Wild Arms 3 Part 73: Every EX File Key Part 2

Are you ready for story time, today, October 16, Trap Day? Setting traps and falling into traps is fun, but why do we think that way? Is it because it’s a game of wits? I remember that classic trap I set with a bucket of water and a mop for my teacher. I told her to outwit me if she dared, but she didn’t fall for it.

Previously on Wild Arms 3: We took care of a number of sidequests, but we still have a few to knock off the checklist. So without further ado…

The Treasure Quest

We encountered a talking treasure chest back at Fortune Gear. If you miss them that first time, Clive’s wife will have random dialogue about investigating all the boxes at Fortune Gear. Point is you can’t miss ‘em.

By the time you have completed Mimir’s Well, you may have found all the chests in the game. But, like me, you probably missed a couple. Happens to the best of us.

So what do you do if you are missing some chests and want to catch ‘em all? Well, you have Jet’s radar tool for identifying if a room still contains treasure. Also, you can use the Tracker (found as a reward for completing Millenium Puzzle #10) to confirm that you have entered every last room in a dungeon (ideal for discovering if you should be uncovering a cracked wall). Unfortunately, our dear talking chest does not offer any clues as to where in the game to look… so get ready to waste some time. In my own playthrough, the absolute last chest I missed was found randomly in Dragon’s Roost.

Don’t forget: all treasure chests can be found at all times once you have finished all the dungeons. There were a few caves that exploded, but they did not contain chests. Saves a little time…

Once you have found 319 treasure chests…

You have treasure and options.

The Threatening Box.

Fight time!

This is the final mimic. Technically, we have a “super boss” here, but you cannot tell me this fight isn’t intended as a reward unto itself.

The Black Box is appropriately named, as they are black…

And actively a “black” elemental creature that uses shadow magic and is weak to light.

The thing is, they only use dark magic.

So if you have a dark ward equipped, they will never do any damage with their magic.

And once you turn off their attack/magic boost with a casting of eraser…

You really have nothing to worry about.

With dark ward equipped, Black Box will only be able to (randomly) use their physical attack to do damage. And it barely even damaged Clive. He has the worst defense here!

And, of course, you can hit their weakness for mega damage.

Black Box ultimately goes down simply.

B.B. knows O.C.D.

So while you can kill Black Box pretty quickly, you may wish to dawdle. This is the results screen from hammering Black Box like a normal boss. As you can see, with those dark wards continually soaking up dark attacks, my team got at least 3.5 times experience for the battle, with Clive and Gallows (my main attackers) earning nearly 5 times experience. If I had just sat around defending for a round or ten, I could have achieved the coveted x 9.9 experience. And multiplying that by 102,000 EXP would shoot levels up through the roof.

So, yes, you earn an EX File Key here, but it is also one of the few occasions where there is an “extra” reward beyond the key. Appropriate, given how much effort you have to put into finding every treasure chest.

Sidequest Grade: A. A game-long quest with a clear win condition and an obvious checklist. And you get bonus prizes beyond the key! Would be an A+ if Black Box was a little more forthcoming with clues.

EX File Keys: 13/15

Adventure Time

Kaitlyn, Clive’s adorable daughter, would like you to find her some reading material.

Book roundup! Adventure 1 is already in Kaitlyn’s possession. You can start this quest officially the first time you visit Humphrey’s Peak.

Adventure 2 is hiding in a secret room in Fortune Gear (where our friend Black Box lives).

Adventure 3 is in a secret room in Infinitum.

Adventure 4 is hiding in Nidhogg Pass. You have to hit this dungeon a couple times if you are doing all the sidequests anyway, so you should find it on at least one trip.

Adventure 5 is a mandatory drop from a mandatory boss at the end of the World’s Footprint. You literally cannot miss this one.

Adventure 6 is in a hidden room in Fila del Fia. Given this one is behind a nondescript bombable wall in an otherwise innocuous area, my opinion is that this is the most easily missed book.

