Played til second boss.
First Impression:
I like it. I no longer expect to agree with Jason Schreier.
Of course, I haven't played Suikoden II, so I can't compare if it's lacking "heart and soul". But so far I like all the character designs, the voice acting, the writing. Battle animations are sick.
I have no clue why IGN says it has a slow start. When I hear slow start I think Persona, I think Suikoden V which takes hours to get to gameplay. This game has you in your first dungeon after a short 15-minute intro! And to the second dungeon shortly after! Maybe they mean it'll take a while before the grand epic military stuff starts.
Oh and I hate
Lian.