Suikoden III is really, really good
So far, it is superior to Suikoden V in nearly every gameplay aspect. It is much faster paced. Stuff happens within the first couple of hours. The graphics, especially the spell animations, look so much flashier. The music is better, the loading time significantly faster, and the random encounter rate is bearable. In comparison, Suikoden V looks and feels like it belongs on the PS1, or first-gen PS2. I do miss V's larger entourage, strategic formations, and war battles. I also prefer controlling all six party members instead of the paired system. The pairing is faster, but it makes using runes problematic. I am enjoying III's story better than V, although I think V has better characters.
And I nearly let this one slip me by. I abandoned it nearly a DECADE (!!!???) ago after being less than impressed with Hugo's opening chapter. It couldn't hold a Flaming Arrow to Suikoden II. Hugo's initial circumstances had no sense of urgency, his plot was meandering, and his party was filled with "joke" characters, including a younger kid, a gryphon, and a duck dressed and named like a soldier. The kid was a boy named Lulu, a silly name to begin with, and a Lulu already occupies my gamingverse.
This time, I started the game with Lady Chris Lightfellow. That was an excellent choice. Chris is more interesting as a protagonist - she is already a well-respected hero within her community, yet she is uncomfortable with the status. She doesn't feel her actions are heroic. Her short, focused story very quickly brushes up against Hugo's, giving Hugo's chapter the emotional weight it lacked on its own. Concluding Chris's first chapter made me interested in Hugo, which led me to playing his first two chapters back to back.
The end of Hugo Chapter 2 segued naturally into Thomas Chapter 1. Thomas's chapter felt like a speed bump. It took me a long time gathering enough recruits to move the story along. Thomas himself is bland, and at first I eyerolled at Cecile, but by the time did the equivalent, I winced. Aww, poor Cecile. She is so earnest, she tries so hard, but at the end of the day she is a child in half-armor and wrinkly knee socks. The residents of BootyHeck (that's how I pronounced it) are all pleasant people but don't amount to much. They are content to remain in their crumbling, remote manor that is a huge pain in the booty to travel to. (VIKI WHERE ARE YOU?!)
After Thomas 1, I completed Chris 2 and 3, who continued to be more substantial than Hugo. She is aware that something is afoot, where Hugo is oddly oblivious. She also has better teammates. I am amused at how her knights are all crushing on her and she doesn't care. Borus, you stay in the Friend Zone! But that is a good thing - they are her brothers in arms and genuinely her friends. When Phoenix Wright, errr Percival, takes her to Iskay for some R&R, it makes narrative sense. It didn't feel like a disconnected detour, unlike Hugo's wanderings. Nash is awesome and I want to smack him. The Alma Kinan sequence *hurt*. I was just as horrified by the human sacrifice as she was. I was also just as surprised by the revelation that her father was the True Water bearer.
This whole time I had been ignoring Geddoe, who had not made a cameo in any of the other chapters. I played all three Geddoe chapters in a row, and I am glad I did. At this point I was sick of the backtracking and I appreciated how Geddoe most of his time in different locations (VIKI WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?!). His story was quite good, and I think putting it off was wise since it spoils so much else. I suspected early on he had True Lightning, and was the Flame Champ's companion. I was NOT suspecting that his other companion was Jimba, who must be Chris's father. I can't figure how that is supposed to work - Chris knew her father, she remembers what he looked like. She met Jimba, how could she not recognize him? And what the hell have the three True Rune bearers been doing over the past 50 years? Chillin? It seems like only Geddoe has been taking advantage of immortality by traveling.
The Karayans in general have been awkward. Neither Hugo nor Aila express motivation to locate their family after the burning, and don't react strongly enough when they do. Especially Aila - she is terribly written. She looks about the same age as Hugo, definitely older than poor Lulu, but she comes across as incredibly under developed. After all she's witnessed, the most insightful thing she can say is "I want soda?" Really? Good thing she is a great combat character.
