Seiken Densetsu 3/Trials of Mana finally localized

[Ice Dragon]

1 hour ago, B.Leu said:

Didn't knew you were into Suicide Team... was it fun to play ? It wasn't for me at the time either. I'm happy to see I'm not the only one trapped by it.

Against bosses, it worked pretty well because Marduk silences the boss, and then you can nuke the boss dead with Angela's magic and Duran's Sabers.

The reason I got stuck in the Cave of Darkness is because it's not exactly viable to cast Marduk in every single room to get the werewolves to be quiet, and Protect Up, while it would reduce the damage from Seiryuu Satsujinken, would still require me to force feed chocolate to my party after every screen, which gets expensive fast.

 

1 hour ago, B.Leu said:

I'm surprised you decided to go Lord for Duran, most people ignore it, me included... which is weird since it have multi-healing, which is perfect for such a team.

Since I realized my biggest problem with my previous run was the lack of healing, it made sense to go with Lord for the multi-target Heal Light, which is absurdly MP-efficient. I figured I could go without Saint Saber since I already had Angela providing more than enough damage output, and having the game paused most of the time to have Angela chain cast meant that Riesz and Duran combined didn't land anywhere near as many hits on bosses as Angela did, making Saber spells not very impactful.

I'm also rather satisfied with my choice of Fenrir Knight, as well. The characters guides I had read were saying Dragon Master was the generally better class due to the fact that her debuff magic was mostly only useful on bosses, meaning multi-target isn't all that useful, but having it at hand to cover a full room of ninjas or werewolves or whatever in the Cave of Darkness and Dark Castle was extremely handy.

[Ice Dragon]

Bumping due to new information from today's Nintendo Direct. (I hope I can do that.)

• Outfits confirmed to change for class promotions.
  • Kevin's and Riesz's first promotion outfits were shown directly. It's hard to tell how accurate they are to the originals since both Kevin's and Riesz's poses in their original sprites aren't exactly great for showing off their clothes, but it looks like the colors have at least been made less weird.
  • We get a close look at Angela's Delvar outfit in the clip against Dolan. At least, I assume that's her Delvar outfit since she's level 35 and is using Pummel Star (which I assume is the localized name for the Delvar's Star Attack).
• Bijuu's boobs jiggle.
• The Crimson Mage's English voice acting in the one line he gives kind of fell flat to me.
• Release date is announced for April 24, 2020.

I'm hoping it lives up to my hype.

[B.Leu]

7 hours ago, Ice Dragon said:

Bumping due to new information from today's Nintendo Direct. (I hope I can do that.)

• Outfits confirmed to change for class promotions.
  • Kevin's and Riesz's first promotion outfits were shown directly. It's hard to tell how accurate they are to the originals since both Kevin's and Riesz's poses in their original sprites aren't exactly great for showing off their clothes, but it looks like the colors have at least been made less weird.
  • We get a close look at Angela's Delvar outfit in the clip against Dolan. At least, I assume that's her Delvar outfit since she's level 35 and is using Pummel Star (which I assume is the localized name for the Delvar's Star Attack).
• Bijuu's boobs jiggle.
• The Crimson Mage's English voice acting in the one line he gives kind of fell flat to me.

I've seen the video, it's awesome. Death Jester's awesome !

I'm kind of disapointed by the class outfit to be honest, Kevin's first class change looks fine, just fine, but I still expected more. Lise's is kind of meh. Angela's too.
I know that expecting hair and skin colors to change is a tad much, and I know it's only first class change, but still... Dark class, Light class, the whole philosophy undertone behind them, the class cutscenes really don't do it for me.
I really hope they'll be more like in they official arts, like LLDuran looks like the paladin that he is, and DDDuran looks like he is going to jump at everything and making them a new ass with dat bone/flesh/whatever sword. LLAngela looks like a peaceful queen, DDAngela looks like a megalomaniac.
Hawke don't change that much, Charlotte just looks like she is starting to grow up a tad. They all look like they actually went to an adventure and are at the end of it.

