Wild Arms is 1996/1997 Media.Vision JRPG that comes off as a 16-bit RPG that was ported to Sony's 3D 32-bit era. Translation: I have a love hate relationship with this game.
To get it out of the way, this game showcases my disdain for 5th gen 3D graphics that Sony pushed on the market. The over world and towns are a simple top-down 2D environment with deeper colors than most 16-bit games and some basic scaling/(*)morphic effects. This simplistic, yet lovely, environment is shattered every time you go into battle which features full 3D models for all characters, enemies, and most of the time, background as well. Hopefully this goes without saying, but the first 3D games were very rough. My stomach would twinge just slightly every single time and the 5-7 seconds battle load time did not help the situation. I wish I took pictures, because the difference is pretty staggering.
I'm sure that comes off as extreme, but other games of that era (Suikoden / BoF3) used the 3D to enhance the 2D environment instead of making it the world. That worked well and I would call it an improvement over classic 16-bit 2D.
Now that is out of my system. This game feature three protagonists that stay with you most of the time. Each character does have unique abilities, and follows a familiar 2 fighters + mage trope. The two fighters, Rudy and Jack, both have unique attacks that must be discovered or fought for as you progress through the game. One of these, Rudy, posses an attack [ARMS] that uses shots instead of magic points/mana. The [ARMS] is the most unique thing about the game as you can upgrade the attack, hit, and number of shots. Also, different [ARMS] have different properties (number of attacks, group attacks, etc...) which does add some depth, but leaves me wishing for more customization. Now, I haven't played the other Wild Arms, but I'd assume these features become staples and are expanded.
I did like the magic in this game as it is both simple and versatile. The player must find Crest Glyphs which allows you to learn another spell. Which spell you learn is up to you, but there are two main tiers. The beginner tier you start with (and has basic heal/single attack spells) and the higher tier, naturally, comes later in the game. So this acts as a way to prevent a power jump right of the bat. This freedom of spell choice allows different tactics as you progress, but still allows you to get everything *if* you have the time.
The overall plot is a quintessential group of people that overcome inner shortcomings to save the world from an impending evil. And while there are very few plot twists, this game does introduce large mech-like creatures (golems) that are used as plot devices throughout the game. Being a JRPG, I was able to pilot two of them, but never into battle. They simply forwarded the plot and opened up new areas.
Overall these different mechanics (golems/mechs, ARMS, fast draw, saving the world) do give this game a nice breadth of mechanics, but do prevent the player from doing a deep dive into anything. While I did like the simplicity, I do wish at least one of these aspects was developed more.
More Pros:
- Breadth of simple systems
- A nice dash ability for faster movement around the overworld
- A moving plot (it did not linger at any moment.) That is probably one this game's best features.
- Fun Zelda-like puzzles which include utilizing three different character's unique abilities.
More Cons:
- Does feature the too-much-random-battle-syndrome in the later half of the game. A spell helps, but it is still there.
- Even with a dash ability and Zelda-like puzzles, not one tree gave me anything!
- Not as much depth as other games, but this can be a Pro for some.
I will abstain from a out of 10 rating since I can't really think of a good place to put this. Bottom line: This is a well made JRPG that has some nice features, but nothing that *really* stands out from the rest. On the other hand, this game has a lot of potential growth for future installments, which I do plan to visit as some point.