Adventure 7 is in a treasure room on the way to breaking in to the bad guy citadel on the Dim Root Path. Some people have reported having trouble accessing this dungeon later due to a glitch, so be sure to find it on your first trip.

Adventure 8 is in the supremely gross Demondor Pillar-Rear. If you are curious why there is such a gap between books, it is likely because there were a lot of volatile dungeons in between there. Either that, or the author needed time to recharge their creative batteries.

And Adventure 9 was Mimir’s stash. This is the only book that appears in an (marginally) optional area.

Adventure 10 is the most difficult to obtain: you must have a Migrant Level of at least 18, use a duplicator to unlock the “Adult Mag” back at the Leyline Observatory , and then beat the Adult Mag superboss(es). This was all showcased when we went book hunting.

Note that this makes this quest the only one that makes collecting Migrant Seals mandatory.

This is the only part of the quest that contains an optional fight, and thus may require some leveling.

And for a complete set…

Speak to Catherine after finding every other book, and she will hand over…

Adventure 11.

It is not enough to have a full library, you have to actually read those books.

Let’s go to town.

You can read these books at any time after they are obtained. I personally recommend waiting until you have the full set, as I despise waiting for the next episode to come out. Netflix this bitch.

You even have the option while reading to read continuously once you start.

And you can break and pick it up again at any time.

So here’s the story… uh… literally.

This is a roughly 20,000-word light novel. It is appropriate for children (good job parenting, Clive), and is the story of three kids and their whacky vampire pal. I considered copying the whole script into the Let’s Play (and said script would be directly from this Gamefaqs FAQ), but then I figured I would treat it like a typical LP event, and just give you a few reports and pictures.

Each of the chapters are mostly words, but with Wild Arms 3 music to suit the mood. To my knowledge, there is not any “unique” music played here. But, for example, a battle theme is a battle theme, and appropriate to play when our protagonists are in danger. The art that appears with these books is wholly unique, though, and I’ll make sure to get a pic of all of it as we move forward.

-Complete Side Story Summary Starts Here-

-This has nothing to do with the main plot-

Jack is our star and narrator. He is a schoolboy who loves airplanes. He is also a victim of protagonist syndrome: his parents are unaccounted for, and he lives with his kindly ol’ grandma. One day, he accidentally crashes his model airplane by the gates of a nearby castle (!), and is mauled to death by wolves. End of story. No moral.

But wait! He is saved by a “cute girl” (his words) with mysterious red eyes. Said girl reveals herself to be a Crimson Nobel, which is just what Filgaians call vampires (presumably in an effort to not be eaten by vampires). Despite being a bloodsucking creature of the night, she claims she would never eat someone so young, and also reveals she is something of a mechanic herself. She is cool with “playing airplanes” with Jack. Also: she’s Marivel Armitage.

We’ll address that later.

By Chapter 2, Jack and Marivel are hanging out and visiting each other frequently. Marivel is apparently trying to inflict knowledge on Jack, and sharing Crimson Nobel books on airplane maintenance with him. Marivel also has her own personal robots, Red & Blue, which she built herself. Also, if you are worried about mythology, Crimson Nobels need to consume blood, but they can drink tea and eat sweets to hang out with the cool kids.

Speaking of cool kids, Jack lives in the small town of Quartly, and apparently goes to some kind of “group school” with a mere 17 students. There is only one kid that is his age. She is Violetta Bubka, the daughter of the richest guy in town. By Jack’s admission, she “looks like a cute girl”, but is more of a menace (pictured here being menacing). And there’s a transfer student! Because that’s how light novels work! The transfer student is a boy that is their age and is distinctly noted as effeminate. Reese Farlain plays violin, and is rather shy. Jack and Reese have to share a textbook, so they become lifelong friends immediately. Reese was previously homeschooled, apparently, so he’s a little socially awkward.

Later, Jack tells Marivel about his new friend.

