Suikoden II (PS1, 1998)
Graphics-8 Sound-8 Control-7.5 Challenge-6* Story-7
Level Design-7 Frustration-7.5 Fun-7 Originality-6.5
Overall Score-7
*Without using the best runes and highest level weapons
+
Import collected characters and certain items from the prequel
Run without a rune
Improved interface (faster shopping, larger base inventory which is shared and you get access to a warehouse sooner)
Improved sound quality and overall animation (more expressive characters during dialogue scenes)
Fast transitions overall
Somewhat smoother movement near walls and such
More choices in dialogue (some also matter more this time around but most still don't)
Three rune/crystal slots per char instead of one (runes also tend to have both pros and cons which you'll have to weigh against each other) - not all chars though, convoy slot (keep characters important to story events that you don't want to use for battle outside of the battle party)
Duels and large scale army battles (now a bit more fleshed out) return
Combo attacks (2-3 chars perform a special attack)
Elemental combo spells for good magic users (2+ lvl 4 spell charges, runes that you can combine: Fire & Earth, Earth & Wind, Wind & Water, Water & Lightning, Lightning & Fire)
Some good humour
Healing items/spells are still used even if you wipe out the enemies in battle before that char's turn (sometimes doesn't work though - if the char is too slow compared to the rest?)
Six character parties
Battle formations (2 rows - can switch two characters during battle)
Vault/stash (faster access to it than in the prequel as well)
Can let weaker enemies go (not before transitioning into the battle screen though unless you equip a certain late game rune) and bribe other enemies
Some interesting plot devices (flashbacks to flesh out the main chars)
Fairly well realized political intrigue
Upgrade your own castle by recruiting more chars (automatic process though and its rooms are almost fully pre-built this time)
Some decent puzzles (wind cave)
Fishing mini-game (decent)
Temporary "rare finds" in shops - Shining Force?
Optional side quest (clive and elza's duel - well done but on a short hidden timer between triggers so it's hard to get to the conclusion)
Some memorable scenes (the Luca battle, Meeting McDohl and some other prequel chars, when the knights join you and leave their leader, two river city uniting, ) and characters
Nameable army and castle (you actually name the whole army when asked to name the hero's company so keep this in mind)
Castle elevator for faster travel between floors (Suikoden 1)
Teleport to any visited city after about half the game (via Viki) and back to the HQ castle a while later
Some choosing one character over another to recruit (Kasumi/Valeria, Ridley/Boris, Feather/Sigfried/Abizboah/Rulodia - can only recruit combinations of 2 or 3 out of these)
Nicer spell effects
"Equip best" option (FF7?)
Can recruit the hero from the prequel (if you got all characters and resurrected Gremio in Suikoden 1) - he will leave and go back to Gregminster during several story events though which is annoying since it leads to some long backtracking
Can have Richmond investigate each character to find out secrets about them
Some innovative runes (chimera - transfer status, spark - rest of party acts right after the user, skunk - can't be targeted, friendship - do more damage based on number or recruited chars, etc.)
