Square-Enix officially announced today that Dawn of Mana, the next installment in the World of Mana series, has shipped to retail outlets across North America. Developed exclusively for the PlayStation 2, Dawn of Mana embarks as the first true sequel to the 1993 SNES hit Secret of Mana and sets to reveal the origins of the mythos behind the life-giving Mana Tree and the legendary Sword of Mana.

Players will be greeted by an enchanting opening theme composed by Grammy and Academy Award winner Ryuichi Sakamoto, and become immersed in the captivating gameplay that the series is known for, with intuitive, easy to pick up controls. Dawn of Mana also allows players to tackle on the bad guys in various ways, you can attack enemies head-on with your sword, use a slingshot to fire projectiles from afar, or even manipulate the environment with a whip to cause a devastating avalanche of boulders.

While supplies last, Square-Enix will be offering a Breath of Mana music sampler disc along with your purchase of the game at select locations, including Amazon.com, Game Crazy, GameStop, and EB Games.

Follow this author on Twitter.