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PS1 Classics: Arc to Lad or Wild Arms? Which one?

So pleased to see so much love for WA, especially Michiko Naruke's ST :')
You guys have talked me into buying a digital copy when I get home. I hope my tastes haven't changed so much that I can't enjoy the game anymore.

Lizard with a ladder said:
I loved Wild Arms! Tried to replay it recently but the game has not aged well. How does the remake compare?
Click to expand...

New dungeon puzzles and world map puzzles were added which was pretty cool. Also
Jane, Emma and Zed
become permanent party members. But..those are kinda the only good things I remember about it.

The localization is poor. The original wasn't the greatest, sure. Agetec's not only has awkward translations and stripped VA, but a number of misspellings and text in some dialogue boxes ran offscreen.
Battles are dragged out unnecessarily because everyone runs around in circles before attacking. Their positions don't affect damage output.
You have to Search the world map for locations.
Rudy uses his Hand Cannon as a basic attack instead of a knife, which is...probably not a big deal to people who aren't giant nerds like me. But it's a weird change given how rare, powerful and esoteric ARMs were "supposed" to be. Bullet clips were a limited resource in the original, for pete's sake...
And (story spoiler about Rudy)
he SHOOTS off his arm instead of cutting it
which my friend and I laughed our asses off at as he played through his copy.

Disclaimer: I was wholly enamored with the original and had been waiting for the remake since 2003 (it came out in 2006?) so that...probably colored my reception of it a bit. After having sobered up a bit I've been tempted to re-buy ACF to see if it's really as bad as I recall...but yeah, I don't think you'd enjoy it.
 
ULTROS! said:
The game ends up being too easy and Laika putting emoticons in her dialogue.

I enjoyed the game though, but WA is still better.
Click to expand...
I would put WA2's music slightly above WA's music despite the first game's God-tier OP.

They managed to get the Gospellers for a song in WA2 (Atomic Arms).
 
Arc 2 is one of the best JRPGs on the PSX (and that's saying something). Arc 1 is short (you can win it in under 10 hours, with the optional dungeon) and ultimately disappointing, but the second game is amazing and worth playing the first one for.
 
I'm kind of mad that the PSP lets you swap analog and digital, allowing you to use analogs in games that did not support them, but the PS3 and Vita, 2 more powerful systems, removed the feature, why?

Also Arc the lad is pretty sweet, but yeah you need to get it along with the second. You can miss some stuff in first that makes 2nd a lot harder.
 
ctrayne said:
Wild Arms has great music and looks wonderful...until you get into battle. Ugh. Truly bad, even when it came out. Aside from battle, though, it's a neat game, and probably the best in the series.

Arc The Lad was made by some of the team that did Front Mission, so if you like that style of game (I do), give the series a try.
Click to expand...
ctrayne gets it. Well, I knew you would anyway. >.>

I loved everything about Arc 1&2. Also, Arc II looks really damn good on Vita (I left bilinear filter on because I was lazy).
 
Jucksalbe said:
Awful story, bad translation, annoying dungeons, boring soundtrack. And I loved the first one, too.
Click to expand...

I consider its story waaaay superior over WA1, and I love how the mandatory "surprise final final boss" doesn't happen at all.

Soundtrack I agree though, but its opening (both) and the dungeon themes are awesome.

Also has fucking Knight Blazer!

ULTROS! said:
The game ends up being too easy and Laika putting emoticons in her dialogue.

I enjoyed the game though, but WA is still better.
Click to expand...

I guess it's because the Force powers are a bit too broken in WA2.
 
Of the two, I've only played Wild Arms and I think I'm in the minority here when I say that I didn't find it to be anything special. I think it might have just been too dated for me by the time I played it. I'd go for Arc the Lad, if only for the Working Designs localization.

Probably can't blame SCEA for the lack of Star Ocean on PSN: SQEX owns the IP and my guess is they didn't want their PSP remake to have to compete with the original. Now, if you want to blame SQEX for no Star Ocean on the PSN, I'll join you!
 
honorless said:
So pleased to see so much love for WA, especially Michiko Naruke's ST :')
You guys have talked me into buying a digital copy when I get home. I hope my tastes haven't changed so much that I can't enjoy the game anymore.



