Review: Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars (PS5) – Timeless JRPGs Ride Again – Push Square
GuestGuestLogin | Sign UpPush SquareGuestLogin or Sign UpSuikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification WarsPS52025 N/AGame RatingUser Ratings: 0Our Review: Scroll DownTwo of the best PS1 role-playing games ever madeVersion Reviewed: EuropeanSuikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars is the unwieldy name Konami has bestowed upon a remastered collection of two of the best PS1 JRPGs ever made, enhanced and made more accessible for modern gamers on PS5 and PS4.Both Suikoden and Suikoden II tell a connected tale of war, duty, sacrifice, and revolution, drawing from Chinese literature, and feature massive casts of companion characters to collect and unlock. Known as the “108 Stars of Destiny”, recruiting the many, many characters in each game who can aid you in your efforts is one of the series’ most satisfying aspects.Both games are well worth playing in their own right; admittedly, the first feels more dated (first released in 1995), and requires a little more patience, but offers some excellent context for the sequel and a surprising number of returning characters. Suikoden II, meanwhile, has a claim to being the best JRPG released on PS1, stunning in scale and scope, and wonderfully realised. The collection is worth picking up for this entry alone; together, the package is an easy recommendation for any fan of classic Japanese role-playing games.This enhanced re-release offers HD portraits, revamped UI, gorgeously redrawn backgrounds, and refinement to some of the originals’ rougher edges. It also adds essential quality-of-life features like a fast-forward function and diagonal movement. It even has a digital museum contained in the launcher, which fills with art, music, and cinematics from both as they are unlocked; it’s clear Konami is proud of the series’ history and legacy.Considering the era and context in which it was released, the original Suikoden is an ambitious game. It follows a player-named character, the son of a famous imperial general, as he begins to awaken to the plight of the common people of the Scarlet Moon Empire. The corruption of the ruling class and greedy officials, combined with the heavy taxes imposed upon them, means starvation and banditry are rife. Beginning his own career in the Imperial Army, our hero begins to question everything his family has fought for. Following a series of events that exposes the rotten core of the ruling government, he will eventually find himself leading a revolution, uniting the various rebel factions that have been resisting in secretIn addition to story sequences, players will spend most of their time exploring the game’s vast world, talking to NPCs, recruiting allies, and engaging in satisfying turn-based combat. Six total characters can form your combat party, and part of the strategy is placing characters in the most effective part of a formation. Short-range characters serve as the front line and can attack the opposing front line, while long-range characters fight from the rear and can attack all targets. There’s a medium-range class that is able to attack either rank from any position but is generally less effective than their more specialised comrades. There are even larger scale army battles at specific narrative points, although these are relatively simple and largely scripted.Combat can be automated, with your party engaging in standard attacks, and this is a fantastic way to blast through more straightforward encounters or when grinding for EXP or “potch” as the series’ currency is known; adding a fast-forward feature is appreciated in this. Further complexity comes from Unite attacks, which require specific character combinations to perform, or the Rune system, which allows for various types of magic. Further, Orbs, which provide additional benefits (and occasional drawbacks) can be attached to a character’s weapon. Each of the 80+ companions that can join you in battle (the rest serve in a support capacity) has a unique weapon that can be upgraded at a blacksmith, improving its capabilities, and eventually taking on a new form.It’s a great battle system, and impressive, considering Suikoden is contemporary to the seminal Final Fantasy VI; it’s quite a bit more complex than that. The biggest downside is the busy work required to keep even a core group of combat characters adequately equipped with the latest armour available and their weapons upgraded as far as possible. For example, you can’t sell the old stuff from the same screen when buying new equipment, which quickly becomes annoying.It’s a shame, too, as this is less of an issue in the sequel, and it would have been nice if Konami had gone the extra step to provide parity between the two. As it stands, this aspect quickly had us focusing on the same small group in our playthrough, mainly