Seiken Densetsu 3

Seiken Densetsu 3

Developer(s) Square
Publisher(s) Square
Director(s) Hiromichi Tanaka
Producer(s) Tetsuhisa Tsuruzono
Designer(s) Koichi Ishii
Composer(s) Hiroki Kikuta
Series Mana
Platform(s) Super Famicom
Release date(s)
  • JP September 30, 1995
Genre(s) Action RPG
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

Seiken Densetsu 3 (聖剣伝説3?, lit. "Holy Sword Legend 3") is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) for Nintendo's Super Famicom as a part of the Mana series.

The game features three lengthy main plotlines, six different characters, each with their own storylines, and a wide range of classes to choose from, which provides each character with an exclusive set of skills and status progression. The game also makes use of a time progression system, with transitions from day to night and weekday to weekday in game time, adding to the game's challenging gameplay.

Although the game was only published in Japan, Western players have been able to come into contact with Seiken Densetsu 3 thanks to an unofficial English fan translation. In the West, the game is sometimes referred to unofficially as Secret of Mana 2.

Contents

Gameplay

Seiken Densetsu 3 plays very much like its predecessor Secret of Mana, as it employs a real-time combat system, making use of a ring menu which provides the player with quick access to magic spells, items and character information, amongst other options. One of its main differences, though, is that the range of characters is doubled to six, with the player choosing the three members of his or her party when commencing a new game. A single variety of weapon is available for each character, and the "progression by means of use" present on the series' previous game was removed from the weapons and magic systems; now the only factor which influences a spell's damage is how high the character's "magic" attribute and how low an enemy's magical defense towards a special kind of magic is (for example: undeads are wounded heavier by light-based magic-attacks). A storage system was introduced, where excess items can be placed, replacing Secret of Mana's "four-of-a-kind maximum rule". The player can switch items between storage and their nine-slot item ring menu, or else "top-up" items currently in it to a maximum of nine each.

A battle mode was introduced as part of the gameplay, which freezes some aspects of normal gameplay (such as item storage) to allow the player to focus on defeating monsters. Players can exit battle mode by moving off-screen or far enough away from the monsters for it to be disengaged (unlike the Legend of Mana no-escape mode). When in battle mode, the character adds one point to his or her "power gauge" by making an attack which hits a monster (in place of Secret of Mana's vulnerable charge-up). When the gauge is full enough, special moves can be unleashed - moves vary according to the character and their class. Once all enemies on-screen are defeated, the player has the chance to receive a reward item in a treasure chest. Sometimes, a "prize" wheel of traps is given when opening the chest; this can be eluded by timing the cursor to fall over an "OK" disc.

Unlike the previous game, however, instead of setting the characters' range to the enemy and their level of aggression, the player sets directives on the character's behavior during combat, such as taking an individual target or supporting another character. The player can also determine whether or not the AI characters will make use of their power gauge and what earned abilities they may use, though magic spells must be cast manually by the human player.

Three-player Patch

There are conflicting reports to whether Seiken Densetsu 3 allows two or up to three players (with the use of a multi-tap). In late 2006, a three-player patch was released by the fan community to allow up to three human players to participate in the two player version of the game. [1]

Classes and Leveling

Level progression is coordinated by the player, as a choice is given regarding where to invest a character statistics point at every level up. A "class" system is also present. Once a character reaches level 18, he or she is able to go to a Mana Stone and choose a class to progress to - either a class aligned to "Light" or a class aligned to "Dark" - which provides a different set of skills and different improvements to character statistics. A second class change may be performed at level 38. The second change requires the use of rare items to be performed, and once again an option between a "Light" and a "Dark" is presented; However, there is a key difference between the second class change and the first class change. Although the first class change of "Light" and/or "Dark" is in the players power of choosing, the second class change will advance the character depending on which of the two rare items for that characters class you use in the class change at the Mana Stone. Counting all possibilities there is a total of seven possible classes for every character, including the initial class.

Passage of time

Seiken Densetsu 3 also employs a calendar function into its gameplay. The seven-day week cycles much more quickly than an actual one — a day passes in a number of minutes — but it still affects gameplay in certain ways.

Each day of the week is represented by a different elemental spirit. On that spirit's day, magic of that element will be slightly stronger:

A Day is also divided into day and night, represented by Will-o'-the-Wisp the light elemental (known as Wisp in the rest of the Mana series) and Shade the dark elemental, respectively. Reportedly, the use of the opposite elements according to day and time and the game's elementology are not weakened; for example, using water spells on a Salamander Day does not make them weaker than using them on a Gnome Day.