Violetta teases Reese until it is revealed that Reese is the son of famous pianist Kareen Farlain. Reese is evasive about his relationship with his mother, and Jack considers helping out his new friend, but he has a date with Marivel today, so he skips out. Later, Reese spies Jack buying sweets for Marivel. Later still, Jack crashes his airplane with Marivel, and has an emotional breakdown. He reveals to Marivel that his mother, who used to just work in Slayheim, bought him the airplane in the first place. His mother now apparently “left him” to live in Slayheim, so he has put a lot emotional weight on that little plane. While he is bawling his eyes out, Reese reveals he followed Jack to this fountain (to deliver some missing homework, natch). Jack has a double emotional breakdown, and runs off in embarrassment.

A week later, Reese has spent 168 hours attempting to apologize. Jack spent that week fixing his grandma’s radio with Marivel… and then Violetta came along at school and clumsily ran into Jack’s bag. The radio was fine, but she smashed up Jack’s plane but good. Jack and Violetta clash, with Jack calling Violetta a brat, and Violetta claiming the airplane was trash to begin with. They’re both right.

Presumably because Jack was having the worst week ever, Marivel invited Jack back to her secret lab. Said lab is filled with fierce monsters Marivel has been studying/dissecting, and… Jack immediately leans on the wrong button and releases some manner of beastie. Jack runs to stop the monster (with the help of Marivel’s powerful-but-dumb robots), and finds it menacing Reese and Violetta at the edge of town. But! Marivel mentioned that this monster likes music, so Jack quickly shouts for Reese to play his violin. Music tames the savage beast, and Marivel captures the monster without anyone (but Jack) seeing her. As a result of this shared trauma, Reese and Jack officially become best friends.

Reese and Jack start hanging out more, and Reese reveals he likes Violetta. Jack doesn’t get it. Now Marivel is hanging out with Reese as well as Jack, presumably because Reese can bake sweets all on his own. While they are chilling at Reese’s house for tea, Violetta swings by and whines that her prized ribbon was stolen. Violetta heard there was a stranger at Reese’s house, and assumes Marivel is the thief. Marivel reveals that she has her own super awesome better-than-yours ribbon, so why would she ever bother with Violetta’s trash ribbon? Violetta is shocked at what is apparently the Quartly version of the greatest diss ever delivered, and runs away in shame. The boys are embarrassed by both Marivel and Violetta being catty bitches.

Some time later, Reese and Jack are hanging at a train station because there is absolutely nothing to do. There, they see Marivel (bundled up because the sun literally would cause her to catch fire). Marivel explains that she is meeting a “pen pal” of sorts that she met over shortwave radio. The friend turns out to be Anastasia, a woman who is three years older than Jack, and very beautiful. Everyone greets Anastasia, and they decide to have a picnic together.

Anastasia reveals herself to be a Goku-level hungry girl. Violetta shows up, is upset at seeing Reese with this new woman, and runs off. After eating all the food in town, Anastasia notices Reese’s “fine fingers”, and correctly guesses he is a violinist. Anastasia plays, too, so they become violin buddies over shared callouses. Violetta then returns to goad Anastasia and Reese, but Reese is oblivious. Anastasia is a seasoned mean girl, though, so she puts Violetta in her place, and then whispers something to the younger girl. Violetta is left dumbfounded, and Anastasia heads home.

A season (?) later, it snows for the first time, and the boys have a date with Marivel to ride her bitchin’ snowplow. Violetta suggests they all play checkers together since it is a snow day, but Jack and Reese are way too excited about that snowplow to bother. When the boys reach the castle and start playing in the snow with their vampire pal, they find Violetta has tailed them. Since Marivel dresses a little more casual at home, Violetta finally notices that she is dealing with a Crimson Noble. Violetta implies she is going to tell everyone in town. Marivel, ever the coolheaded adult in these situations, decides to go full vampire mode and “I’m not touching you” menaces Violetta until she passes out. Marivel then ejects Violetta and sternly demands the boys go home and “never set foot here again”. Marivel shuts the front gate, and the boys are expelled.

