KINDREDZ'S PROFILE

Spill and spoil, please.

I think it's no secret that I'm a big fan of the series. I can still remember all those years ago when I saw that hideous boxart in the VG store but the guy at the counter told me to give it a try. I was hooked. Recruiting 108 characters, many of them playable...the in-depth and sometimes heartbreaking story, the power of the runes. It's great.

Suikoden 1 - While it's not the best in the series, it's the one that started it all so it will always hold a special place. The major Rune that causes the game's conflict is the Rune of Life and Death(aka Soul Eater.) I still remember beating the game and thinking Flik and Victor went down with the castle...only to be surprised at the both of them showing up in part 2. Favorite party: Tir, Cleo, Viktor, Eileen(a really good mage, surprisingly), Tengaar, and Luc.

Suikoden 2 - For many, this was the Sukoden game that sealed the deal. Everything good about part 1 was made better in part 2. Multiple rune slots, the in-depth story, the cooking sidequest where the brave announcer would take cheap shots at the judges...and the fact that all 108 characters had personality and depth, something that seems pretty impossible in most games after it(I'm talking about you, Chrono Cross.) The major rune that causes conflict in this game is the Rune of Beginning, split into 2 parts: The Bright Shield and the Black Sword. Favorite party: Riou, Tir, Luc, Mazus, Viktor(or Flik), and some other mage in the final spot. I did have some issues understanding Nanami's plight throughout the game but it made sense to me at the end. It was nice seeing characters returning and growing as people(mainly Apple, who didn't do anything but keep Mathiu's bed warm in the first game.)

Suikoden 3: My personal favorite in the series, more than likely for the characters and and Nadir's Theater. It felt good to the children of characters from the first 2 games, though some of them were WAY more useful than their parents(Emily aka the Boss Destroyer.) Seriously, I remember a dragon boss that I couldn't beat to save my life but someone told me to bring Emily along and she runs up, hits the boss 8 times in one round before he even has a chance to make one move...and he dies. Insane.

...and now we come to Nadir's Theater, which is probably one of the most brilliant minigames/sidequest type thing that I have ever seen in a video game. You could spend hours watching the different combinations of plays. It's a shame that towards the end of this game, Yushitake Murayama, the creator of the Suikoden series, left due to creative differences...which kind of showed, since the next few games in the series didn't feel as connected to previous ones, though he's recently revealed that a "certain company has made an offer to him" that he heavily implies to be Konami. I would LOVE to see him return for Suikoden 6 but it's his heart that has to deal with it.

That brings us to the next game in the series...Suikoden 5.

Suikoden 5 - While it was different than the others, it was quite enjoyable. I really liked this one. It was interesting to see a monarchy where women inherited the right of accension instead of the men. I really, REALLY liked Queen Arshtat and her characterization. She was a queen and ruled accordingly...but she was also a mother. She didn't rule by imitating the way that a man would rule...at the end of the day, she was still a woman and a mother who loved and doted on her children, despite her title. Suikoden 5 also had it's own version of a gamebreaking character, ala Emily and Juan from Suikoden 3: Zerase. Level her up and everything dies. It was also great to see Jeane playable for the first time, though I'm bored with the mystery surrounding her.

What do you like and remember about the Suikoden series?

That thing. That thing right there. If you see it running loose, kill it. The world will thank you.

Yeah, I'm remaking FM in VX but I'm gonna re-release the RM2k version beforehand. I redid Cici's battle sprite to match her new normal sprite. Is this decent?