[DS] Suikoden Tierkreis announced

I was waiting until actual scans popped up. For now, all there is is hearsay at GAF. Supposedly, this came from 2ch:

Quote:

Characters are 3D polygons
Field backgrounds are 2D
Battles are entirely 3D
Character portraits (bust up) in conversation scenes
There is a field map
Parties of 4 "＋α" with faces and stats on the top screen
Looks like an orthodox RPG

EDIT: Found the scan. Uploading now.

Artwork looks like shit, but the potential true rune looks interesting. Also looks like the game may take place in the Dukedom of Gaien, since the insignia on his shoulder looks vaguely like the boat on Gaien's flag (and because it's really the only established oceanic location in the series left untouched).

I'm honestly stumped if it's not Gaien. I'm not sure what nation's army has red as a primary color.

EDIT2: Oh shit, there's another two pages.

Most amazing jew boots

The interesting thing is that, yes, they are mentioned right there in big letters, but it's saying that the 108 stars are destroyed. Take that as you will, but it sounds like a major plot device and an excuse not to be collecting 108 characters in the game.

Definitely a spin-off; it just happens to be a very large one that sticks to the RPG genre.

Also, I put up the second scan. Way more screens, locales, characters, etc.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

There are clearer scans out now, which I don't feel like putting up.

So it's not a boat on his shoulder guard, but a spear-looking symbol. Hm, maybe it's not Gaien. Still trying to find a location in the scans, but I do need to be at work in five hours (and I haven't slept yet).

As far as the 108 stars being destroyed goes, the clear scans show there's pictures to back it up! A true rune going nuts, wounded soldiers sprawled all over the place, etcetera.

Additional Posting of Acceptable Quality:
Maybe there will be 108 star-collecting?

Quote:

Apparently the game begins with the 108 heroes engaged in their final battle with the villain, and all the heroes being taken down except for four. This game's hero is not one of them, and his quest involves reassembling the 108, as opposed to discovering them.

I think the person means the hero is one of the four who escapes from the battle. I haven't tried to read the article yet, so this isn't 100% confirmed or anything. Take with a tiny bit of skepticism, even though some of the screens back this up.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Official website is up. Nothing there, but you can take a look at the artwork for the protagonist and Marika as well as their respective bios (and voice credits).

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Originally Posted by Muzza

*sigh* Sounds pretty damn cliché to me. Then again I could just be speaking as a jaded RPG gamer right there, I don't know. (It's just that whenever I hear something like "an optimist who acts before he has thought through his actions", alarm bells start ringing.

I guess you can't really judge a games' story based on the protagonist outline. Here's hoping the plot shapes up to be a good one.

Actually, much of the individual backgrounds in Suikoden are very cliche.

Right off the bat, people should be able to recall that the protagonist of Suikoden II was an orphan. For a lot of people here, that didn't really affect the game's quality (or even have any sort of impact on the greater storyline).

I was speaking idiomatically.

Considering the trademark, this isn't a tremendous surprise.

Bozon typically gushes praise when it comes to games he's personally excited about, but you can't help but feel hopeful when someone talks so positively about an upcoming game.

I'm a little surprised to see how far along this game is made out to be; as if it could be released this year. I think the Famitsu article revealing the game claimed it was only around halfway completed, so I can hardly believe that that's the case.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

To be fair, I'd say the majority of players enjoyed Suikoden III, and Suikoden Tactics is still a relatively engaging (albeit simple) Strategy-RPG that got unfair criticism from butthurt folks for following up Suikoden IV.

FELIPE NO

Tierkreis is German for "Zodiac". I thought we talked about that.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

"Suikoden Tierkreis" is already trademarked in the US. Bozon made no mention of the title being changed (besides the usual dropping of "Genso"), so expect Tierkreis to remain.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

The story was so oddball that it was hard to predict outside of Iskas being a bad guy.

I liked both games. The whole

Spoiler:

"lol ur mom's a goat"

was one of the most hilariously bad plot twists of all time, and Rune Tiles were an excellent addition to the tired grid-based formula of Strategy-RPGs.

