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So I picked this game up this week. I managed to find a good deal on it, and it was surprisingly hard to track down. I've been a fan of the mana series since Final Fantasy Adventure on the original Gameboy system. What's notable about this game, however, is how abysmal the scores were. People hated this game. The only scores I've seen that are lower are from Boogie for the Wii.

To be honest, though, the game isn't that bad. That's not quite the sort of compliment one might be looking for, but nevertheless, there it is. It could have been much better, and yet strangely, it wasn't. Its mediocrity is ultimately what destroyed it in the minds of the fans of the series. They expected more than what they could dream of and were given even less than their expectations. To me (and every other fan, I imagine), the phrase "3D Secret of Mana" conjures up wild, imaginative thoughts. Not quite what was realized, and that is the ultimate disappointment. Outside of the series, it would have been a really fun game.

I think the biggest gripe with the game was the chapter-based gameplay. While it seems frustrating, starting out at level 1 again, its not really that bad. What it means, in the end, is that there are no high level uber-spells that seem to be the staple of most RPGs. Instead, you have a small array of tools at hand, a growing list of daunting enemies to tackle, and your own prowess. The game is tough, but once you know what you're doing, its fun to work with your enemies and gradually improve your ability to make them run around in panic.

Rightfully, the game could have, and should have, been better. I think the series peaked in 1993, and sadly, 14 years later, is still in a decline. Yet, its an above average game, and fun to get into. Plus, who doesn't love hitting rabbites with large rocks? It should be an Olympic sport!

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Oh sure, I don't have to get kicked in the junk to activate it, but I like it anyway. -- Thief commenting on the difference between Throw and Blue Magic.

I agree that it's an all right game. All the points you've presented are absolutely true and indeed were a hindrance to the game as a whole. I also shared the wild imagination of a 3D SoM world, and I adore how the game was visually comprised. However, that damned chapter system did bring the game down.

It seemed to pay a large homage to Children of Mana which employed a similar system, only with the dungeons and such, but you were scored based on how well you did things. Also, the characters and the world mirrored the DS' version of the realm. But, to that end, this whole Chapter business made the game far too linear and that killed it for me. I was looking for a world to explore and traipse about in like in the SNES Mana games, but instead found myself being told "Go here. Good. Now go here" and gaining scores and medals and lucre for, seemingly, no reason as there's no custimizability in the game short of the emblems. Ultimately everyone who plays DoM is going to play the EXACT SAME GAME with very little twists and that, I think, is its greatest flaw.

Outside of that, I loved the combat system and the whole panicking and world interaction and the like. I recommend fans of the series try it and decide for themselves, though.

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Games on the Go
Final Fantasy VII
Final Fantasy: Four Warriors of Light
Baldur's Gate

Too much to play, so little time!

Greg

Alright, small update: I've played through half of the game now. Its still fun to whip enemies around and destroy large portions of the environment, but the leveling system has truly shown its annoying colors.

You get some pretty nice abilities when you level up. You learn new spells - fire and ice saber for instance. You get new whip abilities - like flinging enemies around violently without letting go of the whip. Every time you restart the game though, you go back to nothing. I don't mind having the HP and MP go back to zero, but losing all your cool playing upgrades is a bit of a drag.

Still a decent game, but I'm still waiting for Secret of Mana to come to the Wii via virtual console...

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Oh sure, I don't have to get kicked in the junk to activate it, but I like it anyway. -- Thief commenting on the difference between Throw and Blue Magic.

Sure, I have big wishes for a Mana game, but I wouldn't say I have big expectations... not after the GBA and DS installments. I would have settled for something that even approached the free-roaming world and combat of the previous games. Instead, you get canned dungeons and freakish leveling. This wasn't a Mana game. It was a zit on the butt of the Seiken Densetsu series.

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Veni, vidi, dormivi.

Quote (karasuman @ 3rd September 2007 21:58)

Sure, I have big wishes for a Mana game, but I wouldn't say I have big expectations... not after the GBA and DS installments. I would have settled for something that even approached the free-roaming world and combat of the previous games. Instead, you get canned dungeons and freakish leveling. This wasn't a Mana game. It was a zit on the butt of the Seiken Densetsu series.

Harsh.

But sadly, after playing this game for longer than 20 minutes, I'm inclined to agree...

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Oh sure, I don't have to get kicked in the junk to activate it, but I like it anyway. -- Thief commenting on the difference between Throw and Blue Magic.

It does seem that the Mana Tree has begun to wither, or rather, has been withering for a long time. I didn't even bother to pick up DoM after the letdown that CoM was. What's wrong with making a game like Seiken Densetsu 3? Everyone loved it. Why would you go for a system that loses all the loyal fans of the series? It should have been obvious after CoM.

It seems like the new style of RPGs is to not have a large world map to wander around on (Final Fantasy, Mana, etc.), except for the Tales series, of course, and that's why I spend all my money on that one.

The Mana series is barking up the wrong tree.

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