Some non-random encounters (zombie infested Tinto city)
Multiple endings
Some good bosses (beast rune, luca blight, abomination, )
The game shows a biref explanation of what happened to each char during the ending (Langrisser)
+/-
Mostly linear structure
Resting at an inn is the only way to replenish MP/spell charges (unless you use a magic drain rune but it only restores lvl 1 spells)
108 stars characters can die for good in large scale battle
More slapstick humour and anime feel to the story sequences (silly rescue scene when you're about to be executed with Rowd daydreaming while all guards around him are knocked out)
Can wear two of some equipment types (boots, capes - a bit odd)
Some scenes are more brutal and/or adult than in Suikoden 1 (Rina and the guard, whipping before the execution, starving man who doesn't get help in Ryube)
Random encounters (not that frequent though besides Rockaxe castle)
Characters are only KO'd outside of battle and can be healed normally (no need to revive them)
Can't move through forests on the world map
Auto battle option (only one turn at a time though even if you don't press any buttons)
Save at inns and dungeon save points (not on the world map though; 6 slots - shows level/area/time/party makeup)
Have to equip any item before using it in battle (each char has only three "other" slots so you'll have to balance between items and defensive gear) - can be sort of overridden for healing items if you use a Medicine rune
No planning phase before a large scale battle
More cutscenes (pretty average CGI though)
Early on you can go to Toto but not find Jowy or clues about him there before he tries to rescue you at the mercenary fortress
Sappy tone at times (flashback, some hero and jowy scenes)
Chars will leave and join your party at will during the course of the game (Nanami in particular has a habit of forcing you to take her with you)
You're gradually given command of more and more units in army battles (helps the sense of progression but can be a bit annoying, most battles are also heavily scripted so you almost never get to fight it out like in the prequel)
No encounters at sea
One or more gay NPCs
Sometimes lacking rune descriptions in-game
Lacking character development for most optional chars (somewhat better than in Suikoden 1 overall though)
No battle marcos (see PSIV) and you can't make a char wait until another has acted in battle for tactical purposes
Dancing mini-game (very short and no need to follow the rhythm though)
Can't execute instead of recruit any enemy chars this time around and it doesn't matter if you imprison Lucia (assassin) or let her go
You don't get to use the dragon Bright until the sequel (could use a dragon in S1)
Few enemies that cause status ailments
Can't change equipment during battle
Mostly nerfed unite/combo attacks
Would've been cool if you the final boss fight also made you use multiple parties
-
No dungeon maps (get two world maps 5-10 hours into the game - the in field one is decent but you can't show the full map nor see location names on it and the full one can only be accessed via Templeton in the castle)
No diagonal movement
Backtracking (for example several towns lack certain facilities, can't teleport to Gregminster, ) and dead space
No quest log or journal feature
Some translation and audio errors (McDohl=TcDohl (lol), trade rumour NPC messages are glitched, grammatical errors, missing words, extra words, some sentences don't make sense; music not playing in some parts where it's supposed to (army battle at muse and Annallee's song - emulation problem?))
Fairly easy to accidentally pick the wrong dialogue option for the hero because unlike with other dialogue the text appears instantly whenever a dialogue choice triggers (so if you're speeding up other dialogue you'll easily press the button as soon as the box appears and pick a choice)
Plot oddities/conveniences (how you can't show that you're the hero during the Hoi event in the bar and avoid getting beat up by the locals, everyone but Nanami leaving the party without notice in Tinto before you go into the mine and encounter Neclord - everyone knows the special sword is needed to beat him here, when alex won't say what happened to killey instead of being dramatic and then saying his wife is the treasure, when nanami is surprised by Jowy's marriage - didn't someone inform the party about this earlier?, Tsai's fetch quest right before the battle against Luca - terrible timing and a bit drawn out since you can't teleport to his house nor use an escape talisman afterwards, why would Miklotov not ask the hero to come with him to Muse right away after the refugee battle when he wanted to cooperate earlier?, sometimes the main good guys have an important bad guy right in front of them which they can defeat/kidnap yet they let him go (Jowy), no one asks Leknaat about Jowy, why didn't Genkaku reveal Darrel's covering of his sword with poison until after the duel and how was his name cleared later without proof?, weird how the game skips over Viktor's story after meeting up in south window (as it would if the player char was recounting something the player knew), can't confront Jowy when you notice he's up to something, can't tell the official that you need to deliver a message after the spy mission early on, the rebel army doesn't scout and warn nearby villages near the beginning before the first battle with Luca's army, can't warn your camp about the ambush in the prologue despite spotting them while walking around to the east - can't affect most other major plot events either, Tsai knocks you out (if you try to fight Luca at Ryube) when there's a risk Luca will get to the mercenary fort before you - he's stronger but there might've been a way to distract him (he somehow gets to the fort after you though), Apple: "This is Viktor's fortress" - yeah, we know!, )
