Square Enix Trials Of Mana By Author’s Name

I never had the pleasure of playing the original game, called Seiken Densetsu 3 (and was disinclined even after it came out as part of the Collection of Mana, since I heard it contains some pretty rough bugs), but had always wanted to. Secret of Mana, this game’s predecessor, stood out with its vibrant visuals, gorgeous music, excellent sound design, and odd but satisfying combat. No doubt its successor improved on that.

What luck that Nintendo would decide to not only give us access to the original, but to rebuild it for a modern console. And what a job they did. Trials of Mana provides a wonderful experience, and I hope will be viewed as a blueprint for how 2D to 3D action RPG remakes should work. Its soundscape soars, almost all of the remixes clear enhancements to the original tunes. It is beautiful, the original’s areas lovingly recreated in 3D. It just feels so alive, so colorful, and playful. The combat system presents a fair challenge without being frustrating, and feels like a treat to play. The controls are excellent and responsive. It has ample replayability, especially considering that you can’t see all of the content without playing through at least twice (each time with a set of three completely different characters). There is quite a bit to track down if you enjoy scavenger hunts in your games, though none of it is essential to completing the game.

If you enjoy action RPGs, you could do far worse. And especially if you have any interest in the Seiken Densetsu line of games, this comes hugely recommended.

This game is fun. I got this for my kids, but even I play it (only time I get to play is when they are in bed). There is a lot of variation in the game, with the characters, abilities, paths, etc. Usually with games like these, they can start to get dull and boring, especially with combat, but not this one. My kids like the characters and game play, I like that as well and all the choices! The music is actually nice too. I was able to beat the game in just over 40 hours, and I ran through it pretty quick. The value this game offers is really nice, so glad I got it.

Part of me is annoyed that one of Square’s most ignored games has gotten such a lackluster remake. I usually hate remakes for this reason but this one is actually really great on the Switch despite Square’s lack of ambition.

Of course since this remake looks so basic it doesn’t tax the Switch hardware much at all, so it’s perfect to port. There aren’t nearly as many compromises here as other Switch ports. There’s no blurry filter over the whole screen as with DOOM or Dragon Quest XI. Texture quality looks sharp too. The only real downgrade here is the 30fps on Switch.

The game itself is a lot of fun. More fun to play than the original in almost every way (but no more multiplayer). The SNES version had slow sluggish combat and movement by comparison. The English voice acting is really bad in the remake but like most Square-Enix games the Japanese language option is mercifully included so you don’t have to waste precious space downloading it like in a Nintendo published title. You could also just turn the voice volume down to zero in options and read all the dialog in peace like it’s 1995.

I really appreciate the tone of the story and the colorful world presented here as well. The game moves at a brisk pace too, you’ll probably finish it in 40 hours (but there are also optional bosses, multiple endings, a new game+, and 3 different final dungeons if you want more). There’s no DLC or junk like that, this is a very complete game. It’s awesome.

Trials of Mana, ou como é conhecido no Japão, Seiken Densetsu 3 é um jogo muito agradável de se jogar, porém não tem o português como opção, tem espanhol e inglês como escolhas em legendas e inglês e japonês como idiomas falados de escolha. Os gráficos são bonitos. É um RPG de ação, fácil de jogar.

After finishing this game, I can say that I think it is truly great. I had a lot of fun with it, and it took me roughly 20 hours to complete the main story. What prevents me from giving it a full five stars are that I’ve played other action-rpgs that did what this game did but just a bit better. Any Ys game or Tales of game would be an example. Considering that I had just completed Ys Origin prior to playing this game, it was still fresh in my mind and could not help but comparing the two. Another nitpick would include the English dub being absolutely awful. I stuck with it for about five hours before I had enough, and normally I’m someone that is tolerable of dorky dubs but this one was just too much for me, luckily you can switch to Japanese, which was a lot more pleasant. Also, this game makes your Switch run very hot in docked mode, I almost found myself switching to portable just out of general concern that I was pushing the system too far. I’m not a technical guy, but I assume this has to do with making something intended for other consoles be compatible with the Switch. While not a perfect game, the story is aggressively average and the characters are nothing to write home about, I truly enjoyed the gameplay and it was one of those rare occasions where I enjoyed the grind. The game begins rather slowly, but if you are a fan of Ys or action-rpgs in general, I would give this one a shot, especially if there is a price decrease.