Wild Arms 5
Encyclopedia
Wild Arms 5, released in Japan
as , is the fifth video game in the Wild Arms series of role-playing game
s. The game celebrates the series' 10th anniversary by featuring cameo appearance
s of characters from the previous games. Produced by Media.Vision
for the Sony
PlayStation 2
platform, it was released in Japan
on December 14, 2006 and in North America
on August 28, 2007. A European release by 505 Games
was first scheduled for November 30, 2007 and then delayed until February 22, 2008. This release date passed, but the game was finally released on April 11, 2008.
In the USA, the first print run of Wild Arms 5 came in a commemorative "Series 10th Anniversary" box and included an art book featuring character art from all five Wild Arms games. This limited edition was later replaced by a standard edition with different cover art and no extras. The European version was released in two different versions, though both featuring the "Series 10th Anniversary" cover from the USA release: a limited edition, including an 80-pages art book, and a standard edition, without the art book.
The Force meter returns from Wild Arms 4. This meter increases as Dean's party members make physical attacks or are attacked. This can be used for Original attacks, Team Combos or summoning Guardian beasts to attack enemies. The more powerful the attack is, the more the Force meter will be drained. The characters can summon guardian beasts to the field to attack enemies. They can also use combination attacks that utilize most or all of the party. New in Wild Arms 5 is the ability to chain attacks together. This lets one of Dean's party members attack two to five times provided they have the Violator Badge equipped and enough bullets to make the attack.
Like in other Wild Arms games, ARM is an acronym, though its actual meaning is obscure. There are two versions given in the game.
and monowheel. The field avatar cannot be changed; Dean is always the leader.
Dungeon exploration has two modes. In Action mode, the player can jump, slide, and interact with objects. In Shooting mode, Dean draws both of his ARMs and can fire them freely. By employing various cartridges, the player can interact with the environment in a number of ways. Some examples include activating distant switches, breaking down obstacles, and lighting torches.
. After receiving the pair of ARMs (special guns) she was holding, Dean, along with Avril and Rebecca, decides to embark on an adventure to find out what the words "Johnny Appleseed" really mean.
Meanwhile, a revolt has begun within the Veruni government. A man named Volsung has overthrown the leader of the Radical faction, sworn enemies of the more peaceful Moderater faction, claiming that his violent actions are necessary for the survival of the Veruni.
to create a 3D
effect, including a slow camera pan
drift. The player can zoom in and out from different angles during gameplay. There are also several computer generated cut scenes. The art style for the characters is a typical anime
look, as opposed to a realistic or superdeformed one. In addition, the game features a wide selection of alternate costumes for all the playable characters, including several originally used by characters from the previous Wild Arms games, that can be obtained during gameplay.
s in several of its cutscenes and battles.
The music for Wild Arms 5, the only video game title where the original series composer Michiko Naruke
did not contribute, was provided by Masato Kouda along with series newcomer Noriyasu Agematsu
.
Unlike past Wild Arms, Nana Mizuki
, who voiced Rebecca in the game, sung the opening "Justice to Believe
" and ending "Crystal Letter" theme rather than Kaori Asoh
.
, and 71/100 on Metacritic
. Total PlayStation rated the game 9.5/10.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
as , is the fifth video game in the Wild Arms series of role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
s. The game celebrates the series' 10th anniversary by featuring cameo appearance
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
s of characters from the previous games. Produced by Media.Vision
Media.Vision
Media.Vision is a Japanese video game developer best known for the Wild Arms series of video game RPGs.-PlayStation:* Crime Crackers* Crime Crackers 2...
for the Sony
Sony Computer Entertainment
Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. is a major video game company specializing in a variety of areas in the video game industry, and is a wholly owned subsidiary and part of the Consumer Products & Services Group of Sony...
PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
platform, it was released in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
on December 14, 2006 and in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
on August 28, 2007. A European release by 505 Games
505 Games
505 Games, formerly known as 505 Game Street, is an Italian video game publishing division of Italian company Digital Bros. group founded in 2006...
was first scheduled for November 30, 2007 and then delayed until February 22, 2008. This release date passed, but the game was finally released on April 11, 2008.
In the USA, the first print run of Wild Arms 5 came in a commemorative "Series 10th Anniversary" box and included an art book featuring character art from all five Wild Arms games. This limited edition was later replaced by a standard edition with different cover art and no extras. The European version was released in two different versions, though both featuring the "Series 10th Anniversary" cover from the USA release: a limited edition, including an 80-pages art book, and a standard edition, without the art book.
Combat system
During combat, the field is split into seven hexagonal sections, some of which may have special properties. The player and enemies can move to different hexagons during their turn. This time around, the party count is three instead of four. Dean's party members and enemies can act instantly when they move onto the next hexagonal platform.The Force meter returns from Wild Arms 4. This meter increases as Dean's party members make physical attacks or are attacked. This can be used for Original attacks, Team Combos or summoning Guardian beasts to attack enemies. The more powerful the attack is, the more the Force meter will be drained. The characters can summon guardian beasts to the field to attack enemies. They can also use combination attacks that utilize most or all of the party. New in Wild Arms 5 is the ability to chain attacks together. This lets one of Dean's party members attack two to five times provided they have the Violator Badge equipped and enough bullets to make the attack.
Wild Arms
Each playable character is equipped with an ARM, a specialized kind of gun that deals physical damage in a range that varies for each character, from one-hex away to any hex. The ARMs must be reloaded after a number of shots by having the character defend for one round. While each character has a specific ARM, there are cartridges that can be added to increase its firepower. The ARMs also have their own stats that can be boosted by using "dragon fossil" items acquired during play.Like in other Wild Arms games, ARM is an acronym, though its actual meaning is obscure. There are two versions given in the game.
Mediums
By the time the player is able to control three characters at once early in the game, the tools known as mediums are introduced. In this version, they are portable computer devices with mystical qualities. Each character can only equip one medium at a time and there are six available mediums throughout the game. Each medium specializes in affecting specific parameters and granting the character unique Original and Force abilities.Exploration
Wild Arms 5 is a third-person video game. The world map is not scaled down, and towns and dungeons can be seen in their real size. The player traverses the world by walking, or employing various vehicles, including a trainTrain
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
and monowheel. The field avatar cannot be changed; Dean is always the leader.
Dungeon exploration has two modes. In Action mode, the player can jump, slide, and interact with objects. In Shooting mode, Dean draws both of his ARMs and can fire them freely. By employing various cartridges, the player can interact with the environment in a number of ways. Some examples include activating distant switches, breaking down obstacles, and lighting torches.
Story
Like every game in the Wild Arms series, Wild Arms 5 takes place on the world of Filgaia. Humans are currently being ruled over by the Veruni, an alien race that landed on Filgaia 100 years ago. Dean Stark, the protagonist of the story, lives in a secluded village away from all the turmoil. He dreams of one day leaving the village to pursue his dream of becoming a Golem Hunter, someone who excavates ancient robots, like his idol Nightburn. While in the mountains, Dean and his childhood friend Rebecca spot a Golem's arm fall from the sky and land in a cave just in front of them. Upon entering the cave, they find a girl curled up within the Golem's hand. The girl only remembers two things, her name (Avril), and the words Johnny AppleseedJohnny Appleseed
Johnny Appleseed , born John Chapman, was an American pioneer nurseryman who introduced apple trees to large parts of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois...
. After receiving the pair of ARMs (special guns) she was holding, Dean, along with Avril and Rebecca, decides to embark on an adventure to find out what the words "Johnny Appleseed" really mean.
Meanwhile, a revolt has begun within the Veruni government. A man named Volsung has overthrown the leader of the Radical faction, sworn enemies of the more peaceful Moderater faction, claiming that his violent actions are necessary for the survival of the Veruni.
