Square Enix Dawn of Mana preview

On May 22, Square Enix releases its long awaited Dawn of Mana for PlayStation 2, the prequel to its beloved Mana franchise. This action RPG covers the origins of the sacred Mana Tree as well as Keldy, a 16-year old boy with extraordinary powers. The 3-D game features plenty of frantic button mashing, as gamers use a whip to strike enemies or toss objects into them. Once hit, foes go into a panic mode, allowing players to repeatedly slash them and acquire special items. Dawn of Mana packs impressive physics, as rocks and other things react as they would in the real world. On top of that, the game looks and sounds beautiful, with rolling green hills, trees, rustling grass and enchanting music. The constant hacking may get old, but thus far, this appears to be a promising adventure.