Suikoden

Konami - Tested on the PlayStation by Kyle Swiston in 2000, reworked in 2019.

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Character Development and Plot

In my opinion this has always been the series' strongest point. This is the a classic tale of War, Deceit, and Tragedy. You never know when your closest friend will betray you, or when a valued party member will perish in battle. Even with over 100 characters, Konami manages to breath life into each and every one. Be warned though, this is a very sad story and if your the emotional type who gets personally attached to your characters, you're bound to be heart broken along the way.

Graphics

Since the title is approaching it's fifth year, there naturally isn't anything that is going to impress you in this column. Sporting aged two dimensional sprites and frilless spell effects, this game almost looks like a late SNES title. Thankfully this is not the titles main appeal. In fact it may be it's weakest point

Sound

The music is actually not that bad. Like the sequel, many tracks have a Celtic overtone to them. I wouldn't say that it sports the best soundtrack in history, but at least you can play this title with the volume up. The sound effect, like the graphics, on the other hand are only slightly above mediocre and are nothing special.

Controls and gameplay

I have no real complaints in this department. The magic system is nicely done, and it's a welcome change to have a 6 person party rather than the standard 3. Being a role playing game, the controls are as responsive as they have to be. Still, it would have been nice to move on a diagonal when traveling the world map. For the most part this title sticks to the old school tried and true formula of gameplay.

Innovation

There are a few extra features to check out here. First off, with 108 playable characters, this game sports one of the largest casts in rpg history. You also will get a castle which will grow as you recruit more characters. If you recruit a item store owner for example, you will gain an item store in your home base. The large full army battles are played in the form of a paper, scissors, rock type mini game.

Extras and replay

It's pretty hard to get all 108 characters the first time around (without a walkthrough at least), so most players will want to play through at least twice. Also, there are a least two endings based on if you get all 108 characters or not. More accurately, if all 108 characters make it out alive or not. This is a lot harder a challenge than it sounds.

2019 thoughts