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Seiken Densetsu 3
Developer(s)	Square Co.
Publisher(s)	Square Co.
Designer(s)	Koichi Ishii (game design director) Hiromichi Tanaka (director)
Artist(s)	Yutaka Izubuchi (character design) Nobuteru Yūki (character illustration)
Composer(s)	Hiroki Kikuta
Series	Mana series
Platform(s)	Super Famicom
Release date(s)	JPN September 30, 1995
Genre(s)	Action role-playing game
Mode(s)	Single player, multiplayer
Media	32-megabit cartridge

Seiken Densetsu 3 (聖剣伝説3, Seiken Densetsu Surī^?, lit. "The Legend of the Holy Sword 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, many 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.

Gameplay

The Seiken Densetsu 3 class change system

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 prequel, 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.

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

Angela, Duran and Hawkeye fighting Land Umber, the Earth benevodon

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:

• Luna Day - Moon magic is stronger;
• Salamander Day - Fire magic is stronger;
• Undine Day - Water magic is stronger;
• Dryad Day - Wood magic is stronger;
• Jinn Day - Wind magic is stronger;
• Gnome Day - Earth magic is stronger;
• Mana Holy Day - All elemental magic is balanced.

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.

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.

• Angela (アンジェラ, Anjera^?) is the only princess of the ice-covered Magic Kingdom of Altena. Her mother, Valda, the Queen of Reason, uses her magic to keep the Altenish citadel in a perpetual spring. However, like her country, Valda is cold and unfeeling towards her daughter, who has become lonely and selfish as a result of her upbringing. The Queen's spell weakens as Mana starts to fade. So that her spell may continue and Altena does not freeze over, she, with her assistant wizard Koren, decides to invade other nations to claim their Mana Stones. Before starting the invasion, Valda and her right hand Koren want to unleash the power of their own Mana Stone of water. The only problem: the spell doing this has been cursed, causing the death of the person casting it. As Angela seems to be the only person in Altena not being able to use magic, the queen opresses her daughter to sacrifice herself to the ancient spell which would unlock the power of Mana kept in the Stone, and so, doing a first step in opening the way to the infinite power in the Sword of Mana, saving the magical kingdom in turn. After Angela is told this, her rage causes her hidden magical powers to suddenly burst out in an uncontroleable way teleporting the girl to the outside of the citadel. With nowhere to go but also no possibillity to stay, Angela leaves Altena.
• Duran (デュラン, Dyuran^?), an orphaned mercenary swordsman of the Grasslands Kingdom of Valsena (Forcena in the fan-translation), proudly serves his king, the wise Richard. Duran and his little sister Wendy were raised by their aunt, Stella after Duran's mother died as the result of a long term illness, and their father Loki was lost in battle with the Dragon Emperor. One night, Duran is on guard duty at the castle of Valsena when Koren attacks the castle. Duran is left for dead after confronting him, and after making his recovery, he vows to become the best swordsman in the world and to exact his revenge upon Koren, due to a combination of his own wounded pride and a desire to avenge the people Koren killed.
• Hawkeye (ホークアイ, Hōkuai^?) (Hawk in the fan-translation) is a member of a guild of noble thieves based in the desert Sand Fortress of Nevarl (Navarre in the fan-translation). The guild's leader, Lord Flamekhan, suddenly and uncharacteristically declares Nevarl to be a Kingdom. Surprised by this, Hawkeye discusses the matter with his friends, Flamekhan's children, Jessica and Eagle. Hawkeye and Eagle decide to confront Flamekhan about it, only to find that he is in the middle of a meeting with his assistant, the witch Isabella, who turns out to be pulling Flamekhan's strings. Isabella (later revealed as "Bigieu") casts a spell on Eagle to make him attack Hawkeye, who injures Eagle gravely in his self-defense. However, Isabella finishes Eagle off with a spell and puts all the blame on Hawkeye. He is imprisoned and awaits his execution when Isabella informs him that she has given Jessica a cursed necklace; should Hawkeye tell anyone the truth, she will be choked by it. Luckily, he makes an escape.
