Wild Arms 4

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Wild Arms 4
Developer(s)	Media.Vision
Publisher(s)	SCEI XSEED Games 505 Games
Designer(s)	Media.Vision Entertainment
Series	Wild Arms
Release date(s)	March 3, 2005 January 10, 2006 October 13, 2006
Genre(s)	RPG
Mode(s)	Single player
Rating(s)	CERO: All Ages ESRB: T (Teen)
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2
Media	DVD-ROM
Input	DualShock 2

Wild Arms 4, known in Japan as Wild Arms: The 4th Detonator (ワイルドアームズ ザ フォースデトネイター, Wairudo Āmuzu Za Fōsu Detoneitā^?), is the fourth title in the Wild Arms video game series. The game's overall look and feel is a departure from the Wild West feel of the previous games in the series, to a more modern look.

Contents 1 Storyline 2 Main Characters 3 Brionac Forces 4 ARMs 5 Gameplay 6 Combat 7 Music 8 Problems 9 External links

[edit] Storyline

Jude Maverick has grown up in an isolated town called Ciel, which is completely enclosed in a large sphere floating thousands of feet above the surface of Filgaia. His sheltered world changes forever when he sees the sky "tear" and ships enter his homeland. Upon inspecting the campsite set up by the intruders, he sees something else that he has never seen before: a girl.

The girl's name is Yulie and she is being held captive by the intruders after being captured by a "Drifter" for hire, Arnaud G. Vasquez. After the invading army attacks Ciel and brings the sphere crashing down, Jude, Yulie and Arnaud join forces to find the army's true intention behind Yulie's abduction. With the help of another Drifter, Raquel, these four idealistic teens travel the war-torn land of Filgaia in search of truth, their own identities, and their separate paths to adulthood.

[edit] Main Characters

• Jude Maverick

Age 13. A young boy whose will to overcome obstacles tends to manifest itself as pure recklessness. He is a bit immature for his age, but this was probably influenced by the environment he grew up in. He wears a jacket that is a couple sizes too large, which only adds to his immature image. Putting his will into the mysterious ARM weapon, he is the only one in the party that can utilize it. A first-time ARM user, his stance is often a bit awkward. He is also the first non-drifter hero to appear in the series, since Wild ARMs 2. Jude is the jack of all trades of the group. He has good attack power, can shoot energy beams with his ARM, and can steal items. His special ability is Mystic, which allows a used item to affect all party members.

• Yulie Ahtreide

Age 15. A young girl saddled with the fate of being a Wild ARMs heroine. She seems a bit shy at first, but is an upbeat and caring girl. Since losing her parents in the war, she has lived in the White Orphanage and has since retracted from adults. Though her abilities differ from Jude's, she also has the ability to control ARMs after activation. Unlike Jude, however, her ARM ability is not natural, and she only obtained it through extensive (and painful) experimentation. She is the white mage and summoner of the group. Her special ability is Material, which, depending on the HEX she's standing in, will either heal the party or unleash an elemental summon that attacks all enemies. She is voiced by Kate Higgins

• Arnaud G. Vasquez

Age 18. A magic user who prides himself "in everything from the neck up," though, in retrospect, one can't help but wonder. He would rather spend his days wandering and searching for something for his own benefit, but, somehow, becomes tangled in Jude's travels. The "G" in his name stands for "Gray," a fit for his personaility. He is the group's black mage, specializing in attack spells and stat changing spells. His special ability is Jump, which can move him and anyone else in his HEX to another. If he has learned a certain skill, he can attack after using Jump. He is voiced by Yuri Lowenthal.