New dungeon puzzles and world map puzzles were added which was pretty cool. Also
Jane, Emma and Zed
become permanent party members. But..those are kinda the only good things I remember about it.

The localization is poor. The original wasn't the greatest, sure. Agetec's not only has awkward translations and stripped VA, but a number of misspellings and text in some dialogue boxes ran offscreen.
Battles are dragged out unnecessarily because everyone runs around in circles before attacking. Their positions don't affect damage output.
You have to Search the world map for locations.
Rudy uses his Hand Cannon as a basic attack instead of a knife, which is...probably not a big deal to people who aren't giant nerds like me. But it's a weird change given how rare, powerful and esoteric ARMs were "supposed" to be. Bullet clips were a limited resource in the original, for pete's sake...
And (story spoiler about Rudy)
he SHOOTS off his arm instead of cutting it
which my friend and I laughed our asses off at as he played through his copy.

Disclaimer: I was wholly enamored with the original and had been waiting for the remake since 2003 (it came out in 2006?) so that...probably colored my reception of it a bit. After having sobered up a bit I've been tempted to re-buy ACF to see if it's really as bad as I recall...but yeah, I don't think you'd enjoy it.
Click to expand...

Looks like I'll be skipping this one. Thanks.
 
Lizard with a ladder said:
Looks like I'll be skipping this one. Thanks.
Click to expand...

In a way, you should still check it out, but play the first game first. The remake uses WA3's system which is the second best battle system in the franchise (first being 4's).

Battle speed can be edited in settings for instance. Searching isn't really that hard, since the game tells you where to search.

Rudy changing his attack was more to fit with the theme that he only has an ARM rather than a bunch of guns.
 
I have played Wild Arms 3 and Wild Arms 4.
WA3 had a more interesting world, better scenario and bigger duration, but its duration came at the expence of boredom due to cheapness, as the world "Repetition" and "Filler" could never leave your brain.
WA4 had an amazing combat system, but it was shorter, more linear, and the scenario was kinda stupid.

Dont let my ranting get the better of you, as I find negative aspects in everything I touch.
The series seem realy good, and I would had bought all of them if I had the time.

You should Also try Grandia, as it's an underated masterpiece.
If you are planing on playing your PS1 classics on a console that has R2/L2 buttons, I highly suggest the Fear Effect games (just dont play them on PSP).
 
WA4's linearity made it very precise and lack filler though. Also dat ending.

Also it has tons of manly tears.
 
Shouta said:
If it's just Arc 1 vs WA 1 then WA. If it's Arc and Arc 2 vs WA, then I'd probably say Arc but both are good choices regardless.
Click to expand...

Yup, this is what I'd say. Arc II is one of my absolute favorite games, but you need to have played I to get the full impact. I is an OK game, but Wild Arms is much better. Lovely music, lots of sidequests, great dungeon design... I've always felt the WA series was rather underrated by RPG fans, but then again I've only played I and III, maybe the rest of them are bad?
 
Too bad Alter Code F was so so poor of a remake, I really wanted to love it as much as I loved the first game.

BTW, the opening of Wild Arms was the introduction to japanese role playing games for me. I loved it.
 
I d/l Wild Arms last night and immediately felt that old jRPG feeling, which was great! I really have missed it this gen so far.

Does anyone know how to alter the screen settings after you first boot up the game? it popped up automatically the first time, but now I can;t figure out how to adjust them... I really want to out it to Full window and see how it looks, right now is cropped...
 
Lizard with a ladder said:
I loved Wild Arms! Tried to replay it recently but the game has not aged well. How does the remake compare?
Click to expand...

I loved Alter Code F, it's a fantastic remake with lots of contents. I don't know if it's because of nostalgia googles, but I remember being fond of WA1 and 3's stories , while absolutely hated WA4 and WA5's horrible cliched stories.
 
