• Final Fantasy Adventure

Final Fantasy Adventure is a Game Boy action/RPG by Squaresoft, released in June of 1991. Yes, good old 4-color Game Boy. Even though this game is called Final Fantasy Adventure, it's actually the first Secret of Mana, known as Seiken Densetsu in Japan, which means Legend of the Sword. Toward the right is the box for Japan's Seiken Densetsu. Squaresoft changed the game's name to Final Fantasy Adventure for its US release because they know people will buy anything with "Final Fantasy" in its title. In 1998, Sunsoft obtained the license for Final Fantasy Adventure and re-released it (along with Final Fantasy Legend 1-3). The only alteration they made was replace Squaresoft's logo with theirs in the packaging and game's title screen. Toward the right is a picture of Sunsoft's re-release; it displays the front box art, the manual, the world map and the cart.

• Sword of Mana

Sword of Mana is a Game Boy Advance action/RPG by Square-Enix, released in December of 2003. It's a remake of Final Fantasy Adventure. They didn't just improve the game, they totally remade it from scratch! Its battle system and graphics are reminisce of Seiken Densetsu 3 and Legend of Mana. It retains the general storyline and characters from Final Final Adventure, some new characters are added. The overworld and all the dungeons have been redesigned to something completely different. It carries all the original songs from Final Fantasy Adventure, but of course, they are all remade and improved. To the left is the front box art.

• Adventures of Mana

In February 2016, Square-Enix released a complete 3D remake of Final Fantasy Adventure under the title “Adventures of Mana.” Unlike Sword of Mana which was more of an entirely new game than a remake, this time Square-Enix made a true remake of Final Fantasy Adventure. Adventures of Mana is an EXACT 1:1 remake, all the way down to the positioning of terrain obstacles. It is literally Final Fantasy Adventure from 1991, but in 3D. The only new feature they added was a revamped circular style menu. Square-Enix stated they may release a PlayStation Vita.

• Collection of Mana

In June 2019, Square Enix released the Collection of Mana. This collection includes Final Fantasy Adventure, Secret of Mana, and Seiken Densetsu 3 (as Trials of Mana) in their original formats. Collection of Mana was released for the Nintendo Switch only. PlayStation 4 and Steam versions are promised for 2020. It's priced at $40 US--pretty steep considering other retro game collections are priced at $19.99 US. Special features are scarce as well. There's a music player and a few different graphical options for the display, and that's it.

• Final Fantasy Adventure

The land is in chaos, threatened by an evil warlord who seeks the power of Mana with which to rule the world. At his side stands the mysterious wizard Julius, whose motives are his own. You, the hero, are a gladiator who was held prisoner by the Dark Lord and forced to fight daily for his entertainment. One day you escaped and overheard the plan to seize the power of Mana. Then you were seen and chased to the edge of a waterfall, where you were then thrown to your death... or so your enemies believed. The quest truly begins when you encounter a mysterious young woman and save her from monsters. Then your quest will take you across strange new lands to find the key to defeating the evil that threatens the world. It's up to you to use various weapons, spells and skills to battle scary 8-bit boss creatures. If you are to be successful, magic and might are needed to defeat the enemies and protect the Mana tree.

• Sword of Mana

Back in the times of old, a mighty empire sought to master the Mana and use it to rule the world. A woman from the Mana tribe transformed herself into the Mana Tree, locking the power away from anyone who would take advantage of it. The time has come for another evil force to try to conquer the power of Mana. Only a young woman with ties to the Mana goddess and a young gladiator from the slave pits of Grants can halt this evil and protect the blessed Mana. This prequel to the famous Mana series puts you in control of either a hero or heroine in a quest to save the Mana Tree. Go ahead and choose a character and then race to the Mana Tree's rescue. The character you choose and the actions of that character will specifically alter the course of the storyline to further heighten this role-playing adventure. It's up to you to use swords, staves, spells and skills to battle gigantic boss creatures. If you are to be successful, magic and might are needed to defeat the enemies and protect the Mana tree.

• Final Fantasy Adventure

Quite similar to NES Zelda, you explore a world and fight monsters that stand in your way. You can equip yourself with several different weapons that each have their own advantage. Not all enemies can be defeated by the same weapons. Some enemies can't be defeated by weapons at all, in cases like that you need use your magic. Every time you gain a level you get to choose if you want to gain more stamina, power, wisdom, or will. Stamina makes you last longer in battle. Power makes your attack more effective. Wisdom makes your spells stronger. Will increases the speed of your max attack meter. Each weapon has its own special attack, which can be executed when the meter below your HP is full. This meter starts out reeeally slow in the beginning of the game, but begins to load faster as you progress. There are also helpful people that join you for a while in the game. One of them raises your HP, most of them aid you in battle, one of them raises your MP, and you can even buy stuff from one. Always remember to keep track of your HP! It's easy to forget about it, then all of a sudden you die and have to start from the last time you saved. And always keep "Key" and "Mattock" items in your inventory! It sucks when you get stuck in a middle of a dungeon just because you ran out of them.

• Sword of Mana

There have been many improvements from Final Fantasy Adventure's battle system. There's new weapons like staves and bows. They've added many things from Seiken Densetsu 3's battle system, such as its class system and magic system. As you play, you choose a specific stat area you want to improve in, and then by selecting certain areas for differing amounts, your character will Class Change and get new abilities and bonuses. You gain new magic once you attain an elemental spirit.

• Final Fantasy Adventure

This game is a masterpiece. From what Game Boy is capable of, it's very impressive in every aspect. It's definitely one of the best games ever made for the original 4-color Game Boy. It's so fun and it can get quite addicting. The soundtrack is pretty good too. If you're a fan of Game Boy then I highly recommend Final Fantasy Adventure.

• Sword of Mana

It's pretty cool. I love its many similarities to Seiken Densetsu 3 and Legend of Mana. The graphics are beautiful. The soundtrack was remade very nicely. There are some cute quotes in it, like this one. Lol, yes! Girl power! Anyway, Sword of Mana's only drawback is that it's way too easy. And don't expect the game to be too serious, like every other GBA RPG it's rather campy.

• Adventures of Mana

It's excellent. It's the same Final Fantasy Adventure we all know and love, but in 3D. My only complaint is that the touch screen controls are a bit quirky. I wish the game had gamepad support.