![]() You can get access to a monster corral (pet raising), an orchard (for fruit), an instrument workshop (for crafting items used in magic, among other uses), a smithy (weapons and armor), and even a golem-creation laboratory! While the basics of all these systems are explained to an extent, those looking to dive deeper may have some trouble deciphering all their intricacies without resorting to an external guide. Otherwise, place your artifacts wherever you want – that’s what I did, anyway.Īt the heart of the world lies your humble abode, which not only will provide respite when needed, but will also become a host of an assortment of goodies and mini-games over time based on how you tackle the world and its problems. Individual artifacts carry certain mana properties, which may have an impact on the behavior of certain zones, the potency of spells used in those areas, and also may be key to unlocking everything in a single playthrough.Īs you delve deeper into many of the game’s mechanics – including this – it becomes clear that there is a lot of nuance that just isn’t explained all that well almost as if you’re playing a SaGa game! Consider having a guide handy if you’re worried about missing something. ![]() Each placed artifact will create a new area that can be explored, usually in the form of a dungeon or village. Legend of Mana clearly leverages its free-form narrative system to push a more aimless tale led by your decisions, and while it does that well, it doesn’t do enough to make most of the characters and events all that memorable.Īs the unnamed “hero” of the world, you begin with a clean “world slate” where you must place individual zones (via artifacts) on a grid-based world map. While it is undoubtedly refreshing not having many traditional hero tropes at play, the depth of these mini-arcs and the eventual path to a somewhat overarching conclusion are not overwhelmingly interesting. These bite-sized journeys eventually lead to an event focused more around the “hero,” but the majority of time is spent observing (and acting within) other people’s tales rather than building on their own. ![]() Of course, there is some backstory surrounding conflict and a Mana Tree – it wouldn’t be a Mana game without it – but that is only really relevant at the beginning and end of the adventure. Instead of following a primary arc with a traditional structure, focused around a singular character and their companions, Legend of Mana puts players in the boots of an unnamed protagonist (male or female) that primarily plays the role of an active bystander across numerous mini-arcs. Legend of Mana is easily one of the more unique entries in the Mana series thanks to its free-form narrative system no doubt a byproduct of Akihiko Matsui and Akitoshi Kawazu – both key players in the SaGa series – playing a part in its development. Simply put, the game could have benefitted from a remake over a remaster. As a fan of SaGa, flaws and all, I’m okay with that in theory, but Legend of Mana as a remaster ultimately shines light on its most dilapidated parts rather than making them better. It was undeniably ambitious for its time, with many unique features that were perhaps not as technically feasible (or well thought out) as they could have been. Originally released in North America in 2000, Legend of Mana was received with a mixed to moderately positive reception at launch, with most outlets citing the game’s presentation as it’s most praiseworthy feature (and rightly so). Having just wrapped up the excellent remaster of SaGa Frontier a few weeks ago, I was primed and ready to dive into this PS1-era Mana adventure. Despite my recent pleas for more retro Final Fantasy support – please put the upcoming pixel remasters of I-VI on Switch! – they have released quite a few games on the Switch, including a Legend of Mana remaster. Square Enix have treated Nintendo Switch fans quite well over the past few years.
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