System: PS2
Dev: Media Vision
Pub: SONY
Release: Aug. 28, 2007
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: Teen
Review by Matthew Walker

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Review Rating Legend
1.0 - 1.9 = Avoid
2.0 - 2.4 = Poor
2.5 - 2.9 = Average
3.0 - 3.4 = Fair
3.5 - 3.9 = Good
4.0 - 4.4 = Great
4.5 - 4.9 = Must Buy
5.0 = The Best

The visuals of the game capture the appeal of a western in the truest sense. The environments have the landscape qualities of the thematic mountain trails, barren desert plains, and a sea of grass. The characters may not be accurate representations of the "time period," but this game takes place on a different planet, therefore, as long as you characters look remotely western styled, then you can say it is a western opus. The bright colors of the characters may throw some off, but it is necessary. Without the bright color-schemes, some of the characters would have quickly lost my interest.

The environments occasionally seem to be a little less inspired or flat, but the level of detail is nice and the game locks into the PS2 engine. The camera controls hurt the visuals the most though; they are clunky and don't respond as well as they should. Another complaint I had about the controls is the layout. While the controls have a solid schematic, it was the constant refresher I had to give myself as to which button did what. Thankfully, the button commands are always on the screen.

The sounds of the game are what most would expect from an RPG. With a score that is epic, melodic, and tranquil, and much like the previous installments, Wild Arms 5 delivers a wonderful score for the western enthusiasts in all of us. With occasional over zealous and over the top delivery, the voice acting may not be up to snuff with some high profile RPGs, but it is definitely not the worst I have ever heard. The sometimes campy and dramatic dialogue may actually help you relate to the characters a little more. In short, if you watch a lot of anime, be it good or bad, or if you play a lot of RPGs, the spoken dialogue will pose no problem.

Wild Arms 5 will not be the "end all" RPG for many players and, unfortunately, will gain an inch or two of dust from non-fans of the series. Because the game was developed with the fans in mind, it is a solid installment for the series. For the newer potential fans out there, you should be looking into this game a little more. Although it is not extremely challenging, the scale and scope of the game will keep you hooked. Load your six-shooter, dive head first into the world of Filgaia, and be on the lookout for some wonderful cameos along the way.

By Matthew Walker
CCC Project Coordinator

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