Description:Though it lacks the dramatic intensity of the Final Fantasy series--the crown prince of console role-playing games--SquareSoft's Legend of Mana still satisfies with its beautiful hand-drawn sets and its innovative nonlinear gameplay. Billed as the sequel to the Super Nintendo's Secrets of Mana, Legend of Mana's story contains morThough it lacks the dramatic intensity of the Final Fantasy series--the crown prince of console role-playing games--SquareSoft's Legend of Mana still satisfies with its beautiful hand-drawn sets and its innovative nonlinear gameplay.
Billed as the sequel to the Super Nintendo's Secrets of Mana, Legend of Mana's story contains more than 60 self-contained miniquests, but generally the goal is to restore the world's Mana, or life energy. Gamers won't need to be obsessive about winning all the quests, but there are some challenges that must be completed if you wish to reach the final showdown. The game begins as players choose either a male or female lead character while a map displays the new lands within the world of Fa'Diel. In each of these lands, players will find items and clues they can use in other lands. The fragmented nature of the game can be disorienting for gamers looking for quick gratification. A diary can be used to keep track of current miniquests, while an encyclopedia neatly organizes the vast amount of story players uncover. Due to the vast nature of this game's plot, you'll likely need these features to stay focused on your quests.
Anime fans will be wowed by the character design and beautifully illustrated storybook backgrounds. The game includes a Pokémon-style monster-raising element, which is surprising for a teen-rated RPG, but it works well. --Porter Hall
Pros: Pokémon-style monster raising adds nice nurturing element to RPG tasks Nonlinear quest system makes story engrossing Stunning hand-drawn backgrounds
Cons: Music is at times absurdly overdramatic Second player controls character only during battle
""As much as I don’t want to admit it, Legend of Mana is a game that has been slightly battered by time. When it debuted the gameplay seemed to be enough to keep it afloat - something that was especially important considering the fact the story is practically non-existent – but as the years have gone by it’s become somewhat obvious that it’s a little too shallow for it’s own good.""
Queen Tonberry added this to a list 9 months, 2 weeks ago
"When Legend of Mana was released for the PSX back in 2000, the entire industry expected a proper sequel to Secret of Mana (to make up for the Secret of Mana 2 debacle). What we got instead was a game that rather than spinning a long epic story, took the path of scores of smaller intertwining tales.
This direction was met with much apathy and as a result, Legend of Mana was consigned to the missed opportunity bin.
In my eyes though, it needs to be looked at as it's own game rather than any sequ"
Sabin Kenobi added this to a list 1 year, 8 months ago
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AW's Game Collection
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AVGW 500...Of the Decade (2000 Nominees)
