The Wonder Years 11.22.07: Week 31 - Secret of Mana
Posted by Owain J. Brimfield on 11.22.2007
A classic that wasn't as secretive as its title suggests.
Welcome to the column where all gamers of a certain age come to wallow in 16-bit nostalgia. I'm your host, Owain J. Brimfield, and I'll be discussing some of the hidden gems and instant classics of gaming's golden era. Some of these games may crop up on the Wii's Virtual Console at some point, some may be consigned to the annals of history. Either way, they're worth tracking down if you missed them first time round, or replaying if you were lucky enough to catch them. Let's take a trip to:
SECRET OF MANA
(Square, Super NES, 1993)
It seems to have become a tradition (if by tradition I mean it's happened three times) that every column for a week ending in a '1' features a true classic of the 16-bit era. So far we've had Super Mario All-Stars, Worms and Chrono Trigger filling those gaps, and this week that elite bunch is joined by that game whose title screen you see just up there. Although the Mana series has come to more prominence in recent years thanks to titles like Sword, Children and Dawn on the Playstation and Nintendo DS, back in the early 90s Secret of Mana was the first taste we westerners were allowed of Koichi Ishii's legendary franchise. Well, it wasn't legendary at that point, but thanks in no small part to Secret, it certainly would become so. One of the foremost action-RPGs of the Wonder Years, let's take a look at what made the game so special.
Following on from Final Fantasy Gaiden on the Gameboy, Secret was the first step into a fully fresh RPG world by Square. Focusing on a triumvirate of nameless heroes, the story goes that the evil Empire (it's always the bloody Empire) is seeking to discover the ancient Mana Fortress, which will disrupt the balance of Mana, the lifeforce that glues everything together. Our protagonist, the boy (named Randi in the Japanese version, but that's way too embarrassing a name for a true hero), discovers the equally ancient Mana Sword by accident, and must embark on a quest to seal the eight Mana Seeds around the globe to prevent evil forces from disrupting the world. Okay, it's been a while since I last played through the game, and I'm a bit hazy on the details. It is genuinely intriguing, though, that the game is absent a central villain like a Kefka or a Lavos, and that the plot has heavily naturalistic overtones - it certainly opens up the individual storylines of the three central characters for further exploration.
Secret plays a lot more like the Zelda series than a traditional RPG, with battles occurring in real time and all the action happening from the standard top-down viewpoint. The menu system, though, is a lot more influenced by the usual tenets of the genre, with items, spells and weapons to be discovered and levels to be gained. It's a nice mix, allowing the game to maintain a pace that at times feels almost arcade, while never losing the depth it requires. The addition of a character switching mechanism means that any of three main characters can be selected on the fly, without the need to delve into a series of menus. It also allows up to three people to control the action simultaneously, which can be a wonderful experience if you have two like-minded friends and get as annoyed as I do when one of the AI sprites lodges itself behind a rock and refuses to come unstuck.
The game's primary innovation is the 'ring' menu system that takes over from the more typical pause/select stuff/go through several menus approach. The characters each have a separate ring menu for weapons, items and configuration, with the girl and the sprite each having a fourth ring for magic. Weapons themselves come in one of eight flavors (from the more prosaic like swords and axes, to the more idiosyncratic like boomerangs and javelins), and can be upgraded through eight levels by collecting the requisite power orbs and passing them on to Watts, the friendly dwarven blacksmith. Magic, too, comes in eight different elemental categories and gains power through use, up to the all-powerful level 8:99. You have to wonder what caused all this octophilia on Square's behalf. The kicker is that all of these things, spells, weapons and items, can be chosen on the fly, which was probably the first time in a 16-bit RPG that resource management could be called 'frantic'.