... Okay, in some of the arts it looks like they overused the makeup but they were cool.

Pointless complain over my fantasies... I'm not disapointed with the special attacks though.

Bijuu's boobs jiggle but it's subtle. Thankfully. 😛

7 hours ago, Ice Dragon said:

 

• Release date is announced for April 24, 2020.

What. WHAT. NEXT YEAR ?! Press F.
Like, oof, big fat oof. Talk about a supreme mood killer.

Rip this year for a fresh Seiken remake. 😧

[Ice Dragon]

2 minutes ago, B.Leu said:

What. WHAT. NEXT YEAR ?! Press F.
Like, oof, big fat oof. Talk about a supreme mood killer.

The announcement during E3 said "early 2020".

That said, next year is the game's 25th anniversary (the original game was released in 1995), so 2020 at least makes sense.

 

4 minutes ago, B.Leu said:

I'm kind of disapointed by the class outfit to be honest, Kevin's first class change looks fine, just fine, but I still expected more. Lise's is kind of meh. Angela's too.
I know that expecting hair and skin colors to change is a tad much, and I know it's only first class change, but still... Dark class, Light class, the whole philosophy undertone behind them, the class cutscenes really don't do it for me.
I really hope they'll be more like in they official arts, like LLDuran looks like the paladin that he is, and DDDuran looks like he is going to jump at everything and making them a new ass with dat bone/flesh/whatever sword. LLAngela looks like a peaceful queen, DDAngela looks like a megalomaniac.
Hawke don't change that much, Charlotte just looks like she is starting to grow up a tad. They all look like they actually went to an adventure and are at the end of it.

I think the first promotion classes always had uninteresting art to begin with. The original stat screen sprites for them didn't really change all that much from their base classes' (and half of them were in weird scrunched up poses that didn't really show off much of the outfit anyways).

I'd assume that the second promotion class outfits will be a lot flashier since that's where all of the personality was at.

[Ice Dragon]

Double post for more information since it has come to my attention that there are more videos. Square Enix posted up the new Japanese trailer yesterday (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XT6iTDRxxI😞

• Japanese voice actors:
  • Duran: Eguchi Takuya (Haar in Fire Emblem: Heroes, Kujou Kazuya in Gosick)
  • Crimson Mage: Nakamura Yuuichi (Ryoma in Fire Emblem: Fates, Okazaki Tomoya in Clannad)
  • Angela: Ookubo Rumi (Astolfo in Fate/Apocrypha)
  • Charlotte: Moroboshi Sumire (Young Tiki in Fire Emblem: Heroes)
  • Death Eater: Sugita Tomokazu (Chrom in Fire Emblem: Awakening, Kyon in The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya)
  • Kevin: Oosaka Ryouta (Mikleo in Tales of Zestiria, Apollo in Danmachi)
  • Hawkeye: Ono Yuuki (Gran in Granblue Fantasy: The Animation, Pin-sensei in Kimi ni Todoke)
  • Bijuu: Nanjou Yoshino (Ayase Eri in Love Live!)
  • Riesz: Komatsu Mikako (Lupusregina in Overlord, Tsugumi Seishirou in Nisekoi)
  • Fairy: Uchida Maaya (Sharena in Fire Emblem: Heroes, Liliruca in Danmachi)
• Close-up of several other first-promotion classes, including Angela's light class.

 

EDIT: English trailer is now up: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DE8-aS_ScV0) No voice actors given.

I hope they fix the lip synching... Or maybe Duran just speaks through something other than his mouth.

Edited September 5, 2019 by Ice Dragon

[8Requiem]

On 6/27/2019 at 1:53 AM, Ice Dragon said:

I'm currently playing through Trials of Mana in the Collection, and I'm at 34 hours and at the entrance to the penultimate dungeon. I did spend a few hours grinding here and there in sub-optimal locations (so that I can get all of my characters' experience point values the same), so it's probably somewhere between 25-35 hours if you know what you're doing.

