Atelier Meruru: The Apprentice of Arland

The game takes place over three years and after each year, the progress (population and expansion) is measured against a set of goals. The way to fulfill those requirements is by taking on quests, traveling to places on a world map, and fighting enemies. Besides required tasks, there are also optional quests and boss battles. When it's time to expand Arls, Meruru gets to choose which building to construct next. Each building rewards a different permanent bonus, but at the end of the game, every building will be built if the highest expansion rate is reached.

Like all games in the series, the focus is on alchemy: much time is spent acquiring ingredients to craft items like armor, weapons or specialities. The only way to get those items is by using predefined recipes because merchants only sell ingredients - the better quality they have, the better the item becomes. While in hostile zones, Meruru and her party will run into enemies which have to be defeated in turn-based battles. When all party members are defeated, they will wake up a few days later at home.

The main problem with this is that every action takes up time. There are different endings which depend on Meruru's success in her mandatory and optional goals.