• Riesz (リース, Rīsu^?) (Lise in the fan translation) is princess of the mountainous Wind Kingdom of Laurent (Rolante in the fan-translation), and captain of its Amazon army. After her mother, Minerva, dies while giving birth to her younger brother, Elliott, Riesz vows to take care of him. However, two mysterious ninjas from Nevarl, Bill and Ben (which are ironically former friends of Hawkeye), discreetly trick Elliott into turning off Laurent's protective winds and kidnap him. With the winds gone, Nevarl attacks Laurent with a cloud of sleep powder and kills its king, Joster. Devastated, Riesz makes her escape.
• Kevin (ケヴィン, Kevin^?) is the inarticulate prince of Ferolia. He is the son of Gauser, king of the beastmen, and a human mother. Sick of the treatment of his people by "normal" humans, the Beast King's desired revenge is made all the more possible by the appearance of the mysterious "Man who devours death", with his dark magic at "beck and call". He shows his abilities by causing an illusion, in which Kevin's beloved wolf-pup orphan friend, Karl, rises up and attacks him while both are out in the Moonlight Forest. Kevin defends himself but seems to loose his life, when, on the verge of dying, his werewolf abilities awake; unfortunately, they come at the cost of Karl's life (which is revealed as a lie in the end). After seeing that the Beast King is sending an invasion force to overthrow the humans' precious Holy City Wendel, Kevin overhears the Beast King congratulate the Deathjester on his spell. Enraged, he confronts the Beast King and is, quite literally, thrown out of the castle. He declares the Beast King not to be his father, wishes to find his mother, some way to revive Karl and swears to take revenge on the Beast King for his best friend's death.
• Charlotte (シャルロット, Sharurotto^?) (Carlie in the fan translation), the "cute little girl who lives in Wendel", is the granddaughter of the Priest of Light. Orphaned by her parents, the cleric Leroy and the elf Shayla, she is looked after by a fellow cleric, Heath. Feeling an evil influence in nearby Jadd, the Priest of Light sends Heath to investigate; however, Charlotte overhears this conversation and makes an escape to find the Deathjester kidnap Heath. This is when she decides she must save him.
• Dark Prince (Kuro no Kikōshi (黒の貴公子^?), or Young Noble of Darkness in the original): Hawkeye and Riez's main enemy and the final boss of their storylines. He was once a human, though his name as human is never stated. He was the prince of the "Kingdom of Light", but was also prophesied as being the harbinger of doom. Being mistreated and locked-up, the ruler of the underworld saw this and offered a pact to him and have him become their new leader. The prince accepted, and through an ironic twist of fate the prince fulfilled the prophecy by destroying his former kingdom. Having not enough with this, he also killed off the ruler of the underworld and took his place. He does not have a body of his own, he instead acts throughout the game by possessing the body of Reiz's younger brother Eliot (though only in Riez and Hawkeye's plots, in the others his remains are destroyed). His aim to merge the human world with underworld so he can rule both, and even displays a desire for the demons to be worshipped in place of the Mana Goddess. His true form for the final battle is the Arch Demon, in which he is also the only final boss with two forms. The Arch Demon is generally viewed by fans to be the hardest of the three final bosses.
• Bigieu (Bijū (美獣^?), meaning Beautiful Beast in the original): The right hand servant of the Dark Prince, and the penultimate boss of Hawk and Riez's storylines, whom is also implied to have romantic feelings for him, especially after dying (which aren't mutual, he only sees her as an expendable pawn), though how she met him isn't stated. Bigieu's sole intent is following the will of the Dark Prince, but she notes that he "lost his soul" when he became a demon, and she hoped to bring his soul back. A notable event is that if the main characters are not Hawkeye or Riez, after the Dark Prince is killed by the main villain, Bigieu kills Jagan off-screen and releases Elliot before killing herself, seeing no reason to live without the Dark Prince. This both strongly indicates she has romantic feelings for him, and shows that she even has some morals herself.
