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Fancy physics and 3D graphics aside, what's really going to determine Dawn's appeal is how well it captures the personality and atmosphere of the previous Mana games. Long-time lovers of the franchise will be pleased to notice some trademark elements right from the start. For example, the entire tutorial is spent running around a very lush green forest filled with some very bright red flowers and chasing a very hungry yellow rabite. An hour or so in and you've already got a familiar heroic threesome - a young boy with a mysterious past, a wise female friend and a tiny glowing sprite that casts magic. A little bit later and you've met up with a few elemental spirits that endow your slingshot bullets with extra power like wind or earth. Then, of course, there's the Mana Tree...
We're still waiting for Dawn to expand out of its rather repetitive beginning dungeons and forests to show us the larger, more imaginative world we know the series deserves again. Until then, we'll happily continue giving everything around us a Havoc-induced heart attack. Join in the malicious fun by checking out the custom gameplay video below.