• Raquel Applegate

Age 19. The lady fencer isn't very "ladylike," but her strength in battle more than makes up for her faults. Seems hard to approach at first, but in reality this female swordsman is caring and is the most mature of the party. Traveling the world that has been devastated by the war, her objective is to find and draw the few beautiful landscapes left in Filgaia. Later, it is learned that she is doing so because she contracted an incurable disease when she was younger and wishes to have the ugly memories of war be erased by the beauty that is left in Filgaia. She is the group's power character. Her attack power in battle is absolutely sickening, as she can often kill enemies in one blow. However, she is very slow (which is odd for a female RPG character). Her special ability is Intrude, which allows her to have consecutive turns. Couple that with her attack power, and she can devastate even the most powerful bosses. She is voiced by Wendee Lee

• Ethelda Maverick

Age unknown. Jude's mother. A former ARM scientist, she and her colleagues moved to Ciel in order to escape their past and the war torn Filgaia. When Ciel is destroyed, the occupants are separated. She is captured by Lambda along with another group of Ciel residents (also former ARM scientists) so that they may activate the Divine Weapon. Although the Weapon was designed to help restore Filgaia, she believes it is also capable of great destruction, and she wishes to destroy it. She and the others are eventually rescued by Jude and company at Brionac's headquarters, Garra de Leon (a large sandship), and the two parties split up into two separate hovercrafts to make their escape. However, Lambda had set multiple time bombs all over Garra de Leon as a means to prevent Jude and the others from escaping, and Ethelda's craft is hit by one, killing her and everyone else aboard. Jude is sent into a depression over this, but eventually snaps out of it, and decides to fulfill his mom's last wish: to destroy the Divine Weapon.

• Hauser Blackwell

Age unknown. Wields the XERD_002GC "Gunclaw". Fuses with the fourth ARM, the Divine Weapon, sealed away under Ilsveil Prison, in order to wipe out humanity with its nanomachines. Is defeated when our heroes unite their power to use the powerful attack "Arc Impulse". During the war he was a "hero", fighting for the sake of a better future. He has saved countless towns on his own, disappearing while trying to save the town where Raquel Applegate was born. He was dubbed "The Black Reaper". He is also the father of Jude, whom he conceived with Ethelda Maverick. Although he is always spoken of as a highly dangerous war criminal, he is in actuality a fairly sympathetic character who is sick of war and just wants to live in peace. He even heals the party back to health after the train they were riding on (Silver Star Express) crash lands into Verklarung. Hauser is then seen leading Yulie to the surface so that she may exorcise the earthbound souls of those killed in the citie's destruction, which he accidentally caused. He is then captured by Gawn, and taken to Illsveil Prison. Once there, Lambda gives him a speech on how people are the cause of Filgaia's problems, which sends the war weary Hauser over the edge. He escapes his bondage, and makes his way to the Divine Weapon so that he may use it to kill all life in Filgaia, as he believes that is the only way Filgaia will ever see peace. When the party arrives to destroy the Weapon, Hauser stops them and states his intentions. The party then battles him as he continually changes forms, each less human looking than the last. Upon his defeat, he reforms himself back into his old form, and chases Jude down with his ARM drawn. Jude then throws his own ARM away, and tries to plead with him that humanity is worth saving. It works, and Hauser drops his arm and places his hand on Jude's head, indicating he knows who Jude is and that he is proud of him. He then dissapates. Jude then breaks down into tears, presumably because he just realized that Hauser was his father. Later on, a townsperson suggests that Hauser actually didn't survive the Verklarung explosion, and the form seen throughout the game was actually a collection of nanomachines with Hauser's mind still intact (which explains how Jude always saw a scene from Hauser's past when he made physical contact with him).

[edit] Brionac Forces

The Brionac is the elite fighting force of The Congressional Knights, and was initially formed during the war against the Global Union. They were reformed after the war by a new captain, Lambda, and are now known as "Lambda's Elite." The group is composed of members with super-human abilities, and each member of the Brionac is equivalent to an entire battalion. Now in the post-war era, why do the Brionac persistently pursue Jude and friends? The key is Yulie, and her existence is one of the aspects of this story.

• Lambda Zellweger

Age 32. He possesses an iron will, and the ability to accurately "see" the future. A calculating man who, in the order to guarantee the success of a mission, always has a trump card readied. It is under his command that the Brionac Lieutenants pursue Yulie. His weapons include a sword and a whip. After battling and wounding him, the party convinces Lambda that using the Divine Weapon to restore Filgaia is not the way to go, but rather the teamwork of all people. Lambda then gives the party his blessing to destroy the Divine Weapon. After the party leaves, Lambda meets up again with the now blinded Farmel, and the two share one last moment together before being crushed by falling boulders. His nickname is Blue Destiny.

