After more than 15 years, Visions of Mana is finally being released, a new main part of the popular JRPG series. MeinMMO author Fabienne Kissel had the opportunity to play the game in advance and was immediately impressed.
Square Enix’s Mana series started in 1991 with Final Fantasy Adventure, known in Germany as Mystic Quest. The series’ biggest success, Secret of Mana, was released in 1993 for the SNES.
Now, with Visions of Mana, a completely new spin-off for stationary consoles is ready to be released for the first time since Dawn of Mana in 2006. In the years in between, there were only remakes, such as Trials of Mana, and mobile versions for smartphones and Nintendo handhelds.
Who writes here? Fabienne is a passionate MMORPG player who has found her home in Final Fantasy XIV in particular. She also enjoys co-op games, roguelikes and MOBAs. Although she is not usually a fan of single-player games, she was particularly excited about this RPG.
You can see what awaits you in Visions of Mana in this trailer:
Visions of Mana shows gameplay in trailer
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Warning spoilers: The following article reveals details about the story and gameplay of Visions of Mana.
Do I need to know the previous parts? In Visions of Mana you immerse yourself in a completely new world with fresh characters and a new story. So you don’t need any prior knowledge of the previous parts.
In my opinion, the game is also particularly beginner-friendly, as it explains everything you need to know in detail. With a manual, a dictionary and a diary, you can always read what has happened so far and familiarize yourself with the game mechanics and the world in more detail.
You can also choose from different difficulty levels, including one for beginners or for those who want to focus more on the story than on the combat. Or you can play the hardest mode if the combat is too easy for you. You can adjust the difficulty level at any time in the game.
A pilgrimage to the Mana Tree
What is Visions of Mana about? In Visions of Mana, we play as the young warrior Val, who accompanies his childhood friend, Hina. Hina has been named a priestess of the Fire Village by the messenger of the Mana Goddess (a fairy) and the elemental spirit of fire – an honor considered the highest among mortals.
Mana is the source of all life in the world. The initiates are destined to sacrifice their souls to the Mana Tree in order to preserve the delicate balance of the Mana and protect their homeland from impending doom.
Val, who was chosen as the soul guardian, is obliged to accompany and protect Hina and all other initiates on their dangerous journey. The initiates are chosen every four years in all regions of the world by their elemental spirits and the fairy to embark on the journey to the Mana Tree together with the soul guardian.
This pilgrimage takes us through lively, spacious and semi-open areas populated by enemies that are so cute you almost don’t want to kill them. During their journey, Val and Hina meet various characters who join their group.
And I fell in love with one of them as a FFXIV player immediately in love.
Here I can also play a dancer, how cool is that!
Why do I like them so much? Carina is the first companion we meet. She is a dragon girl and has an incredibly cheeky and spirited nature. She also has an animal fighting at her side!
But there is another reason why I find them so cool.
The picture doesn’t show her in her original model. Thanks to a class system, you can unlock different classes, including the dancer for Carina. Ahhhh!
When I saw Carina transform into this dancer, who looks and moves so similar to my main character, the dancer from Final Fantasy XIV, I was immediately thrilled. From that moment on, I was simply blown away.
Since then, I’ve been fighting nonstop with her as the main character in my group – sorry, Val, you’ll have to take a step back now.
The combat system: varied and fun
What kind of class system is this? First, let’s take a look at the basics of Visions of Mana’s action combat system: It includes basic and special attacks, an evasion function, and you can also attack while jumping. Some enemy projectiles can be countered.
Overall, the fights feel fast, action-packed and fluid.
The ring menu allows you to use skills and items during combat. You can also assign these as shortcuts. You can switch back and forth between your characters in the group at the touch of a button.
In addition, you have a kind of limit break as a group. The bar (KA bar) for this fills up when you or your allies take damage in battle or cause damage. There is only one bar that all fellow riders share and that can be used for a powerful class attack. Each class attack belongs to an element.
Using so-called skill seeds, you can assign skills (techniques) to your characters that consume mana (MP). They grant different effects, passive or active. There are a lot of techniques that you can use. Each character can create a maximum of two skill seeds.
So far so good.
During your adventure, you will find so-called spirit relics, which are equipped with various elements such as wind. With these relics, you can unlock and change classes for your characters. They also help you outside of combat.
New gameplay possibilities
Each class brings its own unlockable abilities, a new outfit, and altered gameplay in combat.
In addition, each class has a unique, strong class attack, which is basically the limit break that I described above. Carina’s attack as a dancer somehow reminds me of Avatar Kyoshi from Avatar – The Last Airbender. Be sure to try it out!
If you give the relic to someone else, that character will transform into a completely different class with their own abilities and combos. Each relic can only be used by one character at a time. Each character can only use one at a time.
Every time I got a new relic, I immediately equipped it to each character one after the other. It was always exciting to see in the cutscenes which new classes I had unlocked as a result.
The whole system provides variety and strategic thinking. You have so many options – just try and see what suits you best.
First conclusion on Visions of Mana
What I love about Visions of Mana is the wonderful mix of charm and attention to detail. The fairytale graphic style is reminiscent of Dragon Quest XI. The individual areas are separated by loading times, but the detailed environment makes up for this.
The world is full of lovingly designed details, like the cute animals that are everywhere – especially lots of cats!
There are small jumping puzzles and other interactive possibilities that lead to loot.
And the urge to explore is definitely not neglected.
I once explored so extensively that I found an item that was intended for a character I didn’t even have in my party – oops!
Great characters and touching story
The small dialogues between the characters in the game and the music add to the atmosphere and give a special depth. The characters also don’t take each other too seriously, which leads to funny moments – as their relationship deepens.
Overall, the story has touched me quite a bit so far.
Even the NPCs who don’t offer quests provide interesting insights into the hopes, worries and stories of the villages and their inhabitants. Sometimes there are also personal dramas or just funny anecdotes. It’s definitely worth talking to them.
So far I have only noticed two small negative points: The characters’ faces hardly show any different facial expressions, which is probably part of the style of the game. Also, I haven’t been able to enter any of the houses in the world yet.
However, these are minor details and really high-level criticism. As a player of Baldur’s Gate 3 and as a FFXIV raider, I find this more leisurely RPG a refreshing change.
I love the game and it looks like it will be one of my big highlights of 2024.
I’m looking forward to exploring the world even more, getting to know new characters and learning more about the story. I’m also excited to see what classes, bosses and things are still waiting for me. Can’t wait any longer? Then you can currently play the free demo of Visions of Mana and get a taste of the RPG.