Secret of Mana

 PlayStation 4
User Score
6.2

Mixed or average reviews- based on 129 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 61 out of 129
  2. Mixed: 29 out of 129
  3. Negative: 39 out of 129
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  1. Takhilin
    Feb 15, 2018
    7
    It's perfectly fine. It's not perfect, but it is Secret of Mana. People are just finding what they can to complain about because they don't care for the art style. That's legit, the only reason I can think of that people think it's unplayable. It's great, I've already put several hours into it.
  2. DeadsFortune
    Jan 29, 2019
    7
    Not a terrible game like some will say. The combat is fun; the music, though some of the tracks do sound butchered compared to the original, is not terrible.

    The dungeons and over world are fun to explore, and I love they added a model viewing bestiary. There are some difficulty spikes, but they are aren't too time consuming to overcome. I would rate the game higher if so many game    Not a terrible game like some will say. The combat is fun; the music, though some of the tracks do sound butchered compared to the original, is not terrible.

    The dungeons and over world are fun to explore, and I love they added a model viewing bestiary. There are some difficulty spikes, but they are aren't too time consuming to overcome.

    I would rate the game higher if so many game crashes didn't occur and a glitch didn't make some enemies immortal.

    Overall not terrible, it is rough around some edges, and really enjoyable around others.    … Expand
  3. Naedeslus
    Mar 2, 2019
    7
    When I heard that Secret of Mana, one of the first real action RPG's on the SNES was getting remade, I was very excited. I played it when I was a child and I loved it. Though, I never beat it I remember renting it off and on and really enjoying what I played. As I grew up, I never got around to playing it even though I wanted to, so the idea of a SNES classic being remade really excitedWhen I heard that Secret of Mana, one of the first real action RPG's on the SNES was getting remade, I was very excited. I played it when I was a child and I loved it. Though, I never beat it I remember renting it off and on and really enjoying what I played. As I grew up, I never got around to playing it even though I wanted to, so the idea of a SNES classic being remade really excited me.

    Then I played it.

    So, first of all, it's not a horrible remake, after all, I'm giving it a 7/10 so it's not broken or anything like that, the issue is that the game feels very low budget. It's obvious Square Enix must've outsourced most of the work for the remake. The visuals are pretty bad by PS4's standards. While it's most likely just a port from the PS Vita, the problem is the PS Vita itself can do better. The character designs are very low quality. They barely animated and while they probably didn't want to change the original's art style too much, it looks to be very jarring.

    The environments are okay. There are some low-quality textures but I found the environments were done well enough. They could've been better, especially some of the grass textures but the one thing the remake does right, visually is the enemy design. It's funny how the characters can look pretty low quality but the enemies somehow look pretty good! I'm not sure why there is a bit of inconsistency with this but it's there. The overall visual design of the locations is nice but had it spent another 3-6 month making the graphics even better it would’ve overall improved the quality of the game. Of course, graphics are not everything but when the original game has better character design you know that the game made a serious error.

    One touch I love is how there is a mini-map and the mini-map has the original’s graphics. It’s a neat touch and helps to navigate the environments. You, of course, can turn this off if you don’t like it.

    The music is… pretty bad. Thankfully you can play with the original OST, which is a great OST. I highly recommend that. The voice acting is almost Resident Evil 1 ps1 bad. It’s good for a few laughs but I turned it off and thankfully there was that option.

    What saves the remake from being a 5 instead of a 7 is the changes they did to the core gameplay. It plays the same, has that meter that you have to get to 100% to do an effective attack but they made some smart changes that really improve the feel of it. There is an autosave feature which is a lifesaver considering that most of the dungeons didn’t have the option to save in them, including a rather long final dungeon and you can map skills to L1 or R1 which helps out a lot in boss fights since magic is the best way to do damage mid-late game.

    It still has the quirks where enemies have super high evasion and about 30-40% of your attacks will miss post-mid-game. It’s annoying but once you get in the grove you get used to it. I would’ve loved for an option to decrease this to close to zero because all it does is make combat more annoying than it has to be. It’s something they didn’t change but it is what it is. It would’ve made it better, or at least an item you can equip that would help out with that.

    I’ve noticed a lot of reviewers claimed it gets too hard about halfway through. The difficulty does jump up about then, but I didn’t have any trouble. I feel that good advice is to fight most battles and buy the best equipment, spend an hour here or there grinding and you’ll be good to go. At the end of the game I was overpowered, and I just ran from battles in the final dungeon because I knew I’d take on anyone and I was right. It was a cake walk. Of course, if you forget to buy new equipment, it will make it much harder. The plus about this is if you want a challenge, there’s an idea to get one. It felt a bit easy, especially with powering up magic, which is very easy to do.

