PS1 REVIEWS: Wild Arms

With the explosion of the JRPG genre in the 16-bit era, new games needed something to differentiate them from established franchises. Media.Vision's answer to that challenge was fusing the well-worn fantasy trappings of the genre to a Spaghetti Western look; creating something wholly unique and recognizable in the process.

Besides its "Western" setting, Wild Arms stakes a claim to greatness by simply being a very good JRPG in both its mechanics and story, achieving the rare feat of being an all-around great game. It doesn't reach the echelons of best PS1 RPGs, but oh was it close to doing so.

#A22: Wild Arms:-
Year: 1996, 1997.
Genre: JRPG.
Publisher: Sony.
Developer: Media.Vision.

First things first, I am changing my rating system to a simpler 10-point system. I fully recommend games that get above a 7, and those that get below are mostly a waste of time. The recommendation for a game scoring a 7 largely depends on your personal taste.

"Life is gradually fading from the land. Slowly, but surly, the destruction of Filgaia continues"

The world of Wild Arms is set in Filgaia, a dying planet where the desert is slowly expanding, threatening all human civilization. This phenomenon, we learn, is an aftermath of a war a millennium ago between the powers of good, comprised of humanity and the planet's Guardians as well as an advanced Elv-like race, against the Metal Demons.

In this precarious state, three heroes start the game pursuing their dreams. Rudy is a "Dream Chaser" who can use Arms, powerful ancient gun-like weapons, which frightens the people he always tries to help. Jack is a treasure hunter looking for a "Power" for some mysterious reason. Finally, there is Cecilia, a magic-capable princess who is looking for her place in the world outside of her royal status. It's a typical JRPG party, but their growth together throughout the adventure and interactions with the outside, despite the unfortunate silence of Rudy, is a highlight of the game.

You should love the cast (even the silent Rudy) by the end

After the three characters meet and join forces, the Metal Demons appear again, sowing more destruction in Filgaia. In a very effective title opening, showing the aftermath of the Demons attack, what's at stake is firmly established.

The overarching plot is not anything special beyond its "Western" setting but is populated with cool characters such as Boomerang, and well-established concepts such as nature vs. nurture and the freedom of choice. The dialogue is mostly translated well but has some glaring weaknesses.

There is little subtlety in the dialogue or story

Also, the game kinda sags in the middle act, which could have been removed with no big impact on the game's structure, but the game isn't long and doesn't suffer much from that excess bloat.

"Innocent one... Can you hear the anger of the land and the wind? The screams of the sea and the sky?"

In the same way that the game's story follows some well-trodden trails but adds some unique twists, so does the game's turn-based battle system. It is as basic as it can get, selecting one order for each of the three characters and then watching as they trade blows with the enemy based on their agility ratings. However, it does add some twists that keep it interesting.

Mainly, as characters attack and are attacked, a force gauge is filled in several levels which they can then use to perform some useful powerful moves, similar to Final Fantasy VII's limit break system. These moves are consistently useful throughout the game. For example, Cecillia's first level Force move allows her to use the "hidden properties" of items, allowing her to use a single healing item for the whole group or access a host of hidden abilities for other items. Other force moves are more straightforward, dishing out a more powerful critical attack of triple the damage of special ability.

It looks like that hurt

Each character has a special twist in battle as well which requires a different system to upgrade outside of it. Rudy can use Arms, which are powerful but inaccurate weapons that consume bullets. You can find these Arms in dungeons, and spend some hard-earned cash to upgrade their damage, capacity, and accuracy. Jack's Hidden Blade skills aren't much different, but they have an MP requirement which can be reduced with special scrolls, are found in dungeons, and there is an element of luck in unlocking them.

Cecillia's magic is the most different, with access to over 40 magic skills (with most being useless) which can be bought through a special (but rather common) item. Naturally, that makes her the support character, especially since dealing with status effects, buffs/debuffs, are all important in the game.

These elements combine to make a solid if not spectacular, turn-based battle system.

"Kindness and care have no place in this wasteland... He gives people hope just to be shattered by reality..."

If the battle system in Wild Arms can be described as a salaryman in terms of ambition, then its dungeon-crawling mechanics are more akin to a Silicone Valley entrepreneur. It may have not occurred to fans of the genre, but dungeon traversal was almost always a means to have more battles, with the maze-like structure and the occasional puzzle being the only challenge. In contrast, extensive dungeon design with puzzles was mostly in the realm of Action-Adventure games such as The Legend of Zelda.

That's not the case with Wild Arms, which tries to fuse the two genres in crafting its dungeons, giving each character tools that can be used to solve puzzles in each dungeon in the game. Also, with a fast and, rather unique, dash mechanic, the game has some action-packed segments in which you try to avoid obstacles.

It is rarely as exciting as this, but the intent is there

This means that traversing dungeons in the game is fun and is a form of gameplay, that compensates for a basic battle system and a lack of extensive optional content. Yet, while the game's heart is in the right place, the execution leaves much to be desired.

