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 enlarge | From: Konami
Category: Video Games
Buy Used: $14.00
New (18) Used (29) Collectible (2) from $14.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  95 reviews
Sales Rank: 5748
Platform: Playstation2
ESRB: Teen
Media: Video Game
Age: 12 - 20 years
Operating System: Playstation 2
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.3 x 0.7
MPN: 20045
UPC: 083717200451
EAN: 0083717200451
ASIN: B00006LEMK
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Disc and case but no instructions. Disc has a few scratches but plays great.
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| Customer Reviews:
a small step in the wrong direction October 6, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I was an avid fan of the Suikoden series going into this game (namely one and two), so i was teeming with anticipation with the series debut on the PS2. This game is far from a disappointment, it has beautiful scenery, great character designs, a varied character lineup, and a very intriguing story that makes good use of characters from previous games. I was spellbound when I first started diving into the game and couldn't wait to play it again when i stopped to eat. However, this excitement took a back seat ride when I discovered a severe flaw in the game's makeup.
This absolutely stunning piece of video game art is the victim of a very poor attempt at innovation. Anyone familiar with either of the previous two Suikoden games knows that the battle system functions on a six character formation (front and back row, 3 character each). This allows you full control of all six charcters, and the dynamics of character functionality changes depending upon where they are. If two characters that are friends, have a past experience with each other, or simply have similar fighting styles are placed near each other they can perform combo moves that can either be hokey or completely devastating. Combo maneauvers are not limited to just 2 characters either. This setup gave the player a great deal of option for attack and placed a great emphasis on stategic formations of characters.
The problem with Suikoden 3 is that they kept the 6 character formation, but eliminated the ability to control all six characters independantly of each other. The battle system in this game operates on controlling rows as opposed to characters. if you choose to have your row attack then they will both attack. if you choose for someone to cast a spell then that one person will cast a spell and the other character will attack a random enemy. This does not sound like a lot, but when you add in the difficulty of some of the battles in this game you will be fuming. This poorly designed setup makes it difficult to even kill some groups of random enemies, which will make powering up an experience you will altogether not want to do. This has forced some people I know to stop playing the game because it's incredibly frustrating. If two rune users are in the same row then only one can cast a spell at a time, this gives you 3 commands to issue among six characters, which automatically makes your battle efficiency 50% right from the get go. It doesn't make that much difference in the first few steps of the story, but when you get to spots where carefully maneuvering your group in battle becomes crucial, you'll find yourself playing the same battle over and over and over again trying to figure out how what went wrong.
Those that have braved one of the most frustrating RPG gameplay screwups (the most frustrating easily being Xenosaga 2), have found an amazing game with a luscious story to entertain even the veterans of such games. This is a good purchase, but beware, it requires a great deal of patience. I suggest playing this game with your room locked so people don't barge in to see why you're swearing at the television.
 Battle system is teh sux0rz... January 18, 2006
4 out of 11 found this review helpful
The story is interesting enough I suppose but do I ever hate the battle system and the forced camera angles as you move around. The battle system and the camera angles ruined the whole game for me, I couldn't play it...and having a donald duckesque character as my body guard really doesn't help me take this game any more seriously. I am a huge fan of Suikoden 1 and 2 and this game ended up disappointing me to the point of wanting to stay far far away from any new Suikoden releases.
 Best Role Playing Game on any console since Final Fantasy 6 August 17, 2005
9 out of 11 found this review helpful
Since I was 8 years old I've been a fan of console RPGs like Final Fantasy. Now I loved a number of the Playstation 1 & 2 RPGs, but after getting a recomendation to play the Suikoden series, and playing this game, well, there are only a few that stand up to this game now.
If you're looking for a game like Final Fantasy or Xenogears/Saga, then this is not that game. If you want the high end graphics and music that accompany these games, then you'll be dissapointed. But if you're looking for something that has the depth and character development of the Super Nintendo-age Final Fantasy's then this game will come as a breath of fresh air.
I never realized how bad the RPG genre had gotten on the console until I played this game, but that's not this game's fault. Simply by comparing this game to all the others available (FF7 through FFX-2, Xenogears/Saga, previous Suikodens, etc) I was at once blown away by the greatness that was this game, and depressed by the mediocrity of it's competitors. And don't worry I'll tell you why I think this way.
This game has something that in my opinion all others from this series should adopt; the Trinity Sight System. One story is told from 3 points of view.
A war is being fought between two countries, the Kingdom of Zexen, and the Glassland barbarian clans, but the war is being perpetuated by a third kingdom, the supposedly 'holy' Harmonia.
You can choose one major character to act as a figurehead for the furthering of the story. You can choose from the points of view of the Captian of the Zexon Knights, the captian of a Mercenary group employed by 'holy' Harmonia, and the son of a clan chief of the Grasslands.
The Zexon POV: Chris Lightfellow was just named captian of the Zexon knights, after a battle saw the demise of the previous captian and vice-captian. She is given a parade to celebrate her heroism. But she's not having any of it. She doesn't feel like a hero and doesn't want the burdon placed on her. She is already something of a living legend being one of the elite 6 mighty Zexon Knights, and her fame continues to grow with every task she fulfils. She is a person bound to doing what she believes is right, and what is best for her kingdom. Until she finds out that the council is being bought by Harmonians.
