Secret of Mana
The gameplay was highly rated by most reviewers, though the combat system had detractors. Dillard of "Nintendo Life" felt that the gameplay was as good as that of "Secret of Mana" and it had "a much more strategic feel to it". The "1UP.com" and "Cubed3" reviews also brought up the day and time system as interesting additions, though the "1UP.com" reviewer felt that the combat was not "quite as tight" as in "Secret of Mana". The "Next Generation" preview, while acknowledging that several flaws in the "Secret of Mana" combat system had been corrected and praising the boss battles, felt that the computer-controlled characters showed no sense of tactics, resulting in a free-for-all. A review by "JeuxVideo.com" also noted several improvements in the combat system over the prior game, but felt that battles could turn into a chaotic mass of attacks and numbers. Parsons of "RPGamer" also called out the Ring system as being flawed, as he found it frustrating that the menu could not be brought up while a character was performing an action, making boss battles hectic and difficult. The "JeuxVideo.com" reviewer also took issue with this restriction.