Adventures of Mana |OT| The Final Fantasy Adventure returns to Mobile and Vita
- Thread starter Goli
- Start date
Let us know if the Vita version has English text as an option, like Square Enix's later PSP Final Fantasy titles.
It doesn't.
The Vita version is literally the mobile version with tacked on real controls. You can still use the touch screen ones, so I guess that's the reason for not supporting Vita TV.
Too bad. I was hoping it would, since it was releasing in both regions at the same time.
tiggerkiddo
Member
How is this compared to Sword of Mana?
Adventures of Mana is such an awkward, anticlimactic name. I have a feeling I'll love this game (Sword was bad but still 10/10 to me, manually leveling up was genius), but you can already tell it could have been so much more. I hope FFA keeps getting remade forever
Edit: look how cool the JP title screen is.
Edit: look how cool the JP title screen is.
nikos
Member
Glad to see a thread for this! Just picked it up for iOS. Will be streaming here for a bit, if anyone is interested in seeing how it plays. http://www.mobcrush.com/heartofbattle
PixyJunket
Member
It's a 1:1 port of the Game Boy game with new graphics.
(aka it's better than Sword of Mana).
If you can play it with the traditional controls, it's stupid of them to not support the PSTV.
Watching you now. It looks good (and the music upgrade is amazing).
mattiewheels
And then the LORD David Bowie saith to his Son, Jonny Depp: 'Go, and spread my image amongst the cosmos. For every living thing is in anguish and only the LIGHT shall give them reprieve.'
How are those screen controls? Dpad dynamic on the screen?
Owningrampage
Banned
i really hate mobile gaming
PixyJunket
Member
Enlightening.
Edge_Maverick
Member
https://mobile.twitter.com/Seiken_PR/status/695108487605399552
So I guess it supports PS Vita TV afterall.
So I guess it supports PS Vita TV afterall.
There's an option to remove the on-screen buttons from the HUD on Vita ... right?
J
Jotamide
Unconfirmed Member
I dunno if I should buy this in hopes Seiken Densetsu 3 also gets remade and released in English.
No need to hope. They already said the plan is to remake 1-3. So unless this totally tanks, it'll happen. Buy this if you think it looks fun and you want to play it.
This is the first time I've ever in my life wanted to get a mobile game. Even though I don't see how an action game could possibly work with screen controls.
It was fantastic. At the time it came out in 1991, it was probably the first video game story I was ever invested in. It was like the first Zelda but with a story. A very weirdly dark story. Wonderful music, still to this day. You could use different weapons to interact with the environment, such as cutting down trees with an axe, using whips to swing across gaps, and breaking walls. You had different helpers that did different things to aid you. You could choose your stat growth on level ups. You could save everywhere on every screen whenever you wanted. You had magic that could make the enemies fall asleep or turn them into snowmen. There were fun puzzles. There was a huge overworld. There was a chocobo you could ride for fast travel and to avoid enemies. The only game boy game I would put above it is Zelda: LA.
It was fantastic. At the time it came out in 1991, it was probably the first video game story I was ever invested in. It was like the first Zelda but with a story. A very weirdly dark story. Wonderful music, still to this day. You could use different weapons to interact with the environment, such as cutting down trees with an axe, using whips to swing across gaps, and breaking walls. You had different helpers that did different things to aid you. You could choose your stat growth on level ups. You could save everywhere on every screen whenever you wanted. You had magic that could make the enemies fall asleep or turn them into snowmen. There were fun puzzles. There was a huge overworld. There was a chocobo you could ride for fast travel and to avoid enemies. The only game boy game I would put above it is Zelda: LA.
Effigenius
Member
I wouldn't put much stock in that. It just means right now that's the only version outside of Japan. I'm fairly confident that Apple didn't money hat them,
Xaero Gravity
NEXT LEVEL lame™
Didn't even remember this was a thing. Was hoping for a NA Vita version but iPad will do just fine.
Seriously thinking about it for iOS. My issue is I rarely make real progress in mobile games, I'm better off just screwing around in something like Game Dev Story or Neko Atsume than playing a meatier game.
Plus I'd like it to be on a platform that doesn't set fire to older development every year, developer's fault or no. But perhaps they've become more forward thinking in light of games like TWEWY needing patching?