Certain events only happen during certain times of day, such as a nighttime-only black market selling particularly rare items. Enemies encountered in the field also change during certain time periods, and some may be sleeping if characters approach them at night. In addition, the character Kevin transforms into a werewolf when he fights at night, greatly increasing his attack power. Using an inn's services allows the player to "skip" the game's clock to that day's evening, or the following morning. Mana Holy Day is also notable in the game's calendar as players can use the inns' healing and time-skipping service for free, while a nominal charge is given on other days.

Plot

Setting

According to Seiken Densetsu 3's in-game lore, the Mana Goddess created the game's world by forging the powerful Sword of Mana and defeating eight benevodons (God-Beasts in the fan-translation) with it, sealing them within eight Mana Stones, before turning herself into the Mana Tree and falling asleep. The game is set at a time when Mana starts to fade and peace has ended, as some people plot to unleash the benevodons from the stones so as to gain ultimate power, politically and magically. Heroes of Mana is a direct prequel to Seiken Densetsu 3, taking place 19 years before the latter's story.

Playable Characters

The characters (and their individual stories) are grouped into three main sub-plots. Duran and Angela oppose the Dragon Emperor; Hawkeye and Riesz oppose the Dark Prince; and Kevin and Charlotte oppose the Masked Mage. The main storyline is determined by the first character chosen, however there is significantly more character interaction and dialogue if these pairs of characters are selected in the same party.

Opponent Characters

While Dragon Emperor and the Dark Prince are mentioned by their minions before they appear on-screen, the Masked Mage is not, and his existence is only revealed when the player meets him. If Kevin and Charlotte are not the main character, Deathjester would reveal that he is working for the Masked Mage.

Story

With the exception of Charlotte, the characters are told (or otherwise decide) to seek the advice of the Priest of Light in the Holy City Wendel. They arrive at the city of Jadd soon after the Beastmen have invaded. Due to the Beastmen's werewolf powers, they are able to make an escape by night.

All characters, on the way to Wendel, stay overnight in Astoria where they are woken by a bright light. Following it, it reveals itself to be a Faerie from the Mana Sanctuary (Mana Holyland in the fan-translation), exhausted by her journey. Out of desperation, the Faerie chooses the main character to be her host, and tells them to get to Wendel. There, while giving her or his grievances to the Priest of Light, the Faerie interrupts and explains that the Mana Tree is dying and that the Sanctuary is in danger. This is grave news for the Priest, for if the Tree dies, the Benevodons will reawaken and destroy the world.

He goes on to explain further that, because the Faerie has chosen the main character as its host, they must travel to the Sanctuary to draw the Sword of Mana from the foot of the Mana Tree to restore peace to the world, and have their wishes granted by the Mana Goddess if it can be drawn before the Tree dies. However, there is a catch: a lot of power is needed to open the gate to the Sanctuary. The Faerie does not have the strength to do it, and the ancient spell which would do so by unlocking the power in the Mana Stones also takes the caster's life. However, the Stones' guarding spirits (Secret of Mana's Elementals) are seen to be able, once their powers are combined.

After journeying across the world to get the Spirits, thwarting the invasion attempts of Navarre and Altena, discovering the powers of the Fire and Water Mana Stones released (by agents of Navarre and Altena, respectively), and learning the disappearance of the Mana Stone of Darkness along the way, the Main Character tries to open the gate to the Mana Sanctuary with the Spirits' assistance. The first attempt fails, but the second succeeds; the Faerie realizes that it was opened because someone released the power from all the Mana Stones.

The characters travel into the Sanctuary and the Main Character claims the Mana Sword; however, it is soon discovered that the Main Character's adversaries (Koren and the Darkshine Knight for Angela and Duran; Jagan and Bigieu for Riesz/Lise and Hawkeye; or the Deathjester and Heath for Kevin and Carlie/Charlotte) (the villains that aren't the main character's primary enemies are killed by whoever the main villain is) has captured the Faerie and will only release her in exchange for the Mana Sword. The unfortunate trade is made, and once the enemy receives the Sword, the Mana Stones shatter and the Benevodons are released.