Playable characters
All playable characters are equipped with ARM weapons (see Gameplay section)- Dean Stark - a teenage boy who wishes to be a Golem Hunter. Dean often obsesses over Golems, to the point where he, if he can, finds any piece of any Golem. He is naive, but his idealism influences the other characters. He idolizes Nighburn. Dean fights with a pair of ARMs.
- Special Ability: Double Critical: Doubles the damage of all critical attacks
- Rebecca Streisand - Dean's childhood friend, who is smarter than he is. She has feelings for him, but does not dare reveal them. Rebecca fights with a revolver-style ARM.
- Special Ability: Continuous Shot: Can randomly shoot/attack up to two to five times
- Avril Vent Fleur - the mysterious girl with amnesia. Avril fights with a sword ARM that can change into a whip.
- Special Ability: Double DP: Can randomly double the DP of all physical attacks including critical attacks
- Greg Russellberg - a 'Golem Crusher' who destroys golems, looking to find the man who killed his family. Greg fights with a combination sword/shotgun.
- Special Ability: Shoot and Guard: Randomly guards after attacking
- Chuck Preston - a young, boastful Golem Hunter with self-confidence issues. He fights with a piledriver-like weapon.
- Special Ability: Increases his attack power proportional to his loss of HP
- Carol Anderson - the young assistant of a mysterious professor. She is extremely intelligent, but very shy and clumsy. She is equipped with a backpack-mounted missile launcher.
- Special Ability: Can attack any enemy from any position
- Asgard - the golem that dropped Avril. It acts as a transportation device and an ally in battle. Asgard is not under direct player control, but its combat actions can be preprogrammed.
Other characters
- The group's enemies include Volsung, leader of the radical movement, and the four sentinels under his command, Fereydoon, Persephone, Kartikeya, and Elvis. Their goal is to ensure the survival of the Veruni race at any cost. Note that all these characters (except Elvis) are named for figures from various mythologiesMythologiesMythologies is a book by Roland Barthes, published in 1957. It is a collection of essays taken from Les Lettres nouvelles, examining the tendency of contemporary social value systems to create modern myths...
, although this is not mentioned in the game. VolsungVolsungIn Norse mythology, Völsung was the son of Rerir and the eponymous ancestor of the ill-fortuned Völsung clan , including the greatest of Norse heroes, Sigurð...
comes from Norse myth, FereydoonFereydunFereydūn also pronounced Farīdūn or Afrīdūn , also called Apam Napat, "Son of the Waters", is the name of an Iranian mythical king and hero who is an emblem of victory, justice and generosity in the Persian literature.-Etymology:All of the forms of...
from Persian myth, PersephonePersephoneIn Greek mythology, Persephone , also called Kore , is the daughter of Zeus and the harvest-goddess Demeter, and queen of the underworld; she was abducted by Hades, the god-king of the underworld....
from Greek myth and Kartikeya from Hindu beliefs.
- Other characters include Nightburn Acklund, a famous golem hunter who is Dean's hero, and Captain Bartholomew, the captain of the Moderate ship Mayflower.
- Cameos from other games include all the playable characters (excluding Lucied from 2nd Ignition) from Wild ArmsWild Armsis a role-playing game developed by software company Media.Vision and originally released in Japan in 1996 for the Sony PlayStation video game console and was later translated and released in North America in 1997 and Europe in 1998 by Sony Computer Entertainment...
and its remake, Wild Arms Alter Code: F, Wild Arms 2Wild Arms 2Wild Arms 2, known in Japan as , is a role-playing game developed by Media.Vision and published by Sony Computer Entertainment and the second installment in the Wild Arms series...
, Wild Arms 3Wild Arms 3Wild Arms 3, known in Japan as , is a role-playing game developed by Media.Vision and published by Sony Computer Entertainment and the sequel to Wild Arms and Wild Arms 2. It was released in 2002 on the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console....
