Wild Arms Alter Code: F

"Lost in Translation"

Wild Arms Alter Code: F (hereafter WAACF) attempts to capture the thrills of the first Wild Arms game released on the PSX. Unfortunately, it falls short in many ways, leaving it hard to recommend except to the die hard fans of previous Wild Arms games, or die hard fans of RPGs in general.

Story: 7/10 - Although it has been many years since I played Wild Arms 1, I do recall the story being one of the best I'd played at that point. Not only was it extensive, but it was entertaining, and the characters were developed fully. I would have given the story of the original a 9. Somehow, in adding the new upgrades (3D graphics, and tweaking many of the gameplay elements), the story managed to come across as fairly bland. The pacing seems off, and the translation itself is somewhat poor. It's certainly not the worst I've seen, but it's a far cry from good. Still, looking past that, the story is still rich and involving, but not nearly as immersive as the original.

Gameplay: 7/10 - As turn-based RPGs go, WAACF has a pretty decent system. It's detailed enough and allows for a good amount of customization, as well as adding extra playable characters to spice things up. However, the gameplay itself, again, comes off as fairly bland. The visuals overall don't really get you that excited, and within a few battles you're looking at combat as a necessary evil to get you through the somewhat more interesting and more difficult boss battles. For the average RPGer, my guess is that more will like/tolerate it than dislike it, and it does the job.

Sound: 6/10 - I really wasn't that impressed with the sound in this game. First off, there's no voicework, and that's something I've come to expect, in at least the main cutscenes. Still, it could be a blessing considering the horrendous voicework I've seen in some RPGs. The music is a bit forgettable, and can be a bit annoying at times. The sound effects are pretty good, overall. I'd probably give the game a 7 for sound if the text dialogue wasn't so poor, making the lack of voiceover work more noticeable.

Graphics: 7/10 - I'd have to call this graphics engine fairly ugly overall. This late in the PS2's career, I've come to expect better, even when the game doesn't opt for cel-shading (which creates a bit more vibrancy overall). I felt the spell effects were probably the best representation of the graphics engine, and even those weren't what I'd consider great. When you take everything as a whole, you'll see a few things you really like, and a lot of things that are just so-so. In the end, you wind up with a graphical presentation that gets the job done without doing anything to really impress you.

Final Words: Well, at this point it's probably obvious that I'd consider this a rental. For fans of the original, there's bound to be some disappointment at this attempt to "add a new paintjob" to the original. For those who are unfamiliar with the original, I would recommend giving it a try, but don't have your expectations set too high and you'll probably enjoy it more. WAACF is a good attempt that fell a bit short of the mark of greatness.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 12/01/05