 

We'll have to wait to see what they do with Pink Typhoon before we can say that.

Hate to say this, but they removed that animation Angela does during Pink Typhoon.

If you want proof then look at this video's 11:30 to 11:40 minute mark:

Then compare it with this video's 0:16 to 0:21 second mark:

I understand this doesn't affect the gameplay, though it's a bit disappointing to know they removed this because it's not bad nor harmful.

Looks like Trials of Mana is is rated for Teens, so as I guy who likes art, (even though I'm not great at it) games and wants to play this 3D remake I'm hoping everything else stays true to its original SNES version. 

Lastly, all the characters's 3D designs look fantastic, I'm actually jealous of the person who drew/designed them, though I'm glad they're true to their SNES artwork.

[Stroud]

Last Trailer for Trials of Mana. The tease at the end really got me hyped up about the game even more DX. 

 

[Johann]

The demo is now available! Pretty sure it's out for all platforms, I'm downloading it now from the Switch NA e-shop. Lets you try any party combo and goes up to the first boss.

[B.Leu]

Seen all the classes design, I'm saddened. Oh well.

17 hours ago, Johann said:

The demo is now available! Pretty sure it's out for all platforms, I'm downloading it now from the Switch NA e-shop. Lets you try any party combo and goes up to the first boss.

If I had a working TV, I'd be doing the same. They really succeeded in making the game look pretty great in pretty much everything. I'm so intrigued by the new features.

[Ice Dragon]

Finished playing through the demo this morning on the Switch in Japanese. Probably going to go through the game on PS4 in a bit. My thoughts so far:

As best as I can tell, it seems they didn't make any changes to the game's script, so the dialogue comes off as a bit stiff at times, being 25 years old and all. I'm not sure if they streamlined the script for the English localization. There are also a few places where the delivery of some voice lines felt a bit off. For example, when meeting Duran at the entrance to the Cave of Light (with Duran chosen as your second party member, of course), the part of the dialogue where the main character is supposed to explain how they got where they are now is literally a half-second pause in the middle of a line, which sounded really weird. NPC animations during some cutscenes also look kind of weird (Bill, Ben, and Elliot running off to the basement has them move slower than their running animation moves their legs, so it's like they're running on ice).

The music is amazing. Just listening to Meridian Child on the title screen is so, so satisfying. It's nice that you can switch between the new music and the original music, but the new music is just so good.

Movement isn't quite as tight as I'd like it to be for a 3D action game. It's less tight than Code Vein, which is saying something, but I'll get used to it. Jumping and aerial combat will take me some time to get used to, though. The first Assassin Bug ambush (no idea what the monster is called in English) confused the hell out of me because the enemy was above the top of the screen.

Jumping on rooftops in Jadd is really satisfying, but exploring every nook and cranny for money and items gets a bit tiring after a bit.

I think the difficulty is a bit too low, even on the Hard setting. I managed to no-damage clear Full Metal Hugger on my first try, and haven't used a single consumable yet. Dodging moves you really far, so it's super easy to avoid attacks. I'm hoping the difficulty ramps up later in the game. The trailers so far have my hopes up, at least.

Jiggle physics.

I know I was expecting the demo to end where it did, but I really wish they had at least extended it out to the escape from Jadd so that you could at least get the third (non-Charlotte) member of your party before the demo ends. It literally ends less than a minute before you recruit the third member.

The new stat allocation system looks pretty interesting. I'm kind of amused they got rid of the Dexterity stat.

The camera moves too quickly up and down, but not quickly enough left and right. There needs to be an option to automatically lock on to the next enemy when you kill the currently locked on enemy.

All in all, I'm pretty hyped, even if there are noticeable flaws here and there.

 

Oh, and I totally didn't realize it was HACCAN that did the official art for this game until I saw it in the credits roll. Now it makes perfect sense why the art looks so amazing.