Grassland POV: Hugo is the teen-aged son of Chief Lucia of the Karaya clan. Hugo is a bright-eyed, serious, and strong-willed boy who is sent by his mother to deliver a message to the Zexon Council in regards to a peace treaty. He is accompanied by a member of the Duck clan, Sargeant Jordi, and a childhood friend Lulu. They find that the council doesn't intend to read the message, and only want to detain the son of the clan chief as a hostage. Hugo and his friends escape to find his village in the midst of being razed and his best friend, Lulu is slain by the newly appointed Zexon captian.
Mecenary POV: Geddo is a mysterious man who has friends in high places, and no one knows why. Geddo and his mercenary group play witness to the assassination of the Lizard clan chief, and the razing of the Karayan clan. But Geddo also has ties to one of the mighty 6 Zexon knights, and while he can't deny what he's seen, he also knows that the Zexon Knights are not the type to ruin peace treaty negotiations nor assassinate a clan chief.
As time goes on this game gets so in depth with its cast of characters, that going about the task of recruiting many of the 108 characters that is among the hallmarks of this series, is a matter of simply learning more about the Fire Bringer, the Flame Champion and why the attacks on the grasslands were blamed on the innocent Zexon Knights.
To aid in this effort a new, lesser POV is opened up to the player which deals with the newly appointed master of a run-down castle on the border of Zexon and Grassland. It is his job to bring its habitants out of poverty and to revitilize the castle to its past splendor. Thomas comes up with the idea of leasing castle land for free trade between all lands, as he goes about his task of recruiting many (if not most) of the 108 stars, he is faced with the tasks of finalizing the paperwork on his ownership, fixing many of the dilapidated facilities on the castle grounds, and decorating the castle itself to act as a museum of culture featuring rare artifacts, paintings and sculptures as well as stocking an extensive library.
I very much enjoyed his two chapters because Thomas was no warior. Starting out at level 20 with the knights and mercenaries kind of shields you from the leveling aspect so that you can focus on the more important aspect that is the story. But when you start at level 1 and find creatures that the others found to be little more than nuisences a real threat it puts an emphasis on the dangers of travel around the world that most RPG's tend to overlook.
If you can successfully recruit all 108 stars then when you beat the game a 5 major POV opens up to you. This final point of view is from that of the antagonist of the story. There is very little in the way of gameplay (the game's already been beaten anyways) but it directly addresses all the questions that were raised during the playing of the 3 chapters from the 3 major characters earlier in the game.
This was a reward that as far as I'm concerned is unparalelled in video games. It truly makes the somewhat overwhelming task of finding and recruiting 108 characters well worth your time, as all discrepencies in the story, and questions raised are answered in a concrete way that won't disapoint. It has none of the end of the world 500 years later aspects that you see in other so-called great console RPGs .
Among the nicest things about this story is that the children, and there are a number of them, aren't the sort that are out to show their parents are ignorant fools, but rather they take on quests such as finding out what happened to one boys (Melville's) father. The characters in this game are adults, and they act like adults. Though the members of the duck clan are a bit hard to take seriously, you'll find no remote controled stuffed dolls thrown in as little more than an afterthought to satisfy the younger players.
All in all, I went in with little in the way of expectations, and left with such a high opinion of the game that I can only hope that Suikoden 5 goes back to the Trinity Sight System, as it was truly the great innovation and feature of this game.
Potentially on of the most interesting RPGs I've ever played. 1story: 4 different veiwpoints. July 27, 2005
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
Parents: If your child likes RPGs or "story telling" games. This is perfect for kids...or adults for that matter. This is one is still on my all time favorite games list. (:
Anyway...
This game was monsterously entertaining to me. The story was a masterpeice with an army of potentially 108 to recruit for your use. Granted not ALL of the will be able to be used on your combat team of six, but most of them will be and you can custimize all of them to a point.
Keeping a story interesting with a potential number of 108 personalities, over three veiwpoints and four main characters would be a challenge for most book writers. Stuffing so much content in one story can sometimes cause it's down fall. "To many cooks in a kitchen ruins the soup" and all that. Somehow Suikoden III, made a masterpiece with it all instead of hindering themselves. I was truly impressed.
During the course of the story you can alternate between four different veiwpoints: a "barbarian" kid, a lady knight, and a mysterious mercinary, and the unlucky new ower of a run down castle that is looking for residents to stay afloat. Each of the first three member resprisents a veiwpoint into each side of an upcoming war with a unseen evil pulling the strings. Through most of the game each group of friends find themself getting sucked into the mystery without even really meeting each other untill the end of the game. During each veiwpoint or "Chapter" each characters can come by and potentially recruit 108 hidden charcaters, not all of them able to be pick up by a single main character or all at once. Some of them are hidden, some are given to you ether way they all end up hanging at Thomas' run down castle while they are not being used because this old castle happens to be the boarder of each waring party making it a neutral and protected area from all sides. The way the story makes this all seem very logical and conicidental is ingenious.
