Last night, I finally beat Secret of Mana.

**Taco-Calamitous** · 02-01-2019, 01:45 AM

...two and a half decades later, lolol. Also, it took me almost 3 months to do, from my initial start to finish... but actually, I liked it rather well. Even though most my play sessions were like a half hour to an hour at a time, and it went on the back-burner for a sizable chunk of December and January (when I went back to Oblivion and Skyrim, for whatever reasons). I always vaguely knew this was the multiplayer JRPG, though it was kinda hidden behind games like Chrono Trigger and the Final Fantasies. Way back in the day, I watched my younger cousin running around in it, talking to Santa Claus, etc. I remember there was a member on this site that had a Neko-themed avatar/sig combo, too, though I didn't know he was from this game (or was it a different FF forum? lolol...). I watched the two (short-lived) Game Grumps series of this, etc., etc.

I bought a SNES Classic some time in early November (total impulse buy), and this was the only RPG on it that I hadn't played, so yeah. It is also the only game I've spent a lot of time on on that system. I'll probably spend time on some other games now that I've beaten this, but anyway.

I really like this game's soundtrack. I dunno if it is my favorite OST for the SNES--that might either be Chrono Trigger's or Final Fantasy 6's--but is has some really good tunes, even with the limitations of the SNES's sounds. "Into the Thick of It," "Danger," Ceremony," and "The Oracle" come to mind, as far as that is concerned. They lent a good deal to the overall atmosphere of the game pretty well. There were a couple that weren't too great too, however, like the Dwarf City theme or the Mushroom City theme (whatever those were called). Also, the composer made this, apparently:

The character designs were also pretty charming. I liked all the goofy enemy mobs in this game the best, to be honest. "Water Thugs," "Duck GI's," "Chobin Hoods," etc. Most of them were totally non-threatening-looking, but oh well. The settings were also pretty cool.

So, pretty much what I'm saying is that the art direction and the sound direction were the two biggest draws for me, for this game.

I found the combat in this game to be really annoying. For a little bit, I was really annoyed by what I thought was a flawed hit detection, but in reality, was just the game rolling a 20-sided dice for me to see if I hit or not. When I realized that, I started to grind more, and that is when the game became a bit more of a chore for me to play. I spent a lot of time in the Todo Village and the surrounding area, grinding. That is one of my clearest memories of this game. That, and the Haunted Forest/Elinee's Castle, the second of which was probably my favorite area in the game. Though it was also the area that made me realize I needed to grind more. Somehow, it just felt the most nostalgic to me. I dunno.

While I rather enjoyed this game, it is no Chrono Trigger or Final Fantasy 6. I only have a vague understanding of the story--maybe because it took me so long to beat, but yeah. There were plot points brought up by characters late in the game, as if they'd been gone over before, that made me wonder whether they were covered earlier in the game, and I'd forgotten.

SPOILER!!:

On the other hand, there was apparently a lot of the game that was cut out, too, because it was originally going to be a game for the SNES CD-ROM add-on, or whatever.

This game doesn't inspire really strong emotions in me, I guess. It was fun while it lasted. It's worth playing, if you're into retro gaming at all.

**Pete** · 02-02-2019, 04:25 AM

I've wanted to give this game a try ever since I was 8 and saw either an ad or review for it in Gamepro magazine. And now I just looked up the SNES classic and have one coming by Monday. I'll let you know what I think of it.

On a similar note, I still have never beaten Landstalker for Sega Genesis. I borrowed it from a friend in something like 4th grade, got all the way to the end but never beat it before giving it back to him. Maybe a decade ago I bought a copy for myself and have been playing it off and on.

**Taco-Calamitous** · 02-02-2019, 08:09 PM

The SNES Classic has a lot of awesome games that I will probably admire as awesome and not actually play, heh... Though there's only like a handful that I haven't put significant time into. Kinda wish Chrono Trigger was on there, too (I had thought it was, for some reason).

**SuperSabin** · 02-04-2019, 08:40 PM

I love Secret of Mana, I've been a fan of it for a long time. I even went and got the PS4/PC version which I thought was great imo. They improved the hit detection so that you can actually hit the enemies especially bosses like the Gigas (which was broken for physical attacks in the original.) The remake does have a remastered soundtrack which has a lot of good songs and not so good arrangements, and it also has the option of playing with the original soundtrack and the beautiful thing about it is that the song doesn't get interrupted when you attack enemies. The only other noteworthy features about the remake are: you can up the item limit of what you have in stock or stick with the original 4 of each item, when you visit an inn you get to see conversations with the main characters related to where they are at in the story and gives more background on your party members and the characters in the story. I think I enjoy both the original and the remake the same, people knock the remake so much, but it really isn't garbage like people make it out to be.

With that said and done, I have a question for you Taco, are you interested in checking out the successor Secret of Mana 2/Seiken Densetsu 3? or no?

**Taco-Calamitous** · 02-05-2019, 01:52 AM

I'm somewhat interested. I listened to a podcast about Secret of Mana and Final Fantasy Adventure the other night, and they also mentioned Seiken Densetsu 3. They thought it was pretty good, although not as good as Secret of Mana. Sounds like there was a lot of text in that game--which is why it never got an official translation, apparently. If I ever mod my SNES Classic, I might put it on there.

**SuperSabin** · 02-05-2019, 03:06 PM

I can give you a rundown of the game if you'd like, I have modded my classic to play through the game and I have cleared it. At the start of the game, you are given the choice to pick 3 out of the 9 playable characters in the game and they each have their own job class and story arc. Depending on who you choose will determine how you will be playing through the game, where you will go, who you'll be fighting against, etc.

What makes this game unique is that when your party levels up, they will be given stat increases and you manually choose how you are going to build up your character stats at each level up. When your party gets strong enough they can undergo a class change, this is the part where Final Fantasy 1 meets the Mana series, you go before someone or something to have your party get a class change to a higher level class. Here's where it differs from FF1, the classes have a light and dark path, also they get to go an extra job class level, but that has an extra requirement - It requires an item related to the class you want to change to because initially it is sealed. Depending on how you train your party determines what kind of skills and abilities you will get. The story is pretty good for what it is, and the hit detection is better than it was in Secret of Mana.

In summary:

- Features 9 playable characters
- Secret of Mana gameplay with a job class system
- Manual stat growth for level ups
- Improved combat
- Improved visuals
- Great soundtrack
- Multiplayer is featured but is only limited to 2 players (unless you use the 3 player hack)

**avensis** · 02-13-2019, 07:26 AM

I finished it at least 3 times on snes and I even played remake. The sensations of origin are there. The 3d does not denature the remake and I find it rather successful graphically. Some of the reorchestrations of music are sublime. One regret: there are fewer tactical AI options for NPCs.

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