Something's up with the Harmonians. It seems like there are two agendas - the general Harmonian desire to opportunistically invade (and remove the Flame Champ threat, if applicable), and whatever the hell Tengu Mask is up to. I'm assuming Tengu Mask is the Big Bad of this game. He, his Teleporter Girl, and the Sharp-Dressed Men squash the hell out of my party every single encounter. I don't have a chance to do anything. It's getting ridiculous. I'm going to have to beef up my characters' magic resistance.
So far, only a few returns from previous Suiko games. No one I recognize from the first Suiko exclusively. Jeane is back as vendor and support only (awww man). Flik and Vic are nowhere to be found, although there is this ugly punk kid who dares to call himself Edge, and he has Vic's sword. With no explanation. What the hell? With the way this game is going, I don't think I'll ever find out. Viki has to show up at some point, I am sick of crossing those plains! I assume Leknaat will appear any moment now, and chuck Luc into my party. Or maybe he'll drop in to punk Sasarai - who looks really really young for someone who should be at least 30. What rune is Sasarai packing?
Right now I am at Chapter 4, and I chose Chris to be the new True Fire Rune bearer. I feel lukewarm about my decision. Frankly I don't think any of them should take this rune. Hugo is the typical JRPG teenage protagonist; I am probably supposed to pick him. However he is too immature and reckless, and TFR is known to be finnicky. Geddoe already has TFL, and seems strangely bummed by it. There is no story reason to give Geddoe TF. (If I did choose Geddoe, does that mean doubling down on True Runes? Save scum and find out!!!) Chris doesn't particularly want it, but she understands the double-edged blade of responsibility, and wants to do right. She could use the rune to save the Grasslands as a whole, including Zexen, which probably doesn't count in Hugo's mind. She's level-headed and composed, which I suspect this rune needs. Plus, Yun foretold of Chris Lightfellow's coming, not Hugo's.(And how often does a female character in an ensemble get to be the lead hero???) But this is Suikoden, and those with True Runes have a tendency towards tragedy and bad ends. I feel like I am condemning whoever I select!
In terms of gameplay and character min-maxing, I suspect that by selecting Chris, I've gimped her as a PC. She now has two permanent runes, and fire turns out to be not her forte. She's weaker in magic than the other two candidates. She is probably more useful with a passive physical attack rune in her right hand instead, such as fury or double-strike.
Back to playing!
And I nearly let this one slip me by. I abandoned it nearly a DECADE (!!!???) ago after being less than impressed with Hugo's opening chapter. It couldn't hold a Flaming Arrow to Suikoden II. Hugo's initial circumstances had no sense of urgency, his plot was meandering, and his party was filled with "joke" characters, including a younger kid, a gryphon, and a duck dressed and named like a soldier. The kid was a boy named Lulu, a silly name to begin with, and a Lulu already occupies my gamingverse.
This time, I started the game with Lady Chris Lightfellow. That was an excellent choice. Chris is more interesting as a protagonist - she is already a well-respected hero within her community, yet she is uncomfortable with the status. She doesn't feel her actions are heroic. Her short, focused story very quickly brushes up against Hugo's, giving Hugo's chapter the emotional weight it lacked on its own. Concluding Chris's first chapter made me interested in Hugo, which led me to playing his first two chapters back to back.
The end of Hugo Chapter 2 segued naturally into Thomas Chapter 1. Thomas's chapter felt like a speed bump. It took me a long time gathering enough recruits to move the story along. Thomas himself is bland, and at first I eyerolled at Cecile, but by the time did the equivalent, I winced. Aww, poor Cecile. She is so earnest, she tries so hard, but at the end of the day she is a child in half-armor and wrinkly knee socks. The residents of BootyHeck (that's how I pronounced it) are all pleasant people but don't amount to much. They are content to remain in their crumbling, remote manor that is a huge pain in the booty to travel to. (VIKI WHERE ARE YOU?!)
