Wild Arms was one of the best games of 1997, nominated for Game of the Year in the annual
FOFTV.com Awards. The appealing 2-D graphics, unique battle customization design, fun
Zelda-like puzzle action, and fantastic opening anime made the game unforgettable.
Virtually none of those elements exist in the sequel. The 3-D graphics are horrible and
unnecessary. All of the charm is gone. While Breath of Fire managed to transfer its charm from
2-D to 3-D, Wild Arms fails miserably.
The dull color schemes and uninspired cinemas bring the series closer to Legend of Legaia than
to the majesty of the original epic, which actually had an interesting storyline. Remember the
sympathetic golem?
Only six (6) cinemas span the two-disc game. Two of the six are montages; one is simply a long
zoom-out-from-Earth shot; one is a credit sequence with a mini-montage in a small window to
the side; and the remaining two are barely cinemas at all. They are "pencil" drawing composites
which look very nice but don't do much more than show a new character.
The dialogue is poorly written, with unrealistic exclamations of excitement and forced
observations or events that lead to the next story beat. Even worse is the lack of analog control.
The best part of Wild Arms 2 is the avoidable encounters. Press the circle button and you can
avoid almost all enemy attacks. This feature, or some variation of it, should be incorporated into
most every game of this type.
I want to know who decided to turn this into a 3-D game. That person deserves either a spanking
or a lesson in making more appealing 3-D graphics.
Publisher: Sony