Where we differ in opinion is that Dale was much more forgiving of Legend Of Mana's flaws. Being a long-time fan of Secret of Mana, Dale probably wanted to like Legend Of Mana so much more. I too was a fan of the original, but not so much so that I was dying to get my hands of the latest one. With that said, I can honestly say that I despised playing Legend Of Mana . The non-linear episodic approach is original, but everything feels disjointed.
Scenarios are way too short and uninvolved.
I am sure it would have helped, but given the game at its current state, perhaps the developers wanted gamers to turn their brains off, or they were relying on their notoriously hardcore fans to blindly play through Legend Of Mana and just accept it for what it is. Unfortunately for Squaresoft, I don't fall into either category, and I'm left to review the game solely on its merits. Based on those merits, Legend Of Mana gets three points for its presentation and nothing more because everything else in the game is a wash. Mild Animated Violence, Suggestive Themes Fans of Secret Of Mana , or the Seiken Densetsu series in general, should be warned that the staples of great story and multiplayer mode are missing from this release. The 2-D graphics and other games are here, but Legend of Mana 's differences may put some of you off.