• Kresnik Ahtreide

Age 24. A commander of the Brionac forces, and Yulie's older brother. He is also known as the "lance" of Lambda. He is the counterbalance to Farmel in that he is serious and straight-laced, and determined as a member of Brionac, at all costs. He is a knight in every sense of the word, and "Javelin" is his steed. His weapon is an ARM, despite the fact that he must take drugs in order to use it (he, like his sister, was also greatly experimented upon). Despite being a Brionac member, he cares greatly for the well-being of his sister, and even goes against Brionac on a few occasions. However, he does not like Jude much, as he is jealous of his completely natural ability to use ARMs. He is a temporary party member at two points in the game, though he does not gain experience. After the second time, he is supposedly killed when a cave ledge collapses under his feet, and he plunges into the dark abyss. His nickname is Pale Rider.

• Farmel

Age 30. A commander of the Brionac Forces. She is also known as the "shield" which protects Lambda. Despite her lighthearted demeanor and teasing words, her faith in Lambda is absolute and she guards him with her life. Her weapon is a bladed shield, which she uses to block attacks, then return fire with a very powerful counterattack. Her right arm and leg sport gold armor, which may or may not be prosthetic. After the battle with her, a computer console near her explodes, presumably killing her. Later on, she is shown to have survived, but was blinded by the explosion. She took a great amount of time to find her way down to the recently battle wounded Lambda, and the two share one last moment together before being crushed by falling boulders. Her nickname is Asgard.

• Jeremy

Age 28. A Brionac Lieutenant who is fueled by violence and destruction. He wields a rapid-fire missile launcher with his bare hands. Although it would be impossible for normal humans to withstand the recoil, his special ability "Inertial Canceller" allows him to do this. He is by far the most psychotic member of Brionac, willing to kill people he's not supposed to just because he feels like it. He is later transformed into a Wild ARM (a living being merged with ARM technology), somehow keeping his mind and returning to attack the party again. He and Kresnik do not get along at all, and this is solidified by the fact that Kresnik rescues the party just as Jeremy is about to sap their power via a mechanical cage. The party then finishes Jeremy for good. His nickname is Inertial Canceller.

• Enil

Age 31. A Brionac Lieutenant who is harsh on herself, and has difficulty interacting with others. Although she lacks physical prowess in battle, her specialty is in psychological attacks. She is not only able to materalize her opponent's fears (Dark Whisper), but she also has the ability to shapeshift, thus making her ideal for infiltration and espionage. Enil never actually dies after the battle with her. She just disappears after the party convinces her not to chase them anymore, presumably to seek a new life. Her nickname is Dark Whisper.

• Hugo

Age 33. A Brionac Lieutenant known for his skillful wielding of the pair of swords known as Gan and Diva. By combining the swords, he is able to create a bow, named Gandiva, which shoots arrows of light, and allows him to target even distant foes with deadly accuracy. His ability is "System Chronos" which allows him to stop time for everyone but himself and move freely, which resembles teleportation to an observer. This "speed which defies physics" is faster even than Jude's Accelerator ability. Like Enil, Hugo also never actually dies. He allows the party to continue on, and is never heard from again. His nickname is System Chronos.

• Balgaine

Age 40. Balgaine is a power fighter who yearns for an honorable death on the battlefield. His cyborg body packs unimaginable power, and his weaponized chainsaw, named Nidhogg, was developed specifically for battle. His weapon boasts the most attack power, even amongst the Brionac Commanders, dealing 9999 per hit. After the battle with him, his wish for death is granted as Nidhogg explodes. His nickname is Baron of Gore.

• Augst

Age 48. Formerly a scientist, August currently functions as an advisor to Lambda and oversees the formulation of battle strategies. Unlike any of the other Brionac members, he lacks any special or super-human ability and instead relies on "common sense" to bring missions to a success. At one point he tries to stop the party by injecting part of a liquefied ARM into himself, transforming into a monster which is then killed by the party. His nickname is Trifler.

