In 1999, Square Enix (then still Squaresoft) released Legend of Mana, the first spinoff of the Mana series (known as Seiken Densetsu in Japan) line of games. At the time, it was a strange beast. It’s a two-dimensional RPG released for the original PlayStation when Sony was pushing polygons hard. Despite having series creator Koichi Ishii as director, it’s a game that bears many of the signature design elements of its producer, SaGa series creator Akitoshi Kawazu. Those hallmarks include stat and skill leveling based on usage, nonlinear storytelling, and open-world exploration. More than two decades later, M2 has remastered the game for re-release on modern consoles. While it’s a stellar port that allows the game’s gorgeous sprites and Yoko Shimomura’s lovely score to shine, Legend of Mana remains an experience marred by shallow core gameplay and too many superfluous, tedious subsystems.