The gameplay is also nothing short of amazing. Like any RPG it takes charcter building to survive, but because the characters always switch and you have only a certain amount of money you cannot become "godlike" in the very begining and make the game effortless for yourself. The "mini-games" are also challengeing because are large scale battle moments that resemble risk and one on one time duels. Not to mention puzzles galore. Unlocking characters can also be considered a minigame.
Not to spoil much, but the replay value is also high for if you find all 108 characters the first time around you can unlock the mini storyline of the main villan.
So if you like RPGs than this one is a MUST. I can't stress that enough. Get Suikoden III. Do NOT, however, mistake Suikoden III for Suikoden 4. Suikoden 4 was terrible.
Well, this Suikoden is... May 25, 2005
7 out of 8 found this review helpful
I've never given four stars to a game I liked, so I won't but this Suikoden has a few problems that may tick Suiko fans off. I especially got hooked on this Suikoden solely because of the Lizard Clan. They are actually what convinced me to give this game five stars, otherwise...it would have received a dreaded four. In any case...
Story: The Suikoden series has always followed an intricate and amassed story of a leader gathering an army to fight against a great threat. This Suiko does not fail here, especially since you play the story roles of not one, but four people. In each story, you guide the central character through a series of events that makes him/her meet up with the other three main heroes. Also, the story of the True Runes is brought into the spotlight more in this Suiko than the previous volume, so if you've been wondering, you should be satisfied with what you learn. However, the whole gathering of the Stars of Destiny bit has taken a nap and is not even mentioned in this game and Leknaat will not be there in classic form to explain it to you.
Characters: The four main characters are Geddoe the Harmonian mercenary, Hugo the Karayan hunter, Commander Chris of the Zexen Knights and Thomas the soon-to-be castle manager. Each of them have their doubts and reasons for being involved in the game's events. Each of them, along with their most trusted group members, are developed enough to not to appear boring. At one point, you will have to choose someone (not Thomas) to be the final leader character to guide the 108 Stars of Destiny and their army to victory. Although, if there are characters who deserve praise, it's definitely the Lizard Clan and the Duck Clan party members. They along with the members of their Clans make for another classic Suiko experience since the previous games also had non-human allies.
Music: Uh-oh. Well I'm not one to complain about music, but I find some songs in this game a little lackluster. The boss, event and town themes are great, but the standard battle themes are very mediocre because they sound either too perky or too lacking. The standard battle theme is very important in RPGs, so if it stinks, it's hard to enjoy combat. This game also seemed to lack a good song of sadness, which is surprising since the other two Suikos had heartbreaking sad themes.
Gameplay: Another gripe here. Map travel is quite annoying in this game since in order to get a certain area, you are required to go through a rather unnecessary hike along a meadow road to get back on the main road. This is something you will end up doing a bit too much and it may bore the heck out of you. Gathering the Stars of Destiny seems to have remain unchanged as you either receive people by story automatically or you go on some errand to earn their aid.
Battle: Double uh-oh. What happened here? The battle system is somewhat of a joke in this game. Thankfully you still can have six people at a time, but you pair up the characters into three teams. What this means is you have three teams of two people who are responsible for each other only. For example, Alanis the mage girl is teamed up with Dupa, the Lizard Clan chief. Alanis can use medicine to heal Dupa but she can't use it on Koruku the dog or Geddoe the mercenary. Also, if you want double combination attacks at all, you must always pair up those same two people (can be annoying if your setup is composed of various characters). Magic also has a new system where there is an actual charge time to spells before they can be cast. The speed is determined by skill level (which you can raise at schools and libraries) and if the character is generally very good with that elemental rune. What makes this bad is that one element has to be cast with caution: fire. If you're not careful with the spell's actual execution, you can end up cooking your teammates instead of the monsters. Thankfully, a turn meter is available during battle to show you the point at which the spell will be cast. On a final note, there is no longer a Rune combination feature for the big spells, so don't bother trying to cast two spells at the same time for a big Rune attack.
System: Well the newest system in this Suiko is the skill system. Skills are the abilities of characters that improve their combat efficiency. Skills are either innate (by level) or bought at learning centers to add to a character's list. Each character can reach a certain grade level with skills. Anything from B+ to S is great while B and below is average/horrible. Skills cost skill points (which are earned after battles) to first attain from a center as well as upgrade. Depending on what the highest letter grade they can attain, the point cost for upgrading can either be grossly high or happily cheap. You can also tell how good a character can be with a skill by reading the skillmaster's comment. If the master says you need way more practice, skip it; if he says you have unbridled potential, grab it. These skills greatly improve your fighting and spellcasting to the point monsters may not ever get a turn in, so you should definitely invest in skills to get anywhere.
Overall: Suikoden 3 is cool in some ways, while quite lame in others, and because of this odd contrast, Suikoden 2 will seem way better to fans of the series. Give it a try if you're a fan, otherwise beware the downsides. For completing the game, you do get a nice extra which will please fans of a certain character who has been in all the Suiko games to date. If anything, the game's ups outweigh its downs.
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