Suikoden

Review

by Joshua Romero

Prior to the release of Suikoden, Konami had been skeptical about releasing Japanese role-playing games in the United States (due to their lack of popularity). Taking a risky financial chance, Suikoden was ported over to the States, hoping it would find a following to justify its translation. Konami couldn't have picked a better title. Building upon an already strong background, Suikoden excels as an RPG in every respect. From the opening title screen, you are presented with strong layout that draws you into the majestic gaming world.

As the son of Teo McDohl, an elite general of the Imperial Guards, you realize the crooked ways of the force and join the Liberation Army. The latter is on a crusade against the evil powers of the Imperials and wish to stop their reign of corruption. Because the task at hand is massive, you will need to recruit a wide variety of warriors, thieves, mages and even inventors to help dethrone them.

Getting down to the gameplay, Suikoden offers a vaguely challenging quest, though it is possible to complete the entire game without dying. That said, it does seem to help the flow of the game -- it never seems frustratingly difficult to progress and journey on. As further fact of this, Suikoden's story and events are linear and to the point. There is only a few times throughout the game where you are given a choice as to how to approach something, but for the main part, you're lead down a prepared path. As you delve deeper and deeper into the game and visit town after town, you begin to realize that the storyline is no pushover -- it's very complex and well told.

If you're looking for a title that will captivate you with a well-orchestrated soundtrack, then you MUST try Suikoden. It offers some of the best music found in any game out there (circa 1996) -- period. The soundtrack is made up entirely of foreign-sounding melodies and some acoustic guitar strumming. Suikoden will not only satisfy gamers with its enticing gameplay, but with its rich aural experience.

Additionally, the controls are executed nicely. While this isn't one of the biggest factors in a role-playing game, they are done remarkably well and provide nice, responsive control. Menus are easily accessible and your characters move around smoothly. Searching and talking to various townsfolk is very easy to do and it feels comfortable.

The look of a game usually has no effect on the gameplay or storyline, especially in a role-playing game, but those looking for eye candy in Suikoden will be disappointed. It uses a traditional 2D-sprite based graphics engine and will fail to attract gamers looking for another Final Fantasy VII or Wild Arms. But with any role-playing game, consider this age-old expression, "Don't judge a book by its cover." Suikoden could work as the poster child of that statement.

Konami has always provided great games, such as the now classics Contra and Castlevania. It seems that they can develop great role-playing games, as well. If you're looking for a fantastic story with rich characters and lots of options, Suikoden will not disappoint.