, and Wild Arms 4Wild Arms 4Wild Arms 4, known in Japan as , also known as Wild Arms Another Code: F at one point in production , is a role-playing game developed by Media.Vision and the fourth installment in the Wild Arms video game series...
. Some may or may not be the characters they resemble, but most are likely just cameos. These characters are not playable, though many of them are part of the game's sidequests. The animeAnimeis the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series, Wild Arms: Twilight Venom, is also given a nod in the form of a boss by the name of "Twilight Venom".
Graphics
The game makes use of CGIComputer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
to create a 3D
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
effect, including a slow camera pan
Panning (camera)
In photography, panning refers to the horizontal movement or rotation of a still or video camera, or the scanning of a subject horizontally on video or a display device...
drift. The player can zoom in and out from different angles during gameplay. There are also several computer generated cut scenes. The art style for the characters is a typical anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
look, as opposed to a realistic or superdeformed one. In addition, the game features a wide selection of alternate costumes for all the playable characters, including several originally used by characters from the previous Wild Arms games, that can be obtained during gameplay.
Music and sound effects
The game features voiceoverVoiceOver
VoiceOver is a screen reader built into Apple Inc.'s Mac OS X, iOS and iPod operating systems. By using VoiceOver, the user can access their Macintosh or iOS device based on spoken descriptions and, in the case of the Mac, the keyboard. The feature is designed to increase accessibility for blind...
s in several of its cutscenes and battles.
The music for Wild Arms 5, the only video game title where the original series composer Michiko Naruke
Michiko Naruke
is a Japanese video game music composer, well-known for her work in the Wild Arms series.-Composing career:She used to work for Telenet Japan and Riot, but many people who worked for these two companies left, and along with Naruke, later started working for Media.Vision...
did not contribute, was provided by Masato Kouda along with series newcomer Noriyasu Agematsu
Noriyasu Agematsu
is a Japanese composer and founding member of group Elements Garden.He composed and arranged tracks on Nana Mizuki's singles Massive Wonders and Eternal Blaze, "Brave Phoenix" on the single Super Generation and the track "Tears' Night" on the album Alive & Kicking, composed the track Shin'ai and...
.
Unlike past Wild Arms, Nana Mizuki
Nana Mizuki
is a popular Japanese singer-songwriter and voice actress. She was born and raised in Niihama, Ehime, Japan, Mizuki was trained as an enka singer. She made her debut as a voice actress in 1998; however, she released her debut single "Omoi", under the King Records label on December 6, 2000...
, who voiced Rebecca in the game, sung the opening "Justice to Believe
Justice to Believe/Aoi Iro
"Justice to Believe/Aoi Iro" is the 14th single from Japanese voice actress and singer Nana Mizuki.The single was ranked #4 on the Japanese Oricon charts.-Track listing:#Justice to Believe#*Lyrics: Nana Mizuki...
" and ending "Crystal Letter" theme rather than Kaori Asoh
Kaori Asoh
' is a Japanese actress and voice actress.*Originally she was an actor.*She did a voice work in Nurse Angel Ririka SOS. She also sang two of the ending themes.*After this work, she performed to the supervisor work of Daichi Akitaro....
.
Reception
Wild Arms 5 garnered generally positive reviews; the game has an average review score of 74% according to Game RankingsGame Rankings
GameRankings is a website that collects review scores from both offline and online sources to give an average rating. It indexes over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 games.GameRankings is owned by CBS Interactive...
, and 71/100 on Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
. Total PlayStation rated the game 9.5/10.
Sources
- Wild ARMs 5 Prima Official Game Guide, published in America by Prima GamesPrima GamesPrima Games, a division of Random House, is the largest publishing company of video game strategy guides in the United States. It is an imprint of the Random House Information Group, based in Roseville, California...
(2007)