Suikoden IV

"Not as bad as everyone makes it out to be"

Most reviews on GameFAQS, well make that most videogame magazines/websites are misleading. I don't mean to hold the absolute truth but I'll at least try to make unbiased observations. I have been a long time Suikoden fan, started with the original almost as soon as it was out. Then Suikoden 2, which to me was one of the PS1's top 5 RPGs. I gotta admit I had a hard time liking Suikoden 3. It started out slow and stayed that way most of the game. I will mainly compare Suikoden 4 to the third one because of the platform and generation, but it's nice to see that Konami definitely went back to the first one for ideas.

I would like to begin with a big THANK YOU to Konami. They keep pumping out quality games and I don't think we take enough time to realize that we're fortunate we're even getting these games, when you consider all the other companies who don't want to take the time and money to translate their RPGs into English. Suikoden 4 was highly anticipated ever since it was announced. I think most people were looking for a true sequel after the generally disappointing Suiko 3 and I think Konami heard the masses.

Suikoden 4 is somewhat closely related to Suikoden 1, both in substance and style. There are a couple of tie-ins with the story of the original but it's mostly in gameplay that they are related. Sound effects, music and character design were directly influenced by those found in the first one, when not straight up lifted.

STORY: There have been many complaints about the short story and the lack of character development and I guess I have to agree with those. The story itself isn't bad, but you can tell they cut a lot of corners. Was it because they were pressed for time around the Konami offices, or did they want to give scarce details in order to build some sort of a mystery around the game? I hate giving away story elements within reviews, plus most of the other reviews already did that, so I'll just say the story seems half-baked. For what it is, it's not bad at all, but it could have been much more.

GRAPHICS: Definitely gorgeous graphics at hand here. This game looks much better than the third one. I love the sea turning from Caribbean in the south to frigid in the north. The islands and towns are inviting, much like those of FFX. I like how the characters look a lot like their portraits (Jeane, anyone?). Suikoden 3 had short, stubby characters that all looked fat. Characters in Suikoden 4 are thinner and balanced, much more natural looking. A lot of monsters are just palette-swaps of their weaker counterparts, unfortunately, and usually the monster designs aren't very awe-inspiring. The frame rate is very steady and doesn't fall down ever.

It's been said that Suikoden 4 uses the Silent Hill 4 engine and I couldn't be happier. This means a fully controllable 3D world, not simulated like Suikoden 3 (even FFX). The camera controls are great, except when in first person view. First-person would have been a great idea if we could customize the turn rate of the right analog sticks... right now they're just way too slow. So that's why I usually stick to 3rd person view. They were nice enough to add both views, so that's good. I also like how your character disappears when close to walls, instead of taking up the whole screen because of the camera. It's tons of little touches like that that make the game much more interesting and refreshing.

SOUND: As I said before, a lot of sound effects and soundtracks were taken directly from Suikoden 1, or arranged (like the battle music). I happen to like that, makes me feel very good every time a character joins my team. Unfortunately, on the whole, the music is kinda weak. The map music is forgettable, and most cutscenes don't even have background music. Suikoden 4 introduces voice acting to the series. This game isn't FULLY voiced, unlike Ys: Ark of Napishtim for example. Only cutscenes get the voice treatment, but not all of them, which feels kinda weird. You can't click through the cutscenes with voice, but you can skip the ones without. That's kinda annoying. I haven't started a New Game + but I hear you can skip all the cutscenes once you do, so that's good.

GAMEPLAY: This game features a couple of modes. First there's the actual walking around towns/dungeons. As I said before, you can control 1st or 3rd person, which is great. When you hold R1, your character moves about quite fast (but goofily, might I add) so this immediately breaks the slow pace of Suiko 3. Then there's the overworld map, which you navigate with your own boat. Boat control isn't half-bad, but it's kinda touchy when you want to land to a port. The third mode is the boat battle, which is like a dumbed down Battleship. This kind of battle is usually annoying, but at least it isn't too hard. There are a flurry of minigames in this game, most of which are pretty fun but require the player to really pay attention to the instructions.

CHALLENGE: This is a very easy game, if you level up appropriately. I must admit I died on a couple occasions when playing the boat minigame. True to the series, Suikoden 4 lets you restart right at the battle you died in when you do fail at winning... I don't feel this takes challenge out of the game, it takes enormous FRUSTRATION out of it. To me, challenge isn't defined by how far back you get taken after you die from a cheap battle. So, overall, an easy game that's worth being replayed with the New Game + option. Oh and it's true what everyone says about the encounter rate... it's quite high. Fortunately, you can run away from most enemies almost instantly and you're back on your boat in a matter of seconds.

There you have it, my honest review of this game. I sincerely hope they're considering a Suikoden 5, but we might have to wait until the Playstation 3 is out. I'm afraid by then the series might not be relevant anymore, especially with the direction it's taken with 3 and 4. Once again, I was disappointed with Suikoden 4, but not as much as with Suikoden 3... and to me that means a lot. Regardless, I can still enjoy Suikoden 4 for what it is, and I strongly suggest you do the same if you're into traditional, console-based RPGS. Thanks again for the American version, Konami.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 03/21/05