The characters must then defeat the Benevodons before they can gather and destroy the world. However, after doing this they realize killing the Benevodons gives more power to their main enemy (the Dragon Emperor for Duran and Angela, the Dark Prince for Hawkeye and Riesz, or Masked Mage for Kevin and Charlotte), and the already powerful villain absorbs the power of the Sword of Mana and the Benevodons to become a god, but is halted by the Mana Goddess blocking some of his power. After defeating the villains minions the characters go and defeat their main enemy, but are unable to stop him from destroying the Mana Tree. The Faerie fuses with what's left of the Mana Tree and will become the new Mana Goddess in a thousand years, but until then mana won't exist in the world. The characters go back to their lives after this.

Development

Seiken Densetsu 3 was designed by series creator Koichi Ishii.[2] The game was directed by Hiromichi Tanaka,[2] who previously helped design the first three Final Fantasy titles and Secret of Mana. Manga and anime artist Nobuteru Yūki was responsible for the illustrations of the characters designed by Ishii himself.[2] Yūki's artwork for the game can be found in the rare Nobuteru Yuki Seiken Densetsu Illustration Book.[3]

Localization

During the game's development and release, Seiken Densetsu 3 became known abroad as Secret of Mana 2.[4][5][6] Square stated in a 1995 issue of its North American newsletter that they planned to release the game during the second half of the year.[7] However, Seiken Densetsu 3 was never localized outside of Japan. There is an apparent misconception among video game fans that the SNES title Secret of Evermore was released in lieu of an English language version of Seiken Densetsu 3 in 1995. Ill feelings towards the lack of an official translation probably stem from titular and mechanical similarities.

One suggested reason against Secret of Evermore's favouring over Seiken Densetsu 3 is due to the establishment of a new development team at Square's office in Redmond, Washington, called Square Soft.[8] According to Brian Fehdrau, the lead programmer for Secret of Evermore, the decision had absolutely no effect on any such translations and did not tie up any of the people involved in translation; the Redmond team was specifically hired to create Evermore and they would not have been assembled otherwise.[8] This may have been accompanied by a decision not to continue translating titles, including the sequel to Secret of Mana. Citing Nintendo Power, the probability of a North American release for Seiken Densetsu 3 was low due to "a technical nature" and that it would have been far too costly to produce at the time.[9] This is further supported by Fehdrau, who mentions that Seiken Densetsu 3 had some bugs, hindering its likelihood of being certified for release by Nintendo of America.[8]

In 2000, a fan translation project led by hacker Neill Corlett was successfully completed and made available on the internet as an unofficial patch. Due to the increasing popularity of video game ROMs and the quick progress of emulators at the time, the translated version of Seiken Densetsu 3 was made available to many players from around the world in 2000.[10] At the time of its release, the translation was the most sophisticated hack of its type, with assembly hacks for script compression and variable font width, as well as overcoming technical difficulties in dumping and re-inserting the original script. Seiken Densetsu 3 was later translated into French and German.

Audio

Main article: Music of the Mana series

The score for Seiken Densetsu 3 was composed by Hiroki Kikuta, who had previously composed the music for Secret of Mana. Kikuta completed it with little assistance, having performed the sound selection, editing, effect design, and data encoding himself.[11] The soundtrack features 60 tracks on 3 discs and was published by NTT Publishing on August 25, 1995 and was republished by Square Enix on October 1, 2004.[12] The main theme from Secret of Mana, "Where Angels Fear to Tread", makes a return in this installment.[13] The track "Meridian Child" was performed by the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra for the fifth Orchestral Game Concert in 1996.[14] The game also features a surround sound mode.

Seiken Densetsu 3 Original Sound Version track listing

Reception

 Reception
Review scores
Publication Score
1UP.com B–[15]
GameFan 95 of 100[16]
GameSpy 10 of 10[17]
RPGamer 8.0 of 10[18]
Cubed³ 9 of 10[19]
RPGFan 90%[20]
RarityGuide.com 92%[21]

Despite its Japanese exclusivity, Seiken Densetsu 3 has received highly positive review scores among importers and many consider it a SNES classic. The game ranked on GameFAQs top 100 list from 1999 to 2001.[22][23][24]

See also

Book: Mana series
Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print.


