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> Results: Children of Mana
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The ESRB says:
Language: GamerDad read maybe one or two ﾑdamn' and hell' words in the text, but other than that, bad language is used very sparingly. Mild Fantasy Violence: GamerDad hacked and slashed mostly silly characters with swords and other weapons, and when defeated the monsters only go out in a puff of smoke. The Mana Tree that protects the world is under attack from evil and darkness is taking over the land, warping space and time itself. It's up to four chosen adventurers to take up the Mana Sword and vanquish the darkness in this hack and slash arcade adventure game. In Children of Mana, first choose one of four adventurers. Each has their own strengths and weaknesses. Some are better at physical attacks and some are more adept magic users. Gather supplies and buy weapons in the game's single town before venturing off into dungeons and caves. The battles are action packed and very arcade-like. Hack and slash waves of monsters with swords, flails, arrows, hammers, and the occasional blasts of magic. Gather experience and level up to improve your stats. Find armor, weapons, and gems in the randomly generated dungeons to power up your character for tough boss fights. Graphics are amazing, with detailed backgrounds and enemies, and tons of them on the screen at once. Character designs are charming and there are even animated cutscenes. The catchy, orchestrated music is equally as stunning. Play control is smooth, fast, and fluid. You can select quests to move the story along or take on extra job quests to earn money, experience, and other goodies. While Children of Mana first appears to be an epic quest like the others in the Mana game series, it actually ends up being a good game to play in short bursts. Which is a good thing since this is a portable, on-the-go Nintendo DS game. The quests are short, dying is not penalized very much, and after every few floors in a dungeon, you can save the game at any time. If nearby players have their own DS and a copy of the game, everyone can do a quest together through wireless play. Children of Mana is a great portable adventure.  
Kids will love the charming fantasy characters and simple arcade-like gameplay, though some may find it a bit repetitive after a while. While players swipe at monsters with swords and other weapons, there is no blood, and violence is only fantasy cartoon stuff. Reading skill is required as everything is text based. Sometimes cursing with words like ﾑdamn' and ﾑhell' are in the text, but it's used so sparingly that it's hardly noticeable. The characters in the game's story refer to a Mana Tree, Mana Spirits, and a Mana Goddess, so families with strong religious beliefs may not feel very comfortable with that. While Children of Mana isn't too terribly complex, a very young gamer might still get frustrated with the game later on when the difficulty ramps up. And even though the game is rated E-10 for players ten and up, savvy gamers younger than ten would probably be OK playing this game as well.
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