So last Monday afternoon I went shopping to spend a gift card that had been untouched since Christmas, and seeing as I’ve been covering Suikoden Tierkreis for some time, when I saw it for sale; I went ahead and got it. A week or two later with me being a good ways in (and 44-45 out of 108 Stars of Destiny found thus far), I have to say I am very impressed by the story.
Just so you know, there will be spoilers for the game in here–so click away now if you don’t want to be spoiled.
Still with me? Let’s break down the game:
Story: Excellent
If anything, I could argue that the game’s biggest strength is its story. Basically, our hero (I named him Leon) and his friends find a book inside some ruins that magically appeared out of nowhere, and when he and some of his friends touch the book, they receive visions of heroes fighting against a dark force. This sets into motion a meeting of an alternate form of one of the hero’s friends from another world, which leads to the possibility that the hero himself is from another world. (which I have yet to find out) Furthermore, our heroes are drawn into a plot involving the Order of the One True Way (TM), an almost cult-like religion that claims everything is predetermined, and there’s nothing people can do to change fate. In addition, the Order is after the book the hero found (and as the story goes on, more like them) As the heroes’ battle against the Order goes on, the world’s other lands and more characters from other worlds get involved in the race to stop the Order (and the dark presence behind them) from turning the world into fatalistic zombies. There’s excitement, intriguing characters, betrayal, tension, friendships and alliances made and lost. I don’t think my brief summary above does it any justice.
If you’re looking for the kind of story that will really draw you in and keep you playing for hours (if not days) just to see what happens next, this game is for you.
Graphics: Good
Here we have a curious factor: The 2D pictures of the characters and many anime cutscenes are very well done, but at the same time, the 3-D environments and 3-D models of the characters look somewhat blocky (a problem I also encountered in Final Fantasy 3 DS)–but I guess this is due to the DS being less powerful than its console big brothers. 3-D blockiness aside, the graphics are still nice to look at, and are the closest thing to a big console you can get on a handheld.
Sound/Music: Excellent
One pleasent surprise for me was the game’s significant amount of voice–even the hero speaks. (but parts the player can name are muted out, such as your alliance just being referred to as “the Company”) That said, there wasn’t a voice I didn’t like among the hundreds of important characters. The music is just as great, although the battle track tends to get annoying after a while
Gameplay: Excellent
Most control is done with the buttons, but the stylus can stand in for the A button if you so desire. The battle system is your standard issue turn based battle, but the sheer number of characters availiable to you to use and customize–108–often makes or breaks your battle. Recruiting all 108 is no easy task either, with some characters a real challenge to obtain. In short, an easy to learn battle and customization system combined with an immense number of playable characters makes for a very enjoyable experience.
Overall, an epic storyline filled to the brim with excitement, characterization aplenty, and intrigue makes this a must buy for the DS owner.
Final Word: Excellent
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