Secret of Mana is on iPhone

Wonderful SNES RPG for a fiver.

News by Robert Purchese Associate Editor

Updated on 21 Dec 2010

Square Enix has resurrected for iPhone (and iPod Touch) one of the best action RPGs of yesteryear: Secret of Mana - and it's out now.

The new bits appear to be touch screen controls. And that's it. The rest should be as you remember, providing you owned a SNES in the mid-nineties.

Secret of Mana costs £5.50 from the App Store.

The game follows Randi and his two companions Primm and Popoi. There's an overarching plot of evil that's polluting the world, and dealing with that involves plenty of exploration and fighting. You'll discover villages and improve levels, equipment, weapons, spells and, subsequently, damage along the way. Remember hitting something for 999 damage? That's massive, Kaz.

Each of the three party members has varying pros and cons, and with each new upgrade comes a more powerful charged melee attack. It's not all mindless bashing, though - there's plenty of healing, defending and picking out bosses' weakness to be done.

It's not clear whether there's any jump-in co-op as was present in the SNES version. Seems unlikely.

Coinciding with Secret of Mana's arrival on the App Store is an associated Square Enix sale. You can get a quarter off the price of the Secret of Mana Original Soundtrack, for instance. Other discounts we've listed below.

Apps for Iphone and iPod Touch

Chaos Rings: £7.49/€10.49 now £3.49/€4.99
Crystal Defenders: £4.99/€5.99 now £2.39/€2.99
Song Summoner: The Unsung Heroes - Encore:£5.99/€7.99 now £2.99/€3.99
Final Fantasy: £5.49/€6.99 now £2.39/€2.99
Final Fantasy II: £5.49/€6.99 now £2.39/€2.99
Vanguard Storm: £2.39/€2.99 now £1.19/€1.59
Sliding Heroes: £0.59/€0.79 now Free!
Hills and Rivers Remain: £2.99/€3.99 now £1.19/€1.59
Final Fantasy VII ACC Larger-than-Life Gallery: £3.49/€4.99 now £1.79/€2.39
Final Fantasy XIII ACC FINAL FANTASYXIII Larger-than-Life Gallery: £3.49/€4.99 now £1.79/€2.39
Voice Fantasy: £1.79/€2.39 now £0.59/€0.79
Fullmetal Alchemist Gallery: £1.19/€1.59 now £0.59/€0.79