work put into the alchemy system of this game. I never discovered all the possible things I could make with alchemy, and it seemed like the majority of created essences were unnecessary, regardless it was still well done. The only issues I may have would be so much energy I could use in a day, and having to go to sleep at the end the day, but that was the only way to save, minor gameplay mechanics that make sense. I’m handing out a five here.
There wasn’t much in terms of replayability for me. The work involved in getting into endgame feels like a bit too much. However, there is always the option to get back in the game to make more furniture and discover new essences, if you wanted to create the coolest workshop there is a lot to do. It’s getting another two.
There was plenty of fun to be had, I enjoyed my time with the game, but by the end it was more of a workout for my brain rather than a relaxing simulation of crafting and alchemy. I didn’t mind the mental work, it’s just a game that requires a time and place to really enjoy. That’s a three.
Giving The Last Alchemist an average of three point two out of five. Earning it a spot up there on the top shelf. If you enjoy complex puzzles in a unique format, you could really enjoy this game. A good-looking indie with a lot to offer. Although I managed without a pen and notepad, it might not be a bad idea to have one handy if you try to take this on.