3.5/5 ★ – ElementaryGaming's review of Wild Arms.

This game's greatest strength is its pure 90s charm. The western-influenced soundtrack, the polygonal PS1 graphics, the strange little touches such as being able to read the minds of animals- it all feels uniquely like a certain type of game that will never be made again. I didn't realize how much Golden Sun took inspiration from this game until I played it. The character art style and overworld puzzles are very similar. The early 3D graphics are charmingly simple. Not just their visuals, but their simple animations as well. It's obviously not "polished", but I see that as part of the charm. Some would call them "ugly", but I disagree. The characters and enemies are blocky and fun to look at, because their designs are still interesting in spite of the technical limitations. The story is well-told, but also somewhat bland. The main characters are genuinely interesting and a prologue for each of them helps with this. Some scenes are truly memorable- that opening funeral and the ending is just fantastic! But at the same time, it feels like it doesn't live up to its potential, because the unique main characters live in a backdrop of a fairly generic fantasy story. Its soundtrack is among the best in JRPGs, and features an incredible amount of instrumental variety for being on the PS1. Its distinctly western style gives it a unique flavor. The only thing that could be improved with regards to its sound is that the main dungeon theme could've been switched up- you'll be hearing it a lot. Its story focus on three characters lends itself to intuitive gameplay where all 3 characters have unique ways of upgrading their attacks- guns for one, special attacks for the second, and spells for the third. There is a great sense of progression overall, because leveling up is relatively rare compared to most RPGs, so you really notice the difference whenever it happens. But there are some serious flaws that bring the experience down. The random battles are too frequent for a game with a fair amount of puzzles. It's definitely a game to have a podcast on standby for, because the dungeons would be boring otherwise. It's a shame how much of the game is comprised of these, because Wild Arms does so many things so well, and it does bring down the experience. A fast-forward button for the PS4 version would've been seriously appreciated, but there isn't one. The game suffers from "What Do I Do?" quite a bit. Sometimes there are only vague hints for what to do next from a random NPC. It's definitely a guide game, and would be frustrating without one. The effects of statuses and spells are also poorly explained- it's especially annoying that you are never told when certian spell effects wear off. If you cast a defense-up spell for a character, you never know how long it lasts. Some of the puzzles also just aren't great, and feel very unintuitive without a guide. Ultimately, Wild Arms is worth playing only if a seriously high amount of random battles and old-school jank can be overlooked. Without an online guide and a podcast, it would be painful, but with these modern tools, it's a less painful experience. There is plenty of charm and quality hidden within Wild Arms.