Simply, the game doesn't go far enough in developing its dungeons despite having the mechanics in the game. To some degree, it's as if the developers did not trust the players to figure things out, which when taking some of the game's more obtuse puzzles into account, may not have been such a wild thought.

Ultimately, like some of the game's other sub-systems (The Guardians for instance), it feels like a proof-of-concept that could have been much more developed, but I think it's mostly fun as it is here.

"Humans break so easily. You guys don't make very good toys"

Probably the first thing people who played Wild Arms remember is its excellent Anime opening, which is one of the first of its kind on the PS1. This opening didn't only showcase the unique wild west look of the game along with its cool character design, but it also showcased Michiko Naruke's excellent Ennio Morriconene-inspired music.

You could almost hear the whistles in the wind

If "To the End of the Wilderness" doesn't convey the deserts of Sergio Leone in your mind, then the game's brown-filled sprites and grainy sands will. It's not something that I didn't say before, but the early sprite work of the PS1 has aged much more gracefully than much of the polygonal work that later proliferated in the console, showing much more charm and beauty than what was possible with 3D graphics at the time.

That's apparent in this game as well, which goes into polygonal models in the battle mode, with some mixed results. The chibi-styling of the main characters clashes with the "realistic" and jagged designs of the enemy. In theory, these enemies may show a uniform design philosophy, but that's difficult to notice due to the haphazard nature of early 3D graphics.

It is relatively good for an early PS1 game

What's not haphazard is the game's brilliant soundtrack, which doesn't only lean on its Spaghetti Westen roots, and instead stands on its own as a fusion of JRPG and Western music. Tracks such as "Wayfarer of the Wilderness" evoke Morricone's "The Ecstasy of Gold" and there is something of Clint Eastwood in "War Demon", but then there are more classical JRPG tracks such as the regal "Adelhyde Castle" to listen to as well.

In Conclusion:

As one of the first JRPGs released on the PS1, Wild Arms was remembered fondly by those who played it but was summarily forgotten when Final Fantasy VII was released to much fanfare. That was not fair to this series in my opinion, which started strongly with this game and got even stronger with the second.

It is a shame that the series never gained the following it deserved. Otherwise, we would be whistling the new tunes of its sequels today.

Final: 8/10

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Pros:

• A good story with some solid themes
• Very good growth for the main party
• Some brilliant scene direction
• The solid turn-based battle system
• The Action-Adventure gameplay in the dungeons
• A truly brilliant soundtrack
• Excellent and iconic opening movie
• Very good sprite work

Cons:

• Rudy shouldn't be a silent protagonist
• The story sags a bit in the middle section
• A lot of skills/magic/Arms are useless
• Dungeon design doesn't take full advantage of the game's mechanics
• 3D graphics in battles didn't age well

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Tips:

1- Break boxes and inspect barrels for items. Later, the radar tool makes it easier to find treasure.
2- Crest graphs are reusable, so experiment with crafting spells.
3- Talk to NPCs in town to know what to do next and for tips on optional stuff.
4- Don't sell Cecilia's items, as you can use her force skill to do some unique magic spells early on.
5- If you kill an enemy with Cecilia's Mystic force on a Bone item, you will get a guaranteed drop.
6- All other equipment can be sold.
7- There are missable optional bosses, such as one boss during the countdown in the Maze of Death.
8- Luck is extremely useful for Jack to learn skills faster, and for his multi-hit Blade art.
9- You need enough duplicator keys to progress one optional side quest, so keep some handy.
10- Stealing items is great for getting recovery items, not for getting equipment.
11- When you access the Outer Sea, explore the islands for some optional Guardians.

What's a JRPG without a ghost ship

Series:

For those reading one of my PS1 review blogs for the first time, here is the basic concept:

I already reviewed both major Generation 4 consoles, and am now reviewing Generation 5 consoles. I already finished reviewing the Sega Saturn, so I am now reviewing the PS1. In these reviews, I take a top 100 games list and review the games that interest me in that list.

This time, my review series is based on this list from Retro Sanctuary and other sources, since the PS1 can handle a list bigger than a top 100.

Also, note the following:

-If you have any suggestions for a game that is not on the Retro Sanctuary list that I should review, please suggest them.
-Make a bet on each game to check whether Chris Charter played it or not.

Calamity Jane, giving it straight

Next Game

As expected, I loved the first Wild Arms game, and it is an obvious crime that neither it nor its sequel is part of Retro Sanctuary's top 100 PS1 games list.

Next, I am going to finally finish Wild Arms 2. I have played and loved this game before, but my save was corrupted in the middle of Disc 2, and I haven't finished the game as a result. I am looking forward to finally beating the game after nearly two decades since I first played it.

Stay tuned.

For Previous PS1 Game Reviews:

The List

LOOK WHO CAME:

Lord Spencer