Board 8 > Rate the VG Story Day 446: Suikoden V

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Todays game is Suikoden V. How would you rate the story on a scale from 1-10?

You can still rate previous days games if you want or change your score, just post the name of the game and the score. If you want to know which games you have rated or what score you gave a game, just ask me. If you want to know what you rated a previous game just let me know. Nominations for future days are welcome.

Previous Results:
Clannad - 9.75 (4 votes)
Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers - 9.68 (11 votes)
Outer Wilds - 9.61 (22 votes)
Silent Hill 2 - 9.5 (20 votes)
Planescape: Torment - 9.5 (13 votes)
Higurashi When They Cry - 9.5 (9 votes)
Eternal Darkness: Sanitys Requiem 9.38 - (13 votes)
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker - 9.33 (10 votes)
428: Shibuya Scramble - 9.27 (9 votes)
Nier Automata - 9.25 (31 votes)
The Forgotten City - 9.2 (4 votes)
The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky SC - 9.2 (20 votes)
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations - 9.19 (35 votes)
Judgment - 9.17 (6 votes)
Last Window: The Secret of Cape West - 9.15 (10 votes)
Deus Ex - 9.14 (13 votes)
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim - 9.13 (15 votes)
The House in Fata Morgana - 9.06 (11 votes)
The Witcher III: Wild Hunt - 9.04 (8 votes)
Yakuza 0 - 9.03 (13 votes)
Red Dead Redemption 2 - 9 (8 votes)
Final Fantasy XIV (overall) - 8.98 (11 votes)
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater - 8.95 (31 votes)
Steins;Gate - 8.94 (9 votes)
Mother 3 - 8.91 (15 votes)
Umineko When They Cry - 8.89 (14 votes)
Zero Escape: Virtues Last Reward - 8.88 (21 votes)
Return of the Obra Dinn - 8.85 (10 votes)
Silent Hill 4: The Room - 8.83 (6 votes)
Suikoden II - 8.8 (11 votes)
Persona 3 - 8.76 (22 votes)
Nier - 8.75 (18 votes)
Omori - 8.75 (8 votes)
Grim Fandango - 8.75 (14 votes)
Xenogears - 8.73 (24 votes)
Tales of Berseria - 8.71 (15 votes)
Metal Gear Solid - 8.68 (28 votes)
Final Fantasy Tactics - 8.67 (27 votes)
Shadow Hearts: Covenant - 8.67 (6 votes)
Pyre - 8.64 (7 votes)
Portal 2 - 8.64 (19 votes)
Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward - 8.64 (11 votes)
Bastion - 8.63 (12 votes)
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty 8.63 (32 votes)
AI: The Somnium Files - 8.59 (13 votes)
Yakuza: Like a Dragon - 8.58 (6 votes)
The Legend of Zelda: Majoras Mask - 8.57 (28 votes)
Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together - 8.56 (8 votes)
Persona 4 - 8.56 (32 votes)
Disco Elysium - 8.56 (17 votes)
Marvels Guardians of the Galaxy - 8.55 (4 votes)
Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance - 8.53 (18 votes)
SOMA - 8.5 (6 votes)
The Great Ace Attorney: Resolve - 8.48 (11 votes)
Fate/Stay Night - 8.48 (12 votes)
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic - 8.47 (16 votes)
Undertale - 8.45 (42 votes)
Dragon Quest V - 8.44 (16 votes)
Mass Effect 2 - 8.44 (29 votes)
The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky the 3rd - 8.43 (12 votes)
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Spirit of Justice - 8.42 (17 votes)
What Remains of Edith Finch - 8.41 (19 votes)
Chrono Trigger - 8.4 (41 votes)
Shadow Hearts - 8.38 (8 votes)
Blasphemous - 8.38 (4 votes)
Shenmue II - 8.38 (4 votes)
Snatcher - 8.33 (6 votes)
