Finished a while ago…but just now sit down to write down my thoughts which didnt’t change as much xD;;

Hmm where do I even start… I really really wanted to love this game. Given how it was funded and who worked behind it and if you didn’t know by now (by some wild chance) I am huge and I mean huge Suikoden fan. Everything I did write in my first 30 hours of gameplay remained for better or worse :D;;;

I’ll focus on the good things though!
At the end of the game? I felt fulfulled and happy and the final song made me feel teary though I think it was more of the fact Yoshitaka Murayama passed away before he could see the game came out and the fact this game was funded by all of us fans who believed in his vision. I take this was his swan song and the music combined with everyone helping the heroes make it out of the crumbling castle (of course!) even though it was something we’ve seen in previous Suikodens, it just plucked all my heart strings.

Favorite character has to be Markus and I’m so happy we’re getting DLC about him cause that was easily the best part! I love our undead king and his special dialogue was absolutely precious and just made me gush for good long hour over the fact we finally have a friendly undead lich king in a jRPG!! Francesca is close second favorite. Come on she was hilarious with all her sudden ourbursts plus she is a healer who can go berserk after turn 5? 4? XD She never left my main party. And third place goes for Falward ! Grumpy doctor who just gets frustrated at us getting beaten up XD Not only he looked so dang cute but also grumpy! (apparently he is like 14!? …how did he become a doctor at 14 and was already on the battlefield…which scarred him? I’m a little baffled at that age lol
Okay speaking of Falward I have to bring up Pohl whom just made me clasp hands like – “You are doing great, baby!” whenever I saw him on the screen! The reason why I bring him up is (not only because I absolutely adore Pohl both due to his character and because of the Suiko2 reference) they share same VA!! That’s so amazing! Voice actors are too powerful.

Speaking of VA all the VA were truly really, really good! I really enjoyed everyone! I think everyone did such stellar job. It was a joy to listen to everyone and their little custom/scenario specific lines. And don’t get me started on the theater plays that – wait, wait, wait… I should’ve brought up Ymir as another favorite! Okay, the game did have a lot of favorites xD; He is hilarious as storyteller and his grumpy exterior and sarcasm gave me strong Emet-Selch vibes. I wonder if he was an inspiration? Like, seriously… I almost felt like uncle Emet there is gaining white hairs by the second by my sheer presence in his life lol

Well… With all the good things pointed out, like truly I enjoyed some characters and some others…not so much. Those that didn’t vibe with me, I just didn’t use and sticked to my faves 😀 I had no issues with the final boss and the final duels whough I did get sweaty on some. The duels were truly an eyecandy and just the peak of the gameplay I think. Beyond that… same as what I stated earlier. I wish the game was more serious and the stakes felt higher. It was a feels good game but very light and it was running rather poorly on the switch. I heard they’ve patched it a lot since I’ve finished it but I haven’t really tested it yet.

I played while the game was deemed unplayable and still had a ton of fun. 😀
Do I recommend it? Only after severe updates on the switch otherwise – pick it for PC
I still think Suikoden 1+2 together are vastly more superior but we’re yet to see those remasters. I heard they are still worked on and if it’s same director was Suikoden 5 then they are in the best possible hands!

I look forward to Eiyuden’s DLC and what will be next in the frenchise. At the end of the day it’s just having more cake and we love cake! I want to see the franchise pick up and grow!

It finally came out!! After four years of waiting!! :’D

As backer I got it some days before the early access which was great cause I had one hell of a week and this game helped me endure. Not gonna lie, the intro and the title music made me tear up big time. ;u; Especially considering this was Yoshitaka Murayama’s final work, rest in peace my hero…

It is no secret for anyone that Suikoden 2 is my favorite game ever and no one and nothing has ever topped that off for me over the years. Chrono Trigger is close by however! So no naturally hearing that so many years later the original team will be doing Eiyuden just made me slam my backer money instantly! But yes… four long years later it’s finally here! Show how is it?

It is a bit early to write review given how I’m still early or mid way through? I did play about 30 hours but I’m also slow and I enjoy poking every corner if I can. I’ve played enough suikodens to know if I don’t then I will miss someone on the way :D;;;; However, half way through and … the game is really really … timid? It feels very light. The high stakes don’t feel high at all and the bad guys just kind of exist there being intimidating but other than that nothing happened on scene. You hear they sacrificed some village but you don’t really see that. The village girl who got her parents killed seem fine, nothing like Pilika who cried her eyes off then became mute from the shock after in Suikoden 2 … u_u; Everything just feels like it’s meant to be a rated E or something. No one swears or when they do, it’s very cartoony. Which brings me to the other issue I’m having…

It is… a bit too cartoony. One thing I loved about Suikoden was the characters designs. You could tell which part of the world they belong to, or which nation and it felt like they all belong to the same world just different nations. That’s not really the case in Eiyuden. Sure, Seign’s crew you can tell are part of Galdean Empire with their uniforms but not much else. The characters are so colorful! Which makes them memorable but also … most look like they came out from different worlds (or animes!) I love when a character is a bit of an oddball and they stand out, but when everyone stands out… the more “normal” looking ones begin to stand out xD;; I start to find myself looking for the more normal looking ones to include into my party.

And I guess I have to talk about the localization… Which is a hot topic apparently and I’m really tired of reading about it. I don’t think it is as bad as people make it out to be. I’m sorry. I really don’t think it’s a reason to lash out and attack people over it. Do I like it? I find it okay, but like the characters and their cartoony quirks, I find the localization absolutely the same way – It is too cartoony and quirky. Does it bother me? No. Do I like it? Not really. I don’t enjoy the direct dry JP translations but I wish there was some middle ground. The game has very light tone and the cartoony localization fits which to me again boils down to – I wish the game had more serious tone. Not a grim dark tone but when the stakes are none, it’s a little hard to feel motivated about rising an army and opposing the big bad who is doing something bad somewhere at the other end of the world. Maybe the tone will shift a bit as I get pass the mid point but it’s veen 30+ hours and I miss when every victory felt like impossible odds were overcome like what was the case with previous Suikoden games.

Okaaay, I did list a lot of bads didn’t I? I am enjoying the game, mind you! But not in a way that I can’t wait to pick the switch and continue. I’m also waiting a bit to see if they patch the cooking mini game. My favorite game and it’s glitched T^T!!! I feel so sad… So I’ll wait a bit and maybe run around looking for more peoplt to recruit in the mean time. I’m enjoying the combat, I’m enjoying the music. There are some balancing issues and the limited inventory is driving me nuts …but I also know it was Murayama’s choice and he insisted on it. I just hope they don’t keep the system in the sequel ;u;

I listed so many bad things and not nearly enough good ones. After so many years of my favorite franchise being dead and buried by Konami it is refreshing to see Eiyuden bring together the Suikoden experience. If this is the first stepping stone to a new franchise which carries the Suikoden flame, then I will very very gladly continue to support and look forward to learn more of this new world. First games are always like a test ground anyway and the devs haven’t made anything for a while, it makes sense they are a bit rusty! So with that said… time to hit post and return to playing! :’D Maybe I will have something excited to share at the end!