• Jagan (called Jagan no Hakushaku (邪眼の伯爵^?), meaning Earl of the Evil Eye in the original): The Dark Prince's other main servant, and the 3rd to last boss of Hawk and Riez's storylines. Jagan is a vampire-like entity, though in game he isn't an undead enemy. His origins are not stated; he is likely a demon from the underworld. He is fought and killed by the characters if Hawkeye or Riez are the main characters, but if not he's killed by Bigieu after the remains of the Dark Prince's body are destroyed.
• Dragon Emperor (Ryūtei (竜帝^?) in the original, which also means Dragon Emperor): Duran and Angela's main enemy, and the final boss of their storylines. Of the three possible main villains, the Dragon Emperor's past is the least developed. His origin isn't stated, the most that seems to be known is that he is the leader of the clan of dragons. A coalition was led against him by Prince Richard and Loki (Duran's father). At the cost of Loki's life the Dragon Emperor was defeated, but he survived the battle and revived Loki as his servant the Darkshine Knight, later recruited Koren as well. The Dragon Emperor's intent is the most simplistic of the villains, he simply wishes to dominate that world to do with it as he pleases. His true form for the final is described as "Huge Dragon", and lives up to the description as he is so big he is not fully shown on-screen. He's viewed as being in between the difficulty of the other two final bosses
• Koren (Guren no Madōshi (紅蓮の魔導師^?) meaning Crimson Wizard in the original): The Dragon Emperor's main servant, and the penultimate boss Duran and Angela's storylines. He was once an ordinary human, but possessed no ability for magic until that Dragon Emperor offered to make him the most powerful wizard alive in exchange for a piece of his soul, though why the Dragon Emperor wanted a part of Koren's soul isn't stated. Koren accepts the offer, though after he's defeated he loses his will to live without the piece of his soul the Dragon Emperor took and kills himself.
• Darkshine Knight (Kokuyō no Kishi (黒耀の騎士^?) meaning Knight of Black Shine in the original): The Dragon Emperor's other servant, who is actually Duran's father Loki, though this is only revealed if Duran is in the party when he is fought (he is the 3rd to last boss of Duran and Angela's storylines). Loki was believed to have died fighting the Dragon Emperor, but the Dragon Emperor saw a use for the powerful warrior and revived him as his servant. Although the Darkshine Knight retained his memories from living as Loki, he was fanatically loyal to the Dragon Emperor. After the Darkshine Knight dies he's released from the control that the Dragon Emperor had over him, and tells the heroes that he has faith in their power to stop the Dragon Emperor. If Duran or Angela aren't the main characters, then the Darkshine Knight still reveals that Dragon Emperor revived him before dying, and that Dragon Emperor's power is what kept him alive. If Duran is in the party, he attempts to reveal to him that he's his father, but dies before he can finish speaking.
• Masked Mage (Kamen no Dōshi (仮面の道士^?) in the original, meaning Masked Officiating Monk): Kevin and Charlotte's main enemy, and the final boss of their storylines. He was once a human named Belgar, Wendel's Oracle of Darkness, but originally a priest known for his skill in healing, but eventually found a disease that couldn't be cured with light magic and he descended into dark magic to find a cure, but the victim died before he found it. He eventually found a spell in necromancy that could revive the dead, and challenged the Priest of Light but was defeated and exiled. During this time Belgar became corrupted by the dark magic and became the Masked Mage, developing a strong hatred for the living. He intended to gain the power to exact his revenge on the living. At some point he recruited the Deathjester. The Masked Mage's son Heath tried to stop him, but was corrupted and became his father's strongest servant. His true form for the final battle is the Dark Lich. He's viewed as the easiest of the three final bosses.

