Board 8 > Suikoden I&II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars Review Zone

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://opencritic.com/game/18206/suikoden-i-ii-hd-remaster-gate-rune-and-dunan-unification-wars
https://www.metacritic.com/game/suikoden-i-and-ii-hd-remaster-gate-rune-and-dunan/

The revitalization of the Suikoden series starts here? The first two games are here in all their glory and in the case of Suikoden II I mean that literally as it's one of the best jrpgs on the PS1. This is a true HD Remaster in the truest sense of the word. All the backgrounds and assets have been remade for 4K and all the character portraits redrawn by the original artist with a few QoL features thrown in, including auto battle, speed up, equipment exchange between party members and being able to turn off timers for timed events (hello Clive quest in Suikoden II). Unfortunately not a ton of reviews because I assume reviewers are focusing on actual new games like Monster Hunter Wilds and Split Fiction, but hey were still got 16 of them here for an 84% average on OC and 83% on MC (both Suiko 1 and 2 originally averaged an 82% upon release) indicating these games have aged just fine and are still as good now as they were back then.

Infinite Start - 10/10
Suikoden I & II HD Remaster is a fantastic revival of two classic JRPGs, offering improved visuals, smoother combat, and helpful quality-of-life features. The updated translation, trophies, new hard mode, and the option to adjust time-sensitive events make it more accessible to newcomers and veterans. With its engaging story, deep character development, and strategic gameplay, this remaster is a must-play for any JRPG fan.

RPG Fan - 9.2/10
To be clear, Suikoden I & II shine even more brightly here than they have for over 25 years. Plus, building up your base is still a blast, and I got the same dopamine hit every time I added someone to my army. The characters and story are still working on a singular, elevated level. I love the look and the sound. But, even this superfan purist wanted a little more care and attention in addressing the legitimate complaints people have about these games.

RPG Site - 9/10
The effort put forth by Konami pays off in dividends. The end result is a project that, like another Pixel Remaster project before it, has the best of both worlds. These are games that play and look just like you remembered them, but somehow even a bit better. Slight QOL changes complement, rather than complicate, the gameplay. Suikoden I&II HD Remaster Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars might be a mouthful of a title, but its one that reaches for the stars - and knocks it out of the park.

Worth Playing - 9/10
Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune & Dunan Unification Wars is an excellent updated port of two great games. Almost all of the changes are for the better, the translation is massively improved, and it still maintains all of the charm and flavor of the original games. Whether you're a longtime fan or a newcomer to the franchise, there's genuinely no better place to start than the Suikoden I & II HD Remaster. Even if you're just a fan of RPGs, it's well worth a try, if only to see what all the hype is about.

Nintendo Life - 8/10
While not as feature-rich as some collections, Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars proves that these RPGs have largely stood the test of time. While the issues with this remaster don't take away too much from the original games' brilliance, we think these classics deserve the very best. Boasting ambition, narrative stakes, and heart that few other RPGs of the time can muster, Suikoden burns bright in its origins, and we hope Konami sees just how important this series is to many and makes a handful of tweaks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYP_3o2WaT8

Push Square - 8/10
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.

TheSixthAxis - 8/10
In an otherwise basic set of JRPGs, I was constantly kept entertained and on my toes thanks to the features that make Suikoden such an iconic and unique series. Constantly encountering and recruiting hundreds of new allies was a thrill, and any time the slightly-basic story or combat started to overstay their welcome, an epic Duel battle or a massive War battle shook things up and got me right back into the thick of it. Suikoden I&II HD Remaster doesnt make these old-school titles feel like brand new games by any stretch, but its still a surprisingly polished and easily accessible way to dive into JRPG history.

Noisy Pixel - 7.5/10
Suikoden I&II HD Remaster revives two beloved JRPG classics with enhanced visuals and quality-of-life improvements. While Suikoden I offers a solid, if rushed, introduction, Suikoden II stands out as a masterclass in storytelling, character development, and emotional depth. With strategic combat, 108 recruitable characters, and new difficulty options, this remaster reintroduces a long-lost gem to a modern audienceflaws and all.

Gotta slam Radiant Dawn again first, but excited!

Let's gooooooo

The only Suikoden I've ever played was Tierkreis and I liked it even though everyone says it's the worse one.

The look of this game doesn't interest me, but I do like classic RPGs so I'm guessing it's worth a shot.