    The story is also improved. There is more dialog added and it works nicely. The original script was fine but I did like what they did to add more character development. It helps. There are these skits whenever you rest in an inn. The problem is that sometimes they’re not synced with what you do. I found myself seeing them talk about an event that happened way before I rested at this inn. A patch to keep them more with what is going on with the plot would work wonders. Not a huge deal but sometimes it’s a bit jarring.

    All and all, it’s not a bad remake. I’ve heard people say it ruins the game for them. I don’t see how. If you ask me, if you wanted to try out Secret of Mana, the remake is the best way to do it. Though, there is a problem here.

    With how much of a budget title this feels like, I can’t really justify telling someone to spend 40 USD on this. It’s a good game and a good way to play the SNES classic but it’s overpriced. I'd either rent it or wait for a sale. It took me 15 hours to finish it.    … Expand
  4. j_obediah
    Feb 15, 2018
    7
    Veteran SoM player without the nostalgia.

    Story: 8 The writing is different, but no better or worse. It still conveys the original interesting stories. Some lines I found better some not as good. What IS cool is that they ADDED story when you sleep at inns, allowing for more character development of the three protagonists. This has made the story more enjoyable than the first version    Veteran SoM player without the nostalgia.

    Story: 8
    The writing is different, but no better or worse. It still conveys the original interesting stories. Some lines I found better some not as good. What IS cool is that they ADDED story when you sleep at inns, allowing for more character development of the three protagonists. This has made the story more enjoyable than the first version to me. It will be up to each person if they like these additions or not but they get kuddos for the idea and effort that went into adding these senes. Over all the story is still enjoyable.
    Gameplay: 8
    Undeniably the strongest point of Secret of Mana, this has almost completely preserved with some notable exceptions. The weapons have better hit detection and weapons like the spear actually have range. You can see the different styles with each upgrade which is great. The stamina bar is back to eliminate mindless hack 'n slash, forcing you to have to time your hits and approaches. One thing that is inferior is the way enemies react when you hit them. It's not as impactful as in the original. And when you deliver a killing blow, instead of a satisfying burst of smoke or glitter at impact, the enemy just falls back and then explodes in a less enjoyable matter. but over all the gameplay is still very enjoyable. The animations for charging your weapons is smooth and fun. Other aspects of animation are not so. Your character glitches and screen will sometimes jump during story scenes.

    Graphics: 6
    The graphics fit the spirit of the original in that they are colorful, cute and lively. However, the graphics are hit and miss. They fall short in the textures. Waterfalls aren't blended well with pools of water (which are very pretty). The grass looks like a paint-by the-numbers picture turned into nylon flooring you'd put in your kitchen. The rock designs are interesting and neat. Enemies look like they are from the ps1 era of game design just brushed up to HD. The character model for Randi looks horribly goofy and awkward and lacks the charisma of his SNES counter part. However, he is still very functional for the story and still somehow manages to pull off his role as a child thrust into an adult world. This along with voice acting and cutscene animations this is probably the worse short fall.

    Sound: 6
    Voice acting does not serve to enhance the story. I turned it off and found the game much more enjoyable. Hitting enemies sounds weaker and less impactful than in the original. Remixes of the original music are hit and miss. Just depends on your tastes. I just keep the original score on.

    Summary:
    Over all it's clear this game was intended for older fans who don't need graphics, they just need a good time. but that's still not going to satisfy some. It's a fun game, and it's definitely not a 0 or 1. It has it's strengths and weaknesses, but not having online coop in a game that helped move coop into the popularity seems like an extremely bizarre choice. You can't help but be disappointed as most of the people who buy this don't have time to gather together and plan a Secret of Mana party anymore. Major deductions for that oversight.