Anyway, the main baddie in Tierkreis sounds like Sovereign from Mass Effect. Or was it Saren? I can't remember.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

You're boring.

When you saw the word "butthurt," it was your cue to just go ahead and assume that my post was not going to be thought-provoking commentary on why a large portion of players out there disliked Suikoden Tactics, nor was it going to be a thorough examination of the game's strengths and faults. I saw, long ago, a vocal group that disliked Tactics for the series' continued connection to Suikoden IV, and I choose to pounce on that group when I feel like it's relevant.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

No no, you see, my "boring" comment was already a retort; to your "git" comment in specific. Now you just look silly by retorting a retort.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Drama CDs are usually just dramatic retellings of a related story. In this case it might be the Suikoden I Radio Drama that just started a couple weeks ago, or it might be for Tierkreis. I dunno.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Unknown. No one's even sure if it's the usual Suikoden universe either, and Nintendo Power has stated the game travels through parallel worlds (parallel dimensions have been canon since the original Suikoden, so don't freak out, people). The geography makes me wonder as well. When comparing the "world" map that was in the Suikoden V bonus DVD and the map seen in some videos, it seems to be clear that the game is on some landmass that's not been shown yet. Some potential areas are the "eastern continent," as well as the lands south of Nagarea and New Armes.

One of the main antagonists works for a powerful military force, which could be Harmonia. The One King, who wallops the 104 other stars, has a name that hints at Hikusaak, but has a description that just screams Sindarin or Yuber (desires chaos, etc etc). It is a mystery.

EDIT: The December issue of Nintendo Power has a three-page article up that states that the game isn't set in the same world, and True Runes are absent entirely. Consequently, even usual mainstays like Viki and Jeane are absent. Instead, the game focuses on the limitless number of parallel universes called 'the Infinity' that have suddenly begun to overlap (causing people and powerful monsters to cross over into Tierkreis' universe and run amok). Very informative article.

Turns out the whole "reforming the Stars" plot was dropped early in development, and also mentioned some pretty cool gameplay aspects that were mulled over for that plot (resurrected Stars would sometimes be revived just as they were before death, but others would come back as weapons and various animals).

In short:

Release date: Winter, possibly as soon as December
Timeline: Moot; alternate universe, new timeline
Location: Kingdom of Salsaville, various neighboring countries

main baddies:

Main antagonistic force: The Order of the One True Way
Main antagonist (presumably): The One King

Story progression: Mission based
Online functionality: Yes, characters are sent into the Infinity (the internets), which other players will use for unique missions that net bonus experience and items

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

As I mentioned in the Tales of Hearts thread, this was leaked a couple days ago. It's out in Japan proper now.

As was discussed, the game takes place in an entirely new universe, so there are no returning characters. The hero and his friends who make up the Town Guard in the village of Citro, and that is the game's initial setting.

Spoiler:

During a visit to a nearby mountain for the chief of Citro, an immense statue juts forth from the ground. In an investigation of the statue, they find a book that grants them the ability to use magic (this book was mentioned earlier in the thread). Shortly thereafter, there is a report of a forest appearing near Citro that did not exist there originally, and the Guard is sent to investigate. Lots of other things happen, and eventually the party discovers what is causing the disturbances.

The graphics are weird. The character models are hideously deformed, with the characters having bizarrely oversized arms compared to the rest of their bodies. The 2D backgrounds are gorgeous however, and it's been a treat to explore things. The music is also great, and Suikoden fans will more than likely appreciate the continued tradition.

Battling works like it always has, just replace the traditional Rune system with your average, run-of-the-mill MP system from other RPGs. A bit disappointing.

That's all I can think of at the moment.

FELIPE NO

Battles are just insanely bland rather than bad. A completely standard turn-based affair in every regard. They also got rid of the smithy aspect and instead each character can equip a few of the game's... 10 or so weapon types.