 

EDIT: Just started a game on the PS4. Here are my first impressions:

The controls are so, so much better on the PS4. I think the joysticks on the PS4 controller are just better than the ones on the Switch joycons in terms of responsiveness. On the other hand, L direction + L3 to dash is the clunkiest thing ever on a PS4 controller whereas the exact same action is way easier to do on the Switch.

The higher resolution also helps a lot in combat since enemy animations are easier to see. Also, the game is really pretty, and while I didn't previously think I would mind the loss of graphics on the Switch, I'm now having second thoughts. It might be worth passing up on portability for better graphics this time. Decisions...

Edited March 19, 2020 by Ice Dragon

[Ice Dragon]

Double post because it's been a day.

So I think I've figured out why the movement feels off on the Switch. I'm not sure if anyone else is having this issue, but diagonal movement on the Switch is slower than orthogonal movement relative to the camera. Measuring from the stack of boxes on the east end of Jadd's bottom floor to the closer torch next to the gate, it's 25 steps (as Riesz) when running orthogonally, but 34 steps when running at a 45-degree angle.

That's rather annoying. I hope it gets fixed in the final release.

And I've confirmed this isn't an issue with the PS4 version. I've also confirmed it isn't an issue with my joycons by switching to a different pair. (Not sure if having the "new" Switch makes a difference since mine is the old model.)

 

EDIT: I also just realized that they had put all of the promoted class models up on the main site. And that there are new tier 4 classes.

Edited March 20, 2020 by Ice Dragon

[starburst]

Oh, man! I do not want to try the demo and prefer to wait for the final release, but it looks great so far! I spent a lot of hours replaying this game with different parties back in the day. Now, twenty years later, it is time to relieve those memories.

[Punished Dayni]

Tried the demo on Switch, thought it was fine enough. Tried Riesz, Hawkeye and Charlotte (got all three before entering Wendel) and generally had more fun that with the DQ11 demo (Good as that game is to be fair). My reaction times were awful though and the main reason I didn't get zero damage in plenty of generic fights, though I did for the boss (Somehow.). Man the voice work could have been better in places (Yes, I realise Chawotte is intentional. It also grated and I was thankful she was barely involved story wise).

I bet it'd be better on PS4 though, I might wait until my brother sells the PS4 on to get a PS5. Or PC, if they had the balls to do SteamOS/Linux.

[Dark Holy Elf]

Also tried out the demo. It's been nearly two decades since I played Seiken Densetsu 3; I played it four times and it's game I enjoyed a bunch at the time but never saw much reason to go back to since.

That said this game seems like a neat experience. As someone who grew up playing 16-bit RPGs I've always wanted them to receive exactly this treatment, re-imagining them in 3D. The characters look great as expected, but I'm more impressed with how the environments themselves are translated from the original so nicely. I can only imagine how I'd feel if this game were one of my favourites, but as is I'm still rather charmed.

I like that they re-did the gameplay. Game seems like it might be too easy but otherwise seems more enjoyable than the original's (where your positioning only barely mattered because 99% of relevant enemy attacks auto-hit).

Playing as Angela because I enjoy her bitchy personality and her attack magic was fun/effective in the original, though naturally I'll switch between other PCs too.

[Anacybele]

I was playing the demo for this game's remake! I remembered liking Secret of Mana when I played it on SNES years ago, and never got to try Trials of Mana. So far it's cool though, and I already really like Hawkeye. XD He's like Disney's Aladdin with an even funnier attitude. lol I chose Riesz as my main character though. I had trouble choosing at first, everybody seems interesting to some degree. But Hawkeye and Angela are my partner characters. Though Angela hasn't appeared yet, I've only grabbed Hawkeye so far.

Funny how both this Hawkeye and FE's Hawkeye are from a desert.

Oh, I've met Charlotte too. She's rather cute, though kind of whiny.