    Still a fun game because of the original concept. Square should have put more money into it, especially in the graphic design department, but I'm happy I got what I got.    … Expand
  5. wkjjb
    Feb 15, 2018
    6
    I wanted to love this game, as I was fully on board the nostalgia hype train, sadly, this game does not love me in return. A lot of the elements are still there that made this a great game, some really nice tweaks and polish, but for every good thing, there seems a distracting counter force pushing the other way. This is a perfectly fine way to replay that amazing adventure, and yourI wanted to love this game, as I was fully on board the nostalgia hype train, sadly, this game does not love me in return. A lot of the elements are still there that made this a great game, some really nice tweaks and polish, but for every good thing, there seems a distracting counter force pushing the other way. This is a perfectly fine way to replay that amazing adventure, and your nostalgia pangs will be intense, but it will also leave you laying awake at night wondering what it could have been.… Expand
  6. benzema
    Feb 18, 2018
    5
    Well Im not a nostalgie fan but i love RPG. Graphics are cute for a remake and it matches to this style of RPG.The Story is okay and both version of soundtracks are nicely to listen to. The mechanics are truly bad programmed so please include raging acts, like missing a lot of hits. Bugs like chrackters disappearing , not following, weapon menus compleatly making wrong actions. Maybe theWell Im not a nostalgie fan but i love RPG. Graphics are cute for a remake and it matches to this style of RPG.The Story is okay and both version of soundtracks are nicely to listen to. The mechanics are truly bad programmed so please include raging acts, like missing a lot of hits. Bugs like chrackters disappearing , not following, weapon menus compleatly making wrong actions. Maybe the SNES version is like that but howcould this be in a bad remake. i dont want to offend fans but how the hell can game like that let you in the middle of the game comepleatly alone with any kind of infos what to do next. i really dont get it. You have to find your way with any info thats sad. I like challanges but not like that. Even if I pretend to not see some points I´ve got very mixed and dissappointed feelings about the REMAKE.… Expand
  7. havanowoncheese
    Feb 15, 2018
    7
    This is a great game and a truly great remaster. The new soundtrack is fantastic. They have fixed the old hit box issues of the original making this one play better. I do have to knock some points off because as off now the game has crashed every couple of hours. If that gets fixed I will have no complaints with this game.
  8. QuinterX
    Mar 26, 2018
    7
    Its not best game, but i like it (75%) my personal score for remake. Maby i give more, but there is few bugs, errors which flustrate me whole game. If you didnt play original, go for it, its good.
  9. PochoEpic
    Jun 30, 2020
    6
    Los cambios entre la entrega original y la actual entrega de Secret Of Mana son mínimos, siguen los mismos bugs y errores que en la versión de Snes, la interfaz del menú es un poco más agradable a la vista, la adición de diálogos con voz le queda bastante bien a la atmósfera del juego, pero en las cinemáticas es extraño escuchar las voces de los personajes y ver que no mueven la boca. PeroLos cambios entre la entrega original y la actual entrega de Secret Of Mana son mínimos, siguen los mismos bugs y errores que en la versión de Snes, la interfaz del menú es un poco más agradable a la vista, la adición de diálogos con voz le queda bastante bien a la atmósfera del juego, pero en las cinemáticas es extraño escuchar las voces de los personajes y ver que no mueven la boca. Pero dentro de lo positivo, el apartado gráfico es hermoso y colorido, como si estuviésemos jugando un cuento japonés, la jugabilidad al igual que en la Snes es muy adictiva y se siente cómoda a los mandos, en general el soundtrack anda muy bien, además de que podemos seleccionar entre el ost clásico de Super Nintendo o las versiones remasterizadas. Si bien, el juego no se acerca a la nota máxima, si me parece una experiencia entretenida para pasar un par de tardes completando la aventura principal.… Expand
  10. kogokogomoo
    May 12, 2020
    6
    It's okay. I would say that if you get this game on sale, it is not bad idea to get it. However, know that this is a remaster of the old game. The graphics are improved and some neat features are added, but in the end of the day it is better graphic version of the old game. Don't expect to get your mind blown.
  11. LG_Fox_Brazil
    Jul 8, 2020
    6
    While the gameplay is not as solid as the original in the Snes, the art style is gorgeous and the original soundtrack is here to enjoy, forget the remade OST, it is not as good, at all. If the gameplay felt good, I could actually give it a 7 or even 8, but as it is, it is an slightly above average game. Wait a sale for this one

Awards & Rankings

64
#64 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2018
78
#78 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2018

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
63

Mixed or average reviews - based on 59 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 59
  2. Mixed: 45 out of 59
  3. Negative: 6 out of 59
  1. Worth Playing
    Oct 1, 2018
    78
    Despite Secret of Mana's technical blunders, this new version is a faithful re-creation with a lot of reverence for its source material. For those who may have missed out on Secret of Mana the first time around, it also serves as a solid introduction to a classic from the Golden Age. At a time when local co-op is difficult to find on most current-gen consoles, it gives a fresh option for those wanting to play with others. Secret of Mana's remaster offers a magical, vivid tale for the current-gen library.
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  2. Eurogamer Italy
    Apr 11, 2018
    60
    Secret of Mana was an outstanding jRPG back in 1993 and this remake is a true love letter to fans. Unfortunately, besides upgraded graphics, a couple of cut-scenes and a brand new local co-op multiplayer, this new release does not add anything really worth to the core experience, and all the weakness of the original title are still there and sometimes they feel even worse.
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  3. Playstation Official Magazine UK
    Apr 3, 2018
    80
    The biggest change is the new edition's complete graphical overhaul. [Apr 2018, p.80]
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