Visions of Mana won't include a multiplayer mode like its predecessors at launch, but the game's producer has toyed with the idea of reintroducing co-op to the series "in the future."
Visions of Mana aims to be a return to form for the long-running Mana series after the mainline entries went on hiatus in 2006. That means the familiar action-RPG goodness, whimsical soundscape, and squishy monsters are making a comeback on consoles for the first time in over a decade, but multiplayer sadly won't be joining the fun.
"When I played Secret of Mana, the multiplayer co-op mode was something that really stood out and left a strong impression on me," producer Masaru Oyamada says in an interview with PC Gamer, later explaining that there were in fact discussions about incorporating co-op into Visions of Mana early in production.
"As things kind of developed further internally, we had discussions on the various things that you can do through a multiplayer mode, but also some challenges a multiplayer mode introduces," Oyamada continues, expressing concern over how multiple players would affect world design and pacing.
While multiplayer is a glaring omission in Visions of Mana, Oymada doesn't rule it out for future outings: "When I think about the series and look towards the future, I myself really do cherish and have fond memories of being able to go on one single adventure with your friends and clear things together. I know what that experience is like, and I do want to consider being able to implement features like that in the future."
Visions of Mana is launching sometime this summer on PC, PS4, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.
Oymada previously stated that he wanted to make Visions of Mana for 10 years, but thought no one would want it.