because we couldn’t be bothered with getting new characters properly and laboriously equipped; entirely antithetical considering the game wants you to use its many, many, characters. Eventually, you’ll gain access to a castle, which will slowly be populated with all the companions you’ve recruited. Not all are fighters, and they will serve as shopkeepers, blacksmiths, and much more, with more personality and better gear than those offered by regular NPCs.All of the above applies to Suikoden II, but in our opinion, it’s done much better. Combat is more complex, enemy formations are more compelling, there are more Unity attack combinations, Runes are more interesting, and there is a greater number of attachable Orbs with more varied effects. The castle aspect and army battles are more substantial and better implemented, too.The story is also more sophisticated, and set several years after the original. Many familiar faces will show up, but you don’t need to have played the first to enjoy it. It follows a trio of youngsters, raised in the martial arts dojo of Master Genkaku, who become swept up in the political machinations of the new Highland Empire, and ultimately, in leading an alliance of independent states against it, forging a new country in the process (the titular Dunan Unification Wars). It’s far darker, dealing with atrocities and the aftermath and orphans of war, and it’s pretty riveting.Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars combine two incredible JRPGs from the genre’s golden age on PS1, lovingly remastered and improved for PS5 and PS4. They suffer from the same issues many games did back in the day: unwieldy, occasionally grindy, and sometimes obtuse. Still, the package offers fans the chance to experience these lesser-known gems, and both deserve a place in the collection of any fan, even the least bit interested.Great 8/10Review copy provided by KonamiHow we review productsScoring PolicyAbout Khayl AdamKhayl Adam is Push Square’s roving Australian correspondent, a reporter tasked with scouring the internet for the richest, most succulent PlayStation stories. With six years of experience as a freelance journalist and mercenary wordsmith, RPGs are his first great love, but strategy and tactics games are a close second, genres in which he is only too happy to specialize.Comments 348/10? Hard pass, I’ll just stick to Fortnitenever played these games (was a WoW player for too much time), but these are the type of games I know I will enjoy. Love the possibility of recruiting plenty of heroes, that is an added bonus; however, too many games right now so I will wait for a discount.
Edit: does it have two platinums or one? any estimations for how long till platinum?One of the first games I played on my Vita was Suikoden actually. Wouldn’t have gotten through it without @Gremio108!These and FF7 were my introduction to JRPGs back in 97. I’ve still got the disks (the black PS1 disk). I remember getting it from the bargain bin in Electronics Boutique one Saturday. So many feels!Good review @khayl! ThanksGood to see this score. Hopefully next month’s Lunar Remastered Collection will be just as great.I never got around to these, despite being a massive JRPG fan back in the day. Videobox never had them to rent!But I’ll definitely check out this collection, not sure I can afford the current price but will pick up further down the line.At £44.99 it’s a bit more than I was hoping, but still going to pick it up as I’d like to see a sequel. But it will have to get in line, too much to play right now.I finished Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes a few weeks ago and really enjoyed it, so I’m looking forward to playing these for the first time.I can’t wait for this! Friday is my day off, so I’ll be playing for sure. I have yet to decide whether it’ll be on PS5 or Switch. Also, the game sounds great, and I’m glad the narrative and gameplay hold up after all these years and a couple of QoL improvements.This is an 11/10. And the music ….ah the music is pure bliss!@dardel Just the one plat.Can’t wait to have my copy of this game. I simply love this games.This just looks like a lazy Eiyuden Chronicle rip-off 🥱I have both of these games: S1 on PS3 Digital and S2 on my original PSone. I’m a sucker for these classic JRPGs and I can’t wait to get these. I hope I can afford it, though. By the way, awesome review.Does anybody know if there’s an option to change to the original graphics? From what I’ve seen, I guess, there’s not, but I always appreciate that feature. The Tomb Raider collections are exceptional in this regard. Some remasters/remakes have a tendency to what in German we would call “verschlimmbessern” (make it worse through trying to make it better) the graphics, where the vibe of the original get’s somewhat lost. And I’m not entirely convinced by the look of the Suikoden remasters. It appears objectively moke advanced, but has a slight RPG Maker feel to it. But maybe I’m seeing things.