After two months or so of silence, Sony has revealed a fair amount of information on their upcoming western-themed RPG, Wild Arms 3. A new character is foremost among the new details Sony has released; Janearth Cascade, both a friend and foe to Virginia Maxwell, the game's female protagonist, will figure prominently in the story. His appearance in the game heralds the end of the four introductory sequences, and although it is not known whether he will be a playable character at this point, his skills with a gun would make him a useful ally. Cascade is known to make jokes frequently and is full of self-confidence.

Also new in Wild Arms 3 will be the aptly named "ASK" system, or "Approach to Selected Keywords." This system will make conversations more dynamic, as players will be able to change the topic of discussion by pressing the square button when words highlighted in green appear in the text box. Speaking of text boxes, Wild Arms 3 will be the first title in the series to include character portraits in the text boxes, with several representations of each character available to show a variety of moods.

Sony has also posted more character stats on the game's website for each of the five known characters. Interestingly, each player has a very specific weapon, so it seems unlikely that it will be possible to equip different weapons. The statistics are as follows:

Virginia Maxwell

Height: 163 cm (5'4")

Weight: 49 kg (108 lbs)

Guns: Brick Rapier Ez, Buntline 93R (dual pistols)

Areas of strength: Speed, magic resistance

Clive Winslet

Height: 177 cm (5'10")

Weight: 69 kg (152 lbs)

Gun: Gungnir HAG35 (sniper rifle)

Areas of strength: HP, attack power, defense

Jet Enduro

Height: 166 cm (5'5")

Weight: 67 kg (148 lbs)

Gun: Airgetlam B/V2 (revolver)

Areas of strength: Speed, attack power

Gallows Caradine

Height: 192 cm (6'4")

Weight: 100 kg (220 lbs)

Gun: Coyote M17F (shotgun)

Areas of strength: HP, magic power

Janearth Cascade

Height: 183 cm (6'0")

Weight: 75 kg (165 lbs)

Gun: Sniper Jack XR

Wild Arms 3 will utilize the capabilities of the PlayStation2 to their fullest, with Sony promising a steady 60 FPS throughout the game. When anyone will be able to experience this, on the other hand, is an entirely different matter; the title is currently without an announced release date, either in Japan or North America.