RPG fans know the Seiken Densetsu series – better known in North America as the Mana series – quite well, and a new video posted on the franchise’s official Twitter account has people buzzing.
The video shows two men playing Seiken Densetsu 3 (AKA Secret of Mana II) at the same time, so multiplayer seems to be included just like it was in the original Super Famicom release, on the Nintendo Switch. Destructoid points out that even if this is just to show off development of a Japanese-only port, with the Switch now being region-free users all over the world will be able to play the game.
The original Secret of Mana was released on the Super Nintendo in 1993, and was actually the second game in the franchise. It received critical acclaim and a decently sized fanbase, but its sequel was never released outside of Japan for some reason.
Seiken Densetsu 3/Secret of Mana II is an Action RPG much like its predecessor, featuring real-time combat with players controlling one of three characters but with the option to switch control to any other character at any time. The first Secret of Mana game supported three player multiplayer, while its sequel supports two people playing at once.
While Seiken Densetsu 3 may be a sequel to the prior game in the franchise, it’s not a direct sequel in that it doesn’t take place on the “exact same” world as other games in the series, according to series creator Koichi Ishii. That’s much like the Final Fantasy series, which for the most part features adventures taking place on different worlds in each numbered entry released.
Square Enix has not yet confirmed whether Seiken Densetsu 3 will be a part of the Switch’s expected Virtual Console, or if it will be a standalone re-release. We should know more by the time E3 happens in June.
Published: Mar 20, 2017 11:29 am