Finished Legend of Mana!
Beat the game in around 30 hours, at level 59, with a 2H sword whose special techniques I didn't even get to use...
I can't exactly say that I loved the game, but I think the plot-less open-world structure is interesting. To quote a review:
Legend of Mana resembles a board game with all of its pieces scattered across the floor, it’s true — but it’s also a board game that does a damn good job at convincing players that all its pieces matter.
I'll miss it! I'll miss the soothing music, the cute, colorful graphics, and fun little creatures. I'm not sure I understood what the main "plot" was, the one about the Mana Tree, (if you can even call it the main plot), but I loved the twists in the Jumi arc (plot twist: it's a lesbian love story) and the way that the greatest act of salvation is in allowing yourself to feel and cry.
Thoughts on the various characters and storylines:
Spoilers
Diddle & Capella
My personal favorite because the depression is too real. Sometimes love is just a sad, tired soul who can't live in the moment and his ebullient partner who not only refuses to leave him alone but also promises to make the world a better place for him.
The Infernal Doll (Junkyard quest)
I don't even remember what the objective was, but the Junkyard was my favorite dungeon/maze. The way you can interact with the toys and they are all possessed by souls with War Trauma. The duality of cute and dark.
Domina
The Rachel quest messed me up, it still haunts me lol. For a family to love you but be happier for you to be literally replaced by someone else... Are she and the student mage happy in each other's bodies? It doesn't seem like Rachel is interested in changing back.
Jumi
For salvation to come in the act of simply feeling and allowing oneself to weep for another person… Wow. I've been emotionally invested since they killed Ruben right in front of me just when I’d just met him, which is pretty meta since empathy and the desire to help were key factors in the story. There were real stakes and payoffs and surprise magical girl transformations… and lesbians! And Elazul, my tsundere son (ever since I found out that he's the babiest Jumi he became my favorite) 😆 AND I got to see my apprentices waiting for me to come home at the end of it, looking out the window and worrying because I was late. 🥺
I also liked how Alexandra was Sandra the jewel thief and Alex the jewel dealer... Very gender! Not to mention the entire knight/priestess dynamic she had with Florina... Refusing to allow Florina to sacrifice herself for the Jumi's continued survival and instead turning around and hunting down the Jumi for their cores and keeping Florina in a treasure chest.
Lisa and Bud
My adorable children!!! i wish they had more quests, I wanted more Lisa interactions.
Li'l Cactus
Also sweet. He is doing his best
Dragoons
Boring... The sibling relationship (Larc and Sierra) would have been SO up my alley but you don't see them interact enough. I also just don't care about Larc, who is your main point of contact!
Gato Grottoes (Daena, Matilda, Escad, Irwin)
I guess this is the one where I save the world (because Irwin wants to destroy the world and I’ve been roped into stopping him) but feel nothing. All this talk about star-crossed lovers and free will, but I don't understand why Matilda is "chained" to her priestess role and why demons like Irwin have a biological compulsion to destroy the world. It’s not like I know any other demons. And how come he's the only one who's gotten far in his goal of world destruction? Is it because Matilda, a revered priestess, (who goes on and on about respecting each other's will) actively enables him?
The whole time i was just like “umm ok?” but the final dungeon (Lucemia) for this was the COOLEST. I mean, the corpse of a dragon? Hello? That's so hardcore. The BGM was a banger too.
Penguins
Omg these quests were so tedious!!! The one with the sirens also had the most difficult boss fight.
Niccolo
BRO.
Gilbert
I loved all his quests, he is so funny.