 These games, as with the rest of the series, would not be direct sequels or prequels to one another, even if appearing so at first glance, but would instead share thematic connections.The fourth release in this project and the ninth release in the "Mana" series was announced in September 2006 as "Heroes of Mana", the second Nintendo DS game in the "World of Mana" series and the first real-time strategy game in the series.It was first announced in "Famitsu" magazine and subsequently featured at the Tokyo Game Show.