I can’t stop laughing at Atelier Karia’s new gameplay mechanic.
You may recall, back when the newest entry in Gust’s long-running apothecary franchise was revealed, that eating would comprise a big part of the gameplay.
The eponymous Karia can scoff down different concoctions in order to sprout ears, for example. You are what you eat!
But in response to fan feedback, the Japanese dev has added an extra layer to the eating mechanic: Karia can actually get fat!
According to a game survey, 78.9% of players wanted this, with native English speakers demanding the feature most.
While you’ll be able to turn the “body shape” option on or off, when enabled, Karia will get noticeably larger when she consumes lots of food. You’ll also be able to “lock” her appearance at a certain size.
I can appreciate things like this tend to be sensitive, but looking at the example artwork, I think Gust’s realised the idea in an incredibly cute way. It’s just a bit of fun, at the end of the day!
Of course, it’s not the first game to incorporate “body shape” into its gameplay.
GTA San Andreas would famously see protagonist CJ put on weight if he spent all of his time at Burger Shot, while the upcoming GTA 6 is expected to incorporate similar mechanics as well.
PlayStation fans will also remember food being a central mechanic in the competitive multiplayer game Fat Princess for the PS3.
I think Gust has made the right decision by making this feature optional, but I do love how fans turned out in force to vote in favour for it.
The game’s due out in 2027, so you’ll be able to fulfil Karia’s appetite for yourself in due course.