@themightyant Let’s all just be glad this is Konami and not Nintendo, otherwise they’d be selling for 60 apiece…Nice to see Suikoden 1 & 2 got a revival for modern console.Suikoden was and is better than final fantasy seven- gameplay and story wise. And it did it before ff7. Then Suikoden 2 came along and improved on the formula.Waiting for 50% markdown. I only want S2, and it would have been a day one sale if I could buy S2 on its own.Two of my favorite games of all time. The music, the characters, the combat. Such great memories. Can’t wait to fire this one up later on tonight.I take it it still has the thing where if you import your save into the sequel, you get an extra bit of story and meet some of the characters? And yes, Suikoden II is one of the best games I’ve played. The first one is great but was actually made as a practice run in order to make the sequel as good as it could be.I remember going into whatever video game store it was back when I was 15 looking for a RPG when I stumbled upon Suikoden. I heard or knew nothing about the game and the original box art and packaging did nothing to really sell it but I took a gamble and very glad I did. The series has been good (for the most part) and even recently played Euyiden Chronicles Hundred Heroes which was well done as a spiritual successor. I’ll be picking this up without a doubt; I just hope the potch trick in Suikoden 1 for guessing the dice returns.I never played 2 and I only played the first one once back on PS1 so I must be a due a go on these at some point. No idea when but it will happen. Maybe.@Foxhound the inventory management is quite terrible in lunar sssc due to the limited item slots available to each character. you will constantly be re-shuffling items around in a very unintuitive way which really does hurt the experience. the unbalanced and excessive grinding requirements of the game (unless they addressed these issues in the remaster of course) don’t help either. good game otherwise but i’d consider giving it a 7 for the reasons mentioned.Is there a video review for this Ps version? I watched the NLife on YT.I wish they’d gone a bit further – parity between menus/systems as mentioned in the review, iron out some translation wrinkles, maybe add the Saturn content to Sui I (although that might not be easy from a developer point of view).But I shouldn’t complain. I’m still looking forward to playing through these again at some point.@Migoshuro I agree to an extent. The new backgrounds jar a little with the sprites and possibly lose some of the character. I’m hoping it will look better when I’m playing it and I’ll soon get used to it@johncalmc Definitely play Sui II if you can find time for it! Properly great game@nessisonett Happy to be of service@Ashkorsair The music that plays in the towns in Suikoden 1 is super chill. It definitely has a vibe that’s pretty unmatched.8/10?! These games are timeless! 9/10 easily. Looking forward to playing it all weekend.I’ll wait on a sale. 50 smackers is a bit high for 30 year olds.2 games for $50 and a near 80 hour experience that’s a lot better than most games coming out todayAny news on whether the collection include the ability to transfer date from I to II for am extra quest like the original?I remember going into Zellers(like a Canadian Walmart) with my mom as a kid and she let me buy suikoden as it was on sale(we were poor). Never had any idea what it was and holy crap I loved it. I remember inviting my best friend over on the weekend and we were both hooked. So glad others get to enjoy this now!2 in considered the best game in the series i played 1 and 3 back in the day .S2 was my first ever jRPG. The rest was history, as they say. Loved it to death and it opened up my mind that games could be like this. Show CommentsLeave A CommentHold on there, you need to login to post a comment…Last Chance to Get These 12 PS5, PS4 Games At Their Lowest Ever Prices in the Weekend OfferThe best PS Store deals from the Weekend OfferFree PS Plus Compensation for Recent PSN Downtime Is Being Issued NowYou don’t need to do anythingGTA Online: All Cars and Vehicles Compatible with Hao’s Special Works Tuning UpgradesSupercharge your fleet with HSW’s new-gen upgradesThese 13+ New PS5, PS4 Games Are Coming Out This Week (3rd-9th March)Age of Mythology Retold! Split Fiction! Two Point Museum! More43 PS5, PS4 Games You Should Buy in PS Store’s Dealmania Sale (North America/Europe)Recommended PS5 and PS4 games going cheapGame ProfileTitle:Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification WarsSystem:PlayStation 5Also Available For:SwitchPublisher:KonamiDeveloper:KonamiGenre:RPGPlayers:1Release Date:PlayStation 5Series:SuikodenReviews:Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars (PS5) – Timeless JRPGs Ride AgainWhere to buy:Buy on Amazon
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