Trials of Mana Video Review
The last Mana remake left our expectations for the newest installment low, but after playing through the game, we can say that Trials of Mana has been a rather pleasant surprise. Many of the shackles tethered to the previous entry have been removed. We may still be working with paper-thin characters and six disparate stories, but the mechanical end of things is sound. If nothing else, this remake has succeeded in reviving our interest in the overall Mana franchise. To see our full video review of Trials of Mana, just hit play on the video below.
The disparaging comments made about the paper-thin characters and disconnected narrative in Trials of Mana are sadly warranted. Side characters are thrown at you constantly, only to disappear in under three minutes.There’s a long list of villains who serve no clear purpose. Several of them kill each other at the halfway point for… reasons? They literally drop in at the end of most dungeons, declare themselves to be super evil, and vanish. It is truly baffling. Thankfully, the combat is smashing good fun.
Every Mana game after Secret of Mana has felt diminished, by comparison. Time has revealed even that gem’s numerous flaws, but there’s still a bar that’s been set. Trials of Mana reaches for that bar, perhaps even grasping it. The graphics are lovely, the music is compelling, and the combat is engaging. It’s a weird, beautiful action RPG with enough hooks to keep you on the wire to the very end. The story may be wafer thin, the characters might be flat, and their dialogue might be clumsy, but the core remains intact. Whether you’ve played the original or not, Trials of Mana should be on your ARPG radar.
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