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.

• Heath (ヒース, Hīsu^?): The main servant of the Masked Mage, and the penultimate boss Kevin and Charlotte's storylines. Heath is the son of the Masked Mage and previously a friend of Charlotte. At the start of the plot he goes out to try investigate the disturbances with mana and to try and save his father from his own darkness, but was abducted by the Deathjester and turned evil. If Charlotte or Kevin aren't the main characters, he isn't fought as a boss and instead wonders about, and sacrifices his life to cure the illness of the Priest of Light. However, in all endings, regardless of characters, he's revived by the Mana Goddess.
• Deathjester (called Shi o Kurau Otoko (死を喰らう男^?), meaning the Death-Eating Man in the original): The other servant of the Masked Mage, and a clown like being as his name would imply. He is the 3rd to last boss of Kevin and Charlotte's storylines. His origins, and motivation for serving the Masked Mage are unknown. He displays the ability to eat souls, hence his Japanese name. Early on he abducts Heath, resulting in his serving the Masked Mage. Unlike the other villains, he seems to survive when the Masked Mage isn't the villain. What happens to the Deathjester after that is unknown.
• Benevodons, (Shinjū (神獣^?, lit. Divine Beast) in the original, God-Beasts in the fan-translation) eight elemental monsters that are described as "incarnations of disaster that once threatened the world", but were defeated by the Goddess of Mana using the Sword of Mana. One Benevodon existed for each element in the game: fire, water, earth, wind, wood, light, moon, and darkness. When the villains acquire the Sword of Mana, the Benevodons are released into the world. The player can fight the first seven in whatever order they wish. After defeating the first seven, the Benovodon of Darkness can be fought. However, killing the God-Beasts plays right into the hands of the villain as killing them sends their power to the Sword of Mana. The Benevodons are:
  • Land Umber: The Benevodon of earth. He looks like a giant rock monster that has its fists floating besides him.
  • Dangaard: The Benevodon of wind. Dangaard looks like a 2-headed griffin.
  • Xan Bie: The Benevodon of Fire. Xan Bie is a floating dragonhead that has many fireballs spinning around itself. It can use these fireballs to change shape.
  • Fiegmund: The Benevodon of Water/ice. A giant blue lizard with fins on its back.
  • Mispolm: The Benevodon of wood. He is a giant jack-o'-lantern that attacks with two vines.
  • Dolan: Benevodon of the Moon. He is a bipedal giant goatlike creature with large claws.
  • Lightgazer: Benevodon of light. Lightgazer is a giant floating rock with an eye in the middle.
  • Zable Fahr: Benevodon of Darkness. According to Shade, the mana-spirit of darkness, Zable Fahr escaped his imprisonment from the manastone many years before the start of the game. He was known as the embodiment of chaos and destruction. He first appears as 2 floating beastial heads in a dark empty void, but when the 2 heads are killed, he returns with 1 humanoid head and resurrects the 2 beastial heads.

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 their lives after this.

Development

Seiken Densetsu 3 was designed by series creator Koichi Ishii. The game was directed by Hiromichi Tanaka, who previously helped design the first three Final Fantasy titles and Secret of Mana. Manga and anime artists Yutaka Izubuchi and Nobuteru Yūki were responsible for the character designs and character illustrations respectively. Yūki's artwork for the game can be found in the rare Nobuteru Yuki Seiken Densetsu Illustration Book.^[1]

English translation controversy

During the game's development and release, Seiken Densetsu 3 became known abroad as Secret of Mana 2.^[2][3][4] Squaresoft stated in a 1995 issue of its North American newsletter that they planned to release the game during the second half of the year.^[5] 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.^{[citation needed]}

One suggested reason against Secret of Evermore's favouring over Seiken Densetsu 3 is due to the establishment of a new development team at Squaresoft's office in Redmond, Washington.^[6] 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; it was specifically hired to create it and they would not have been assembled otherwise.^[6] 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.^[7] 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.^[6]

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.^[8] 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

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.^[9] 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.^[10] The main theme from Secret of Mana, "Where Angels Fear to Tread", makes a return in this installment.^[11] The track "Meridian Child" was performed by the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra for the fifth Orchestral Game Concert in 1996.^[12] The game also features a surround sound mode.

Seiken Densetsu 3 Original Sound Version track listing

Reception

Despite its Japanese exclusivity, Seiken Densetsu 3 has received generally positive review scores among importers and amongst many it is regarded as a SNES classic.

See also

References

External links

• Seiken Densetsu 3 guide at StrategyWiki
• Seiken Densetsu 3 at MobyGames

From Wikibooks, the open-content textbooks collection

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From StrategyWiki, the free strategy guide and walkthrough wiki

Seiken Densetsu 3
Developer(s)	Square
Publisher(s)	Square
Release date(s)	September 30, 1995
Genre(s)	RPG
System(s)	SNES
Players	1-2
Series	Seiken Densetsu

Wikipedia has an article about:

Seiken Densetsu 3

Seiken Densetsu 3 is one of the most celebrated RPGs in the world. Its impressive graphics and unique gameplay make it one of the best SNES games ever. It has, to date, never been officially released outside of Japan. This guide is written with Neill Corlett's English translation patch in mind. If you are playing the Japanese version certain characters and items will have slightly different names.

