Details Title:
Platform:
Release Date:
Genre:
Pros:
Cons:Trials of Mana
Super Nintendo, Nintendo Switch
SNES - September 30, 1995 (JP)
Switch - June 1, 2017 (JP)
Switch- June 11, 2019 (Global)
RPG
Impressive graphics for a SNES game, six characters to choose from, two player capability.
Class changing system could be a little more flexible, in game sounds could do with slight improvement.
Other Information
- Until 2019, this game was a Japan only release. In 1999, Neill Corlett and his team released an unofficial patch (version 1.0) that translated the game into English. In 2000, he released version 1.01 to address issues encountered in version 1.0. Further information can be found on his website here.
- In 2019, this game finally saw an official English release on the Nintendo Switch.
Review The power of the Mana Tree is weakening, meaning the Benevodons sealed within the eight Mana stones will be released to reclaim the world. Some individuals use this as an oppurtunity to release the power of the stones, and seize the Sword of Mana, which grants them the power to re-shape the world as they want. However, other individuals see the Sword of Mana as their only hope.
For what was originally a Super Nintendo game, the graphics of Trials of Mana are some of the best I've ever seen on the console. It really does show the true capabilities of what the Super Nintendo could do. Scenes and characters look remarkably detailed, and even the bosses look most impressive. It even uses the ideas of day and night, and you can see how day will gradually turn to evening, before turning to night over a period of minutes.
The music is pretty good also, and it's clearly suitable for each area that you travel to. Whether it has what I could only best describe oriental feel in Altena, or the holy-like music being played in the Sanctuary of Mana. The boss music that goes along with battles suits the feel of the game too - some ranging to fast-paced all the way to what I would describe as "evil."
As for in-game sounds, they're generally ok. Some could've been improved, and it could've done with a few more sounds. But that aside, the sound effects are not a major flaw to the game.The gameplay I found was a lot better than Secret of Mana's. The levelling up concept was improved over Trials of Mana's predecessor. Instead of having to level up every weapon and spell, which I thought was tedious and time consuming (though some may disagree), you only have to level up your characters, and select an attribute to increase. Depending on the attribute increased, you may learn a new spell. Also, each character has a special attack, and rather than having to manually charge up the attack like Secret of Mana, it slowly builds up as you land hits on the enemy. Once built up, you press a separate button to activate it. Later on, you can increase the gauge up to level-3 where it will not only do more damage, but some will affect all enemies on the screen.
Also, you have the ability to change the class of your characters, where you undergo a transformation to become a more powerful character. The alignment you choose (light or dark) reflects the new type of spells you learn. The major downside to the class change system, is that once you've changed classes, you cannot change back if you do not like the class you've chosen.In terms of gameplay time, I finished this game in around 30 hours on my first playthrough - though admittedly, I didn't pick a beginner-friendly party at that time. However, as you have a choice of six characters to form a three-man party, you can have various character combinations (or even use the same characters but with different class types) whether it be an all out physical beat-down party, or a heavily magic-oriented party to name a few examples. Also, depending on the composition of your party, you can end up with different character plots, and even fighting different bosses on some portions of your quest, including different final bosses.
I really enjoyed this game. For those that have played Secret of Mana, or are in to RPGs, I suggest giving this a try, especially as it is now available on the Nintendo Switch. Since this game doesn't rely on knowledge of any previous Mana games, it's relatively easy to play and understand.