Legend of Mana Drops on PlayStation Network

[Nyx]

Another PlayStation classic hits PlayStation Network. Released back in 2000, Legend of Mana warmed the hearts of even the coldest RPGamers.

Story.

[sabin1001]

Let me save you the trouble, don't get this, just pick up the soundtrack.

[DarkRPGMaster]

Let me save you the trouble, don't get this, just pick up the soundtrack.

I didn't mind the game at all. Don't walk in expecting some grand story. Walk in expecting a bunch of short 'stories' and you'll be fine. Loved how you can build the world to your own whims...but I hate how certain quests are so confusing to continue (Jumi arc, anybody?). But onto the soundtrack, it's one of Yoko Shimomura's best. I have the soundtrack bought and on my MP3 player, and I listen to it daily. Can't get enough Yoko. <3

[Wheels]

Let me save you the trouble, don't get this, just pick up the soundtrack.

Evil evil lies!

[TwinBahamut]

I remember hating the game way back when I first tried it. I wonder how I would enjoy it these days. This one is certainly the game that began the Mana series' long and tragic decline, though.

[shoptroll]

Evil evil lies!

Seconded. Don't listen to Chris. Just make sure you have a laptop handy with GameFAQs for the crafting system

[Tiael]

Will definitely be picking this up, but figured it would be Parasite Eve 2 tomorrow instead, PE one week, PE2 the next, both leading up to T3B release, which is next Tuesday.
Ah well, now give me Threads of Fate, SaGa Frontier, and Chrono Cross after the JP PSN release.

[Wheels]

I remember hating the game way back when I first tried it. I wonder how I would enjoy it these days. This one is certainly the game that began the Mana series' long and tragic decline, though.

I don't think that's fair to say, there was a long gap between this and the eventual clump of mediocrity. I'd say Sword of Mana started the downfall of the series.

That's not to say Legend of Mana is perfect, but at $5.99, with a 2D art style that will have aged better than other earlier PS1 games, it's a great value.

[Paws]

I never got a chance to really try this (I think I may have briefly played it at Mikel's at one point) so I will likely pick it up. It always looked like the type of game I'd dig.

[Gideon Zhi]

I loved LoM! I'm fairly certain that the reason so many people blast it is because they were expecting some big huge epic story, and while there are a few larger plots that tie some things together, the game is more about creating a believable world with a *lot* of likable characters. Keeping in mind that it was the first new Mana title since SoM (in the States) and SD3 (in Japan) I think people were expecting something more along those lines than what they got.

Also, combat *is* a little shallow; it's extremely easy to stunlock enemies.

[Deiser]

I loved LoM! I'm fairly certain that the reason so many people blast it is because they were expecting some big huge epic story, and while there are a few larger plots that tie some things together, the game is more about creating a believable world with a *lot* of likable characters. Keeping in mind that it was the first new Mana title since SoM (in the States) and SD3 (in Japan) I think people were expecting something more along those lines than what they got.

IMO, I don't think the issue was exactly that because the three major plotlines were well-thought-out, and were shockingly dark given the lighthearted atmosphere that the graphic style and music gives off. The issue I see (which actually stopped me from continuing the game my first time around, before I replayed it a few years later) was that the game gives you absolutely no direction after the intro missions and does a poor job explaining all the side stuff you could do. You'd get the intro missions for each plot, but after that you would be left to your own accord and unless you had a map you'd only continue the story through fluke for half of the plot.

Had they done a better job on giving hints on what to do for each of the plots, I think this game would've been far more of a hit.

[freykin]

I love this game, and even attempted to write a faq for it's magic system at one point. Then I discovered how many coins I'd have to farm for that and gave up. Wonderful game though, at that price its a steal.

[Zeboyd Games]

Never played this one, but I liked the first 3 games in the series. Tempted to give it a try, but I've got a lot of games on my plate as is at the moment (just picked up Tactics Ogre and Trails in the Sky comes out next week).

[GaijinMonogatari]

I remember playing this one with friends in college. Half my friends were taking the Zen course that year, and had a blast reading every Li'l Cactus comment made when we reported in after a quest. This game had some truly bizarre quotes.