One of the few games I'll buy on release at full price. FF7 released on my birthday and got me into RPGs, Suikoden was released shortly after in Europe and was the next RPG I played

Holds extra meaning to me now because my friend from school who also loved Suikoden passed away a few months back. He was the only other person I knew (in person) that played them.

Tierkreis is better than 4 at least. I'm also a 3 hater but that's definitely a hot take

I ordered it on Amazon cuz I had a gift card. Won't get here til Monday. Maybe I'll have time to beat Cold Steel 4 first (lol)

For anyone who hasn't played them, these are the best RPGs ever made. Both of them.

colliding posted...

Tierkreis is better than 4 at least. I'm also a 3 hater but that's definitely a hot take

I think 3 is somewhat divisive but its definitely weighted way more toward people like/loving it than not.
4 is definitely the worst though. Tierkries is okay, its just not what people wanted from Suikoden.

My physical copy arrives Sunday

Tiekreis was turned into a suikoden game halfway through development (or so I heard) If you think of it as its own thing, its not that bad.

Even I know we gotta support this

_stingers_ posted...

I ordered it on Amazon cuz I had a gift card. Won't get here til Monday. Maybe I'll have time to beat Cold Steel 4 first (lol)

Same holding out hope it arrives early and I can actually start it this weekend

Everywhere I tried ordering online couldn't guarantee release day so just went and grabbed it from Best Buy

I was debating between PS5 and Switch. Probably should have gone switch in hindsight since it's far more likely to get a price reduction on PS5 than Nintendo down the line and I could have grabbed a second copy then. Ah well, least I can play it on my portal

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/f/f7022bd0.jpg

Get those trophies

I just don't trust even the most basic of games isn't gonna have some type of performance issue on Switch SOMEWHERE anymore, so it's pretty much just a visual novel machine for me nowadays lol.

For some reason my DLC bonus won't trigger. I've redeemed it and it shows in the transaction history. Instructions say it should prompt you when you start the game to trigger it. I get nothing. Unless it's after the naming screen

Edit: It is indeed post naming screen

SHINE_GET_64 posted...

My physical copy arrives Sunday

Lucky mine comes on Monday.

Sweet Sweet Suikoden.

Glad to see I can still get an early Fortune Rune from Sarady. The upgraded character portraits are really well done. Default walking speed feels realllly slow though. Also can no longer cheese Marco out of a ton of potch :( Though they kept the most important thing. The dragons still sound like Elephants. 10/10 would love dragon elephants all the time.

tcaz2 posted...

I think 3 is somewhat divisive but its definitely weighted way more toward people like/loving it than not.
4 is definitely the worst though. Tierkries is okay, its just not what people wanted from Suikoden.

3 is loved by those who it was their first suikoden game. People who played 1 and 2 first deservedly look down upon it because it's nowhere near as good as 1 and 2.

3 was hella broken with dodge though.

Ifrit posted...

Also can no longer cheese Marco out of a ton of potch :(

aw BITCH

Finally got a chance to start, decided to go with Hard mode. Well see how it goes.

I didn't play for long last night but I legit couldn't tell the difference on hard mode. Maybe they only really messed with bosses or something. I only got as far as the first Odessa meeting

SHINE_GET_64 posted...

Get those trophies

Looking at the trophy list, is it gonna require 2 playthroughs each for the platinum? Because there's one for just beating the game and another one for beating the game on hard.

Maybe it stacks? I'd have to look into it

I checked the latest earners on PSNP, the trophies stack

so just play both games on Hard

Yeah I finished Mt Seifu and Hard is crazy easy so far. I cant even imagine what Easy is like.

wasn't there some convoluted missable sidequest or something in part 2 that was sort of not worth it to do or something?

I vaguely remember something like that

I bring it up because I'm curious if its a trophy

Punnyz posted...

wasn't there some convoluted missable sidequest or something in part 2 that was sort of not worth it to do or something?

I vaguely remember something like that

I bring it up because I'm curious if its a trophy

there's an option to turn off the timer for that so you can just do it without having to worry

I saw someone post that turning off the timer messed up the mail box which I assume is the suggestion box at the castle. Still a small price to pay because having to bumrush the Clive quest sucks and it's a struggle to get the 108 ending and complete that quest

I just realized I already messed up. I never visited Gregminster store so I've screwed myself out of winged boots

I think you can get them as drops way later.