Kikujiro said:
I loved Alter Code F, it's a fantastic remake with lots of contents. I don't know if it's because of nostalgia googles, but I remember being fond of WA1 and 3's stories , while absolutely hated WA4 and WA5's horrible cliched stories.
Click to expand...

WA1's story is pretty generic and WA3's, while good, has a very slow pace and sidetracks a lot with a bunch of man behind the man behind the man bullcrap. 4 was straightforward but the whole plot works if you view it in a certain perspective. 5's story was... eh.

I consider 2 the more... balanced of all :P
 
Considering Wild Arms is the game I chose for Best VGM 01, I think you know which one I'd recommend. I haven't played it since it released though, so apart from the soundtrack and the story, I'm not sure it aged too well. As for Wild Arms F, that game was a very big disappointment since I found it lost the original's charm and outstanding music.

Arc the Lad porbably aged a lot better, but you really do need to play the sequel for it to be really worth it. Arc the Lad 2 is one of my favorite RPGs on the system, awesome game.
 
Wild ARMs is a classic. I like Arc the Lad as well, but I'll echo the sentiment that the first two games should be experienced back to back. Wild ARMs is still so important to me. I've played and finished the entire franchise (exluding XF) and while I do enjoy them all for different reasons, the original remains my favorite of the bunch.

Back in December of last year, I replayed Wild ARMs for the umpteenth time. I started it a few weeks or so before I graduated from college. I played the shit out of it the night before I graduated too and I'll probably never forget that feeling/sense of accomplishment. Such ridiculous amounts of nostalgia. On this last playthrough I decided to go for true, 100% completion. I made two videos on my YouTube channel so if any vets want to check it out, I suggest doing so! There are major spoilers in these videos so only check it out if you've played the games to death!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbrrvgKB4QE&list=UUoZh1WkTS4MLixJ6oSYM3nw&index=9&feature=plcp
 
Cornbread78 said:
Does anyone know how to alter the screen settings after you first boot up the game? it popped up automatically the first time, but now I can;t figure out how to adjust them... I really want to out it to Full window and see how it looks, right now is cropped...
Click to expand...

On Vita, I guess? Hold your finger on the touch screen.
 
Buy Arc 1, Arc 2, AND Wild ARMs. They're all good games and you should play all three.

Just don't expect a good translation in Wild ARMs. It's 1990s Sony, after all. And DON'T ever play Arc 3. It's a completely unnecessary sequel. It's a big step back from Arc 2 and kind of ruins Arc 2's ending.
 
Ookami-kun said:
WA1's story is pretty generic and WA3's, while good, has a very slow pace and sidetracks a lot with a bunch of man behind the man behind the man bullcrap. 4 was straightforward but the whole plot works if you view it in a certain perspective. 5's story was... eh.

I consider 2 the more... balanced of all :P
Click to expand...

WA2 is the only WA I still have to play. The problem with WA4 and 5's stories is that I really couldn't stand the characters, Dean is like the epitome of anime cliched annoying child protagonist.
 
I'm an anomaly, but I thought that Wild Arms 1 was boring slop even back when it came out and we were all RPG-starved. I can imagine that now - in a time with way more options - it would be absolutely intolerable.
 
Thanks to this Thread I bought Wild Arms yesterday, I am about ~33min in and really love it so far

thank you gaf!
 
wild arms easily, it's lufia 3 with a different name

make sure you have some time on your hands,this is one of the longest jrpgs i can think of,but it's delivering from start to finish
 
Aeana said:
An average of 30 hours is one of the longest?
Click to expand...

this can't be accurate or my memory is foggy,it takes around 10 hours for the first
credits
and then the game hasn't even started,the game has so many dungeons and puzzles i highly doubt you can complete it in 30 hours on your first playthrough,or maybe the timer is broken like in wild arms 3 where it only counts the time when you run around and not the battles
 
Jigsaw said:
this can't be accurate or my memory is foggy,it takes around 10 hours for the first
credits
and then the game hasn't even started,the game has so many dungeons and puzzles i highly doubt you can complete it in 30 hours on your first playthrough,or maybe the timer is broken like in wild arms 3 where it only counts the time when you run around and not the battles
Click to expand...