The english voice acting seems like it might be pretty good. We'll have to see.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

My GameStop friend happened to be nice enough to pick up the Artbook/Soundtrack CD for me, so I went ahead and took a look.

The artbook, needless to say, is shit. It's on a disc for Christ's sake, which should tell you right away how much effort Konami was putting into it. You get about 20 smaaall pieces of character art and some smaaall samples of the really good scenery art. That part's crap.

The soundtrack is... limited, but good. There's some great stuff on here, and it's in the good quality, not the DS-rip kind. Salsabil is an absolutely awesome track. Definitely getting nominated in the next Best Song Contest we have.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Ordering it online from most places will mention the soundtrack/artbook. Like Gamestop, or Amazon.

In any case, there's 18 tracks. Let me see if I can't remember them all:

Citro Plains
Cynas, Capital of the One Way (two variants)
Pharamond
Castle of Pharamond
Woodland Village
Lugenik
World Map (four variants)
Formation
Salsabil
Salsabil Kingdom
Naineneis
Cragbark

...Nope, that'd be 16. In any case, you get the idea.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Yes, believe me, I remember Prince of Persia's annoying-ass bonus disc. Fortunately, it's ridiculously easy to rip the stuff off this one. Also, like I said, it's still worth it for the soundtrack. Really good stuff.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

People are fucked then, because the Japanese voicetrack is shit. Absolute shit. They're gonna have to live with it, either way.

Additional Spam:
Oh come on, what are people bitching about? They sound like normal kids. Is it because they didn't have exaggerated voices like Johnny Yong Bosch or Steven Blum?

Sometimes the protagonist speaks a little too fast, but it sounds intentional to show he's a pretty spastic kid (it's not to keep up with the pacing of scenes, since dialogue doesn't move along until you hit the A button to confirm it).

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Well, really, the vast majority of those people on GameFAQs are playing the leaked European version on some sort of pirating device.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by Metapod

I've not advanced the plot enough yet to form an opinion but what I've seen doesn't look too bad although I fear there may be some Squall/Laguna-esque memory loss previous lives type nonsense in there somewhere.

I thought so too, but the further I get into the game, the less I'm thinking it's the case. I only played the import long enough to get some impressions, so I actually don't know what happens.

I'm off to Pharamond, which is about three-quarters of the way through it. I went back to the coastal cave for Dromon and the pirate gang and happened to find the Godspeed Ring, which is such a goddamn lifesaver. Shin, make sure you find that thing when you get there. It increases your running speed by about 1.5x, and that was one of my bigger complaints about the game.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I'm not sure how efficient the sleep mode is, to be honest. I've left it fully-charged in sleep mode overnight and the battery was in the red by morning. Obviously it's better than just leaving it on since it would have died in the middle of the night, but eh. Not that great.

Also, I would recommend checking a guide for recruits. There are some seriously bullshit characters that would require either lots of luck or some seriously meticulous exploration to find.

FELIPE NO

Good news! Recruiting the Tensoku Star (ie, Stallion and Nash's star) gives you a permanent movement speed boost. Now I can take that Godspeed Ring off Yovel and give him something nice.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Just beat it. As I was beginning to suspect a few days ago, my enjoyment of the game would only go on for as long as there was story to read. Now that it's over, I rank it on the lower end of the list of Suikodens. It doesn't help that the story fell apart at the end, with a really lackluster explanation of the One King's origin and purpose.

In case anyone's wondering, it appears likely that a Tierkreis II would take place in

Spoiler:

the Empire of the North Star. Zenoa is said to have traveled there (and considering what she has with her, that counts for something), and Yula returned after hearing news of a civil war breaking out. The only other explicitly mentioned locations outside of the continent, the Chiefdom of Lonomakua and the United Kingdom of Ritterschild, are both said to be in good shape. No hint of war coming to those places, but it's certainly not out of the question. So there you go.

Still an okay game, just a bland Suikoden. Play it if you like traditional RPGs.

Jam it back in, in the dark.