Square Enix hasn’t touched the Mana IP in over 15 years, which is a bit inexplicable for the Japanese publisher, but with a new episode finally in the works, the franchise that has been with us since the SNES will soon be expanded with a cross-gen title being developed by Ouka Studios, as confirmed by the game’s producer Masaru Oyamada in an interview with Famitsu.

According to the plot, everyone in Tianeea, the fire village, is preparing to celebrate the arrival of the fairy and the naming of an “alm”. Every four years, alms are chosen from all over the world to travel to the Tree of Mana and rejuvenate the flow of mana power. A Soul Guardian is also chosen to ensure the safe pilgrimage of the Alms. Val is one of these guardians. On the day of the Faerie’s arrival, Val brings his childhood friend to the festival. As the sun sinks below the skyline, all the spectators wait with bated breath, hoping to be chosen as an Alm. The fairy finally descends in front of Val’s friend and names her the Alm of Fire. The villagers bid them farewell and pray for their success as they embark on the adventure of a lifetime.

Square Enix also introduced a few characters. Val is from Tianeea, the Fire Village. Val is the newly appointed Soul Guardian and the game’s protagonist. He’s a curious boy with a positive outlook on life. When Val’s childhood friend is chosen to become an Alm, he sets off on a journey across the world to accompany her on her pilgrimage. Like Val, Hinna comes from Tianeea, the village of fire. Hinna is Val’s childhood friend. When she’s honored to be chosen as the Alm of Fire for this year’s pilgrimage, she’s thrilled to be able to go on this adventure with him. Careena hails from Longren, the Vale of Wind. An unfortunate accident cost her one of her precious wings, but that hasn’t dampened her desire to become an alm and see the world beyond Longren. She is rarely seen without her best friend, Ramcoh, a sacred beast cub. Ramcoh is a sacred beast cub. After saving Careena, who was injured in an accident, Ramcoh began living in Longren. Morley comes from Etaern, the Moonlight Parish. Since childhood, Morley has carried the weight of his hometown’s terrible disaster on his shoulders. But after meeting Val and the others, he is able to face his painful past.

Elemental vessels are mystical artifacts that contain the power of the elements. Each vessel contains the mana of a different element. You can use these powers in combat and exploration. You can use an Elemental Vessel on the strangely glowing triggers scattered throughout the land, harnessing its individual power to create gusts of wind, move rocks, or even slow down time to open pathways and find hidden items on the map. Once you have a new ship, don’t forget to revisit areas you’ve already traversed. Accessing other triggers will unlock new locations for you to explore. Acquire the various elemental vessels to upgrade your characters to new classes. Different classes unlock different stats, weapon types, and unique moves or abilities based on their corresponding elemental. Some abilities can restrict an enemy’s movement or cast regenerative effects to heal your allies.

The wind vessel is the Sylphid Boomerang, which can control air currents. Use it to create gusts of wind when you come across a broken path that’s too big to cross. Boost your jumps with wind or summon air-borne rock steps to get you back on track. The Moon’s vessel is the Lunar Globe, which can manipulate the flow of time. It can slow down time to allow the player to bypass obstacles such as frozen rapids, or return a specific area to the way it was in the past.

You can also use it in combat. Throw the Sylphid Boomerang at an enemy to attack with the power of the wind. It can bind and suspend the enemy in mid-air while dealing damage. If an attack hits the binding gust, it’ll burst into shards of wind that scatter to hit other enemies in the area. Val’s character class can become a rune knight, Careena can become a dancer, and Morley can become a nomad. The Lunar Globe can create pockets of lunar energy that reduce the movement speed of enemies who enter them. If you or an ally enters the affected area, it’ll reduce the casting time of your spells. Val can switch to Aegis, Careena can switch to Moon Charterer, and Morley’s character class can switch to Nightblade.

Pikulos will play the role of Chocobos in the game. They can be summoned with the Call Bell to move around the map much faster. They will crush any enemies in their path, so if you need to get to a location quickly (such as Elemental Ships that allow further exploration of previously visited locations), you’ll be able to get there faster so the action RPG doesn’t slow down too much.

Visions of Mana will be available this summer for PlayStation 5, Xbox consoles, PC (Steam, Microsoft Store, and PlayStation 4).

Source: Gematsu, Famitsu