If you want to engage with the RPG systems, play on Hard mode
Having said all that, I really recommend a Hard mode playthrough for anyone who wants to have a crunchy RPG experience. It doesn’t feel great in the early game, since enemies inflict major damage and can soak a ton of hits before they’re defeated. At the same time, Hard mode really forces you to optimize your defenses and offenses equally. You know, the kind of stuff that RPG fans enjoy strategizing around. Once you get into some of the game’s deadly DPS builds, those enemy lifebars aren’t going to feel big at all.
This is how I experienced Visions of Mana, and I recommend it for anyone else who wants to dive into everything that the game’s class system offers.