There are a few concepts that should be understood before beginning the walkthrough proper. First, Seiken Densetsu 3 is a difficult game. If you follow the instructions within, you should be able to finish the game in roughly 30 to 40 hours without ever dying. However, this is not always the case. Be prepared to level up vigorously, and expect the game to require exertion and a good amount of effort. The best games are always the hardest ones!

Second, Seiken Densetsu 3 has a style of combat very similar to its predecessor, Secret of Mana. Combat is fully real-time. Instead of menus, your physical attacks are directed and initiated platform-style, like an isometric Mortal Kombat. Like Secret of Mana, you have a charge attack, called a "Tech." Techs, or B-button Attacks (BAs) as they are occasionally known by, are attacks performed by pressing the B button after building up your Tech Gauge with normal physical attacks. Magic, however, is menu-based and turn-based. An in-depth guide to using Techs is in the beginning of the walkthrough, and an introduction to Magic is in the walkthrough as well.

Third, Seiken Densetsu 3 has six heroes, three female and three male, of whom you choose three to form your party. The first member you pick determines the difficulty of your quest and the series of bosses you will fight at the end of the game. The second and third members will eventually join you on your quest.

Table of Contents

From Wikia Gaming, your source for walkthroughs, games, guides, and more!

The title screen of Seiken Densetsu 3

Seiken Densetsu is a role-playing game series from Square Enix (formerly Square Co., Ltd., created by Koichi Ishii).

Started in 1991, Seiken Densetsu is known for its action (as opposed to turn) based battle system and fantasy theme. A literal translation of "Seiken Densetsu" gives "holy sword legend", or "Legend of the Holy Sword". Originally intended to be a handheld "Gaiden", or "side story", to Square's flagship franchise Final Fantasy, most of the Final Fantasy styling was dropped by the second installment, but this did not affect the commercial aspects of the series. In Japan, this series generally lags behind Square's Final Fantasy and SaGa in terms of sales, but Seiken Densetsu 2 still managed to sell more than 1.5 million copies domestically and more overseas.

Seiken Densetsu

Seiken Densetsu: Final Fantasy Gaiden (Final Fantasy Adventure in the U.S. and Mystic Quest in Europe), released in 1991, was the first game in the Seiken Densetsu series. Released on the original Game Boy, its gameplay was roughly similar to that of the original Legend of Zelda game. Being a Final Fantasy "Gaiden", the artistic style of the game was very similar to that of the main Final Fantasy series, down to the menu screens with the thick, shaded borders. In particular, the game bore many similarities to Final Fantasy III, which was then the most recent installment in the series. Final Fantasy mainstays, the chocobos and moogles, also made appearances here. A male character named "Sumo" (according to the manual), the protagonist, is out for vengeance of his parents, who were killed by Dark Lord. The main female character is "Fuji" (again, according to the manual). The antagonists are Julius, and the Dark Lord.

Seiken Densetsu later received a 32-bit remake for the Game Boy Advance. See "Shinyaku Seiken Densetsu" below.

Seiken Densetsu 2

Seiken Densetsu 2 (or Secret of Mana) was released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1993. It is the best known game in the Seiken Densetsu series. The gameplay is similar to that of Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. Seiken Densetsu 2 is indeed a three player game, but in order to play with three players, the rare Nintendo multitap must be plugged into the second controller port of the SNES. This allows players two and three to play the game as well, taking control of the two supporting characters. Seiken Densetsu 2, or "Secret of Mana" stars the main character Randi, a girl named Purim, and a sprite child named Popoie (of undetermined gender; arguments continue to this day over "its" gender), and a notable non-playable character named Dyluck. The main playable characters were given these default names in the Japanese release, but no default names were given in the American or European releases.

Story

Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.

The story begins with the words, "Time flows like a river, and history repeats", after recounting the tale of a previous generation of people who abused the power of Mana, the life-giving magical "presence", to create the ultimate weapon known as the Mana Fortress. As the story progresses, one discovers that the blade known as the Mana Sword was used to destroy the Mana Fortress.

Enter the main character, Randi, who finds himself trapped by undergrowth after falling from a bridge over a waterfall. He discovers a sword in a rock in the middle of a river and is prompted by a ghostly figure to take it. Confused by the figure, he takes the sword and finds that he can get through and thus on his way home, but he also finds that monsters have appeared and, unbeknownst to him, are attracted to the sword.

