Title: Royal Alchemist
Developer: Nifty Visuals
Release Date: April 30, 2020
Platforms: PC, Linux, and MacOS
Price: $19.99 (via Steam)
Reviewed On: PC

Royal Alchemist is a dating game featuring a talented alchemist (the player) being invited to a kingdom to tutor the three princes that reside there. They are to train the princes in magic to become the best possible heirs to the kingdom. 

Analysis:

Game Play

There are a few aspects to the game play. Firstly, most of the story is driven by stats. The three princes can all learn six different types of magic, each one specializing in two different types. Their proficiencies in magic types allows them to pass stat checks in the story line as well as craft items. Item crafting is entirely reliant on the prince’s ability to use certain magic types and comes in different mixes and values.

Alongside the princes, the player has to manage the stats of the main character as well. They are able to focus on six characteristics: beauty, intelligence, combat, etiquette, charisma, and leadership. These stats are necessary to pass stat checks in the story line and get certain endings (good and bad). Each prince actually has two stats that they value in the main character which make it easier for players to decide which stats should be increased. 

It is also explicitly stated that players are not expected to pass every single stat check. Even in my “perfect” playthroughs, my attempts to do so lead to me having to reload an old save to ensure I pass the stat check to progress the story past a death scene. 

Each prince also has a favorability rating for the main character that players can keep track of. NPCs also have a favorability rating that is introduced in later parts of the story that fall into four different categories (the aristocracy, the common folk, the merchants, and the servants). These can be influenced by events in the game and quests involving crafting.

Players can also do excursions that will involve NPCs and the princes. These involve stat checks, increasing favorability, and increasing the amount of money a player receives with each cycle.

Story

The players immediately dive into the story. An alchemist attached to an organization known to be nonpartisan is sent to tutor three princes. On the way to the kingdom, their carriage is suddenly attacked, a brutal encounter that leaves only the tutor alive. 

Each prince has their own traits and stories to pursue. The main character also has their own history as a Rosenkreuz. 

The game has 24 different death scenes. This is both an advantage and disadvantage. The disadvantage means that there are more pivotal stat checks players need to pass to progress the story. The developers were kind in granting players a stat bonus for the collected death scenes. This is a feature that can be turned off if players want the additional challenge. 

Besides the death endings, there are a total of eight endings, three of which are the romantic endings for the princes. I greatly enjoyed each path for the princes.

I was skeptical at first as many dating games tend to have an overarching storyline with only scenes of romance on the side. The endings of this kind of game end up similar to one another, the main difference being who the player decides to romance and end up with. 

However, Royal Alchemist put a little spin on this that made it great. Each prince goes through their own character development that changes aspects of the world and reveals more plot points in the overarching story. 

The other great aspect of the story is the main character. Players can choose to use either the female or male character. Alongside being able to input whatever name they wish for the models, they can also change their gender to be addressed as she/her (lady), he/his (lord), or they/them (liege). It’s a feature that has become increasingly more popular in dating games but is all the more inclusive to the community. 

Final Score:

Overall, I give Royal Alchemist a four-and-a-half out of five stars. The visuals and music were great. The story was engaging, and I loved the game play. The game’s user interface was helpful and much friendlier than I was expecting with this kind of game. The only thing I demerited was that there were often down times with very little to do aside from raising stats. It did help in slowing the story but left odd blanks of time where I was wondering what exactly I was supposed to be doing.

What are your thoughts on dating games such as Royal Alchemist? Would you be willing to dive into this story? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below or in our Boss Rush Discord!

Featured Image Source: Nifty Visuals

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