Plus I'd like it to be on a platform that doesn't set fire to older development every year, developer's fault or no. But perhaps they've become more forward thinking in light of games like TWEWY needing patching?
Septimus Prime
Member
As promised, I played it for a bit. I got the Battle Axe.
So far, my initial reactions:
+The music is great and honors the original
+The graphics are decent
+Runs great on Nexus 6P
-The controls are ass
-Like, really ass
Here are some screens I took:
J
Jotamide
Unconfirmed Member
Does the Android version support controllers?
This. It doesn't have controller support AFAIK so that's probably why.
Been playing it on SHIELD tablet using an Ipega controller, and it works just fine. There are even gamepad configuration options in the menu, so I suppose even more types are supported.
So far, this remake is everything I hoped it would be, down to the pushable empty chests/skippable first town, and the original is one of my favourite games. At last, more than 4 letters to name our heroes!
More detailed impressions/fanboy nitpicks:
- the music is (still) fantastic!
- the 3d graphics work definitely better than I expected - since the overall mechanics are still mostly 2D, it's doesn't hamper gameplay (though movement isn't locked to a grid now, making it both more fluid and gives some enemies a little more leeway/some hit detection becomes a bit wonky, but it works).
- speaking of hit detection, they've apparently kept something close to the original hitboxes for the main attacks (thrust if you're moving, arc if you're standing still with the sword), but the visual representation of those attacks don't show the full area as it did on GB, as far as I could tell. Same thing for some of the enemies, so it might have a vibe of giving/taking unexpected damage over the long run. Will have to look out for that more carefully. CORRECTION: I mistakenly thought the arc attack was the (new?) 3 hit attack, with a wider arc. So in actuality, the normal arc attack has a much smaller arc. Why not. The overall point still stands: some of the hitboxes are a bit iffy :-D
- during the first fight against the monster in the arenra, I'm not sure it's possible to still use the old strategy of not moving an inch and only arc-attacking when it comes close to completely avoid damage: the boss doesn't seem to go all the way to the bottom of the screen like in the original, however it has a roar attack that hits in a pretty big circular pattern (with a very iffy hitbox, I might add) that might change things up.
- was there a candy to be found right before the arena rematch? I recall a conversation with Amanda instead. However, everything else so far has been spot on and 1:1, script excluded - it's a much better localization and transcription (again: so far. As long as they don't go into the self-indulging soap opera wishy-washiness of the
Marcy
Amanda
- using the arc attack on monsters in the field, the hero apparently takes steps forward now, which eventually leads to your streak breaking if you connect with the monster? EDIT: looks like it's actually a new 3 hit attack, starting with a thrust, not an arc. You can still arc indefinitely in place, yay!
- I don't remember the stunlock being so long after taking hits either, but that may be because there was no long feedback animation in the original (and overall a greater input delay over everything). Apart from that, using a controller, everything feels tight and responsive. Didn't even dare try the touch controls, I might for the novelty at some point. Default controller input is A for attack, B for secondary item/magic, X/Y for menu, L or R for quick extra buttons access (and nothing for the ring menu as far as I could tell). EDIT: X became the button for the ring menu after I saved/reloaded the game. It apparently didn't update since you don't have the ring menu at the start!
- the game apparently REALLY doesn't like to be put into sleep mode, causing all sorts of weird, possibly hilarious, but also quite gamebreaking, visual bugs when the tablet is woken up (invisible enemies, misplaced shadows, terrain that glides forever/doesn't align properly, etc). Symptoms subside when the game is quit/restarted normally, but I'll be keeping an eye out for more of those, hopefully they don't appear in other instances.
- climbing the vines end with a "done climbing animation" that takes a little while and you can get hit during it! Not very nice, but not overly bad either.
- mattocks have seven uses?! WHAT IS THIS HERESY (didn't they use to have 15? Is my memory failing me?)
TL
R: So far, I'd say this is a version of the mobile remake we didn't get, except this time with 3D graphics and slightly more freedom of movement/a few convenience options such as quick access buttons and a minimap, which is honestly what I hoped for all along. It may *look* different but it still demands methodical movement and careful spacing with the enemies. So I'm pretty happy! Looking forward to see if there are more changes to discover... or not. I'm not sure which I'm hoping for, actually!YianGaruga
Banned
How are performance and controls on Vita?
