Mana Trials – A review

With the advent of Final Fantasy VII: Once again, the debate about the focus and content of classic trials has cleared up. Many Orthodox followers will complain about every change or new thread presented in their favorite topics, and some believe that recall should redefine the topic, endanger and innovate, even if other players do not. While the seventh edition of Final Fantasy has chosen its path, the makers of the new version of Trials of Mana decided to copy its predecessor as faithfully as possible, but in this case that approach was not the best.

Anyway, let's go through the parts. What is Mana Franchise? Under this name (whose Japanese name is known as Seiken Densetsu) it hides a JRPG genre that is revered as a classic cult. Its best addition is the Secret of Mana and the Trials of Mana, which dates back to the Super Nintendo era, and its latest release has been a reminiscing.

The project writers have tried to showcase the original content, and in many ways surprised us. When we compare maps, heroes or even bosses battle with their predecessors there is no doubt that they have improved. However, apart from this nice modification of the content, the reprint also finds it a privilege for actual errors, of which there were few exceptions. It includes not only the things we like from the original, but all those that do not conform to today's standards. As if that is not enough, ignoring important scenes, the effects of low budget are obvious. For example, some scenes that we remember from the original version as funny and beautiful, in a remote drink give it a sense of childishness and genius.

Mana tests differ from other games in the genre because initially we will choose the final composition of our team. We would select three of the six heroes, the first character we choose would be our opponent and the other two would be his allies. This is just the beginning of the exciting beauty to come, a story we will write about, because depending on the characters we choose, conversations, relationships and scenes will be different.

However, without the introduction of two or maybe three characters, some are uncomfortable and may provoke an act of carelessness rather than a smile. Therefore, to test the differences between different machines, we complete prologues for each of them. We must say that no matter how hard we try, we give in to Riesz's story, whose only wish is to find his brother. Not that the reason is badly questioned, quite the opposite, but the introduction itself did not make him think other than that it was just a sweet little girl who said nothing and was less productive than looking at her big green eyes. Nowadays, the character's proximity is not a hoax and is almost insulting.

The most amazing thing is that most of the problems in the news are not due to poor specification, but to the installation and transfer of individual scenes to an entirely new engine. New types of characters are natural and man-made, but they don't fit into the dialogue or scenes, as they pretend to be the same as the original. It must have been some time when the right changes in the story suddenly made their way or when the plan cried out and there was nothing to bring it, all of a sudden a passion that just took the characters to another continent or some kind of giant turtle that decided to move across the sea on its back. Players can ignore many of these aspects of JRPG, but it's extremely difficult to ignore the equal number of amazing games and the over-compulsive (and repetitive) actions of the Trials of Mana.

Therefore, what once seemed unforgettable, today may seem like a general, descriptive or basic solution. It's a shame that the creators didn't try to introduce anything new to the game. It is clear that they are afraid to bring the adventure to the present day with something other than improving planning or graphics, and in many cases even these things are not saved.

Yes, it is clear that the six characters are very well made, and the word ends up being the top of the cake to make us reveal each character's personality and places where they are beautiful and welcoming, but it is quickly apparent that the world of Trials of Mana is, unfortunately, empty. Not even a trace of the variety of buildings was a real necessity in their day. Let's go to our destination, whether it's the associated Valsena or the port city of Beiser, they all look the same, not just the location, but the locals. It is impossible to recognize and ignore the fact that NPCs are the same and apply them everywhere, in fact, sometimes we get to see more than two equal characters together. Even the dance merchants we find in every store can be a joke to fans, but it's impossible for everyone to ignore it.

Also, we've encountered a ghost ship or desert city, the locals (and the traders, of course), the same monsters we had argued a few minutes ago. They have never even bothered to change the characters a bit, so this makes the idea of ​​traveling somewhere more stressful than emotional.

And this is not all, it's been a long time since we've seen such a small variation of enemies to deal with. Unlike Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Mana Tests did not bother to increase enemy diversity. We encounter the same monsters both on the volcanoes and on the green slopes, with no difference in color if you want to adapt to different settings, which shows that they don't care for anything more than what was strictly required.

However despite all this misdirection, Mana's experiments still have some of this … ancient magic, undeniable charm. We had an amazing time playing it, thanks to the universal combat system and the fantastic sound that, by the way, we can choose between compositions and adaptations, like in the genre of Final Fantasy X. Sometimes we couldn't decide which genre we liked best, both of them are good.

We should also highlight the exciting changes in character development, now the increase in individual features not only defines math but also affects unique abilities, and also determines the access to different spellings. While this is a nice change, it may seem like something, as it forces the player to better plan the distribution of points, and this feature has become hopeless in recent genre articles. For example, in order for a witch like Angela to be able to use fire magic, we have to plant many of the points we have lost so much to achieve them by her own power, because that is the number that was associated with fire. So, while we enjoyed planning our composition, we didn't end up loving this solution too much.

On the other hand, one of the best things that has been done was the promotion program for the heroes to reach the strongest classes, the choice of which can greatly affect the development of the game. By the time they reach the 18th grade and later 30, each character will be able to use one of the two promotions in their class tree. To make it more complicated, each of them is assigned a value, light or dark. Duran, who has quickly become our favorite, could be a glittering knight or fierce gladiator, and we had only one choice. In addition, when deciding on a new team, we have to look at the role each character plays. Fortunately there is nothing that can stop us from the experiment, so we can choose the path of light and later on into the dark side, and the result can be truly amazing.

The Trials of Mana 2020 is a game that attracts fans of veteran classics or the genre who long for the past, but especially those who are able to withstand the change and problems that, considering today's engine installation and high expectations would be better. The honest transition from the game to the modern version has its points of interest, like the elusive nostalgia that it conveys, and here informs you more than it accomplishes its purpose. However, as we travel to the new version of the Mana world we find more mistakes than we would like. In addition, when talking to today's audiences and not having a large budget, it's hard to see the positive aspects, and the fact that the combat system is not the basis for other shortcomings.

So it is clear that it is a good title, but not much. It is impossible to praise the world of Mana simply by having nostalgia, no matter how good it was. A good game like this deserves a lot of effort and dedication and, in our opinion, the result remains the best when creators have the courage to incorporate new features and work to align their work with today's target audience. By working in this way and for that purpose, players can have a chance to regain the title, even if the team runs the risk that other parts may not like it. Unfortunately, the mana tests have nothing new to offer or surprise anyone.