Some trial & error (saving Nanami - (need to get all chars, get her defense up to 121+, answer her on a short time limit when you're attacked in Rockaxe castle, and more!), Annallee's second location, pre-Luca ambush preparations (don't get to go buy equipment/grind after picking parties but before going after him), Luca can attack three times in one turn and the final boss five times (two of which are status attacks though), recruiting richmond - need to talk to a random NPC in the bar of the same town to get a non-trick coin and make him use it, during some parts of the game you are prevented from recruiting certain characters such as Connell even though you can recruit others in the same area, noticing Nina in the shadows during your stay at the academy - annoyingly drawn out segment as well since it's pretty obvious that you should use the statue to open a path, triggering the next event in two river town after meeting Makai and resting at the inn, getting the world map/templton, recruiting Kinnison and some other chars like Clive, some missable items (Recipe #3), finding certain book volumes (can examine most objects when exploring and there's no visual or other clue to their locations) and chars (Georg), storehouse being unavailable for some parts)
Unskippable intro (the sepia toned one) - short though
Can't turn off the yes/no prompt in battle
Sometimes you have to replace a current party member with a new recruit to be able to recruit a certain char
Slow ladder climbing
Many short but slow in-game cutscenes (after a while it starts to wear on you)
Can't replace an item stack without using up the items during battle
The hero's transition into an army leader isn't quite convincing
Hix's fetch quest
Need to have Stallion in your party to run on the world map (you'll be moving on foot between locations throughout almost the entire game (no travel by horse/flying creatures/vehicles)
Can't make chars remember their previous action in battle
Some unwinnable army battles because of scripting (battle 6/against the 3d company outside radat)
Squad battles in army battles are a bit too random (sometimes you lose less than half your units and sometimes the entire unit)
Formulaic game structure at times (town->catastrophe->dungeon->boss->story->repeat)
Fairly easy to overpower yourself for most of the game via rune customization
Several not so great chars (Gengen, Millie, Kinnison, Tsai, Tuta, Bolgan, Yoshino, Gabocha, Shilo, Hai Yo, Sid, Futch, Camus without Miklotov, Tomo, Hoi, Karen, Koyu, mid-late game: Yam Koo (no more combo with Yam Koo), Stallion, Meg, Kasumi, Hix, Badeaux, Simone, Sasuke, late game: Freed Y?, Rikimaru and Amada, Chaco, Shin?, Nina, Sheena, Tengaar, Ayda, Sigfried?, Killey, Bob, Lo Wen, Gantetsu, Genshu, Vincent)
Less of an impact from the final Neclord encounter here since the city he turns into zombies reverts back completely after beating him
Notes:
-Recruitment and char evaluation guide: http://www.lordyuanshu.com/suikoden-ii-2-108-stars-of-destiny-recruit-list
-Missables: https://suikosource.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=10236
Level Design-7 Frustration-7.5 Fun-7 Originality-6.5
Overall Score-7
*Without using the best runes and highest level weapons
+
Import collected characters and certain items from the prequel
Run without a rune
Improved interface (faster shopping, larger base inventory which is shared and you get access to a warehouse sooner)
Improved sound quality and overall animation (more expressive characters during dialogue scenes)
Fast transitions overall
Somewhat smoother movement near walls and such
More choices in dialogue (some also matter more this time around but most still don't)
Three rune/crystal slots per char instead of one (runes also tend to have both pros and cons which you'll have to weigh against each other) - not all chars though, convoy slot (keep characters important to story events that you don't want to use for battle outside of the battle party)
Duels and large scale army battles (now a bit more fleshed out) return
Combo attacks (2-3 chars perform a special attack)
Elemental combo spells for good magic users (2+ lvl 4 spell charges, runes that you can combine: Fire & Earth, Earth & Wind, Wind & Water, Water & Lightning, Lightning & Fire)
Some good humour
Healing items/spells are still used even if you wipe out the enemies in battle before that char's turn (sometimes doesn't work though - if the char is too slow compared to the rest?)
Six character parties
Battle formations (2 rows - can switch two characters during battle)
Vault/stash (faster access to it than in the prequel as well)
Can let weaker enemies go (not before transitioning into the battle screen though unless you equip a certain late game rune) and bribe other enemies
Some interesting plot devices (flashbacks to flesh out the main chars)
Fairly well realized political intrigue
Upgrade your own castle by recruiting more chars (automatic process though and its rooms are almost fully pre-built this time)
Some decent puzzles (wind cave)
Fishing mini-game (decent)
Temporary "rare finds" in shops - Shining Force?
