So many wonderful details in this interview! I love the emphasis on choice for the sake of choice and how the game was just like the designers putting a lot of things in based on excited impulse.
The game definitely felt a lot more like the SaGa series than other Mana games, and the interview touches on that. I really loved Legend of Mana and Saga Frontier as a kid because they had such a strong sense of mystique and unusual, impactful aesthetics. Legend of Mana is utterly gorgeous!