Manapiece Theatre 04: Legend of Mana

Folks, it’s one of the good ones! But that is impossible to convey in a two-hour stream, so just trust me on that one…

Legend of Mana
Aka Seiken Densetsu: Legend of Mana
1999/2000
Sony Playstation
(2021 Playstation 4 edition for the stream)

What’s the story?
A solid 900 years ago, the Mana Tree burned down to ash. This led to a mighty dramatic resource war, and the ultimate result was that what could be considered “the world” was bubbled into a collection of artifacts that maybe some intrepid ActRaiser would revisit later. And you are that raiser of acts! Put the world back together as you see fit!

Who are the baddies?
Like Trials of Mana, there are three distinct branches available with their own villains. Or… well… “Villains” is a bit harsh, as at least one of these branches is a love story where “society” is the ultimate baddy for everybody. But one arc has an evil dragon, so he is definitely the bad guy that time. Anyway, assuming you do not mess up your artifact placement, all stories eventually lead to the titular “Legend of Mana”, and your final antagonist is revealed to be a Mana Goddess that is not living up to her job title. Fighting and destroying god? In a game from the SaGa folks? You don’t say!

What is the Mana Sword?
The Mana Sword is an artifact that unlocks (revives?) access to the Mana Tree. This makes it simultaneously the most important thing in the world, and also just about as inconsequential as a wagon wheel.

How does it play?
Weird! Combat is getting closer to straightforward, but still feels clunky and curiously stilted. More importantly, Legend of Mana puts a significant emphasis on forward thinking in and out of combat, so your main sources of worry will not be a Mantis Ant, but if you are placing the right artifact where to properly follow the story. It can get stressful! And remember to be prescient and pick the right limit breaks ahead of boss battles!

Is it pretty?
At a time when everything was drifting into polygon land, Legend of Mana set the standard for what could be beautiful on the little Station that could. Well, Legend of Mana and Chrono Cross. It was a good summer for bizarre, beautiful games!

What is Magic?
You have to worry about spirits and their relationships with the days of the week while placing artifacts. Other than that, most of what would be considered “magic” is relegated to Special Techs that are weapon-based.

What’s Watts?
For a change of pace, Watts is a younger dwarf that (still) ventures around mines and whatnot. It is assumed his appearance is optional (as about 90% of this game could be accidentally avoided), but he is worth pursuing, as he teaches the player how to blacksmith. It is remarkable that this Watts is a teacher, as he is otherwise portrayed as a bumbling idiot.

Are there Duck Soldiers?
This is the first time we see some on the stream! They are patrolling the desert, and they are fabulous.

What makes it good?
This is a legendary game for taking the experimental nature of the Mana series to its absolute apex. Nerds are still standing in awe of the variety and care that went into building a world from scratch and then exploring the hell out of it. When Secret of Mana first advertised “a different adventure every time”, it was imagining its future little brother. That said…

What makes it bad?
Experimentation can also lead to failure. It is entirely possible to play Legend of Mana wrong, and sink hours into a “world” that eventually does not reach its conclusion. Assuming the player is aware of this issue, this can precede an overwhelming feeling of FOMO, and may lead to liberally abusing strategy guides or FAQs. Not that I am speaking from personal experience or anything…

Anything else?
Legend of Mana contains a two-player mode where random “sidekick” characters can be controlled by a second player. There is also a complicated option involving juggling memory cards wherein a second player can import their hero to help or fight in an arena. One must assume the Mana franchise had become synonymous with multiplayer at this point, and such an addition to an otherwise solitary legend was mandated.

Even Worse Streams Presents The Mana Franchise
Night 4
Legend of Mana

October 8, 2024

Random Notes:

• Legend of Mana, it’s better than getting shot in the head! Enjoy the impact with BEAT, fanboymaster, Cassandralyn, Caithness, and Chromes. Do I even need to mention that I am the one playing?
• Welcome to an empty world, Cronch Wrap!
• Which YouTube personalities do you think you could trick into getting stuck in a mailbox? BEAT still has a list.
• How quickly will a random nerd at a Jonathan Coulton concert tell you about his Dungeons & Dragons campaign? The answer may shock you.
• Ample Vigour joins as I am still attempting to find the first artifact to get this plot going.
• “You Fantasy Tactics people are fine… You can get married and everything… I just don’t want you teaching in my schools.”
• As we race around a bunny in the jungle, BEAT is willing to say Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within is better than Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. I can see it…
• Ample Vigour has added “dreadful” to his vocabulary entirely thanks to fanboymaster.
• “I do enjoy boobs. These boobs were… perfect?”
• As we fight Du’Cate (not to be confused with Du’Inke, who will not be appearing in this stream), fanboymaster notes the aesthetic of Legend of Mana is “unimpeachable.” Completely correct. No notes.
• While we wander the desert (and find those ducks!), a discussion on the nature of limitations in art leads to lamenting Megalopolis and The Thief and the Cobbler. “Masterpiece” doesn’t mean what you think!
• The desert’s Axebeaks have been conquered! Now let us never think of the Achewood animated pilot ever again.
• As we enter a holy murder mystery, it is time for Even Worse Streams to dispense hurricane preparedness tips. Obviously.
• And we wrap up after a quick look at Powerup Comics. Now we shall never revisit this Legend of Mana save file ever again! Goodbye world!

Next time on Manapiece Theatre: Sword is an s-word.