From a technical perspective, Secret is pretty damn impressive. The graphics are some of the most colorful seen on the console, and the Mode-7 dragon flying sections are a joy to behold (even if the rotatable 3D globe looks pretty messed-up). Some of the vistas on display, such as the first sighting of the Mana Tree, are as inspiring a scene as any I can remember from the early-to-mid 90s. There're also a few high-resolution moments, a rarity on the Super NES (512 x 224 as opposed to the more usual 256 x 224, I believe) that makes up for the fact that a large chunk of the Japanese original's text was missed out during a rushed English translation process. The soundtrack, as typical of Square games, is absolutely sublime, heavily influenced by woodwind. It's worth tracking down a copy of the official CD soundtrack if you get the chance, which features around an hour's worth of material.
Although the game itself can be criticized for being too easy in parts, and for the implementation of some dubious AI, it's still undoubtedly one of the epic-er games you'll ever have the fortune of playing. The quest itself can start to drag near the conclusion, at least if you're an RPG newbie and have taken a fair amount of time to get through the game, but the pure gameplay experience makes up for anything lacking. It's one of the most instantly accessible games that can still call itself an RPG, and yet for that isn't lacking any depth. Although not yet confirmed for the Virtual Console, this would surely have to be at the top of Square's priority list, as they have announced their support for the service. Given that Secret of Mana is one of their top-selling games it should, in theory, be made available at some point down the line. In the meantime, copies of the cartridge regularly change hands in second-hand shops and online for prices in the region of £50, which is arguably still a worthwhile price. If you've played any of the more recent Mana sequels and enjoyed them, then make sure to track down a copy of their grandaddy, indisputably the best game in the series.
Secret of Mana trivia
The game was originally developed as a CD-based title for the mooted Super NES CD drive that would later become the Playstation.
The original Japanese title, Seiken Densetsu, translates roughly (and aptly) as 'Legend of the Holy Sword'.
The game has twice been voted in the top 50 in IGN's Top 100 Games.
Secret of Mana is number 15 in my official all-time Top 100 games, which is perhaps slightly less of an achievement overall.
Reactions and interactions
A mistake from last week to correct, courtesy of Craig:
From: Craig McNicoll Subject: Batman and the Mad Hatter
"Why would Batman be fighting the Mad Hatter?
Because the Mad Hatter is also the name of a Batman villain, a looney tunes who's real name is Jervis Tetch. Noted for mind controlling headgear and a notable preference for Alice themed henchpersons on occassion."
Well, egg on my face. I never knew that! In my defense though I never professed to be a fan of the comic books... Still, more research required next time I ask a silly question, methinks.
The Videosphere
Let's take a look at this week's video highlight. To celebrate the revealing of more details on Mario Kart Wii, does anyone remember those old Mario Kart 64 radio controlled racers? Man, they were awesome. Here's some guy using Yoshi to the best possible effect, terrorizing his cat. Marvellous.
General indulgences
Every week in this section I'll endeavour to provide you, the faithful readers, with a fascinating insight into the various forms of entertainment currently dominating my spare time.
This week, I have been mostly enjoying:
Super Mario World, which has become my girlfriend's game of choice since she rediscovered the Super NES a few days ago. She's pretty good too, although it's sadly not one of the very few games where you can have just as much fun watching someone else play.
Super Colossal by Joe Satriani, which has a few too many ballads on it for my taste, but still finds itself in the upper half of his albums. I think. Maybe a few more listens required.
Jackie Chan, as one of my friends seems to own every single one of his DVDs. So far, we've determined that Project A is good while Armour of God is bad. Up next: Wheels on Meals, possibly.
and dogs, the one which I own being apparently the most allergic dog the world ever did see. Thank goodness for insurance. What's that? The vet only ever charges us an amount less than the excess on the policy? Hmmm.
And finally…
As always, reader feedback and suggestions are welcome, I respond to everything so just drop me a line. You can also check out my science fiction column "The Flux Capacitor" over at 411 Movies. Next week in "The Wonder Years" - the goofiest game ever. Until then - keep it real, keep it retro.
