Completed Chapter 4 of Suikoden III
I have the sads.
My iphone spontaneously melted with the charge cable and I need to deal with that, but I am sadder of what happened in this damn game.
And it's one that only players of the previous two games would pick up on. When Suikoden II was announced, I wondered if it would have the courage to make McDohl a sacrifice, or even a villain. The narrative established that bearing a True Rune, especially one like Soul Eater, has significant negative consequences for the host in the long term. I could easily McDohl, centuries later, becoming corrupted, and has to be taken down. Of course SuikoII wound up being something different and superior.
SuikoV's plot likewise revolved around the inevitable corruptive force of a True Rune, but it involved a completely new cast. I had never seen the Falenas royal family before. The game takes place years before the original, and on a different continent, so I had little expectations of character continuity. I knew not to expect Flik, Vic, or any of the main protagonists, except maybe a cameo from Ted. Viki and Jeane were mild surprises. I didn't even recognize Georg Prime so I was very surprised later. I expected Leknaat, even if only for tablet dump, and I thought she might also hand over her apprentice, if he was already with her. When Leknaat showed up alone, I thought, awww, no Luc? Maybe he wasn't born yet. Or hasn't joined up with her yet. Can never tell how old a mage is. For all I know he could be as old as Ted.
SuikoIII has the balls to mess with my expectations of continuity and make an established ally an antagonist. It seems to be moving in the direction I thought a Suiko game might. Go far enough into the future, those heroes will eventually sour. I didn't think it would so soon into the future, and I didn't think it'd be Luc. And I missed the clues. And I am pissed at myself for not picking up on them. And I am upset that I am apparently not getting my cyclone mage (once I recruited Luc in I and II, he never left the party. EVER. He was the best playable mage in the games.) Sniff.
And it makes a lot of sense within the narrative. He's a powerful, who-knows-how-old mage, personally taught by the keeper of the Gate rune. He's associated with Harmonia. He's been involved with multiple True Rune related conflicts already. If someone is going to go collecting True Runes for unknown purposes ... he's a good candidate. I was also aware he would have a larger role compared to the previous games, yet he was still unaccounted for.
I missed the clues and they were so obvious. He's outfit was different enough (snazzy!) that I don't headsmack myself over it. But the big ones that I whiffed even though my thinking was meandering in the right direction -
1. Hrm. Without the stupid hat, Sasarai could be Luc's twin brother. (Are they twins?)
2. Tengu Mask's hair is similar to Sasarai. I think they're the same person! I learn otherwise shortly after, and then fail to connect with point 1. In my defense, I was expecting Luc to join my party, not obliterate my party with ...
3. A gate summons followed by a cyclone. And I look at my dead party, make a sad face, and think while I reload, "I liked using that move with Luc. He better show up soon I am getting tired of feeble magic."
He was there the whole time! o_O Luc, you have some 'splainin to do!
Other than that, some parts of Chap 4 were excellent - I really enjoyed how stressful those unwinnable battles were. Yuber leave my people alone! Pleeeeease go away! However, there is major gameplay/story segregation. I don't think Chris or Hugo have actually *met* Geddoe. From their perspective, he should be this scruffy random older guy who just showed up. Who the hell is he, and why is he a TF candidate? Do they know he has TL? Hugo and Geddoe are obviously off doing something while Chris is off on her own mission, but I don't get to learn what that is. I suppose this is intentional for replay value, but irritating for a game this long. The story gaps are noticeable.
Worse, there is a too-brief amount of time where I can put Chris, Hugo, Geddoe, and Jimba is the same party. This does not trigger any special dialogue. At BootyHek castle (I spell it like I pronounce it!), that party is split, and I can never reconstruct it. Jimba immediately runs off to his fate. Even when I have Chris talk to Geddoe in his room, he doesn't say anything useful. No mention of the Fire Bringer, no historical exposition, not even helpful insights that one True Rune bearer could offer to another. And certainly nothing about Jimba. (And why is Jimba a target of assassination but not Geddoe? This is silly. And how can his rune be sealed away, yet he still avoids aging?)
To me, that's faulty writing. Geddoe's chapters were really good. It was obvious that Geddoe knew a hell of a lot more than he was willing to share, and his comrades were cognizant of it. They called him on it. Now, in Chap 4, Geddoe should debrief Chris. He should sit down with her and spill everything that happened, especially what made the rune go mega-nuke. Maybe he will in Chapter 5, but it should have happened already. Perhaps he does if he is the Flame Champion, even if only as a flashback.
