My favourite Square game, and ps2 title
User Rating: 10 | Dawn of Mana PS2
Mana games I find are some of the most enjoyable games I have ever played. They are not the big name RPGs that one would expect, but instead they are smaller and have a tendency to attract a more niche audience. Not because of the game play, but because of the cute and colourful art design and the difference in games in the franchise. But one the play station 2, the mana series had there first console game in nearly a decade. Dawn of Mana post launch was a game that held my attention. From what I could see, the game looked amazing and the gameplay looked fluid and it told an origin story of the world of mana. The plot of Dawn of Mana is much more involved than in previous mana games. The game stars Keldric, a young man who was raised in Mana village. And co stars is friend Ritzia, a cute tree maiden who was born in the village of mana. Their journey starts them off in search of the guardian beast to find out changes that are taking place in the world. They go inside the temple where Keldy is imbedded with a mysterious power which is later referred to as the seed of mana and with that is bestowed a sword. Upon travelling deeper in temple, the two characters come across a spirit named Faye, who is a cute bubbly fairy like creature who immediately bonds with Keldy and serves as Keldy means to cast magic. Upon arriving in the centre of the temple the three characters come across a mysterious grim entity, a crab like creature. He warns the trio about the scared realm and the guardian beast. Keldy fights the beast and upon his defeat he mentions the door to Movolia, the entrance to the scared realm. If matters couldn't be any worse, the Loramorian Army is searching for the door and invades the Mana Village, kidnapping Ritzia. Keldy voyages to save her and still continues the hunt for the guardian beast which brings him into a forest where he meets with Treant the wise guardian in the forest who serves as the keeper of the legendary sword of mana. Ritzia is also with Treant. Due to the corruption of the sword, Treant becomes evil and attacks Keldy and Faye. Upon being cured, Treant informs the three that the guardian beast lives in the mountians. Suddenly Treant releases the sword of mana and a member of the Loramorian Army snatches it. Ritzia stays back and Keldy and Faye head to continue the search for the guardian beast. As the story unfolds more the player learns more about who the guardian spirit really is as well as the conspiracy behind the Loramorian army. With all things considered, the story I feel is as good day as it was ten years ago. It is paced wonderfully and the cast of characters I find are very diverse. Within the fifteen to twenty hour long story, the game does enough to hold the gamers attention with an ending that is both fresh and satisfying. But the biggest element Dawn of Mana has is the beauty in the art design. Everything is colourful, cartoony and cute, and even for being ten years, the game has aged wonderfully. Even sections where the player faces off with dark reincarnations, Dawn of Mana still proves to be simply a joy to look at. Dawn of Mana like many of the other games in the series are action role playing games, although Dawn of Mana plays much more like an action adventure game, rather than an action rpg. Gone are the village hubs and venders. But instead the game uses an emblem system which encourages multiple play throughs and give the game an added depth. Emblems also add to the level up system as well. The player levels restart at the beginning of each chapters, which is incredibly frustrating as first, but it proves to be a system that is greatly appreciated. By the time the player reaches the chapter boss, you are pretty much level 3 or higher, and level has never been a huge problem. Like I said before, Dawn of Mana is an action adventure title with rpg elements. The game is divided into 8 chapters which serve as massive open world levels. Within them your free to explore and engage with the environment. Keldy has a sword, slingshot and a whip as arsenal and each get stronger as Keldy levels up. To add, Keldy also can cast magic with help of Faye which also gets better as you level up. Overall I feel like the gameplay is a real gem. With the exception of somewhat floaty plat forming and off target lock system, Dawn of Mana is incredibly fun. Nothing is more exciting than destroying a strong enemy who's crowned from whipping rocks at their face. And as you find emblems that give Keldy level ups, the game simply feels fast fluid and rewarding. As it could to no surprise, I love Dawn of Mana and I truly do believe it is not for everyone. It feels like a traditional mana game but I will admit, it would have excelled more as an rpg. But the zelda like style of action and combat is rewarding and honestly just plain fun. 