I swear Tai Ho's game cheats now. Just got to him. Here's my results

Out of bowl
1-2-3
1-2-3
1-2-3
Out of bowl (Tai Ho had no score here)
1
No score
1-2-3
Win (2 over no score)

The out of bowls weren't remotely close to the edge, they bounced out from the middle.

Luckily I had plenty of porch from the DLC thing so didn't have to go farm between losses

Had my first loss, just after Tai Ho.

The dragon at Toran Lake Castle. No idea if difficulty setting or bad luck, but it did its AOE fire breath like 10 turns in a row and it was impossible to keep up. Hopefully that was just a fluke.

I literally just did that fight now on hard mode and it almost wiped me too even though I went into the forest by accident (was seeing if I could get Camille a rune before going) so was level 20 off the 1 fight I did there. From what I remember the dragon fight is usually level 15-16 ish. The aoe fire breath you would basically have to cure everyone the turn after it because back to back would kill anyone not named Viktor and his absurd HP pool.

Also did the stone tablet always list Pahn on it immediately after getting it even though he doesn't rejoin for a bit?

Also I think I know what hard mode actually does. I think it makes enemies faster so they act before you more frequently. There's probably HP/Attack bloat too but most random enemies seems to out speed me and I don't think that was the case in the original

I died once to the zombie dragon but then I healed with medicines the next time and beat it pretty easily. To me hard mode seems to make characters miss more, and maybe do a bit more damage. Though I didn't try normal mode.

Watching my daughters play this is a joy, seeing them react to one of my favorite series (my oldest daughter has already played the games, but she's playing it again too now) Wondering what mistakes they'll make. (I did say I'd help them get every character they can, but I won't tell them if they're making a big mistake or not)

Only took 8 spins on the big wheel thank god. Also got the dragon incense too so no need for further messing around.

Just as a heads up, you can softlock yourself. You need to go hideously out of the way to do so but apparently if you farm up enough water rune attachments at the start of the game, they no longer cap at 9. So its physically possible to attach enough to out Regen the unwinnable Neclord fight where you can't hit him ensuring the fight never ends

Shattered posted...

I swear Tai Ho's game cheats now. Just got to him. Here's my results

Out of bowl
1-2-3
1-2-3
1-2-3
Out of bowl (Tai Ho had no score here)
1
No score
1-2-3
Win (2 over no score)

The out of bowls weren't remotely close to the edge, they bounced out from the middle.

Luckily I had plenty of porch from the DLC thing so didn't have to go farm between losses

Yeah, this game definitely cheats now it seems. Go to recruit Gaspar and first 3 games I don't even get a throw. He throws triple 4, 4-5-6 and triple 6

It seems to be opposite for me. I rarely get to throw, but only because he loses on his own so often.

yeah, I won Tai ho first try. Never did that on the PSX version. (He got a 5, I got 3 4's)
Gaspar still seems easy.

I didn't think they could make the inventory management worse, but somehow they did!

Gaspar is still an endless source of money for me. Sometimes he does well, but most of the time he'll roll a 1/1/1 or a 1/2/3 and that's that.

McDohl Rises

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/7/725c8c8b.jpg

Finally got the map, now the real game begins.

Ifrit posted...

I didn't think they could make the inventory management worse, but somehow they did!

Gaspar is still an endless source of money for me. Sometimes he does well, but most of the time he'll roll a 1/1/1 or a 1/2/3 and that's that.

I was trying to to remember this. Equipped gear didn't use to take up slots right?

I put the prosperity rune on Gremio and haven't needed to cheese any money out of the luck games so far.

Shattered posted...

I was trying to to remember this. Equipped gear didn't use to take up slots right?

You used to be able to see if someone could equip something if you transferred it to them, and if it'd be better I think. And if they had space or not, which it doesn't now for some reason.

Im getting absolutely destroyed on the matching game, and I dont think you can quit if you fail so I just have to wait for minute aughhhh

Close to finishing Suikoden 1 on hard, three dungeons to go IIRC. Only two fights have been threatening, but I forgot that there was no save point before Neclord. I was prepared, luckilly, but god help you if you don't know when the fight is coming, and don't have someone with the flowing rune on. I remember them having a single target attack, but they certainly didn't use it.

Mina with flowing rune Tengaar after Neclord and never die again, even on hard mode tbqh.