Been a while since I last wrote a review so here's one.
Before entering the heart of the matter, I'll precise from the outset that Suikoden Tierkreis has no direct link with the five episodes that appeared on Playstation 1 and 2 from 1997 to 2006. Its story takes place in a parallel world, and none of the key figures in the series will make an appearance. In addition, the strategic phases that allowed us to face entire armies have been replaced by a succession of classic fights and duels are simply left out. Fortunately, there is still a freedom of movement, the castle and the 108 Stars of Destiny that characterize the series since its inception. In addition, the characters are once again very charismatic, narrations are illustrated by dubbed dialogues and many cut-scenes, the humor is omnipresent, and the DS graphics are beautiful.
The 2D backgrounds are beautiful, the world vast, and the party possibilities infinite. However, taking full advantage of the potential of Suikoden Tierkreis and exploit its riches will require patience. In fact, the beginning of the adventure is not easy to follow and the first missions punctuated by plain fights, are rather boring. Everything begins a few miles from a small village where the hero and his friends stumble upon a magical book that gives them mysterious powers and awakens memories unknown to them. They do not have the time to understand what is happening in the wake they discover the existence of an infinite number of parallel worlds similar to theirs and came face to face with one of its inhabitants. And as if that was not enough, our entire party finds itself embarked on a war against an imperialist state owning an unhealthy ideology. In short, it's a lot to digest at once and we did not really feel much control. However, after 4 or 5 hours, the objectives of the group becomes clearer once we finally have an operational base and the possibilities in terms of gameplay really start to get interesting.
It must be said that we can stay in the castle which serves as rallying point for no less than 108 characters (the famous Stars of Destiny) with useful skills not only in combat but sometimes also useful in the various diplomatic missions through different worlds, or simply in the management of the castle itself. And so, gaining a specific character will see the opening of a hostel where our characters can rest, while another will move with his forge to sell weapons. An engineer will operate an elevator while a chef prepares dishes with invigorating foods. But above all, we have access to a portal to other worlds as well as many optional quests with two vagabonds very zealous. Ultimately, this is a real town that will eventually grow before our eyes through the combined efforts of the community. Alas, as in previous episodes, it is not always easy to find, let alone recruit them. Some of them require completing specific quests, sometimes with specific characters. Others will want to be shown a rare item. Others expect a specific event occurs. So much so that recruiting the 107 heroes that can potentially join us is a tough task. What I do regret however is that travelling to the different parallel worlds is impossible.
All this is well and good but what about the phases of exploration and battles ensuing? Well to be honest, it is not nirvana. Indeed, the many different environments missions (main and optional) compel us to go are generally very large and the frequency of random battles is such that you can not take five steps before being caught by a horde of crabs or angry toads angry. In addition, the game system, using turn-based battles may seem monotonous to many even though it is possible to change the group's formation, enable collective furies or even switch to automatic mode if you are feeling lazy. The bestiary is varied, the 3D rendering is correct. But overall, outside of boss fights and some particularly epic battles, the random encounters is definitely not one of the best points of the game.
Fortunately, Konami has saved us these tedious trips, full of random encounters, thanks to the 2D world map from which you can reach different cities. Moreover, at some point you have the ability to visit the various buildings in the past by simply clicking on a menu. Of course there are many different things to buy, sell or equip on our group, and the exchange system inherited from the Playstation episodes is still valid. Practical to fill our pockets! Mind you, the money will not really be a problem if you take the time to complete the many optional quests available in the castle. Amusing detail, some of them can be completed with characters borrowed from another player via the WiFi connection.
In the end, despite the painstaking exploration phases, Tierkries has no shortage of arguments to attract the attention of fans of RPG on DS. The story is long, the recruitment of the 108 Stars of Destiny is exciting and the graphics are so treated that they alone are worth the trip. In fact, the only thing we really miss, is time to play!
Before entering the heart of the matter, I'll precise from the outset that Suikoden Tierkreis has no direct link with the five episodes that appeared on Playstation 1 and 2 from 1997 to 2006. Its story takes place in a parallel world, and none of the key figures in the series will make an appearance. In addition, the strategic phases that allowed us to face entire armies have been replaced by a succession of classic fights and duels are simply left out. Fortunately, there is still a freedom of movement, the castle and the 108 Stars of Destiny that characterize the series since its inception. In addition, the characters are once again very charismatic, narrations are illustrated by dubbed dialogues and many cut-scenes, the humor is omnipresent, and the DS graphics are beautiful.
The 2D backgrounds are beautiful, the world vast, and the party possibilities infinite. However, taking full advantage of the potential of Suikoden Tierkreis and exploit its riches will require patience. In fact, the beginning of the adventure is not easy to follow and the first missions punctuated by plain fights, are rather boring. Everything begins a few miles from a small village where the hero and his friends stumble upon a magical book that gives them mysterious powers and awakens memories unknown to them. They do not have the time to understand what is happening in the wake they discover the existence of an infinite number of parallel worlds similar to theirs and came face to face with one of its inhabitants. And as if that was not enough, our entire party finds itself embarked on a war against an imperialist state owning an unhealthy ideology. In short, it's a lot to digest at once and we did not really feel much control. However, after 4 or 5 hours, the objectives of the group becomes clearer once we finally have an operational base and the possibilities in terms of gameplay really start to get interesting.
It must be said that we can stay in the castle which serves as rallying point for no less than 108 characters (the famous Stars of Destiny) with useful skills not only in combat but sometimes also useful in the various diplomatic missions through different worlds, or simply in the management of the castle itself. And so, gaining a specific character will see the opening of a hostel where our characters can rest, while another will move with his forge to sell weapons. An engineer will operate an elevator while a chef prepares dishes with invigorating foods. But above all, we have access to a portal to other worlds as well as many optional quests with two vagabonds very zealous. Ultimately, this is a real town that will eventually grow before our eyes through the combined efforts of the community. Alas, as in previous episodes, it is not always easy to find, let alone recruit them. Some of them require completing specific quests, sometimes with specific characters. Others will want to be shown a rare item. Others expect a specific event occurs. So much so that recruiting the 107 heroes that can potentially join us is a tough task. What I do regret however is that travelling to the different parallel worlds is impossible.
All this is well and good but what about the phases of exploration and battles ensuing? Well to be honest, it is not nirvana. Indeed, the many different environments missions (main and optional) compel us to go are generally very large and the frequency of random battles is such that you can not take five steps before being caught by a horde of crabs or angry toads angry. In addition, the game system, using turn-based battles may seem monotonous to many even though it is possible to change the group's formation, enable collective furies or even switch to automatic mode if you are feeling lazy. The bestiary is varied, the 3D rendering is correct. But overall, outside of boss fights and some particularly epic battles, the random encounters is definitely not one of the best points of the game.
Fortunately, Konami has saved us these tedious trips, full of random encounters, thanks to the 2D world map from which you can reach different cities. Moreover, at some point you have the ability to visit the various buildings in the past by simply clicking on a menu. Of course there are many different things to buy, sell or equip on our group, and the exchange system inherited from the Playstation episodes is still valid. Practical to fill our pockets! Mind you, the money will not really be a problem if you take the time to complete the many optional quests available in the castle. Amusing detail, some of them can be completed with characters borrowed from another player via the WiFi connection.
In the end, despite the painstaking exploration phases, Tierkries has no shortage of arguments to attract the attention of fans of RPG on DS. The story is long, the recruitment of the 108 Stars of Destiny is exciting and the graphics are so treated that they alone are worth the trip. In fact, the only thing we really miss, is time to play!
