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Buy Heroes of Mana for a not ridiculous price

Posted Aug 23rd 2007 12:20PM by Eric Caoili
Filed under: Sales

As great as Heroes of Mana might be, we can't fathom spending $40 dollars on any non-import handheld title, lest it has the words Contra on its cover or, at the very least, a cowboy pig. It's not that we're strapped for cash; we're just saving up our allowance to order a Masculator. Yeah, laugh at us now, but we'll see who's the chump when our arms are brimming with muscles. It most certainly will not be us.

Amazon and Best Buy seem to be the only retailers with any damn sense, marking Heroes of Mana to $29.99, a price more reasonable than the $40 it's going for at other shops like GameStop. If you're looking for a portable RTS to take you through these last weeks of summer, look no further! Well, unless you're looking at Ecoris.

[Via CAG]

DS Fanboy Review: Heroes of Mana

Posted Aug 21st 2007 4:30PM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: Reviews

Heroes of Mana is like the stereotypical middle child -- it's not an RPG, and it may not be as responsive or intelligent, AI-wise, as some RTS fans would like. It's not exactly traditional Mana fare, either, so some franchise fans are understandably wary. Toss in a somewhat annoying tutorial, and unfortunately, it seems like Heroes of Mana might be easily missed ... which is a shame, because there's a lot of fun to be had here once things get going.

The epic adventure kicks off as your airship, the Nightswan, is attacked in the middle of hostile territory. Unfortunately, that's what happens sometimes to scouts working under the cover of secrecy, and it makes for a great beginning to the game. However, things are not quite as straightforward as they seem. Our hero, Roget, and his crew have been sent to find out just how serious the Beastmen of Ferolia are about starting a war (and hey, they attacked, so serious business seems probable) ... but are they really just scouts? Have they been told everything they need to know about the situation, or are Roget and company pawns in a larger, more sinister scheme?

Continue reading DS Fanboy Review: Heroes of Mana

Tops on GameFly DS: Brain Age 2

Posted Aug 14th 2007 12:20PM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: News

No wonder the Brain Age franchise keeps getting NoA's Reggie Fils-Aime in trouble -- we're all renting it instead of buying it, according to GameFly. We're actually pretty surprised to see Brain Age 2 at the top of the list on the rental service. The other games rounding out the current top five most-requested DS titles aren't surprising to us at all; it's a rousing round of try-before-you-buy, especially with the sketchy Heroes of Mana swinging in at number two. We can even understand people wanting to try out Picross; after all, not everyone loves paint-by-number, even when it comes in an awesome package. But with a budget-priced sequel, we figured most people who were interested enough in Brain Age 2 to be looking ahead would just pick it up come release day, or toss down a preorder somewhere.

Are you looking at this one as a rental? Maybe considering that shiny bundle? While you ponder, check out the current top five most-requested DS titles at GameFly; we've tucked the list behind the break.

Gallery: Brain Age 2

Continue reading Tops on GameFly DS: Brain Age 2

Metareview: Heroes of Mana

Posted Aug 13th 2007 7:00PM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: Metareview

Opinions on the actual game Heroes of Mana are as varied as thoughts on the idea of taking the franchise in RTS direction. Review scores cover an enormous range, and in the end, we can only recommend that you find a reviewer you trust, or simply go with your own gut on this one.

GameBrink - 81%: "Heroes of Mana is a fun new experience in the Mana series but sadly, bad AI and pathfinding really drags down the gameplay ... Nevertheless, the excellent presentation helps make up for its flaws."

IGN - 80%: "The presentation is great, the fully-animated sequences are simply beautiful, the music is captivating ... and for the most part the gameplay is intuitive and downright fun. For anyone willing to put up with a few annoyances Heroes of Mana delivers a great pocket RTS experience plain and simple, and with a deep story, diverse cast of characters, and a pretty remarkable amount of depth it's a no-brainer for strategy fanatics. It isn't the franchise you remember from over a decade ago, but Heroes of Mana proves one very important element of Koichi Ishii's philosophy: The gameplay may change, but the soul remains."

Games Radar - 60%: "Heroes of Mana is incredibly rife with potential. Its new style of gameplay takes excellent advantage of the Nintendo DS' dual screens, the graphics are charming, the story is decent, and there's plenty of Mana flavor to satisfy longtime fans. The RTS gameplay is pretty well balanced and engaging to boot. Unfortunately, the game feels like it could have used a few more months of refinement to reach its full potential."

Game Informer - 50%: "...these ideas flounder so completely in execution that any resemblance to a real strategy title is lost. The most important component to hit the chopping block is your control over the units. The only command you can issue is attack-move, so if a specific enemy changes location while your guys are in transit, they'll reach their destination and stand there like gits. That's assuming that they even arrive, since the pathfinding is so laughably terrible. It's frustrating and baffling to tell your group of heroes to move straight ahead, and instead they spread out every which way like they're looking for some kind of morons-only shortcut ... Even if you consider yourself a fan of the series, don't waste your time here. There was a time when the Mana name meant something, but this is a disappointing entry that drags the franchise through the mud."