Upon reaching his hometown of Potos, the townsfolk find that monsters are attracted to their village because of him. Following the appearance of a large monster known as the Mantis Ant (which Randi defeats with the help of an enigmatic knight called Jema), the townsfolk banish Randi from Potos, but not before the village's Elder tells Randi of his orphanage, and Jema tells Randi that the very sword he now carries is none other than the Mana Sword itself. The knight also tells Randi that the Mana Sword has lost its power and that he must go to the nearby Water Palace to speak to its protector, Sage Luka, to see what he can do about recharging its power with an orb he received from the Mantis Ant.

When Randi reaches the Water Palace, he discovers the purpose of the Sword and that a country known only as "The Empire" is seeking to resurrect the Mana Fortress, which he can help counter by sealing the Mana Seeds housed in the eight Palaces across the world with the Mana Sword. The Seeds themselves come from the Mana Tree, the source of the world's Mana.

The rest of Secret of Mana's story is then a quest to seal the Mana Seeds and to try to thwart The Empire's plans. The story itself past this point has limited variability, notably in the order of collecting the other two playable characters, Purim and Popoie, and also in the order in which some Palaces can be accessed. This is a precursor to the storyline variability particularly found in Seiken Densetsu 3 and the great liberties of Legend of Mana.

Gameplay

Nevertheless, the gameplay of Secret of Mana is of a typical power-building adventure game like The Legend of Zelda, except it takes a two-pronged approach with weapons and magic. The weapons in the game are a Spear, Glove, Bow, Boomerang, Axe, Whip and a Javelin, along with the Sword. These other weapons are upgraded with Orbs like the Sword is, usually rewarded after boss battles or found as treasures. This upgrade process is referred to in the game as forging, and is undertaken by a dwarven blacksmith called Watts. In terms of magic, Secret of Mana introduces the "Elementals" to the Seiken Densetsu series, each of which are personifications of eight elements that must be met to receive each one's specific powers: Undine (Water), Gnome (Earth), Sylphid (Wind), Salamando (Fire), Lumina (Light), Shade (Darkness), Luna (Moon) and Dryad (Tree) (Sylphid is known as Jinn after Seiken Densetsu 3, Lumina is known as Wisp after Seiken Densetsu 3 and has its powers extended to "Holy", Salamando is known as Salamander after Legend of Mana, and Luna is called Aura after Legend of Mana and has its powers changed to "Gold", a.k.a. Metal). Apart from receiving these powers, each weapon and each Elemental's power is given a proficiency scale of eight levels (from 0:00 to 8:99) that allows for more powerful attacks or stronger spells. Each level is spaced further apart than the previous level, and to reach the ultimate 8:99 rating is an achievement. Weapons are granted a new, more powerful attack at each level, although the downside to this is the charge-up time. The spell animations change approximately every two levels, with "ultimate" graphics occurring after level 8:00 with more frequency up to 8:99.

Seiken Densetsu 2 was originally announced for North American release under the title Final Fantasy Adventure II. Squaresoft (the American division of Square Co., Ltd.) developed Secret of Evermore, using the same basic engine as Secret of Mana but the graphics and scenes were tailored to a more American audience. Many fans blame Squaresoft's focus on the critically and commercially unsuccessful Evermore for preventing an American release of Seiken Densetsu 3, even though these claims are completely unfounded.

Seiken Densetsu 3

Seiken Densetsu 3 (or Secret of Mana 2) was released for the Super Famicom exclusively in Japan on September 30, 1995. It was originally planned to be released in North America, but Square opted in favor of Secret of Evermore, cancelling the North American localization. However, it was unofficially translated into English in the year 2000, and later into French, and German from the English fan translation project. The translation project was very complex. A variable width font was used, and it resulted in a professional looking fan translation. The title logo was changed from Kanji to Romaji. Like Final Fantasy VI and Bahamut Lagoon, Seiken Densetsu 3 has sophisticated graphics. Seiken Densetsu 3 has been regarded by many (including non-Japanese gamers) to be the best game in the Seiken Densetsu series, despite the fact that the combat and multiplayer systems were simplified somewhat. Unlike in Seiken Densetsu 2, there is only one kind of weapon per character, which can be bought in stores; the forging/upgrading has been completely removed. The magic system was also slightly simplified: now, when a spell is learned, it is complete and at its full potential, without any need to level it up. Seiken Densetsu 3 introduced an interesting addition to the character evolution system, in class changing. After a character reached level 18, it could change to a more advanced form (class), which meant new spells, abilities and of course, a large improvement to the character's stats. Class changes needed a mana stone to be performed. When touching the stone, the player is asked to choose the type of the new class - either "light" or "dark". There is also a second class change at level 38, but this one requires additional items to "unseal" the incredible powers acquired by it. Like most Dragon Quest games, Seiken Densetsu 3 has a day-and-night feature. The Seiken Densetsu 3 soundtrack (composed by Hiroki Kikuta) features catchy rhythms, and lots of strings, and xylophones. Today, as of the 128-bit era, Seiken Densetsu 3 has been considered an import classic in the United States and Europe.