Optional side quest (clive and elza's duel - well done but on a short hidden timer between triggers so it's hard to get to the conclusion)
Some memorable scenes (the Luca battle, Meeting McDohl and some other prequel chars, when the knights join you and leave their leader, two river city uniting, ) and characters
Nameable army and castle (you actually name the whole army when asked to name the hero's company so keep this in mind)
Castle elevator for faster travel between floors (Suikoden 1)
Teleport to any visited city after about half the game (via Viki) and back to the HQ castle a while later
Some choosing one character over another to recruit (Kasumi/Valeria, Ridley/Boris, Feather/Sigfried/Abizboah/Rulodia - can only recruit combinations of 2 or 3 out of these)
Nicer spell effects
"Equip best" option (FF7?)
Can recruit the hero from the prequel (if you got all characters and resurrected Gremio in Suikoden 1) - he will leave and go back to Gregminster during several story events though which is annoying since it leads to some long backtracking
Can have Richmond investigate each character to find out secrets about them
Some innovative runes (chimera - transfer status, spark - rest of party acts right after the user, skunk - can't be targeted, friendship - do more damage based on number or recruited chars, etc.)
Some non-random encounters (zombie infested Tinto city)
Multiple endings
Some good bosses (beast rune, luca blight, abomination, )
The game shows a biref explanation of what happened to each char during the ending (Langrisser)
+/-
Mostly linear structure
Resting at an inn is the only way to replenish MP/spell charges (unless you use a magic drain rune but it only restores lvl 1 spells)
108 stars characters can die for good in large scale battle
More slapstick humour and anime feel to the story sequences (silly rescue scene when you're about to be executed with Rowd daydreaming while all guards around him are knocked out)
Can wear two of some equipment types (boots, capes - a bit odd)
Some scenes are more brutal and/or adult than in Suikoden 1 (Rina and the guard, whipping before the execution, starving man who doesn't get help in Ryube)
Random encounters (not that frequent though besides Rockaxe castle)
Characters are only KO'd outside of battle and can be healed normally (no need to revive them)
Can't move through forests on the world map
Auto battle option (only one turn at a time though even if you don't press any buttons)
Save at inns and dungeon save points (not on the world map though; 6 slots - shows level/area/time/party makeup)
Have to equip any item before using it in battle (each char has only three "other" slots so you'll have to balance between items and defensive gear) - can be sort of overridden for healing items if you use a Medicine rune
No planning phase before a large scale battle
More cutscenes (pretty average CGI though)
Early on you can go to Toto but not find Jowy or clues about him there before he tries to rescue you at the mercenary fortress
Sappy tone at times (flashback, some hero and jowy scenes)
Chars will leave and join your party at will during the course of the game (Nanami in particular has a habit of forcing you to take her with you)
You're gradually given command of more and more units in army battles (helps the sense of progression but can be a bit annoying, most battles are also heavily scripted so you almost never get to fight it out like in the prequel)
No encounters at sea
One or more gay NPCs
Sometimes lacking rune descriptions in-game
Lacking character development for most optional chars (somewhat better than in Suikoden 1 overall though)
No battle marcos (see PSIV) and you can't make a char wait until another has acted in battle for tactical purposes
Dancing mini-game (very short and no need to follow the rhythm though)
Can't execute instead of recruit any enemy chars this time around and it doesn't matter if you imprison Lucia (assassin) or let her go
You don't get to use the dragon Bright until the sequel (could use a dragon in S1)
Few enemies that cause status ailments
Can't change equipment during battle
Mostly nerfed unite/combo attacks
Would've been cool if you the final boss fight also made you use multiple parties
-
No dungeon maps (get two world maps 5-10 hours into the game - the in field one is decent but you can't show the full map nor see location names on it and the full one can only be accessed via Templeton in the castle)
No diagonal movement
Backtracking (for example several towns lack certain facilities, can't teleport to Gregminster, ) and dead space
No quest log or journal feature
Some translation and audio errors (McDohl=TcDohl (lol), trade rumour NPC messages are glitched, grammatical errors, missing words, extra words, some sentences don't make sense; music not playing in some parts where it's supposed to (army battle at muse and Annallee's song - emulation problem?))