I believe the original game is still very good to this day, and I heartily recommend it if you haven't played it already. It's a bit more rigid than Zelda on GB (as I said above, it requires careful posititioning and spacing), less than Zelda on NES. It does demand exploration and memorization akin to what you could find in the original Zelda - the newer script of the remake could make some hints more clear and help guide newer players, I'll have to delve deeper into the game to see if there are still the multitude of hidden passage to uncover with mattocks. It has equal parts linear adventure and exploration: some segments of the game are fairly dirigist (most notably the beginning of the game), eventually opening up to a very big overworld which you will be able to explore at your leisure and even sequence break a little, finally going back into a linear sequence of events leading to the story's climax. (Point of no return: the sand tower, way late during the second half of the game)
One of the other mechanical draws of the game is the weapon system: each weapon type also has a field use (scythe can cut grass, axes can chop down trees, etc) along with a specific arc and hitbox and strength against specific enemy types, making it more of an exercice of finding the right weapon for the right situation, rather than hunting the single "best" statistical gear and sticking with it. It's also the biggest flaw of the original: it requires very frequent menu switching, and the menu is pretty unwieldy, though nothing insurmountable. Looks like the remake attempts to fix that!
The other draws (at least to me, but those are commonly referred to) are the music and plot. The music is simply excellent, and the plot, while very minimalistic, is also very evocative. I believe it to be one of the best examples of dryness leaving space for the player's imagination to fill the gaps: some of the dialogs are very short, but you have ample room to project and fantacize about the actual mise en scène of what happens. It can get very dramatic, too, and some of the more powerful moments are still unmatched for me, especially since they manage to integrate them to the use of game mechanics (ie:
Amanda's death
The above is why Sword of Mana fell short, for me: in trying to develop the characters and flesh out the dialog way, way more, it fell into the trappings of modern JRPGs: when using the full range of tools at their disposal, you realize that the designers are much poorer storytellers and directors than they'd like you to believe. In actuality, FFA's technical limitations are its strength. The dialog and presentation are just what needs to be there to present the drama, and the sharpness makes it all the more poignant. Contrast that to Sword of Mana's endless stream of tears, platitudes and cliched lines, and you see why sometimes less is more. (SoM also killed the overworld, making it a series of smaller connected maps via fast travel - blegh)
So yeah! Definitely play the original if you're curious about it, it still stands strong on my personal "best games of all time" list :-D
YianGaruga
Banned
Seconded. The original GB game has aged very well in my opinion. Still a fantastic game.
Sakura
Member
Thanks for the write up.
It sounds pretty good, especially if you rank it close to LA because that is one of my favourite Zeldas.
Maybe I will have to check it out.
Cool! Sounds good. Will wait more impressions on this remake to decide wether I buy it or not. Thanks!
The original on GB was my first rpg and I still have fond memories of it. After the horrible mess that was Sword of Mana "remake" I'm glad to hear that this is a more faithful remake.
Is the android version available for the western market?
Does it have Final Fantasy references like the original or did they take them away? Moogles and chocobo please ;_;
Is the android version available for the western market?
Does it have Final Fantasy references like the original or did they take them away? Moogles and chocobo please ;_;
Played it for a bit now, and it's actually a really charming remake. The 3D graphics look way better while playing than in screens. It's smooth and colorful. The models aren't the best, but it's not offensive at all. The music is fantastic. It's a really faithful remake of the original too, and retains all the FF-isms. I'm playing on Android with a Xperia Z3C and it runs well, but goddamn the virtual controls are just....lol. It doesn't help that FFA is a game that actually requires precision of some sort for attacking, due to your position affecting the angle and range of attacks, etc. It's not the -worst- ever, but yeah it's going to take some getting used to. I wonder if the other virtual control modes are any better, I've only tried to default so far.
You could always buy a controller.
I just saw an above comment that said he was using a controller. Some of the earlier ones in the thread daidthe game did not support them. That makes me feel quite a bit better.
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