Edited March 26, 2020 by Anacybele

[starburst]

17 hours ago, Anacybele said:

I chose Riesz as my main character though. I had trouble choosing at first, everybody seems interesting to some degree. But Hawkeye and Angela are my partner characters.

Twenty years ago, that was my very first party, too!
Star Lancer Lise, Master Ninja Hawk and Angela were absolutely overpowered (playing Lise/ Hawk’s storyline.)

I need to replay this, I need it. 😂

[Anacybele]

1 hour ago, starburst said:

Twenty years ago, that was my very first party, too!
Star Lancer Lise, Master Ninja Hawk and Angela were absolutely overpowered (playing Lise/ Hawk’s storyline.)

I need to replay this, I need it. 😂

Oh wow, that's a funny coincidence. XD And I see, nice!

[B.Leu]

On 3/20/2020 at 3:23 PM, Ice Dragon said:

EDIT: I also just realized that they had put all of the promoted class models up on the main site. And that there are new tier 4 classes

Apparently, there will be a NG+ too, and another story arc.

[Stroud]

The story arc which is added hypes me the most. Its also teased at the end of the trailer. 

Spoiler

I am absolutely certain that it is Anise in the new Story Arc. I cannot say how happy I am that she returns. And how sad I am that absolutely no one of the Seiken Densetsu fans in my country know about her. Or almost no one. Also it makes so much sense with Heroes of Mana together. 

 

Edited March 29, 2020 by Stroud

[Strullemia]

Just played through the demo with the three girls, now I'll go test out the three boys and make a team out of the ones I like to take in the full game.

Never played the Original so how important is your main character? If I take Riesz as my main does Angela's story get ignored? How much of a difference does it make?

---

Oh, and I had to facepalm a bit during Riesz's story

Spoiler

Riesz not paying attention to Elliot when running to her father in the attack made me facepalm. The game even pulls attention to her ignoring him if you run back to where the cutscene took place. Could they really not just have the ninja's teleport away with Elliot when Riesz confronted them? I get that she was under a lot of pressure at the time but still that part doesn't put Riesz in a good light.

 

Edited April 12, 2020 by Strullemia

[Ice Dragon]

7 hours ago, Strullemia said:

Never played the Original so how important is your main character? If I take Riesz as my main does Angela's story get ignored? How much of a difference does it make?

The main character determines the route of the main story at the major branch point (when the main character confronts their story's primary antagonist). The main character and your teammates will get extra dialogue during the points in the story where you visit each of their respective homelands. Your teammates' stories will still reach a closure, but not with the same amount of story importance.

 

7 hours ago, Strullemia said:

Oh, and I had to facepalm a bit during Riesz's story

I'm not sure Bill and Ben are the most competent of ninjas considering they could have just kidnapped Elliot from the start and forced him to use the key instead of trying to trick him into using it.

[Strullemia]

19 hours ago, Ice Dragon said:

The main character determines the route of the main story at the major branch point (when the main character confronts their story's primary antagonist). The main character and your teammates will get extra dialogue during the points in the story where you visit each of their respective homelands. Your teammates' stories will still reach a closure, but not with the same amount of story importance.

 

I'm not sure Bill and Ben are the most competent of ninjas considering they could have just kidnapped Elliot from the start and forced him to use the key instead of trying to trick him into using it.

I see. Good to know. Thanks.

It's true that Bill and Ben aren't competent. My little nitpick had more to do with Riesz herself who suddenly seemed to forgot about Elliot seconds after finding him. It just seemed a bit odd to me.

---

Completed every character story and I liked all of them. I decided to start with Kevin as main with Duran and Charlotte as the companions.

Edited April 13, 2020 by Strullemia

[Fabulously Olivier]

I loved the remake demo. My party is Hawkeye, Riesz, and Kevin. 

[Karimlan]

Didn't play the demo, as I was knee deep in Final Fantasy 12. Did get the game though, and patiently waiting for the date it drops.

[Ice Dragon]

And now to wait for my physical copy to come through the mail. I hope the pandemic won't slow it down too much.