Visions of Mana: details on new characters, class switching and Elemental gameplay

Square Enix dropped some exciting new information about their upcoming title Visions of Mana on July 18.  The first brand new title in the Legend of Mana series in 17 years, Visions of Mana is slated to come out on PC (Windows), PS4/PS5 and Xbox Series X|S on August 29. The Steam version is scheduled for August 30). 

Visions of Mana is a third person action RPG with a semi open field (we previously asked the game’s producer what that means). In a nutshell, the main character Val and his party can near-seamlessly traverse the vast world and visit various mystical locations on their great journey to the sacred Mana Tree. 

A fresh face and an old friend

Square Enix recently revealed a new character that will appear in the game. Aesh, pictured below, is a talented scholar of the Log’grattzo Dark Archives. Despite his young age, he has already risen to become the curator of the archives and his character description hints that he might be a villain (“He will stop at nothing to satisfy his curiosity”). 

Adding some cheer to the game is the return of the Mana series’ adorable Li’l Cactus character. This cute little adventurer is unable to speak but jots down his impressions of the world in a diary. By reading Li’l Cactus’s diary in the game, it seems you will learn more about the world of Visions of Mana and gain insight which could help you on your own journey. 

Changing classes and unleashing the power of Elemental Vessels

Like previous entries in the Mana series, Visions of Mana also has a class change system. You can change each character’s class by equipping Elemental Vessels, mysterious artifacts that contain the power of a particular element. This also allows your character to harness the power of that element in battle and in the field.  

Square Enix has revealed three of the Elemental Vessels that will appear in Visions of Mana. First is the Vessel of Earth: Gnome Shovel, which lets you harness the power of clay golems and bombard your foes with rocks. The Vessel of Light: Lumina Lantern allows you to use the power of reflections to illuminate hidden paths and reflect damage from one enemy to another. On the other hand, the Vessel of Darkness: Shade Sight gives you the power of gravity that you can use to catapult yourself towards unreachable areas and to close the distance between yourself and enemies during battle.  

Equipping an Elemental Vessel also gives different characters a different class. For example, equipping Shade Sight turns Val into a Berserker, Julei into a Necromancer and Careena into a Maverick. 

Elemental points make prizes

New information has also been released about Visions of Mana’s Elemental Plot system. Elemental Plots are, as the name suggests, tied to a particular Element and are unlocked whenever a new Elemental Vessel is obtained. Your characters can advance through Elemental Plots using elemental points, that can be collected in the world. Progressing through an elemental plot not only increases the character’s affinity to that element but also allows you to learn powerful moves and abilities. Maxing out an Elemental Plot will bestow the powers of that element onto the character’s starter class. It seems that leveling up Elemental Plots for your party members will be an important aspect of Visions of Mana’s gameplay. 

Visions of Mana is scheduled to be released on PC (Windows), PS4/PS5 and Xbox Series X|S on August 29, with the Steam version launching on August 30). In addition to digital versions, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S will get physical releases – a standard edition and a collector’s edition. The Collector’s edition of Visions of Mana comes with a plushie of scared beast Ramcoh, a hardcover art book, a 5 CD soundtrack and the game. The PS4 version of the game will get a standard physical release, which will only be available in Japan (at the time of writing). 

For more insight into the development process behind Visions of Mana, check out our full-length interviews with producer Masaru Oyamada and the game’s directors on the unique developing environment at Ouka Studios. 

Based on the original Japanese article by Jun Namba (original article’s publication date: 2024-07-18 17:00 JST)