Mana (series)
In 1987, Square sent a letter to customers who had placed pre-orders for an ambitious Famicom Disk System project titled The Emergence of Excalibur. The letter informed them that management had canceled the game before it advanced beyond early planning stages and refunded their purchases. This abandoned project used the Seiken Densetsu trademark, which Square had registered in 1989. Four years later, in 1991, Square reused that same trademark for a completely different Game Boy action role-playing game directed by Koichi Ishii. Originally developed under the title Gemma Knights, this new game was renamed Seiken Densetsu: Final Fantasy Gaiden for its North American release as Final Fantasy Adventure. It began as a side story to Square's flagship franchise but eventually spun off into its own distinct series starting with the 1993 sequel Secret of Mana. The original concept evolved from a five-floppy-disk epic into a handheld adventure that would define a new genre direction for the developer.
Four main titles were released between 1991 and 1999, beginning with the original Seiken Densetsu on the Game Boy. Secret of Mana followed in 1993 for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, originally intended as a launch title for the cancelled SNES CD-ROM Adapter. Trials of Mana arrived in 1995 for the Super Famicom, though technical issues prevented an English localization at the time. Legend of Mana completed the initial run in 1999 for the PlayStation, remaining a 2D game despite the console's 3D focus. A remake titled Sword of Mana appeared in 2003 for the Game Boy Advance, outsourced to Brownie Brown. In 2006 and 2007, four games launched under the World of Mana subseries: Children of Mana, Friends of Mana, Dawn of Mana, and Heroes of Mana. Circle of Mana arrived in 2013 as a Japan-only card battle game for the GREE mobile platform. Rise of Mana followed in 2014 as a free-to-play action role-playing game for iOS, Android, and PlayStation Vita. Adventures of Mana was released in 2016 as a 3D remake of Final Fantasy Adventure. Square Enix announced Echoes of Mana during a 30th anniversary stream in 2022, while Visions of Mana formally debuted at The Game Awards 2023.
Koichi Ishii viewed the Mana series not as a collection of video games but as a fictional world illustrated through them. He drew inspiration from abstract images of his childhood memories, movies, and fantasy books like Tove Jansson's Moomin and Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Ishii deliberately avoided set conventions, allowing influences to remain wide and non-specific. While some titles share direct connections, he stated in 2006 that the games do not take place in exactly the same world. Characters or elements appearing across different titles are best considered alternate versions rather than identical entities. Connections between each title exist on an abstract karmic level rather than a concrete chronological one. Complicating this assertion, Ishii also noted that Children is set ten years after Dawn, while Heroes occurs one generation prior to Trials of Mana. He held off on designing new games after Legend failed to meet his desires until technology improved enough to realize his vision.
A common element of the series is its seamless, real-time battle system developed by Koichi Ishii and improved upon by Hiromichi Tanaka. The system was designed to be playable for both newcomers and veterans despite being action-based. It couples with the distinctive hierarchical Ring Command menu system featured prominently in Secret of Mana and Trials of Mana. Each ring contains icons with textual infobox explanations that allow players to use items, cast spells, view statistics, or change settings. Navigation within a menu happens by rotating the ring left or right, while switching menus uses up or down buttons. The series features recurring characters like Watts, a dwarf blacksmith wearing a horned helmet who upgrades weaponry. An anthropomorphic cat merchant named Neko appears outside town areas to save games and sell supplies at high prices. Rabites serve as cute rabbit-like creatures appearing as common enemies since the beginning, becoming a mascot similar to Chocobos in Final Fantasy.
Final Fantasy Adventure was composed by Kenji Ito, marking his second original score inspired mainly by images from the game itself. Hiroki Kikuta composed the scores for Secret of Mana and Trials of Mana, working nearly 24 hours a day to create an immersive three-dimensional sound. He aimed to express two contrasting styles: himself and the game, creating music that was neither pop nor standard game music. In 1995, Kikuta released an experimental album titled Secret of Mana + featuring one 50-minute-long track. Yoko Shimomura composed the score for Legend of Mana, considering it her best self-expression among all compositions. Kenji Ito returned with Sword of Mana, composing roughly one third of the Children of Mana soundtrack alongside Masaharu Iwata and Takayuki Aihara. Dawn of Mana featured Ryuichi Sakamoto on the main theme, assisted by Tsuyoshi Sekito, Masayoshi Soken, and Junya Nakano. The Secret of Mana opening theme Angel's Fear ranked number 7 on IGNs Top Ten RPG Title tracks.
A five-volume manga based on Legend of Mana drew by Shiro Amano and published in Japan by Enterbrain between 2000 and 2002. It features a comedic story about Toto, the game's main character, with a German version released by Egmont Manga & Anime in 2003. Square Enix published a collection of four-panel comic strips titled Sword of Mana Yonkoma Manga Theatre on the 16th of January 2004. Participants could win illustrations signed by Koichi Ishii and Shinichi Kameoka by returning a questionnaire included in the publication. An adaptation drawn by authors led by Shiro Amano appeared two days later on the 25th of February 2004. Square Enix also released a two-volume novelization written by Matsui Oohama shortly after. Seiken Densetsu: Princess of Mana ran from the 22nd of July 2006 to the 27th of May 2010 in Gangan Powered magazine, collecting into five volumes. This original manga takes place 300 years after Children of Mana and stars the descendant of Ferrick.
The series has sold over 8 million copies by 2021, though reception varied significantly across different eras. RPGFan called Final Fantasy Adventure one of the best things to happen to the Game Boy while IGN ranked it as the best action RPG on the console after Link's Awakening. Secret of Mana appeared on several top game lists including number 97 on Famitsu's top 100 games of all time. Trials of Mana was called easily one of the best RPGs to come out of the 16-bit era by Nintendo Life. Legend of Mana sold over 400,000 units in its first week alone, becoming the highest-selling release that week in Japan. The World of Mana titles received mixed reviews with gameplay design flaws hindering later entries despite excellent presentation. Dawn of Mana did not match the level of gameplay found in early Mana games according to 1UP.com. By March 2011, series titles had sold over 6 million units with Secret of Mana shipping over 1.83 million copies worldwide.
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Common questions
When was the Mana series originally created by Square?
Square sent a letter to customers in 1987 regarding an abandoned Famicom Disk System project titled The Emergence of Excalibur. This abandoned project used the Seiken Densetsu trademark which Square had registered in 1989 before reusing it for a Game Boy action role-playing game in 1991.
Who directed the original Seiken Densetsu game released in 1991?
Koichi Ishii directed the new game that began as Gemma Knights and was renamed Final Fantasy Adventure for its North American release. He viewed the Mana series not as a collection of video games but as a fictional world illustrated through them while drawing inspiration from abstract images of his childhood memories.
What is the release date of the Legend of Mana manga adaptation published by Enterbrain?
A five-volume manga based on Legend of Mana drew by Shiro Amano and published in Japan by Enterbrain ran between 2000 and 2002. An adaptation drawn by authors led by Shiro Amano appeared two days later on the 25th of February 2004 following the initial publication.
How many copies has the Mana series sold worldwide by 2021?
The series has sold over 8 million copies by 2021 according to available sales data. By March 2011, series titles had already sold over 6 million units with Secret of Mana shipping over 1.83 million copies worldwide.
Which composer created the score for Legend of Mana released in 1999?
Yoko Shimomura composed the score for Legend of Mana which she considered her best self-expression among all compositions. Hiroki Kikuta composed the scores for Secret of Mana and Trials of Mana while Kenji Ito returned with Sword of Mana composing roughly one third of the Children of Mana soundtrack.