[PS2] Wild Arms: Vth Vanguard

Let me put it this way: I played the crap out of Suikoden V for over a month after getting caught up in it. Not only do I honestly think it's better than 2 (MOST parts...nothing quite as emotionally raw as 2's best parts, but improves on most everything else very nicely. Especially the gameplay/party set-up options), but I'm slowly and painfully sailing through Suikoden IV now, just to:

A: Ease the fact that Suikoden V is over.
B: See how IV ties into V and the rest of the series.
C: See how many stars I can get on my own, as I have no plans on doing a perfect 108 run here.

But yeah...I can definitely see how IV can rub fans of S2 the wrong way. Lack of direction, horrible characters, 4-man parties, the opening sections are painful and nothing you do really seems important. Very eerily reminds me of Chrono Cross (not a good thing).

Um, yeah...You owe it to yourself to play V.

As for the game in the actual topic...Best news is Naruke coming back to do the music. Then again, WA4's music really grew on me, once I weeded out some of Masato Kouda's lousier tracks and the varied styles grew on me.

I have WA4 now and I'm planning on going through it as soon as I finish...*shudder*...Suikoden IV. Then again, if something something doesn't happen REAL soon to explain where I have to go next, I might be starting WA4 sooner than later.

I did play the intro though...Love the new battle system and the Klonoa-style platforming. Definitely looks like fun. Not crazy about Vth going from 4 down to 3 characters...The more, the better.

Mucknuggle: Were you thinking of Goesch (a big farmer who fought with a giant log)?

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Jag: Uploading now. S-L-O-W-L-Y.

Gechmir: It's very different, I'll say that. It's four different composers, each with their own styles and none of the others really tend to sound like Naruke. She has about 1 disc worth of material (her tracks are practically unmistakable if you're familiar with her style), Masato Kouda has about 2 discs (half of his tracks tend to be too atmospheric for my liking, but he does have some great stuff like "Dark Grey Back Ry" and especially "Nightless City Guara Bobelo", which has a spot in the BSC...I'd say he leans towards jazz compositions but he's really all over the place) and the other two, Ryuta Suzuki and Nobuyuki Shimizu, combine to do about 1 disc worth of material...They probably had my favorite tracks on the whole thing ("Manifestation from Hell", "Howling at an Unstoppable Fate" and "Black Trigger" come to mind immediately). Lot's of straight action themes from them. It's too diverse to really describe...Worth the listen. Just be warned that not every track is gold (probably Kouda stretching himself too thin) Me personally, I'll say it's my second-favorite after Wild Arms 3, followed by 1, Code F then 2 (I loved the music in 2 as well, but it doesn't work too well in straight-soundtrack form). I can't wait to see where Vth fits into that mix...

Edit: Sigh...Might want to try an FTP or direct connect...My upload keeps dying. Sorry.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

It's funny that I could never get entirely into 1 or 3 (I gave up on 3 somewhere in the last chapter because it just dragged on like crazy), but the pacing of 2 was JUST perfect. Just when I was starting to get bored with a section (the lizard parts were kind of random), the story would take a nice turn or some new character would pop up. I remember it had some good puzzles in there as well and a good final dungeon/boss encounter...Aside from that one horribly translated puzzle which I had to get an FAQ for. And dammit...Ashley, Brad, Lilka and the assasin chick (forgot her name) showed how to do stock RPG characters the right way. Virginia and Co. never did a thing for me once the game got rolling, but I liked the WA2 cast from the moment they were assembled.

A remake would do wonders for the music. I'd actually settle for a rip with looped tracks, but an all-out redo would be highly appreciated as well.

Graphically though...This game is screaming for an overhaul. I know graphics aren't everything, but the battles were just an eyesore.

Personally, I would jump at the chance to play an updated version of WA2. This game sits on the outer cusp of my favorite RPG list and I wouldn't mind revisiting it.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by SouthJag

I also liked that the main character was not the only wielder of an ARM, as Brad was too.

True, but Lilka kicked everyone's ass because she had unlimited ammunition. Fireballs and Freeze spells for all!

This thread made me pop in the old game for a bit tonight. I had forgotten it was mostly sprite-based, outside of the battles. The characters-in-battle designs look like...the creators tried their best to come up with something, but just couldn't make ends meet. The characters are so messy, but they seem to have so much detail...Very strange seeing after so long away from it.

Technically, I guess this one would be considered "old-school" now.

How ya doing, buddy?