I've unlocked the Koroku POV. What's up with that?
My iphone spontaneously melted with the charge cable and I need to deal with that, but I am sadder of what happened in this damn game.
And it's one that only players of the previous two games would pick up on. When Suikoden II was announced, I wondered if it would have the courage to make McDohl a sacrifice, or even a villain. The narrative established that bearing a True Rune, especially one like Soul Eater, has significant negative consequences for the host in the long term. I could easily McDohl, centuries later, becoming corrupted, and has to be taken down. Of course SuikoII wound up being something different and superior.
SuikoV's plot likewise revolved around the inevitable corruptive force of a True Rune, but it involved a completely new cast. I had never seen the Falenas royal family before. The game takes place years before the original, and on a different continent, so I had little expectations of character continuity. I knew not to expect Flik, Vic, or any of the main protagonists, except maybe a cameo from Ted. Viki and Jeane were mild surprises. I didn't even recognize Georg Prime so I was very surprised later. I expected Leknaat, even if only for tablet dump, and I thought she might also hand over her apprentice, if he was already with her. When Leknaat showed up alone, I thought, awww, no Luc? Maybe he wasn't born yet. Or hasn't joined up with her yet. Can never tell how old a mage is. For all I know he could be as old as Ted.
SuikoIII has the balls to mess with my expectations of continuity and make an established ally an antagonist. It seems to be moving in the direction I thought a Suiko game might. Go far enough into the future, those heroes will eventually sour. I didn't think it would so soon into the future, and I didn't think it'd be Luc. And I missed the clues. And I am pissed at myself for not picking up on them. And I am upset that I am apparently not getting my cyclone mage (once I recruited Luc in I and II, he never left the party. EVER. He was the best playable mage in the games.) Sniff.
And it makes a lot of sense within the narrative. He's a powerful, who-knows-how-old mage, personally taught by the keeper of the Gate rune. He's associated with Harmonia. He's been involved with multiple True Rune related conflicts already. If someone is going to go collecting True Runes for unknown purposes ... he's a good candidate. I was also aware he would have a larger role compared to the previous games, yet he was still unaccounted for.
I missed the clues and they were so obvious. He's outfit was different enough (snazzy!) that I don't headsmack myself over it. But the big ones that I whiffed even though my thinking was meandering in the right direction -
1. Hrm. Without the stupid hat, Sasarai could be Luc's twin brother. (Are they twins?)
2. Tengu Mask's hair is similar to Sasarai. I think they're the same person! I learn otherwise shortly after, and then fail to connect with point 1. In my defense, I was expecting Luc to join my party, not obliterate my party with ...
3. A gate summons followed by a cyclone. And I look at my dead party, make a sad face, and think while I reload, "I liked using that move with Luc. He better show up soon I am getting tired of feeble magic."
He was there the whole time! o_O Luc, you have some 'splainin to do!
Other than that, some parts of Chap 4 were excellent - I really enjoyed how stressful those unwinnable battles were. Yuber leave my people alone! Pleeeeease go away! However, there is major gameplay/story segregation. I don't think Chris or Hugo have actually *met* Geddoe. From their perspective, he should be this scruffy random older guy who just showed up. Who the hell is he, and why is he a TF candidate? Do they know he has TL? Hugo and Geddoe are obviously off doing something while Chris is off on her own mission, but I don't get to learn what that is. I suppose this is intentional for replay value, but irritating for a game this long. The story gaps are noticeable.
Worse, there is a too-brief amount of time where I can put Chris, Hugo, Geddoe, and Jimba is the same party. This does not trigger any special dialogue. At BootyHek castle (I spell it like I pronounce it!), that party is split, and I can never reconstruct it. Jimba immediately runs off to his fate. Even when I have Chris talk to Geddoe in his room, he doesn't say anything useful. No mention of the Fire Bringer, no historical exposition, not even helpful insights that one True Rune bearer could offer to another. And certainly nothing about Jimba. (And why is Jimba a target of assassination but not Geddoe? This is silly. And how can his rune be sealed away, yet he still avoids aging?)
To me, that's faulty writing. Geddoe's chapters were really good. It was obvious that Geddoe knew a hell of a lot more than he was willing to share, and his comrades were cognizant of it. They called him on it. Now, in Chap 4, Geddoe should debrief Chris. He should sit down with her and spill everything that happened, especially what made the rune go mega-nuke. Maybe he will in Chapter 5, but it should have happened already. Perhaps he does if he is the Flame Champion, even if only as a flashback.
I've unlocked the Koroku POV. What's up with that?