"The cow is not here. It is in my head."

[Lucent85]

I used to have this game, but I had a bunch of my PSone games stolen sometime ago, and this was one of them. I didn't really like it that much because you could easily make over-powered weapons and stuff. I remember just taking a sword and throwing random ingredients on it and ending up with a very strong sword that could drain health meters in seconds. It just kills some of the enjoyment for me because of the low difficulty, though I never finished it. The game was confusing as hell, too. I never really knew what direction to go in after talking to someone sometimes. I guess I did have a little fun playing it with my cousin, though. Just kind of sucked having to tell each other to go a certain direction in order to keep the camera moving. I had a lot more fun with Secret of Mana. But, for $5.99, I might pick this up. I was sort of expecting Parasite Eve II to be the PSone Classic for tomorrow but, based on the fact that Square Enix has been putting out a lot of their classics lately, I'm assuming we'll get it on the 29th to coincide with The 3rd Birthday's release.

[TwinBahamut]

I loved LoM! I'm fairly certain that the reason so many people blast it is because they were expecting some big huge epic story, and while there are a few larger plots that tie some things together, the game is more about creating a believable world with a *lot* of likable characters. Keeping in mind that it was the first new Mana title since SoM (in the States) and SD3 (in Japan) I think people were expecting something more along those lines than what they got.

It wasn't so much the story as several other things. The loss of good multiplayer was a big blow against it compared to its predecessors, for example. I never liked the lack of general direction through its mission system or stable allies, and the fact that it is too easy to wander into a mission you were not expecting or wander out of a plotline without a clear way to return to it. I never liked many of the new characters, art-direction changes, and gameplay changes it brought to the series, either. I consider it the start of the downturn of the series simply because many later Mana games suffered greatly because they followed in the path laid by Legend of Mana.

[DarkRPGMaster]

It wasn't so much the story as several other things. The loss of good multiplayer was a big blow against it compared to its predecessors, for example. I never liked the lack of general direction through its mission system or stable allies, and the fact that it is too easy to wander into a mission you were not expecting or wander out of a plotline without a clear way to return to it. I never liked many of the new characters, art-direction changes, and gameplay changes it brought to the series, either. I consider it the start of the downturn of the series simply because many later Mana games suffered greatly because they followed in the path laid by Legend of Mana.

Not entirely true. None of the games following it kept the same gameplay, and they kept experimenting. They should have kept the style of Legend of Mana (the way the areas look, multiple characters, and those various quests but made into sidequests), but have made an entire huge story. In other words, taken what was great about Legend of Mana, and added what was great about Seiken Densetsu 2 and 3 (the story). Would have ended up with an amazing game. You don't need to constantly experiment with something, you can always combine things for a better product..

[LordKaiser]

This game was awesome because players have to find stuff on their own like Saga Frontier so I expect this game to let down the lazy players. The 3 main stories of Jumi, Draconis and Irwind where very well done and for me this game is Seiken Densetsu 4 in my own reality. I'm glad it's coming.

[DarkRPGMaster]

This game was awesome because players have to find stuff on their own like Saga Frontier so I expect this game to let down the lazy players. The 3 main stories of Yumi, Draconis and Irwind where very well done and for me this game is Seiken Densetsu 4 in my own reality. I'm glad it's coming.

Which of the 3 arcs was your favorite? Mine was Draconis. Easy to figure out what to do, and even easier to complete. Plus you can't go wrong with Dragoons, Dragons, and a badass named L'arc.

[Strawberry Eggs]

I don't think that's fair to say, there was a long gap between this and the eventual clump of mediocrity. I'd say Sword of Mana started the downfall of the series.

I really need to replay Sword of Mana. I played it twice, both for the Hero and Heroine, and quite liked it both times (I thought the Heroine's path was better, but I liked her as a character more). Granted, I haven't finished Secret of Mana, and the only other Mana title I've played is the very dull Children of Mana, but I didn't think Sword of Mana was bad at all.