DS releases for the week of August 13th

Posted Aug 13th 2007 4:30PM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: News

U.S. gamers have a lot to be thankful for this week when it comes to DS titles! Whether you're dying to try some paper football, or you prefer something a little more involved, there's something on the table this week for almost any taste. Now the only problem is scraping up the cash to catch 'em all.

• Heroes of Mana
• High School Musical: Makin' the Cut
• Luminous Arc
• Madden NFL 08
• Operation: Vietnam
• Rune Factory: Fantasy Harvest Moon

Continue reading DS releases for the week of August 13th

The story of Mana continues with new screens

Posted Aug 13th 2007 2:00PM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: Screens

Just in time for release, we've got fresh new screens from Heroes of Mana, the RTS-take on the long-running series. Set after the never-released-here Seiken Densetsu 3, Heroes of Mana tracks the story of Roget, who crash-lands in the midst of an adventure of epic proportions.

Early reviews -- which we'll take a look at later -- are all over the place, but one thing's pretty solid: the screens are looking nice. Check out the updated gallery to see for yourself.

Gallery: Heroes of Mana DS

Square Enix release dates: RoF due next spring?!

Posted Jul 9th 2007 12:20PM by Eric Caoili
Filed under: News

Square Enix spent the morning revealing its lineup of "fresh new faces and timeless classics" that the company plans to exhibit this week at E3, attaching US release dates to its upcoming titles:

• Heroes of Mana - August 14
• Front Mission - October 23
• Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker - November 6
• Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings - November 20
• Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates - Spring 2008

We're jumping on our beds with glee over the fact that we'll be receiving Front Mission so early after the localization was announced, but several disappointing details failed to escape our attention -- Final Fantasy Tactics A2: The Sealed Grimoire, It's a Wonderful World, FFIV DS, and Dragon Quest IX's absence; and Ring of Fates' distant date. The multiplayer ARPG and its DS Lite bundle are scheduled to hit Japan this August 23rd.

[Via NeoGAF]

Heroes, Mana-style

Posted Jun 20th 2007 5:50PM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: News, Screens

Heroes of Mana may not be the Mana game that fans really want, but at least it's looking pretty nice -- and more strategy on the DS can never really be a bad thing. If only it had WiFi multiplayer, alas. We'll just have to make do with ratcheting up the ol' ranking so we can earn downloadable maps and items.

Heroes of Mana is scheduled for release in the US this August.

[Via press release]

Gallery: Heroes of Mana DS

Deals of Mana

Posted Apr 17th 2007 3:00PM by Eric Caoili
Filed under: News, Imports, Sales

Amazon must have a warehouse teeming with Childen of Mana shipments, as the online shop seems to have a sale on the game every other week. Square Enix's dungeon crawler has sold for less in the past, but today's $17.99 pricing is still a significant discount from it's regular $29.99 tag. This offer disappears tomorrow -- likely reappearing in a fortnight -- so don't wait too long to drop the game into your cart.

Play-Asia's Heroes of Mana sale will stick around until the end of the week, but there's no guarantee that the title will stay in stock. The Japanese text might be too much for first-time importers, but according to what we've heard, this RTS/RPG is a quality purchase. You can grab Heroes of Mana for $19.90, paying an extra $2.60 for shipping to the US.

[Via CAG]

Heroes of Mana site opens for business

Posted Dec 1st 2006 3:55PM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: News

The new site for Square Enix's Heroes of Mana is up, and it's gorgeous. From the faded, dreamy visuals to the included wallpapers and screenshots, it's enough to elicit a tiny hope that this will be the one Mana fans have been waiting for, RTS or not.

If nothing else, just leave the site open in another window or tab and enjoy the music!

[Via GameLife]

Heroes of Mana gets flying ship

Posted Nov 21st 2006 11:45AM by David Hinkle
Filed under: News

Famitsu updated their website with some information pertaining to Heroes of Mana. Revealing the protagonist's airship, it turns out that utilizing it will become a critical aspect of the game.

The aircraft will be present in battles and it is up to the player to defend it and ensure its safe escape once battle is complete. Translation isn't the best, so we do not have the name of the ship or any more information regarding its use in the game.

See also:

• TGS 2006: Heroes of Mana trailer excites

TGS 2006: Heroes of Mana trailer excites

Posted Sep 25th 2006 1:00PM by David Hinkle
Filed under: Fan stuff

In the latest trailer for Heroes of Mana, a lot of cool animation and music whet our appetite, even if it is lacking in actual gameplay. We love RPGs on the go, and while we wait like crazed madmen for a certain last fantasy, we can still muster excitement over the latest Mana title to hit our shores. One question, however, we must ask: why do the characters all look like they're Padaung with the rings off?

As always, the video is embedded into the post, after the break.

[Via Go Nintendo]

Continue reading TGS 2006: Heroes of Mana trailer excites

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