Story

Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.

Seiken Densetsu 3 puts the player in the shoes of Duran, Riesz (or Lise, in the fan translation), Kevin, Charlotte (shortened to Carlie), Hawkeye (shortened to Hawk), and Angela. At the beginning of the game, the player chose a party of only three playable characters. Seiken Densetsu 3 generated the storyline on the basis of the player's selection of characters. Duran, the son of Loki, is the swordsman of the Kingdom of Forcena. His father died trying to defeat a powerful dragon and his mother died of an illness. Duran and his younger sister, Wendy were raised by their great aunt Stella. Riesz/Lise is from the Wind Kingdom of Rolante, the kingdom that Duran saved after an attack by the soldiers of Navarre, Hawkeye's country. Angela is a runaway princess of Altena, the Kingdom of Magic. Charlotte/Carlie is the granddaughter of the priest of the Holy City Wendel, which was attacked by Kevin's homeland, the Beast Kingdom. The six characters define 3 major plots, which all share the basic situation: the Mana Tree is dying and the forces of evil are awakening throughout the world.

Square Enix has announced that there will be a new story in the Seiken Densetsu series for the Nintendo DS. While there are no details at the time of writing, many fans believe it will be a stateside release of Seiken Densetsu 3.

At one of the final stages of the game, there is a secret passage to a cave with the black rabite. This is the toughest monster in the game, indeed stronger than any of the final bosses and only the strongest players can defeat him.

Seiken Densetsu: Legend of Mana

Seiken Densetsu: Legend of Mana (Legend of Mana) was released in 2000 for the Sony PlayStation. While featuring much of the same gameplay as its predecessors, it created a more expansive world in which the player could interact. Different areas of the game are represented using "artifacts" and placed by the player onto a "world map," and different artifact placements allow the players to obtain different items, an idea later used in such games as Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. The player is also able to have temporary "sidekicks" (be they NPCs, other players, or pets/golems that you can breed/build and sell), create and temper weapons (both physical and magical(which are musical instruments)) and armor, and grow crops which can be sold or fed to pets. Multiple difficulty levels and a vast quest-driven storyline made LOM a critically-acclaimed and easily-replayable favorite for many, but almost as many feel that the game doesn't live up to its potential or the expectations it garners from being part of the Seiken Densetsu family.

Shinyaku Seiken Densetsu

Shinyaku Seiken Densetsu (Sword of Mana) is an enhanced remake of the original Game Boy Seiken Densetsu (Final Fantasy Adventure), released on the Game Boy Advance in 2003. While originally it was thought that it would feature multiplayer options, the only one left in the game was the ability to trade information to power up individual files (Unfortunately, the box information does not exactly reflect this, confusing a number of people). At the beginning of the game, the player is able to choose to play as the male lead (Sumo, unnamed in the English versions) or as the female lead (Fuji, unnamed in the English versions). They each have a different quest, however the plot remains similar. The most important thing about this remake, however, is the "de-Final Fantasification" of it -- many elements from the original that had an origin in Final Fantasy were removed in favor of elements from other Seiken Densetsu games (for example, the chocobo is replaced by Cannon Travel). One notable exception to this are moogles: they originally appeared in Final Fantasy III, but remained in the game (and also appeared in Secret of Mana). Shinyaku Seiken Densetsu was made to resemble the graphical style of Seiken Densetsu 3.

Seiken Densetsu 4

Seiken Densetsu 4 is the first title in the World of Mana compilation. A release date has yet to be set.

External Links

• Original Wikipedia article