If you’ve been overindulging in Mana, don’t ignore your visions…It might be time to go on a quest to the Mana Tree. Find out if the journey is worthwhile in our Visions of Mana review!

I grew up with the Super Nintendo and Japanese RPGs being my favourite genre and it still is. The SNES game library was a veritable treasure trove of RPGs, with Squaresoft and Enix being two huge developers battling it out for supremacy. Enix had classics including Dragon Quest 4, 5 and 6, ActRaiser 1 and 2, Star Ocean, the SoulBlazer trilogy including Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma, and the underrated E.V.O Search for Eden. Squaresoft, on the other hand, held the title of RPG king with Final Fantasy 4, 5 and 6, Chrono Trigger, Breath of Fire 1 and 2, Live a Live, Front Mission, Super Mario RPG, Bahamut Lagoon and of course Secret of Mana (Seiken Densetsu 2) and the Japan only release of Seiken Densetsu 3.

When I see this logo, I automatically have high hopes for what is to come

Squaresoft and Enix merged in 2003, and many of their franchises are still going strong (Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest being the obvious ones), whereas others have been brought back in recent years with full remakes (Super Mario RPG and Live a Live). One series that has been continually bubbling away is the ‘Mana’ series. Its most famous entry is without a doubt Secret of Mana, but there are 13 titles all up, plus modern remakes of the first three games. The Mana series now returns for its first brand new entry on consoles since 2014. For purists of the series, it is the first ‘main’ entry since Seiken Densetsu 4 / Dawn of Mana which came out in 2006!

Is it time to return to the Mana Tree?

The remakes of SD2 and SD3 seemed to do very well, but it has been a very long time between drinks. SquareEnix engaged the assistance of developer Ouka Studios, part of the Chinese company NetEase to assist with Visions of Mana. Is it worth picking up the latest entry in this longstanding series or has the mana been drained out? Find out in our Visions of Mana Review!

Visions of Mana Review – Story

We begin our adventure by meeting the characters Eoren and Lysa, who appear to be attempting to run away from the village of Earth and Lysa’s duties as the Alm of Earth. Why are they running? We learn that the world of Qi’Diel requires one resident of each of the elemental outposts scattered throughout the world to be selected as ‘Alms’ every four years. What is an Alm? Well, you don’t know right now, but don’t worry, Visions of Mana will mention that word about 1000 times throughout the entirety of the story. These individuals must travel on a pilgrimage to the mystical Mana Tree in order to ensure the flow of mana continues for the next four years.

I’m the Alm? That’s it then…my life is over.

What becomes clear is that this isn’t just a simple adventure as the Alms need to sacrifice their lifeforce to allow the world to survive. I’m getting ahead of myself a little – this information is drip-fed over the first half of the game, but you should be able to piece it together quite early on… Back to the prologue now – attempting to escape her fate causes Lysa to be turned to stone, and the entire village of Gudju is destroyed.

Cookware – the height of fashion in Gudju

Fast forward four years and we are introduced to Val the Soul Guard, who is tasked with protecting the elemental Alms on their journey to the Mana Tree. Val’s childhood sweetheart Hinna is chosen as the Alm of Fire, and they depart on their long voyage. Along the way, they meet up with the other elemental Alms and also bump into Eoren who is searching for a way to bring back his lost love Lysa.

Failure to send an Alm to the Mana Tree equals doom for your whole town!

Despite the colourful graphics and happy-go-lucky characters, there are dark and mysterious undertones here with a malicious force waiting to reveal itself. A sacrificial trip to the Mana Tree is never as easy as it seems, and eventually the motivation of various characters becomes clear. The twists and turns of the action here are nowhere near as complex as a Final Fantasy game, but there are definitely some events that were surprising and enjoyable to experience. What really allows Visions of Mana to stand out is its fantastic cast of characters.

Morley is a cat. And he means business

The inhabitants of Qi’Diel are, how can I put this… a furry’s dream. In addition to the relatively boring humans (Val and Hinna) the other members of our party include Dragonfolk Careena, Morley of the Catfolk, Squirrelfolk Queen Palamena, and Julei the sproutling. Don’t be surprised if you come across some cosplay of these characters (specifically Palamena) at your next convention. These characters don’t just look good though, they all have their backstories that make them relatable. This also means that the events we experience together on the adventure to the Mana Tree feel poignant and touching.

Get your sewing kits ready for PAX 2025

The world building here does make references to events and characters of previous games in the series, but this is very much a stand-alone experience that you can enjoy with no knowledge of prior Mana games (though I do recommend both Secret of Mana and Trials of Mana/SD3 as excellent experiences of their own).

Visions of Mana Review – Gameplay

Visions returns with the fast-paced Action RPG gameplay that the Mana series is famous for. There are a number of different systems that allow the player to really focus on their preferred weapon and battle style. Firstly, there are eight different elemental ‘Vessels’ that are collected on the quest to the Mana Tree, and these are implemented in a number of different ways. Each of the game’s five playable characters will unlock a new class and elemental costume when equipping the vessel.

She is the one…Sailor Squirrel!

In addition to causing that character’s attacks to be infused with that element, the vessels cause a variety of other changes. Each character has three weapon types and only one type can be equipped by each of their classes. The weapon will have a big impact on how the characters control in battle. You start with only Val, but you can change to any of the other characters in your party at any time (personally, I stayed with Val for 95% of my playthough). In battle, the Vessels can also be used for a special effect such as homing water bubbles, wooden healing zones, or freezing time with the Moon element (my favourite).

