Legend of Mana arrives on Switch, PS4 and PC in remastered form

There's not a whole lot to Fa'Diel, but you can change that with a little adventuring.

Because Legend of Mana first arrived in North America in the year 2000, there's a fairly decent chance you never got around to playing that particular game. Now, thanks to a new remaster that arrived today on the Nintendo eShop, PlayStation Store and Steam, you'll get your chance.

Developed by Square Enix as the follow-up tot he popular Seiken Densetsu 3, which never even made it to the United States in any official capacity until Collection of Mana and the Trials of Mana remake corrected the issue during the last few years, Legend of Mana was the first game to take the series in an experimental direction. It still allowed multiple players to explore beautiful fantasy worlds, but in a less linear manner and with an art style that felt less like traditional sprites (though certainly, those were still used) and more like a painted world.

The game's plot finds players seeking out the mystical Mana Tree, but the world map is all but empty of locations to visit. They must find artifacts to place new destinations on the map, which they can then visit as part of a "Land Creation" system that allows them to (slightly) shape a new version of the world they once knew.

Legend of Mana on the newer hardware remasters the classic videos, and offers rearranged versions of selected songs such as "Hometown of Domina," while also allowing players to hear the original compositions if they prefer. New to the West is the "Ring Ring Land" mini-game, and returning are the cast of characters, egg hatching, fearsome monsters, and real-time combat you may recall if you've made a previous visit to the land of Fa'Diel.

Legend of Mana was somewhat divisive at the time of its release, but this writer believes it is still an adventure worth having. You can try it out for yourself on Switch, PlayStation 4 or Steam for $29.99 USD, and there's even a reward of ten avatars and custom themes on PlayStation 4 and Steam if you purchase the title on one of those platforms ahead of July 23.

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Staff article by Jason Venter (June 24, 2021) Jason Venter has been playing games for 30 years, since discovering the Apple IIe version of Mario Bros. in his elementary school days. Now he writes about them, here at HonestGamers and also at other sites that agree to pay him for his words.