After Thomas 1, I completed Chris 2 and 3, who continued to be more substantial than Hugo. She is aware that something is afoot, where Hugo is oddly oblivious. She also has better teammates. I am amused at how her knights are all crushing on her and she doesn't care. Borus, you stay in the Friend Zone! But that is a good thing - they are her brothers in arms and genuinely her friends. When Phoenix Wright, errr Percival, takes her to Iskay for some R&R, it makes narrative sense. It didn't feel like a disconnected detour, unlike Hugo's wanderings. Nash is awesome and I want to smack him. The Alma Kinan sequence *hurt*. I was just as horrified by the human sacrifice as she was. I was also just as surprised by the revelation that her father was the True Water bearer.
This whole time I had been ignoring Geddoe, who had not made a cameo in any of the other chapters. I played all three Geddoe chapters in a row, and I am glad I did. At this point I was sick of the backtracking and I appreciated how Geddoe most of his time in different locations (VIKI WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?!). His story was quite good, and I think putting it off was wise since it spoils so much else. I suspected early on he had True Lightning, and was the Flame Champ's companion. I was NOT suspecting that his other companion was Jimba, who must be Chris's father. I can't figure how that is supposed to work - Chris knew her father, she remembers what he looked like. She met Jimba, how could she not recognize him? And what the hell have the three True Rune bearers been doing over the past 50 years? Chillin? It seems like only Geddoe has been taking advantage of immortality by traveling.
The Karayans in general have been awkward. Neither Hugo nor Aila express motivation to locate their family after the burning, and don't react strongly enough when they do. Especially Aila - she is terribly written. She looks about the same age as Hugo, definitely older than poor Lulu, but she comes across as incredibly under developed. After all she's witnessed, the most insightful thing she can say is "I want soda?" Really? Good thing she is a great combat character.
Something's up with the Harmonians. It seems like there are two agendas - the general Harmonian desire to opportunistically invade (and remove the Flame Champ threat, if applicable), and whatever the hell Tengu Mask is up to. I'm assuming Tengu Mask is the Big Bad of this game. He, his Teleporter Girl, and the Sharp-Dressed Men squash the hell out of my party every single encounter. I don't have a chance to do anything. It's getting ridiculous. I'm going to have to beef up my characters' magic resistance.
So far, only a few returns from previous Suiko games. No one I recognize from the first Suiko exclusively. Jeane is back as vendor and support only (awww man). Flik and Vic are nowhere to be found, although there is this ugly punk kid who dares to call himself Edge, and he has Vic's sword. With no explanation. What the hell? With the way this game is going, I don't think I'll ever find out. Viki has to show up at some point, I am sick of crossing those plains! I assume Leknaat will appear any moment now, and chuck Luc into my party. Or maybe he'll drop in to punk Sasarai - who looks really really young for someone who should be at least 30. What rune is Sasarai packing?
Right now I am at Chapter 4, and I chose Chris to be the new True Fire Rune bearer. I feel lukewarm about my decision. Frankly I don't think any of them should take this rune. Hugo is the typical JRPG teenage protagonist; I am probably supposed to pick him. However he is too immature and reckless, and TFR is known to be finnicky. Geddoe already has TFL, and seems strangely bummed by it. There is no story reason to give Geddoe TF. (If I did choose Geddoe, does that mean doubling down on True Runes? Save scum and find out!!!) Chris doesn't particularly want it, but she understands the double-edged blade of responsibility, and wants to do right. She could use the rune to save the Grasslands as a whole, including Zexen, which probably doesn't count in Hugo's mind. She's level-headed and composed, which I suspect this rune needs. Plus, Yun foretold of Chris Lightfellow's coming, not Hugo's.(And how often does a female character in an ensemble get to be the lead hero???) But this is Suikoden, and those with True Runes have a tendency towards tragedy and bad ends. I feel like I am condemning whoever I select!
In terms of gameplay and character min-maxing, I suspect that by selecting Chris, I've gimped her as a PC. She now has two permanent runes, and fire turns out to be not her forte. She's weaker in magic than the other two candidates. She is probably more useful with a passive physical attack rune in her right hand instead, such as fury or double-strike.
Back to playing!