Once every four years, the Faerie chooses alms - people who have to go on a pilgrimage to the Tree of Mana. The game follows Val, a village boy whose childhood friend, Hinna, was chosen to be alm. Val decides to accompany her in the journey, and becomes her soul guard.
Trailers: Announcement
, Xbox Developer Direct Gameplay Reveal, March Trailer
Visions of Mana provides examples of:
- BFS: One of Val's classes has him use a huge sword, that almost reaches the ground even when Val carries it on his back.
- Combat Hand Fan: One of Careena's classes has her use a couple of fans.
- Draconic Humanoid: One party member, Careena, has draconic tail, horns, and a single right wing, with a previous accident having taken her left wing.
- Horse of a Different Color: As shown in the gameplay trailer, the party can ride wolf-like creatures called "pikuls". They are said to replace the series' traditional cannon travel.
- Iaijutsu Practitioner: One of Morley's classes, seen in Noisy Pixel's preview, has him sheathe his katana and then quickly draw it, delivering a ranged slash.
- Job System: Noisy Pixel's preview details that party members can use elemental vessels to switch their class. Each party member has their own set of classes, meaning they will get different classes from the same vessel.
- Jousting Lance: One of Val's classes uses a shield and a jousting lance. It also gives him a set of golden armor, making it the heaviest-armored class seen in previews.
- Little Bit Beastly: One of the party members, Morley, straddles the line between this and Beast Man. He has cat tail and ears, and seems to have human-like body structure, but his face is more cat-like than usual.
- Painting the Medium: This Japanese trailer goes from 3:4 to widescreen for the 2006 segment. Which is right about when widescreen TVs started to get more common. And the childhood scenes are color-graded warmer and brighter, to match childhood optimism and nostalgia.
- Prehensile Tail: One of Morley's classes has him hold a knife in his tail.
- Slaying Mantis: One boss, often seen in promotional materials, is a bipedal, towering monstrosity, called "Mantis Ant", based on the first boss of Secret of Mana. Curiously, its "blades" aren't razor-sharp, as they are usually depicted, but rather covered in spikes, more in-line with real insects.
- Time Stands Still: One of the elemental vessels can create a sphere that slows down every enemy caught in it almost to a standstill.
