Trials of Mana (PS5)

If you want adventure, swords and magic with a dash of comedy? If so, Trials of Mana may be your ticket. I played this game for several weeks on stream, and honestly had a grand time doing so. Is is the perfect game, of course not, but what makes this game so special? Well, there are a few points we can look at to really flush out where I believe this game did well, as well mention things that can be improved. We will be looking at the characters with their stories, the levelings system, and the overarching connections that drive everything home. Building a balanced party was my first thought, and the game did not disappoint me. Right from the get go, it offers you a total of six choices. These choices all very in style and none really feels like the other. This helps give each character their own flair that keeps the game intriguing and fun to play as you swap characters. The game even assists the player with how the characters are stated, helping you create a party that best works for you! Here is where the stories come into play.

WIthout a doubt, Square Enix did a great job in writing the stories for each character. They all have their individual goals and wants, but know they must come together as a party. To add on to this, depending who is even in your party will affect later story points later, keeping the experience fresh after the first play through! You can mix and match the characters to come up with multiple stories, or even repeating a favorite one. Even with all the story elements, they can't go anywhere without power.

The leveling system in this game is extremely straightforward and easy to understand. Basics apply, you beat up monsters and get experience to level up. The combat style, as mentioned before, differs based on the character you decided to play but your notice the increases as your increase your stats steadily. As you get stats, you gain more abilities, and your power grows!

As we continue to look into the combat systems for this game, many mechanics can and will be recognized by many players. Common phrases fill my head, "don't stand in the red" being the obvious stand out. Enemies give you their tells of where they are going to attack, allowing the player to take advantage of it and react accordingly. Each monster has their own unique abilities that they do, and you as the player learn from the encounters and find ways to deal with them accordingly. You sure you want to keep slashing at that flying enemy? Why not just use a quick spell and bring him to your swordsman instead? Simple, and effective! That leads us to the abilities each character can use.

As mentioned, the stats control your characters growth and abilities. The more you progress, the more abilities arrive at your fingertips. Pick the stats you want and get those abilities that match your style! The higher level you are, the more abilities you can learn and equip at once per character! From little things like increasing your health, magic and luck, the combination of abilities is vast. Here is where the game is truly wonderful. Did you pick a stat tree you didn't want? No biggie, you can easily just pay for a quick re-spec in the Night Market! Money is available to find, and shouldn't be much of an issue of the player feels they made an error. So level up and play with your stats to find the combination that works with your play style. However, what good is your character without a vast world to explore?

This world is massive, and the locations are unique and nostalgic. The magician kingdom of Altena, the plains of Valsena, and the Holy City of Wendel are three such places the character will become familiar with in one way or another. Even as the lands exist, problems arise for each nation and must deal with the actions of the others. It brings each story to an interesting direction that continues to intrigue.

How much the stories of this game intercept each other is wonderfully balanced. You can see how each story will change based on your party! I had a grand time knowing with my party consisting of Duran and Angela, their fates were closely connected as their kingdoms had.... issues. It created a unique drama to my playthrough, as Duran shows a hatred of mages early on, but grows to trust Angela as his comrade. The story combinations continued to keep me entertained. It doesn't end here though, as the stories continue.

If you find yourself finishing the game, you will also find you indeed haven't finished it. This is where the game got me, seeing as I played the game live on stream, but not after the credits rolled. The game calls you back for more, and I loved it! I now had new reason to go into the world some more and see things that I may have passed on before. It was truly worth having more of a story to keep you invested in your characters as their grow! After all this, what can be said on the negative side?

The end game seems to be the issue I ran into the most of this game. The story is finished, I want the best gear, so I grind for hours hoping for the right drops, and then for the right item to appear from that random drop. Yup, relying on the old random selection process bums me out a bit. Giving me more access to ultimate weapons via a quest wouldn't have been too much of an issue, but I honestly feel like I am nit picking at this point. It's not a bad thing for this game that the gear grinding is the down point, in fact it is down right amazing.

This game had me amazed from beginning to end. I loved my story line that Duran, Angela and Charlotte led me through, and would gladly (and have) play it again! From meeting all the characters, the amazing styles for all of them (shout out chicken turtle, Vuscav!) kept me smiling and playing. If you want a fun game to play, this one has all the trademarks of fun. Give it a whirl!

OG Post Date: August 10th 2024 on Discord: LuckyLounge