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Message: [QUOTE="tenkai star, post: 287074, member: 178"] [HEADING=2][COLOR=rgb(255, 255, 255)]Suikoden 3 (Post 4/5)[/COLOR][/HEADING] [HEADING=2][COLOR=rgb(255, 255, 255)][ATTACH type="full" size="640x480"]98386[/ATTACH][/COLOR][/HEADING] The controversial sequel to Suikoden 2. This is actually my favorite game in the series and one of my favorite games of all time. Gone are the beautiful sprites, which were replaced with middling 3D graphics even for it's time. Disappointing for many, but I absolutely love the graphics. The models are highly expressive and show a lot of emotion that wasn't possible in 2D. Many better looking games outside of FFX didn't have this much expressiveness in their character models and neither does the next game we will discuss. The story is at it's best in my opinion, as we will discuss below. A lot of risks were taken in this game. These changes have been hit or miss for many lovers of the franchise and it will be up to you whether they are good or not. [COLOR=rgb(97, 189, 109)][B]+++ War Battles: [/B]These are my favorite war battles in the series. Characters actually use the stats, equipment, and runes that they have in normal battles. Battles between squads take place in the normal battle setting, but you don't give commands directly to individual units, as it plays out automatically. Careful considerations need to be made in battle preps to make balanced squads of offense and defense to prevent deaths. The end of the game will require some grinding to get everyone up to speed which will certainly be a negative for some. I always find it a lot of fun to prepare my army for the final battles. These war battles feel like an actual war. [B]+++ Story: [/B]This game has the unique mechanic of the trinity system. This game has 3 protagonists (+1)(+1 extra) that you switch between every chapter. Each has their own party of characters. Thanks to this system, Suikoden 3 has the most important plot central characters in the series. There is a LOT going on in these parties. For any KOTOR 2 lovers out there, this game has similar story beats. The "antagonist" believes the forces that power the universe are actually chains that bind us to destiny and inevitable destruction, and seeks to free humanity from these chains. That's on top of the war between 2 nations, while exploring diplomacy, miscommunication, and survival. All 3 protags (+1) are full speaking characters for the first and only time and experience substantial growth. I will never, ever get sick of this experience. [B]+ Music: [/B]This game moved away from some of the standard tracks of previous games, but has it's own amazing soundtrack. I don't think it's as good as before, but still top tier in the JRPG space.[/COLOR] [COLOR=rgb(44, 130, 201)][B]= Graphics: [/B]Not much more to say after my general impressions. It's not the sexiest looking game by any measure, but makes up for it with heart and charm. If the look really turns you off, I totally understand. [B]= Gameplay: [/B]This game shackles 2 units together under 1 command, giving you kind of 3 units. Both units share runes under 1 command, and you can only pick one at a time. A good idea is to have one character throw off their most powerful spells, and once that runs out, put the water rune on the other character and transition that pair to a healing role as needed. I've gotten used to this over many many playthroughs, but many hate this change to the battle system. A cool but niche mechanic to Suikoden 3 is there are a few pairs of units that combine into one super unit (Hugo riding a griffith and Futch riding a dragon). That shit is sick. There's also movement during combat rounds that is actually governed by a stat. This slows down battles and can be a nuisance if playing without emulation turbo. YMMV with all of this. Other than that, same ol same ol suikoden. It does the job. [/COLOR] [COLOR=rgb(184, 49, 47)][B]-- Time Wasting: [/B]Have that turbo button locked and loaded because there's a lot of lost time here. The battles are slow as mentioned earlier, and the game has you backtracking between uninteresting looking zones over and over again. This is the first time I'd really recommend using a recruitment guide to cut down on time spent running through these zones trying to recruit characters. [/COLOR] [HEADING=2][/HEADING] [/QUOTE]

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