Gamer Review - Legend of Mana

Ah yes, another Mana game. Unfortunately, Legend of Mana has many qualities to separate itself from the others. Yes the monsters, (rabites, golems, knight chest pieces), multi-player aspect, and the story of the Mana sword and/or tree is still the same, yet this one still sets itself away from the others.

The first thing that comes to mind is the way the battles are set up. Through each screen in a dungeon you get into a pre-determined battle. Like the others, it has monsters scattered throughout a large field and you fight them as you make your way around. This one, however, has individual battles per screen that you cannot avoid. Also, you do not travel from place to place as if it always existed. Instead, you gain "artifacts" from missions you complete or from characters you meet. You then can place them wherever you want in the world and visit them.

The order you gain artifacts varies by what you do and when. How many artifacts you gain is also determined by which missions were completed and whether you played the game more than once or not. Gaining artifacts was kind of neat, but this is another feature that plainly sets itself away from the other Mana games. Nevertheless, one is out for a fun gaming experience through this game.

Graphics

For Playstation graphics, Legend of Mana has some of the best. The backgrounds are very detailed, almost like a deep watercolor or acrylic painting. All of the characters and NPCs are detailed as well. With rich colors throughout the entire game, I have to say I am impressed. As graphics go, this game can sit along side with the others and not look out of place.

Though the characters are a little cartoonish, it doesn't degrade the game one bit in my opinion. There is one downside to the graphics though. Some of the animations and character movements seem repetitive and not unique throughout the game. Still, it's not that much of a bother.

Music and Sounds

Despite the quality of sound throughout the game, there isn't much of it. The musical scores are easy listening, and are not annoying or bad quality in the least bit. Even so, there isn't much music or sound to go around. Most of the field areas you play on have the same battle mode music that lasts throughout. Each area may have its own song, but not for long. Overall, I felt like I was listening to the same track over and over. What the game actually did give though, was good.

Control/Menu Setup

Control in this game flowed well, and the menu was easy to navigate. The only thing I would've changed to the whole system, was being able to control what weapons, accessories, magic power, and what special attacks the second player had.

The second player was very limited unlike the other Mana games. The only purpose the second player served was an extra hand in battle...or, if you played alone, just another drone character to follow you around. The multi-player feature is what made this game the most fun.

Team work was required sometimes because when your HP bar went down, you could regenerate it by standing close to your partner. Candy and other healing items wasn't an option to purchase because the characters couldn't use them anyway during battle. Monsters occasionally dropped the items, but they could only be used the moment they were picked up.

Overall, the control of this game was easy for anyone because there wasn't much to learn at all except hitting the X button.

Story

Just like any other Mana game, the stories deals with a Mana Tree. The final artifact, (dungeons, towns) you gain is called the Sword of Mana. What story I had may be somewhat different for others, (especially if you replay it) because this game is non-linear. There are no set paths to take and no particular order you must take when defeating the missions in the artifacts. Still, the story was cute at times and touching.

Enjoyment Level

The best way to play this game, like any other Mana game is to play with someone else. Yet even if you don't have anyone to play with, this game can still be easily played alone while still having fun. Taking a journey together, meeting new characters, and gaining experience and levels together is what true gaming is all about, and Legend of Mana delivers that well.

I've played it for hours at a time and wondering, Where'd the time go. Yes, it went into playing Legend of Mana, and I had fun playing it.

The only downfall I think it had with my own enjoyment level is that it was way too easy! There was probably one boss where I actually died, but it wasn't game over because my partner and the monster I raised was still alive. The final boss was a joke, which made the game less fun for me. But if you like to win every battle in a game without an effort, and still feel good about it...then this game is perfect!