Legend of Mana Remastered
Easily the most exciting announcement of the Direct for me. Legend of Mana is a game I’ve been calling for getting some attention for a while. I once wrote a somewhat melancholy post on different games I thought could use a remake and why I didn’t think any of them would ever happen. Well, count that post 4 for 5 now.
Granted, a remaster doesn’t go as far as the full remake I called for. But that’s not a bad thing. They’ve announced remastered graphics and music, keeping the game’s charm intact. I’ve come to appreciate what little quality of life improvements can do from Final Fantasy 7 and 12 on the Switch. They announced the ability to turn encounters off and that alone could be huge. The original has foes respawn every screen transition which gets tedious. Also, the original was poorly balanced with you being level 60 going against level 30’s by the end. Now I could try a bosses only run.
Finally, I had internally debated if I could fit LoM in this year as playing games that are tethered to a TV is difficult for me now. Now I need not worry: handheld Legend of Mana on the Switch! It’s also coming for PS4 and Steam.
Project Triangle Strategy (working title)
From the same team that made Bravely Default and Octopath Traveler, this team apparently reads my mind to make modern takes on my favorite games. This one looks heavily inspired by Final Fantasy Tactics and so already has my interest.
It advertises a choice-driven story focused on three spectrums: morals, liberty, and utility. Choice games like that tend to be cool and replayable but the danger is balancing the choices so there’s not a golden path that cheapens the rest.
And the Rest
Skyward Sword HD – No Breath of the Wild 2 news yet but this could be good. Being able to play without the motion controls sounds like an improvement. And put this as another “I wondered if I’d ever play it again and now it’ll be on a handheld.”
Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout – Seen this streamed a bit. Looks like a fun and goofy obstacle course game where you compete against a bunch of people online to qualify for the next round.
Star Wars: Hunters – It’s Star Wars and it’s free to play so pretty good chance I’ll check this out when it’s out.
Ghosts ‘n Goblins – Probably won’t play it but appreciate it’s a modern take on a classic so curious if it’ll live up to its predecessors.
Super Romo Brothers 