Later, Jack has worked out a plan to send an apology letter to Marivel by flying his airplane with a letter over the castle walls. Also: they are going to attach some of Reese’s sweets to the craft. Nothing about this plan is going to work. Violetta was returned home somewhere in the prior chaos, but Marivel pulled off some kind of mind wipe thing, and the boys have been avoiding Violetta ever since. Anywho, Reese’s guardian/uncle reveals that there is so much snow, there is likely to be an avalanche in the mountains. Now the kids are concerned such an avalanche would crush Marivel. They ditch the plane plan and immediately run off to save their vampire friend.

… Who did not need saving at all, as she has a mechanical forcefield ready to go for any avalanches. She initially seems angry at Jack and Reese’s presence, but it is shown that she is only irritated because the boys put themselves at risk for her. Marivel accepts them back as her friends, as she claims she must now guide them herself, because they are “potato-heads”.

After a thaw, Marivel and Jack take a carriage to Slayheim, because Reese is going to be in a musical contest. Violetta is competing, too, and she is being a general jerk to everybody involved. And then, just when Reese is going to take the stage, his musical score is gone! Violetta is obviously the thief, and Marivel and Jack attempt to get the score back before Reese must perform. While they are searching, they bump into Anastasia. Anastasia has her own copy of the score, which would solve the problem if Reese wasn’t going on right now. But Jack hatches a plan! Reese takes the stage, and Marivel, Anastasia, and Jack fold the score into paper airplanes, which sail up to Reese. Reese doesn’t win, but he gives a good, memorable performance that involves a lot of unfolding thanks to his friends.

(Frankly, this whole bit is super adorable, and easily my favorite part of the story.)

But! Shortly thereafter, Violetta is kidnapped! And the boys feel extra bad about it, because apparently the kidnapper asked the kids for directions to Violetta’s house earlier, and they were happy to oblige. Not your fault, kiddos! Naturally, Reese and Jack approach Marivel for help. Marivel decides she will be the one to handoff the ransom to the thief, and, when she has the chance, summon her robots to beat him to death. But since the kids feel like that will make them “look like chickens”, they decide to go in Marivel’s place as the classic “two kids in a trench coat (dress)” gag. They also have a machete. Yada yada yada, Violetta is freed, but the boys freeze up on actually decapitating a dude. Marivel then reveals herself, summons Qubeley the Golem to trounce the kidnapper, and the day is saved. The thief escapes, but the whole town congratulates the trio for their bravery. Violetta acknowledges Marivel kinda sorta risked her life to save her, and Marivel officially invites Violetta to join the boys on their next castle visit. Everyone is friends now!

So, naturally, it is time for the drama bombs. Jack reveals to the audience (and probably Marivel) that his mom didn’t just go to Slayheim to work, but also because she met a new man and wanted to be with him. And mommy dearest has apparently been sending letters back, but Grandma was burning them. This was weighing heavily on Jack’s mind as he picked up Violetta to join Reese and see Marivel. But before they collected Reese, they were visited by a surprised guest: Reese’s mom! She seems nice, but when Reese returns home to find his friends talking to his mom, Mama announces she is taking Reese back to Slayheim. Reese reacts to this news poorly. Reese storms out, and Jack chases after him to chat. Reese reveals to Jack that he doesn’t like his mother, and is straight up jealous of the fact that Jack doesn’t have a mom. This causes Jack to pass out with anger. I did that in reaction to a Nintendo Direct once, so been there, buddy.

So Jack mentally acknowledges that he wanted to help his friend, but failed spectacularly. Whether it be a kidnapping or social anxiety, Marivel is the answer, so Jack heads to the castle. Violetta joins (as was the original plan before the day went to crap), and they relay the situation to Marivel. Marivel notes that the two boys are in conflict right now because they have such similar cruddy parental situations, and Violetta suggests the solution may be Marivel summoning her giant robot again. This proposal is stupid and unhelpful, but it instantly makes Violetta the most relatable character in this story. Marivel says they should all head back to town, enough time has passed that cooler heads should be able to talk this out…

But the drama bombs just keep on booming, as now that same thief as before has kidnapped Reese’s celebrity mom. This time, the ruffian decided to bring an ARM, and, when the whole gang tries to save Kareena, he attempts to shoot Reese. But Kareena nearly takes a bullet for her son! Reese and Jack then immediately work together perfectly, distract the bandit, and allow Marivel to cast some magic to save the day (while Violetta leads mom away). And this time they actually captured the guy!

