So I think its time for a review of this classic since an awesome friend of mine (her name is Meredith! She is great) got this for me for Christmas, box and strategy guide and all, because it was time to play and own this masterpiece again. This was a game that came right out of left field when it first hit the super nintendo scene of October 1993 (thank you wikipedia for the actual date!). Yeah we had already been blown away by Final Fantasy II, and Final Fantasy III would be about another 8 months away. But in the meantime, we got this gem. This was an action adventure game that was kind of like a Zelda game in that you had a top down view where you controlled your characters and hacked up enemies on screen without any menus to get in the way like Final Fantasy games, but it had a lot of other novel ideas as well. In particular, you would be using a lot more than just a sword in this one. You had eight different weapon varities to switch between eventually - a whip, an axe, a spear, and even some good ol fashioned brass knuckles for some punchin. It also had an awesome upgrade system that definitely made you feel accomplished every time that you kicked a bosses' ass. And there were ALOT of bosses in this game, and the length was nothing to laugh at either. I'm getting off track here, so we'll start where we usually do: with the graphics and sound.
First of all, lets remember that this was 1993. Thats SIXTEEN years ago, which is messed up and makes me feel old as hell. Perhaps because I am. But anyways, this game was gorgeous, colorful and lush then, and you know what? It still is today. This game pushed the Super Nintendo's color palatte to the maximum, and had even better graphics than Final Fantasy III in my opinion. Just because it was so different. Yeah it's all just a bunch of pixels and sprites and we've come a very, very long way since then (see the new Call of Duty game or Uncharted 2 for a fine example), but still, for the time, this was some ground breaking stuff. However, you can't talk about Secret of Mana, without talking about the soundtrack. The soundtrack to this game is so incredible and well done, that they still sell the freaking cd of it on amazon.com. To this day. See? I still get the amazing flute jams from the main overworld in my head often. I hum them in my head or sometimes randomly when I'm doing something. Whoever composed all of this was a damn genius. A GENIUS I say! It melds perfectly with the game world and what happens, the perfect music for exploring a large unfamiliar world. It's sinister when it needs to be. It's sad when it needs to be. Everything works on the soundtrack, and while some may laugh at the graphics if they grew up in this fancy new HD era, no one will ever have anything bad to say about the soundtrack. Some of the songs are still on my Ipod, and I'd love to see them performed by a symphony some day, just like I did with the Final Fantasy jams a few years ago (by the way that was also incredible).
So ok, I've gushed about the graphics and the sound already, but those don't (entirely) make a game, of course. What about the gameplay? Well, it was completely novel for the time, and frankly, they never really replicated enough after this game was made, either. They made a sequel to this, which any good gamer probably knows, but it was Japanese only. You can find it emulated and translated online now if you ever want to check it out, and you should, because its just as good as this one. But the Mana name has continued on, and to be honest, none of them have ever lived up to this classic. Legend of Mana was the follow up on the Playstation, and while it has somewhat similar gameplay, it tries to introduce too many dumb new ideas that just didn't work. There was Children of Mana which was a remake of the first version of this game (Secret of Mana was actually part 2 in the trilogy) on the DS, and that's worth playing, if a little repetitive. Which is possibly the only complaint about Secret of Mana - it DOES get a little repetitive. You start with just your nameless boy character that you can name whatever you want, I recommend a name to strike fear in the hearts of your enemies, such as JEFF (read the instruction book to get this, it seriously says that - to come up with a fearsome name, and in the picture, he is named JEFF. In all caps! How OMINOUS!), and you later take on a cute girl, who basically becomes your defensive magician/healer, and then a goofy looking sprite kid, who is your black mage/attack magic guy (er...thing). Heres another area where this game shines....it can be played with two other people. This was another novel idea for the time, where multiplayer games hadn't really taken off. You had to have a multi-tap adapter to get three people on the game, but it was worth it if you had the extra cash. This game is a blast with two other people casting your backup spells and wasting stuff along side you, and definitely helps out with the sometimes shoddy AI of the two characters that follow you around (this WAS 1993, after all). So yeah, the gameplay is just as great and memorable as the graphics and sound, it wouldn't be in the classic games section if it wasn't.
Look at the pretty colors! Oh and theres that queer little cat that follows your team around and shows up at odd places throughout the game, his name is Neko, and he sells you overpriced stuff. Stupid cat. But yeah, so gameplay, music, graphics, all spot on. How about the story? Well, it might not be quite as memorable as all those other good things, but thats partially cuz it was 1993 and we didn't have the people that put all the care into translating and story that we did now. It's the standard issue orphan boy is brought up in a small town, does something bad, gets outcast and has to set on his own to save the world story. You know, that old chestnut. However, it was sixteen years ago, and that story wasn't quite as cliched in video games as it is today (still cliched in fantasy books, though). It works for the story, and that cute blonde girl is a little hung up on her stupid boyfriend (the dudes name is DYLUCK, for gods sake. DYLUCK, really? If that doesn't scream tool, I don't know what does) who gets all sorts of possessed in some parts, and the sprite doesn't really do much of...well, anything, except sling sweet spells at people. But it'll hold your interest and there are some pretty cool moments and some moving ones too, although thats partially due to the incredible soundtrack.So where else to go with this? This game has made the top 100 games of all time list time and time again, and with good reason. I'd put it in my top 20, easily - maybe even back in the top 10 after I play through it again for Christmas. It's still an awesome multi-player experience, you will remember the music for the rest of your life, and the bottom line is, they just don't make games like this anymore. They really don't. The Mana name continues on but nothing has ever even come close to matching this one in quality. The good news you can download this bad devil for 8 bucks on the wii if you want. Cost you about 30 or 40 otherwise if you are a purist like me and want to play it on Super Nintendo again. For 8 bucks you are silly not to own this immediately on the wii. Thats how much some fat people will spend at Arbys for lunch. You could be playing a masterpiece just for that. Anyone who calls themself a gamer owes it to themself to play through this game, its still talked about today for a reason, and like a great painting or memorable book, it will stand the test of time. Play it.
Keep in mind with my scores we are talking about in context to 1993 - except for the sound, which was a 10 then and is a 10 today.
Graphics - 9/10. Colorful, vibrant, incredible. There were a few hiccups and some slow down when too much stuff is on the screen, but overall some of the images will stick with you forever. Some of the palattes are swapped a few too many times, but it doesn't matter much, still a beautiful game.
Sound - 10/10. A 15/10 even. Incredible. Memorable. One of the best things ever done in a video game, even still to this day.
Challenge - 8/10. It's pretty tough in some parts, but nothing that will make you toss your controller. It's easier with two people to do all the spell slangin of course, but its functional with one player as well and you'll be having a blast the whole time, even if you do get smoked by a couple of bosses along the way (and you will).
Fun - 10/10. A great action game, everything works perfectly and the sense of achievement works perfectly because you are always getting sweet new weapons and upgradges.
Overall - 10/10. Its a masterpiece. It wouldn't belong in my classic reviews section if it wasn't. Anyone who has been a gamer for more than a couple years owes it to themselves to play it. Dust off your stupid wii and download this for a reason to actually turn it on once in a while, or if you are purist, get the super nintendo version. Even the cover on the game is pretty!
No comments:
Post a Comment