Fairly easy to accidentally pick the wrong dialogue option for the hero because unlike with other dialogue the text appears instantly whenever a dialogue choice triggers (so if you're speeding up other dialogue you'll easily press the button as soon as the box appears and pick a choice)
Plot oddities/conveniences (how you can't show that you're the hero during the Hoi event in the bar and avoid getting beat up by the locals, everyone but Nanami leaving the party without notice in Tinto before you go into the mine and encounter Neclord - everyone knows the special sword is needed to beat him here, when alex won't say what happened to killey instead of being dramatic and then saying his wife is the treasure, when nanami is surprised by Jowy's marriage - didn't someone inform the party about this earlier?, Tsai's fetch quest right before the battle against Luca - terrible timing and a bit drawn out since you can't teleport to his house nor use an escape talisman afterwards, why would Miklotov not ask the hero to come with him to Muse right away after the refugee battle when he wanted to cooperate earlier?, sometimes the main good guys have an important bad guy right in front of them which they can defeat/kidnap yet they let him go (Jowy), no one asks Leknaat about Jowy, why didn't Genkaku reveal Darrel's covering of his sword with poison until after the duel and how was his name cleared later without proof?, weird how the game skips over Viktor's story after meeting up in south window (as it would if the player char was recounting something the player knew), can't confront Jowy when you notice he's up to something, can't tell the official that you need to deliver a message after the spy mission early on, the rebel army doesn't scout and warn nearby villages near the beginning before the first battle with Luca's army, can't warn your camp about the ambush in the prologue despite spotting them while walking around to the east - can't affect most other major plot events either, Tsai knocks you out (if you try to fight Luca at Ryube) when there's a risk Luca will get to the mercenary fort before you - he's stronger but there might've been a way to distract him (he somehow gets to the fort after you though), Apple: "This is Viktor's fortress" - yeah, we know!, )
Some trial & error (saving Nanami - (need to get all chars, get her defense up to 121+, answer her on a short time limit when you're attacked in Rockaxe castle, and more!), Annallee's second location, pre-Luca ambush preparations (don't get to go buy equipment/grind after picking parties but before going after him), Luca can attack three times in one turn and the final boss five times (two of which are status attacks though), recruiting richmond - need to talk to a random NPC in the bar of the same town to get a non-trick coin and make him use it, during some parts of the game you are prevented from recruiting certain characters such as Connell even though you can recruit others in the same area, noticing Nina in the shadows during your stay at the academy - annoyingly drawn out segment as well since it's pretty obvious that you should use the statue to open a path, triggering the next event in two river town after meeting Makai and resting at the inn, getting the world map/templton, recruiting Kinnison and some other chars like Clive, some missable items (Recipe #3), finding certain book volumes (can examine most objects when exploring and there's no visual or other clue to their locations) and chars (Georg), storehouse being unavailable for some parts)
Unskippable intro (the sepia toned one) - short though
Can't turn off the yes/no prompt in battle
Sometimes you have to replace a current party member with a new recruit to be able to recruit a certain char
Slow ladder climbing
Many short but slow in-game cutscenes (after a while it starts to wear on you)
Can't replace an item stack without using up the items during battle
The hero's transition into an army leader isn't quite convincing
Hix's fetch quest
Need to have Stallion in your party to run on the world map (you'll be moving on foot between locations throughout almost the entire game (no travel by horse/flying creatures/vehicles)
Can't make chars remember their previous action in battle
Some unwinnable army battles because of scripting (battle 6/against the 3d company outside radat)
Squad battles in army battles are a bit too random (sometimes you lose less than half your units and sometimes the entire unit)
Formulaic game structure at times (town->catastrophe->dungeon->boss->story->repeat)
Fairly easy to overpower yourself for most of the game via rune customization
Several not so great chars (Gengen, Millie, Kinnison, Tsai, Tuta, Bolgan, Yoshino, Gabocha, Shilo, Hai Yo, Sid, Futch, Camus without Miklotov, Tomo, Hoi, Karen, Koyu, mid-late game: Yam Koo (no more combo with Yam Koo), Stallion, Meg, Kasumi, Hix, Badeaux, Simone, Sasuke, late game: Freed Y?, Rikimaru and Amada, Chaco, Shin?, Nina, Sheena, Tengaar, Ayda, Sigfried?, Killey, Bob, Lo Wen, Gantetsu, Genshu, Vincent)
Less of an impact from the final Neclord encounter here since the city he turns into zombies reverts back completely after beating him
Notes:
-Recruitment and char evaluation guide: http://www.lordyuanshu.com/suikoden-ii-2-108-stars-of-destiny-recruit-list
-Missables: https://suikosource.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=10236