Reese and Mama tearfully reunite, and Jack hangs with Marivel as everybody has Feelings.

Some time later, Jack comes home to find his grandmother crying. She was holding a letter, and, before she could burn it, Jack nabbed it and ran off to the castle. Once he had a moment to sit down, he opened the letter, and it was apparently a notification that his mother had died. In a grief fugue, he went into the lab of the castle and wrecked all his airplane plans, literally torching everything (though, to be clear, this is like a trashcan-sized fire). Marivel arrived right about then, and offered a consoling reminder that Jack has spent the last year kicking ass and taking names with musical paper airplanes and at least two thwarted kidnappings. Marivel also reveals that she always felt kindred with Jack, as… well… You didn’t see any Crimson Nobles Moms in this story, did you? So Jack gets over it, and resolves to resume airplane construction in the near future.

Later, Violetta invites Jack and Marivel to her sister’s birthday party. Everybody dresses up, they all have a nice time, and Reese and Violetta decide to entertain guests with a duet. Marivel teases Jack that he will find his own girlfriend in good time. He still doesn’t get it. At the end of the evening, Marivel and Jack happen to notice a new star in the sky…

Everyone is having fun being friends, and Marivel even lets her guard down and leaves her “daytime” protective disguise at Violetta’s for laundry. But the Crimson Noble seems concerned about this new star in the sky…

Bad news! That wasn’t a new star, but a meteor that is going to kill everybody at midnight. Marivel discovers this in the morning, so she runs into town during the day to warn everyone. This causes her vampire-skin to partially immolate, so, ya know, smell of burnt Crimson Noble is wafting around town. Now she must rely on her young friends to persuade the townies to evacuate Quartly and hang out at Chateau de Marivel (which has those avalanche-and-presumably-meteor-repelling forcefields) until the danger passes. Violetta proves to be the MVP here, as she convinces her daddy the danger is real, and he tells the locals that he is transporting his vast cash reserves to the castle, and everyone can keep whatever they can carry. Whatever it takes to preserve everybody breathing! They all get a little antsy at the castle, but Reese calms ‘em all down with his violin. Probably a fun night for everybody, considering they just lost their homes in fiery ruin.

But there is a cost. Marivel messed herself up but good going to town with the sun out, so she is going to need to recuperate in her coffin for a while. She summons Jack, and asks that he contact Anastasia, who is a daughter of a nobleman. She should be able to help rebuild the town. And then she makes Jack promise that he will not give up on his airplane dreams. Marivel says she wanted to do it together with him, but she is going to have to take a little nap now…

Seven years later, Jack returns to the castle to wake up Marivel.

Jack explains that his grandma married Reese’s uncle (didn’t see that coming), Reese and his mother have a successful album on the charts, and Violetta’s dad became mayor of Quartly after the incident. The town is back and rebuilt. Reese and Violetta are living together, but still bickering as much as ever…

And Marivel tells Jack that she was glad they became friends as they climb aboard Jack’s newly constructed flying machine to take off on a maiden voyage.

-Complete Side Story Summary Ends Here-

It sure was!

That’s my book report on Adventure Volumes 1-11. Go ahead and give it a read on your own time. It is surprisingly affecting.

So let’s talk about the loopy lore of this thing.

Fun fact: this whole story could be Wild Arms 2 canon.

The big, important backstory of Wild Arms 2 was that Anastasia, a daughter of a nobleman of no great renown, was just a normal girl until Lord Blazer invaded the world, and she was called upon to become the Sword Magess/Saint and beat back flaming death. Anastasia also had a friend, Marivel, who was an immortal Crimson Noble. Marivel survived into the “present” of Wild Arms 2, and, at that time, she was integral in saving the world not only as a combatant and (playable) member of your party (with golems and magic), but also the “gadget girl” of the gang that gets your flying machines going. Additionally, Quartly is a town that is close to Marivel’s castle, and Quartly is also near Slayheim, a once-great city that is ravaged by war by the time Wild Arms 2 gets going.