Unlocking each costume will also open up the Elemental Plot. This is where you use Elemental Points earned in the course of your travels to unlock new spells and passive effects. However, you can only access the abilities for the vessel you have equipped (and you can only equip one at a time). Personally, I felt that the Plot only has the effect of pigeonholing you to one very linear play style. Although, this does have the effect of making your decisions easier. Some players may prefer this, but I felt that I was almost missing out on a lot that the game has to offer because I had Val equipped with the Moon vessel for the entire adventure due to it being so effective, hence I had no need to try any other strategies.

8 Elements, 8 rows. But you can only use one at a time. (you also get a trophy)

Each character also has a single weapon slot, one armor slot, and two ‘ability seed’ slots that can later be expanded to 10. Ability seeds are found throughout Val and the Alms’ quest (often as side quest rewards) and equipping these provide a variety of effects from simple stat boosts to allowing characters to use spells and abilities that are not typically associated with their currently equipped elemental vessel. Battles themselves are entered into on the overworld map – you can see and avoid most encounters if you wish. They can be hectic, especially the boss battles with massive enemies that often have numerous targetable areas and multiple phases.

Don’t tease the octopus kids!

I do need to mention that Visions of Mana is absolutely packed to the brim with side quests. Most of these fall into two general categories – hunts (kill a certain amount of a specific enemy) or fetch quests. There are some small variations to keep a few of these interesting, but it seems like any time you enter a new area or return to a town you’ve already visited a dozen times, there is a new quest marker waiting to be examined.

What could possibly make you think he’s not friendly? The tooth that is the same size as your head?

There are some large beasts that you can use to move over the wide-open spaces of the world map quickly. Furthermore, the fast travel system in Visions is easy to use and the PS5 load times are very short. Finally, each elemental vessel also has a use in the overword, typically for some form of traversal that will allow you to reach areas you could not otherwise reach. While this isn’t utilised in a ‘Metroidvania’ way, there are plenty of little secrets that can be found on returning to previously visited areas.

Visions of Mana Review – Visuals

I have personally played (and reviewed) number of huge AAA releases in 2024 (Stellar Blade, FFVII Rebirth and Tekken 8). It is a little jarring to go from those Unreal Engine masterpieces to the animations of Visions of Mana. By no means am I saying that the visuals shown here are bad. The simple yet stylish character designs further highlight the individuality of the cast members.

There is a large amount of palate swapped regular enemies, but in general their designs also vary from cute to extremely menacing. The boss designs are all excellent. These battles are definitely the highlight of the game, despite many of them being too easy for an RPG veteran like myself.

All glory to Hypnotoad!

The towns, cities, dungeons and vistas scattered throughout the world are all stunningly beautiful. Every new location was a joy to visit. I do want to call out the direction of the large number of in engine cutscenes for taking advantage of these landscapes with intelligent angles to highlight the spectacle of Qi’Diel. A couple of the dungeons in particular are crazy, and remind me almost of Remedy’s Control in some ways – but I’ll leave you to discover those ones yourself.

Robust? Its bloody huge! What kind of insane architect designed that castle in the first place?

Visions of Mana Review – Audio

The soundtrack of Visions of Mana did not stand out to me in comparison to the bright characters and even brighter panoramic scenery. I certainly wouldn’t say it was bad, but I don’t recall there being any earworms that stuck in my mind after a long gameplay session. That being said, I did enjoy party team member Julei rocking out on a few occasions throughout the game.

The voice case for this game did an excellent job as well. Val and Hinna can occasionally come across as a bit too perky for my liking, but I’m a sarcastic troll so don’t take my word for it. I did find the character of Careena particularly annoying with her Southern American accent. Not specifically because I dislike that accent (which I do to some degree) but more so because all of the other characters from her town, including her parents, don’t have anywhere near as strong an accent – she just stands out and not in a good way. That being said, her character arc is one of the best of the cast, so it is good to see her grow throughout the adventure (though Morley is still number 1).

Visions of Mana Review – Conclusion

Visions of Mana is a great return to form for the Mana series. Although it starts off a little slow after the first couple of chapters, it definitely picks up the pace. The game gives you that urge to keep playing to complete one more side quest, discover one more secret and get Val and his crew one step closer to the Mana Tree.

I’m no expert but that looks like the Mana Tree…

It was undoubtedly a good change of pace from some of the more over-engineered games that we see these days. A little lack of complexity didn’t hurt the experience. I didn’t experience every option available in battle, but that’s because I found what worked for me in both gameplay and enjoyment.

40 hours of adventuring was enough to complete a huge amount of side quests (but not all of them) and reach the end of the main story. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this to anyone looking for a fun, uncomplicated action RPG. It would be a good game to use to introduce new people to the pleasures of this genre as well. It isn’t winning any game of the year awards, but it might just be what you’re looking for.

So, why should you play Visions of Mana?

• You are new to action/JRPGs and want to experience a fun adventure that isn’t too long or too cliche (though it is a little cliche)
• Veteran RPG enjoyers looking for an adventure that is a little shorter that other recent releases
• Despite being occasionally cliche, the story still packs a punch with some unexpected twists

But, why shouldn’t you play Visions of Mana?

• You don’t like feeling constrained by the available options in your RPG – if you want to be able to use all of the abilities all of the time, you can’t do that here
• Graphic hogs might feel the presentation is a bit too simple
• Characters like Careena might rub some people the wrong way

A review code was kindly provided by Square Enix for the purpose of our Visions of Mana review. If you enjoy the furry content, you can check out our review for the Magic: The Gathering furry set Bloomburrow… don’t worry we don’t track people who click that link or anything, I swear. If you haven’t already, be sure to join the Qualbert Discord to find out about the latest game and review updates!