References

  1. ^ "Seiken Densetsu 3 Three Player Patch Download". romhacking.net. http://www.romhacking.net/hacks/179/. Retrieved 2011-09-08. 
  2. ^ a b c Square Co., Ltd.. Seiken Densetsu 3. (Square Co., Ltd.). Super Famicom. (30 September 1995)
  3. ^ "Seiken Seiken Densetsu 3 Merchandise". Seikens.com. http://www.seikens.com/merchandise-sd3.html. Retrieved 2008-06-26. 
  4. ^ West, Neil (September 1994). "Interview with Ted Woolsey (full text)". Super Play Magazine. 
  5. ^ "Feature: Chrono Cross Development Team Interview and Contest". GamePro.com. 2000-12-01. Archived from the original on 2011-06-07. http://web.archive.org/web/20110607101441/http://www.gamepro.com/sony/psx/games/features/6764.shtml. Retrieved 2008-06-26. 
  6. ^ "Secret of Mana 2". GameFan Magazine Vol. 3 Issue #12 (Diehard Gamers Club). December 1995. 
  7. ^ "Around the Corner". Ogopogo Examiner (Square Soft, Inc.). 1995. 
  8. ^ a b c Corbie Dillard (2008). "Interview with Brian Fehdrau (Secret of Evermore)". Super-NES.com. http://www.super-nes.com/evermoreinterview.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-22. 
  9. ^ "Epic Center: The Rising Sun". Nintendo Power #79 (Nintendo): p. 51. December 1995. 
  10. ^ Radford Castro (2004). "The World of Emulation". Let Me Play: Stories of Gaming and Emulation. Hats Off Books. pp. 171–172. ISBN 1-58736-349-6. 
  11. ^ Jeriaska (2007-06-09). "Where Angels Fear to Tread: A Conversation with Hiroki Kikuta". SquareHaven.com.. http://squarehaven.com/news/2007/06/09/Where-Angels-Fear-to-Tread-A-Conversation-with-Hiroki-Kikuta/. Retrieved 2008-06-25. 
  12. ^ "Seiken Densetsu 3 Original Sound Version". SquareEnixMusic.com. http://www.squareenixmusic.com/albums/s/seikendensetsu3.shtml. Retrieved 2008-06-25. 
  13. ^ Jormungand. "Seiken Densetsu 3 Original Sound Version". Chudahs-Corner.com. http://www.chudahs-corner.com/reviews/index.php?catalog=PSCN-5026%7E8. Retrieved 2008-06-25. 
  14. ^ "Orchestral Game Concert 5". SoundtrackCentral.com. http://www.soundtrackcentral.com/cds/orchestralgameconcert5.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-26. 
  15. ^ 1UP Staff (January 1, 2000). "Seiken Densetsu 3 Review from 1UP.com". 1UP.com. http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3113911&sec=REVIEWS. Retrieved 2008-12-20. 
  16. ^ "Secret of Mana 2". GameFan #36 (DieHard Gamers Club). December 1995. 
  17. ^ Red Baron. "Classic Review Archive - Seiken Densetsu 3". Hardcore Gaming 101. http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/snes/seiken3.htm. Retrieved 2010-02-04. 
  18. ^ Parsons, Chris. "Seiken Densetsu 3 - Review". RPGamer.com. http://www.rpgamer.com/games/sd/sd3/reviews/sd3rdrev1.html. Retrieved 2008-12-20. 
  19. ^ Riley, Adam (2006-10-03). "C3 Reviews :: Seiken Densetsu 3 / Secret Of Mana 2". Cubed3.com. http://www.cubed3.com/review/321/2/. Retrieved 2008-12-20. 
  20. ^ WolfSamurai. "RPGFan Reviews - Seiken Densetsu 3". RPGFan.com. http://www.rpgfan.com/reviews/seikendensetsu3/Seiken_Densetsu_3.html. Retrieved 2008-12-20. 
  21. ^ Shepard, Douglas. "Seiken Densetsu 3, Legend of the Holy Sword 3 reviewed". RarityGuide.com. http://www.rarityguide.com/articles/articles/59/1/Seiken-Densetsu-3-Legend-of-the-Holy-Sword-3-reviewed/Page1.html. Retrieved 2008-12-29. 
  22. ^ GameFAQs (December 1999). "The Top 10 Games of 1999". http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/contest/c9912. Retrieved 2010-04-04. 
  23. ^ GameFAQs (December 2000). "The Top 10 Games of 2000". http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/c0012.html. Retrieved 2010-04-04. 
  24. ^ GameFAQs (December 2001). "The Top 10 Games of 2001". http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/c0112.html. Retrieved 2010-04-04. 

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