So that whole meteor bit at the end? And Marivel asking Jack to summon Anastasia for help? That could be the inciting incident of Wild Arms 2’s backstory. The “meteor” was Lord Blazer (or part of his opening salvo), and Anastasia being involved with the restoration of the Quartly area could be where she is called to becoming the Sword Magess. Additionally, it is confirmed that Marivel is the last remaining Crimson Noble by WA2’s present, as the rest of her clan died fighting Lord Blazer. It sure would make sense that Marivel only survived because she was already recuperating and unavailable when the rest of her people were storming into battle…

You can see how her WA3 “book art” is almost exactly her WA2 “official character art”.

There is nothing in Wild Arms materials that confirms nor denies this “origin story”.

But how does this all relate to Wild Arms 3? Well, this story could be simply that: a story. This could easily be one of those situations where the “real world” of WA2 is fiction in the world of WA3. Or, if you want to get crazy, you could claim that this is essentially a historical record of this world from waaaaay back in the past. Or, given we know the “neosapians” came from another world, it could be implying that this is the history of the previous planet of our characters’ ancestors.

And how does this make any sense? Are we to believe a children’s series contains the secret history of Filgaia? Well, Kaitlyn never really notes where she got her first volume, but we do know that the final chapter was found amongst Clive’s things. And every other book? If you scroll up and take a look, we only ever found Adventure books in ancient ruins, or a place where someone might have something from an ancient ruin (the lab). And considering Clive was an archeologist with Kaitlyn’s grandfather, it is possible the first and final volumes came from ancient ruins, too.

So, yeah, Kaitlyn totally got addicted to a book series from a millennium or two ago. She is just too young to have the context of knowing that she’s looking at (literal) ancient history.

Anyway, having read every last word of this thing…

EX File Key! And a trophy!

Going to have to get this kid checked out…

Sidequest Grade: A+. Some mad lad shoved an entire novel in this game. Finding ‘em isn’t all that complicated, and the reward is pleasant. Even if you don’t enjoy Wild Arms 2 fanfic, this is an entertaining approximation of a children’s story, and is conceivably the kind of thing you might read for fun on your own time. If you really do not feel like reading, hammer the X button. No complaints here.

EX File Keys: 14/15

Pickpocket the Final Boss

And the final EX File Key is always the same: you can use pickpocket on the final-final boss. This will 100% net an EX File Key. You just have to remember to do it. I will mention this again when we reach that final boss.

Sidequest Grade: P for Pass. Just kinda there as a thing to do.

EX File Keys: 15/15

Click for a larger view
Everything in red is the main path of the plot.
Everything in yellow is optional at its first availability, but eventually intersects at an outlined point to rejoin the main path.
And anything in green is wholly optional for the rest of forever.

So that’s it, all the EX File Keys. As an update to the diagram, here is a complete flowchart of how early you can complete which sidequests. As you can see, Lombardia and Mimir’s Well seem to be big choke points.

What EX Keys Do

And why did we bother? Well, skipping ahead to actually beating the game…

After the credits roll and everybody says their goodbyes (give me another six updates), you have the option of creating an EX File. The only reason you shouldn’t do this is if your PS2 Memory Card is already full.

The EX File is just another save file on the list.

You cannot boot to an actual “playable” game from an EX File, but the EX File is 100% based on your final save.

So what are our options there at the top? First choice is “Status”. This allows you to see your final game stats.

In order to view your stats, you need 1 EX File Key. Considering the last boss does not drop any experience, anything you would see here is 100% the same as your final save before the last fight.

There is pretty much no reason to unlock “Status”, but may as well give it a look for Let’s Play completeness.

Speaking of completeness, here are Virginia’s final stats on my “real” PS5 playthrough.

Here are her stats on my PS2 New Game Plus playthrough.

