Can you remember Legend of Mana, the classic RPG Playstation 1 game released in 1999 by Square Enix? It sold incredibly well, with sales hitting almost 500,000 units in its first week, so you should!
Well, in today’s Nintendo Direct, it has been announced that Legend Of Mana is coming to the much beloved Nintendo Switch.
Legend Of Mana Switch is based on the fourth game in the Mana series, following Trials of Mana from 1995. It’s set in a fantasy world where the game follows an unnamed hero as they restore the land of Fa’Diel. The goal is to restore the Tree of Mana by completing a number of quests across the world.
The pixelated action RPG game is a nostalgic hit for retro gamers, and the real-time battles and modern touch with the Joy-Cons should get Legend of Mana fans very excited.
One of the most memorable parts of Legend of Mana was the fact that you could follow the story in a non-linear fashion by finding artefacts and placing them randomly onto a map to “unlock” that section. The section you chose can now be explored to find even more artefacts.
The more artefacts you find, the more you can explore in order to restore the Tree of Mana. This exploration mode is called the “Land Make system”, it lets players do what they want instead of concentrating on a strong storyline.
Throughout your journey through the world you will come across puzzles, quests and fearsome monsters for you to overcome. It uses a top down perspective with sprites as characters, giving it that “old school” look.
Your are assisted by two companions, one being a support character and the other a pet, or some kind of monster/golem that helps you on your adventure.
The graphic design is incredibly nostalgic too. It has vibrant and colourful hand-drawn graphics that remind us of the typical best 90s games.
What’s New To Legend Of Mana?
The Legend Of Mana Switch port comes with a handful of new features that will add ease to the game alongside some features that are just a nice addition.
For example, the new Legend of Mana Switch game features new and old soundtracks that you can actually turn on and off in game. This looks as if it can be accessed in the options and with a simple click you can alternate between “arrange versions” and “original versions”.
This a neat feature that pays respect too old and new music artists within the game. A very nice touch indeed.
Another couple of features which has been added are an “encounter switch”. This again is in the settings and allows you to turn on or off enemy encounters letting your move through the game without being picked on all the time.
We’re not sure why you’d turn this off, perhaps you like to speed run through your games, but it’s been added for a reason, so perhaps many of you will use it!
Lastly, a new mini game has been added called “Ring Ring Land”, it looks as if it’s a jumping game inside of a virtual Tamagotchi? We’re not entirely sure what it does, or what rewards you get from it but its another nice feature to add for those who love the series.
Legend Of Mana Switch Release Date
Legend Of Mana Switch edition will be releasing in stores and on the Nintendo Switch Store on June 24th 2021, so not long at all! it’s one of the best PS1 games out there and if some of you at there like playing the best PS1 RPGs then this is a must have!
What’s your thoughts on this? Is this is a game you want to see, or would you of preferred a brand new remake for the Nintendo Switch? Let us know over on twitter @retro_dodo, we’d love to hear your thoughts!
A 29 year old fella that’s had a Gameboy addiction ever since he was a child. Brandon is the founder of RetroDodo and created a YouTube channel with 240,000 subscribers dedicated to retro gaming products. He now wants to create the No.1 site to showcase the latest retro products from around the globe.