• Scythe

Age 30. Scythe has the ability to manipulate time/space and create wormholes. This ability not only has offensive capabilities, but defensive ones as well. He can drag opponents into subspace or use it for means to protect himself. It is rumored that he is a remnant of an ancient race called the "Crimson Nobles." His nickname is Crimson Noble, despite the fact that he really isn't one (the most obvious clue being sunlight has no effect on him). This delusion came about in part because he was a hemophiliac, eventually tricking himself into that fantasy. The source of his power actually comes from his lover, Belial, who may be a Crimson Noble (however, she too like Scythe is immune to sunlight). Scythe meets his (rather comical) end when he is accidentally crushed by a plane.

• Heath

Age unknown. Heath is the only member of Brionac who is never seen during the game, due to the fact that he's dead. All of the information known about him is shown during a conversation between Enil and Balgaine. According to them, Heath was a powerful warrior who had no love for anything, including himself. The only things he loved were the dolls he created, Fiore & Asia, which somehow brought life into them. His total apathy towards everything somehow caused him to turn invisible, which became his special ability, called Invisible Stalker. His invisibility eventually caused him to go insane, and he used the power to "spy" on the female staff members. Lambda then had him killed for this. His nickname was Invisible Stalker.

• Gawn Brawdia

Age 30. Gawn is the trump card of the group, in that he is only used if all else fails. Gawn is first seen looking for food when the group is wandering around in the Sea of Trees after escaping Wunderweltraum. He earns the group's trust when he rescues a citizen of the now-destroyed Ciel, and was trying to find food so he could heft him all the way to the nearby town of Guara Bobelo. Gawn then decides to travel with the group, as he is going in the same direction, looking for an old war comrade (Hauser Blackwell). He takes off after learning that the group is trying to keep Yulie away from Brionac, presumably to tell them of where they are. Although first portrayed as a laid back buffoon, Gawn reveals a much more serious side when he ambushes the group at the Forgotten City of Verklarung, Raquel's destroyed hometown. Despite the fact that he is a Brionac member, Gawn actually does care about the well-being of the party, and even questions Lambda's agenda. His battle skills are very impressive, as he wields two very powerful six-shooters with much finesse. In the boss batlle where you must fight him, the party cannot actually damage him, as he counterattacks when any party member tries to attack him. The only way the party can win is by depleting him of the ammo in his six-shooters, which he never replenishes during the battle; he has to attack the party 12 times, whether in a counteratttack or in a proper turn before the battle is over. He can even shoot down missiles and keep himself afloat in mid air with them, all at the same time. He uses this talent to save the party from 11 missiles fired at the party by Lambda during their flight to Illsveil Prison, and sacrifices himself by punching the last missile upon running out of ammo. Jude greatly looks up to him. His nickname is Twin Gunner, which could refer to his twin guns, or that he could be looked as a double agent.

The following people aren't official members of Brionac, but still operate with them.

• Belial

Age unknown. Although she is Scythe's constant companion, she is not an official member of the Brionac forces. Whenever Scythe depletes himself with the use of his ability, he turns to the willing Belial who always offers him a willing neck to feed upon. It is noticeable that Belial is blindly in love with Scythe. After Scythe's death, Belial goes absolutely nuts, and sucks the party into another dimension she created, named Wunderweltraum, with the intention of trapping them there forever. Arnaud then hatches a plan to escape. He believes that Belial would have had to use a great deal of her power to create the dimension, and should be weak enough to fight. His theory proves correct, and the party defeats her. However, she informs the party that they'll never escape the dimension in time because they are so far from the entrance. Naturally, the party gets back in time, only to encounter Belial again. They defeat her for good, and escape Wunderweltraum just in time.

• Fiore & Asia

Age unknown (a few years since they came to life). A pair of dolls who were brought to life by the love of their master; Heath, a former Brionac Lieutenant. Yet, despite the fact that Heath is no longer alive, Asia and Fiore continue to live. They, like Belial, are not members of Brionac. Since they were fueled by dreams, they are known as the "dreaming dolls." Both Fiore and Asia have a strong magic ability, and can unleash an extremely powerful attack when combined. They self destruct after the party defeats them in an effort to destroy them and rejoin Heath.

[edit] ARMs

"Ambient Reorganization Material", weapons made from nanomachines. There are four in the game.