And here she is on the save file I have from 2002 or so when I first beat Wild Arms 3 (which should match the beginning of my New Game Plus playthrough/this Let’s Play, as that was the base file used).

Jet on PS5.

Jet on PS2 New Game+.

Jet on PS2 Original Save.

Clive on PS5.

Clive on PS2 New Game+.

Clive on PS2 Original Save.

Gallows on PS5.

Gallows on PS2 New Game+.

Gallows on PS2 Original Save.

For the record, my PS2 Original Medium setup was slightly different than my modern playthroughs.

I don’t even recognize you, Early 21st Century Goggle Bob.

I gave Jet Finest Arts? How dare you/me.

Here are the final stats for the Sandcraft…

And Lombardia. They don’t get comparisons.

Second choice on the EX File choices: Opening Movie.

You can watch all the opening movies at your leisure for 8 EX File Keys. This is the most expensive purchase available.

They are not labeled well/at all, but these are the four opening movies with either the English or Japanese singers. Note that the Japanese versions have different lyrics for each chapter, while the English version is always the same. There are not subtitles, though, so you would only realize this if you speak both languages.

Next option is Exit Movie.

Watch that same silly movie that plays every time you tell a save amigo you are done for the day for 4 EX File Keys.

The Japanese versions have different lyrics. I cannot tell if there is a difference, visual or otherwise, on the English ones. This was all much more impressive before the advent of Youtube.

And our final choice is New Game EX.

New Game+ is available for 2 EX File Keys.

Note that the only things preserved are your levels, cash, and if you have a Sheriff Star (you get exactly one for defeating Ragu/The Abyss). As such, it is in your best interest to sell literally all of your items before beating the game, so you have as much gella as possible on the next run through.

And if you want to see what a New Game EX looks like, please restart this Let’s Play from the beginning.

That’s the EX File keys, everybody! Since it is impossible to save after creating an EX File, you really only need a minimum of 8 EX File Keys to see everything. Spend your keys, see what you want to see, reset, and then load the file again to find your keys have returned. The maximum 15 EX File Keys will obviously allow you to unlock everything all at once… but you cannot even save that you have accomplished such! What’s the point!?

Note that you can play Wild Arms 3 more on any other save file except the EX File. If you find more keys, you must actively beat the game and create a new EX File to use your new keys. They will not simply automatically apply to a preexisting EX File. Though, if you are curious, after you beat the final boss once, you really shouldn’t have issues doing it again.

In the end, this all means that the EX File Keys are a “mix and match” sort of affair. You are not expected to find every last key. Do the quests that interest you, because you only need a little over half the keys to see “everything”. Considering some of these quests are real goose eggs, this is appreciated.

There ain’t no platinum trophy for Wild Arms 3.

So let’s talk about how you get the platinum trophy for Wild Arms 3. All trophies were added to the game two console generations after the initial release for the Playstation 4 rerelease.

Is the Platinum Trophy’s name, "Legend of Filgaia", a reference to Legend of Legaia?

Many of the trophies are basic rewards for clearing chapters, upgrading your ARMs, or disarming traps. Milestone trophies, if you will. If you play through to the end, you literally cannot miss many of these.

Wild Arms 3 Trophy Strategy: Trophies for things like “best luck” or fully upgrading an ARM do not care if you save your accomplishment. So you can blow all of your cash upgrading a single ARM, collect your trophy, and then keep the trophy as you reset from an earlier save to retain your millions.

Only 20% of the people playing Wild Arms 3 on PS4/PS5 got past the first chapter…

And less than 2% of people have completed the Abyss. How many people did it twice? I am a rare breed.

The only trophy I didn’t earn on this playthrough was “get everyone to Level 90”, because I was trying not to over-level on my PS5 file, and didn’t exploit every EXP boost in the game. I could have hunted more UFOs! Regardless, I am not going back to earn a platinum trophy, because I have better things to do with my life. Like write a Let’s Play that takes nearly two years!

Next time on Wild Arms: Enter the nightmare.