Mana Khemia is an incredibly fun game with a fairly large scope, that takes a minimum of 40 hours to complete. And, with a simple New Game Plus feature, serious fans can get all of the character-specific endings without doing much work.
Its most distinguishing feature is the quality that permeates the experience; a light-hearted-but-engaging romp in a fantastical world of alchemy and demonic teddy bears, Mana Khemia is a testament to the flexibility of RPG design - and it's a lot of fun (except that damn theme song!)
Fantastic gameplay, core visuals and audio, every single element I could ever ask for in a JRPG. That said, it's more of a JRPG with three capital J's and a couple exclamation marks. I've always been quick to judge or hate on almost all anime or Japanese-based media, (manga, drama, etc.) but I absolutely adored this game, and it's my favorite RPG on the PS2.
Following the line of Atelier games, this is one of the best in the entries in the games
Amazing story, characters and battle system. Adding more fun and replay value is the different endings system adopted.
Overall, a very good and interesting JRPG
Because of the wide RPG library in PS2 and PSP, and especially on PS2 during its ten years of life, Mana Khemia can sneak modestly between hardcore Atelier Iris fans. There are not many surprises in this game, which is too conservative, but can offer some hours of fun.
The core gameplay is sound, so it's a shame that it's burdened by a derivative plot, generic characters, and archaic visuals (reminiscent of the 32-bit era in a bad way).
Best PS2 game in my humble opinion. The alchemy is very interesting and if you're really into it, just crafting stuff and farming could take well over half of your game play.
If there was anything to complain about here, its that some people don't like idle time in their and would mostly like to hack and slash and whatnot and they might find the game boring. Also, people would appreciate it much more if they can appreciate the original japanese dub instead of the English translation. For the most part the english translation will ruin the fun of the story, as well as the comedy.
Ignore the low rating, as I would be willing to guess it's mostly because they don't appreciate a JRPG with such an amazing anime feel to it. Plus they don't know how to enjoy the Japanese dub, which is such a big bonus.
Surprised to see such a low rating. It's been a few years since I played, but no serious rpg player should pass this up. The anime feel to this one is apparent and may not be everyone's bag of chips, but the characters are memorable, and the story while not being anything shocking or new, was given lots of love by the developers and it shows throughout the game.
What I really liked about this title was how everything in it compliments each other in a way that is surprisingly well executed and cohesive, more so than I've seen in any game I've played. From how the game presents and progresses you through your school years with an eye toward (we hope!) graduation, to the the warm, interesting, and varied locations you get to explore, and also the satisfying combat system that starts with fairly standard features and by the end of the game has added plenty of mechanics to keep your choices fresh and your options open, it's all very good.
I have many warm memories of this game and would recommend it as a star in Atlas and Nippon Ichi's many titles. Really a superb game!
Mana Khemia is a great game with memorable characters, fun gameplay and a fantastic soundtrack. It was a shock to me to see it reviewed so low by some people. It is truly a shame there are reviewers out there who won't give a game a fair chance because they can't get past the anime aesthetics.
The story are predictable & mediocre at best, the main character are your typical JRPG protagonist with amnesia who have a dark past, most of the playable characters are unlikeable & you have to move between places to create materials and equipments since apparently they cannot be done in the same room.
The battle system are good & it have some fun moments, but that's about it.
SummaryNow you can enjoy the best RPG about an amnesiatic boy attending an alchemy academy in an isolated part of the world anywhere you please.Take Mana Khemia wherever you go, and battle alongside your friends with the all-new Multiplayer mode. And with the revolutionary Jump Start function, loading times are a breeze. [NIS America]