| What Would Kevin Do? |
02-26-2006 02:05 AM |
Stolen from Gamefaqs
Quote:
blue moon/sar's impressions
From: himurokoken | Posted: 2/25/2006 11:40:53 AM | Message Detail
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I've been playing Suikoden 5 for about 20 hours, and I think I have a pretty good grasp of this game, enough to give an intial impression.
Well, I think I can safely say that Suikoden V is indeed Suikoden.
The plot is superb. It's not only the complexity that is superb, but I was surprised by the plot more than once. Thankfully I didn't spoil myself at all with advanced spoilers, which made the experience that much sweeter. I strongly recommend people to avoid spoiler info unless you have played the game.
What I like about the plot is that you are given a good explanation on things, and you get a clear reason of why you are doing what you are doing (unlike certain parts in Suikoden 4). The plot is also rife with strategy and politics, involving multiple nations, factions, groups, and characters; yet, the story manages to retain coherence. You're also given the opportunity to roam around to do extraneous stuff if you don't want to simply follow the plotline.
The characters are absolutely stellar. Suikoden 4 (for me) had characters with good design and feel, but were not utilized to their full potential. Suikoden V takes a few steps further and takes a lot of time to develop the characters rather deeply. This results in a pretty powerful feeling of emotional release when the characters are involved in certain events (of course, this might just be me). You'll also meet some returning characters, some of them have been quite unexpected. Again, I was very glad I didn't spoil myself because I was thinking in my head, "OMG, this is so cool!"
As for the game mechanics, I've heard a lot of comments about load time, and indeed it can get a bit tiresome. However, this is still a minor problem. Otherwise, the battles are done very well, and formations have a pretty important impact on how well you do. I've done a fair amount of fighting for the sake of it, but you'd need to use the right strategy for the party you have; otherwise, you'll have difficulty fighting normal battles. I'd say that the battles in Suikoden V is a bit difficult compared to previous installations.
The duel is very good. The simple time limit makes the duel pretty difficult. They also seem to have created different battle actions for your main character for each different duel; this makes each duel rather exciting.
The conventional war battle is really fun. I have no complains whatsoever about it. The fact that the enemy continues to move makes it somewhat challenging, but even if you are defeated, you can restart from the beginning of the same battle. Although there are some basic unit types, there are many other types of units as well (I've only seen a few).
The sea battles are also fun, and is a lot more strategic compared to Suikoden 4. Also, because you can actually make more money based on how well you do, there's actually a reason to reduce your own casualties (this is also true with conventional war battles).
Of course, in both war battles, there's plenty of dialogue and plot, much like Suikoden 2. Your strategists and generals will play important roles, and oh yes, it feels like suikoden.
As far as the controls go, one problem I have is that it is sometimes hard to talk to townsfolk. Even if I am pushing the correct button to speak with people, they sometimes don't respond. As a result, I have to press the button more than once (unforgivable! Razz). The perpetually "quarter-view" perspective also makes it hard to navigate yourself, especially in towns with tall buildings. However, all of these are still minor issues that don't really distract you from the excellence of the plot.
Personally, I am relieved that Suikoden V seems to be a solidly good game. It does have the "suikoden feel" folks.
And one last thing I want to repeat: Don't spoil yourself!
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