25-30 hours sounds about right to me. I played through it again a couple of years ago.
 
honorless said:
So pleased to see so much love for WA, especially Michiko Naruke's ST :')
You guys have talked me into buying a digital copy when I get home. I hope my tastes haven't changed so much that I can't enjoy the game anymore.



New dungeon puzzles and world map puzzles were added which was pretty cool. Also
Jane, Emma and Zed
become permanent party members. But..those are kinda the only good things I remember about it.

The localization is poor. The original wasn't the greatest, sure. Agetec's not only has awkward translations and stripped VA, but a number of misspellings and text in some dialogue boxes ran offscreen.
Battles are dragged out unnecessarily because everyone runs around in circles before attacking. Their positions don't affect damage output.
You have to Search the world map for locations.
Rudy uses his Hand Cannon as a basic attack instead of a knife, which is...probably not a big deal to people who aren't giant nerds like me. But it's a weird change given how rare, powerful and esoteric ARMs were "supposed" to be. Bullet clips were a limited resource in the original, for pete's sake...
And (story spoiler about Rudy)
he SHOOTS off his arm instead of cutting it
which my friend and I laughed our asses off at as he played through his copy.

Disclaimer: I was wholly enamored with the original and had been waiting for the remake since 2003 (it came out in 2006?) so that...probably colored my reception of it a bit. After having sobered up a bit I've been tempted to re-buy ACF to see if it's really as bad as I recall...but yeah, I don't think you'd enjoy it.
Click to expand...

The #1 worst thing about it in my mind is that they absolutely butchered the music. Just destroyed it.

WA1 is still one of my favorite game soundtracks ever and I listen to it regularly.

I mean...I guess arguments could be made...it's usually not unpleasant, but in many cases it sounds like they were remixing just for the sake of remixing, without trying to fit the mood. Loud, bombastic, overbearing stuff with lots of instruments involved.

Adlehyde town original

Adlehyde town Alter Code F

Nice intro, but too complicated!

Adlehyde castle original

Adlehyde castle Alter Code F

First it's too marchy and royal, then it's too reserved. Either way it loses everything I liked about the original.

Curan Abbey original

Curan Abbey Alter Code F

The way they made this nice little song so goofy sounding is infuriating.

Ugh!
 
Kikujiro said:
WA2 is the only WA I still have to play. The problem with WA4 and 5's stories is that I really couldn't stand the characters, Dean is like the epitome of anime cliched annoying child protagonist.
Click to expand...

Go blame Yuri Lower... eh that Yuri guy :P
 
Count of Monte Sawed-Off said:
More like arc the lad is 1/5th of a game and 2 is the other 4/5
Click to expand...
Yeah, saying Arc the Lad 1 was half the game was being excessively generous to how much content it had. AtL1 is just a prologue to the main event, and if that were what was asked about it'd be a lot more difficult of a question to answer.

But JUST AtL1 versus Wild Arms 1? I'd go with Wild Arms, you'll get more bang for your buck and it won't feel like some skeleton of a game.
 
Cornbread78 said:
Alright, the PS1 Classics are finally available for play on my VITA. I was hopeing for something from PS1 Star Ocean to pop up, but of course SCEA dissappoints, however, I did see two titles for direct download that I'm debating over now. (I skipped both two generations ago and played sequels to them on PS2)

Which one between Arc the Lad or Wild Arms should I go for? (time constraints) Are they anything like their PS2 counterparts? Also, which has a better story and gameplay? Fill me in GAF, which should I grab?
Click to expand...
Never played Arc The Lad, but Wild Arms bored me to the point that I stopped playing my PS for a week simply because I knew WA was in the system.

I eventually shelved the game and went back to Tekken 2 IIRC.

It did have a nice intro song tho.
 
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