365//365: Day 280 – Suikoden Tierkries (DS) [PP]

"A legendary franchises new release that's not intended for the ADD crowd."

Suikoden Tierkreis and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance have a very similar path that they both traveled through. Both have immensely successful titles on the Sony PlayStation in Suikoden and Final Fantasy Tactics. Both take a much light-hearetd approach on their handheld debuts, offering similar gameplay aspects, though neither takes its self seriously. Tierkreis offers many of the mainstays to the Suikoden experience (108 characters to recruit, powerful musical compositions, impressionable characters you run into, your own “fort” of sorts, cooperative attacks) with some changes along the way. The character models and the world around you are well detailed for a Nintendo DS title, and help pull you into the game even more. There are some significant faults to this handheld RPG. For the majority of your time playing Tierkreis, you will breeze through every situation you encounter, with very little resistance. Upgrades seemingly cost just a hair more than you currently possess, making constant upgrading quite a chore, as enemy encounters yield little in the way of currency., as well as receiving the short end of the trading stick. While the music offers a gratifying soundtrack, the voice acting, especially for the main character, will make you want to rip your ears off. Painful doesn’t even begin to describe the voice acting. Then there’s the story, which, like the Final Fantasy Tactics Advance line, doesn’t take its self overly serious, which unlike FFTA, leads to frequent bouts of boredom and disinterest. As an original Nintendo DS RPG, Suikoden Tierkreis is worth checking out, especially for the fitting soundtrack it contains. If you don’t mind playing in short bursts, you may find yourself enjoying this gem, but if you try and play large portions at one time, you’ll find yourself starving for something more.

The world of Suikoden looks phenomenal, and has some amazing music to it. Unfortunately, the story doesn't hook you in deep enough to keep you playing in long bursts.

Rating: 7.2