• XERD_001HS "Howling Spike"

An experimental prototype ARM, in the possession of the Ciel shelter, but was given to the knights by Augst when he left Ciel. This Arm was passed on to Kresnik, who requires drugs in order to use it. the weapon looks like an assault rifle. Kresnik eventually passed it on to Jude, who naturally combined it with "Shapeshifter".

• XERD_002GC "Gunclaw"

Hauser's ARM, went missing with him after the war. Its original form is unknown, as it may have transformed into Hauser after he supposedly died.

• XERD_003SS "Shapeshifter"

Sealed away on Ciel, only to be activated by Jude. it take many forms, just as the name implies... a handgun, a sword, "Howling Spike", rocket launcher, and beam cannon to name a few...

• XERD_004DW "Divine Weapon"

Sealed away under Illsveil before it was completed;later reactivated by Hauser;seemingly assimilates the occupants of Illsveil Prison, turning them all into Wild ARM monsters. The original purpose of the Divine Weapon was to restore the world after the destruction of the war, but as it began to spread out in Illsveil, it killed the prisoners, and took their murderous minds. This is the most powerful ARM in the game, however the player never gets it, nor does any character in the game control it. Instead, the ARM controls the user.

[edit] Gameplay

• Action

Action elements on the field map such as double-jumps, using the new "Accelerator" ability to manipulate time, and equipping items to solve puzzles maintains the excitement between battles.

• Events

Movie events presented in a distinctive use of polygons and shading with voice-actors.

Dialog takes place using various character illustrations that change and repostion frequently like a digital comic book, making it easier to deeply understand the emotions of each character.

[edit] Combat

The HEX battle system is composed of seven hexagons on the battle field, with random beginning placement for all characters and enemies. What makes the HEX battle system so unique is that it's area based instead of character based. This means that any attacks or spells given to certain hexagon, or HEX, will effect all characters on that HEX. Multiple allies or enemies can occupy a single HEX, but enemies and allies can't occupy the same HEX.

Other features of the battle system include the following

• Special Attacks: Force Ability - Force Points (FP) accumulate during battle each time a character performs an action, wether it attacking or being attacked. There is one force gauge for the entire party, so once the gauge fills, any member of the party can execute a special Force Ability. There are also Force abilities which that are executed by 2 or more party members which take up a certain amount of Force Points depending on how many Party members are involved in the attack.

• Team Capabilities: By grouping more than one of your party members into a single HEX, you can use one item or spell on the HEX to heal all the party members together. Combination attacks are also possible when multiple party members are on the same HEX. However, should an enemy attack a specific HEX, all party members in that HEX will take damage. This also applies to enemies.

[edit] Music

Composer

• Masato Kouda
• Michiko Naruke
• Nobuyuki Shimizu

Artist

• Kaori Aso (voice, Japanese version)
• Franki Love (voice, English version)

[edit] Problems

In the American Version of this game, there were two monsters taken out of the game, but not out of the monsters list, therefore making it impossible to finish the game with 100% completion. If you cheat to get the complete list you'll find that they have voices that are never used in the game, almost as if the characters got cut out...

In the European version of this game, there are two different sections which will cause a glitch and the game to hang if they are viewed in the standard PAL mode. This can be countered by switching the game to NTSC mode, however only older TVs may be unable to play this and newer ones will be confined to black and white. Once past these individual "black spots" there are no further problems.

• First glitch: When you climb up the ladder at the end of the second area at Great Stairway. The next area won't load, the screen fades to black, the music keeps playing and it stays that way.
• Second glitch: After your first confrontation with Augst at the end of Garra De Leon, the game will freeze similar to the above glitch. However, no music will play, you'll just get a black screen.

[edit] External links

• IGN's Wild Arms 4 page
• Wild Arms the 4th Detonator OST (discs 2, 3, 4) at MusicBrainz
• XSEED's Official Wild Arms 4 site
• Wild Arms The 4th Detonator - Jude's Innocence

v • d • e Wild Arms series

Wild Arms/Alter Code: F • Wild Arms 2 • Wild Arms 3 • Wild Arms 4 • Wild Arms 5 Wild Arms XF • Wild Arms Mobile • Wild Arms anime