Final Fantasy X - 8.31 (56 votes)
Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door - 8.31 (17 votes)
Final Fantasy VII - 8.29 (38 votes)
South Park: The Stick of Truth - 8.25 (18 votes)
Dead Space - 8.25 (8 votes)
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus - 8.23 (6 votes)
Fallout: New Vegas - 8.23 (13 votes)
Lunar: Silver Star Story - 8.22 (9 votes)
Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective - 8.21 (19 votes)
Parasite Eve - 8.19 (9 votes)
Dragon Quest XI - 8.19 (17 votes)
Final Fantasy VI - 8.19 (43 votes)
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - 8.19 (43 votes)
The Walking Dead Season 1 - 8.16 (22 votes)
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies - 8.15 (17 votes)
Wolfenstein: The New Order - 8.14 (7 votes)
The Last of Us - 8.13 (35 votes)
The Witcher - 8.13 (7 votes)
Fire Emblem: Three Houses - 8.12 (14 votes)
Tales From the Borderlands - 8.12 (7 votes)
Conkers Bad Fur Day - 8.11 (9 votes)
Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals - 8.11 (9 votes)
The Wolf Among Us - 8.11 (15 votes)
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance - 8.11 (17 votes)
Hellblade: Senuas Sacrifice - 8.1 (5 votes)
Horizon: Zero Dawn - 8.06 (18 votes)
The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky - 8 (18 votes)
Portal - 8 (26 votes)
Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna: The Golden Country - 7.98 (5 votes)
Xenoblade Chronicles - 7.98 (28 votes)
Uncharted 4: A Thiefs End - 7.97 (16 votes)
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel - 7.96 (14 votes)
Hades - 7.96 (22 votes)
Tsukihime - 7.94 (7 votes)
Inscryption - 7.93 (10 votes)
God of War (2018) - 7.93 (14 votes)
Ace Attorney Investigations 2 - 7.92 (13 votes)
Persona 5 - 7.92 (27 votes)
Life is Strange - 7.92 (32 votes)
Alan Wake - 7.91 (8 votes)
Spec Ops: The Line - 7.9 (17 votes)
Cyberpunk 2077 - 7.9 (7 votes)
Bloodborne - 7.88 (20 votes)
Kid Icarus: Uprising - 7.86 (13 votes)
Killer7 - 7.85 (10 votes)
Night in the Woods - 7.8 (15 votes)
Silent Hill - 7.8 (15 votes)
Psychonauts - 7.79 (7 votes)
Deadly Premonition - 7.77 (11 votes)
Final Fantasy IX - 7.77 (26 votes)
Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn - 7.75 (14 votes)
Mario & Luigi: Bowsers Inside Story - 7.75 (10 votes)
Silent Hill 3 - 7.75 (8 votes)
Professor Layton and the Unwound Future - 7.75 (6 votes)
Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain - 7.75 (4 votes)
NEO: The World Ends With You - 7.75 (4 votes)
The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind - 7.75 (4 votes)
Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors - 7.73 (32 votes)
The Last of Us: Left Behind - 7.73 (11 votes)
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor - 7.73 (11 votes)
Mega Man Zero - 7.71 (7 votes)
Kentucky Route Zero - 7.7 (10 votes)
The Sexy Brutale - 7.75 (6 votes)
Vagrant Story - 7.67 (6 votes)
Bioshock - 7.65 (24 votes)
Skies of Arcadia - 7.63 (15 votes)
Suikoden - 7.63 (15 votes)
Paper Mario: The Origami King - 7.63 (6 votes)
Saints Row 2 - 7.63 (4 votes)
Radiant Historia - 7.62 (13 votes)
Doki Doki Literature Club - 7.61 (28 votes)
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver - 7.6 (5 votes)
Final Fantasy VII Remake - 7.58 (20 votes)
Ys IX: Monstrum Nox - 7.57 (6 votes)
Celeste - 7.56 (26 votes)
Half-Life 2 - 7.55 (10 votes)
Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake - 7.54 (12 votes)
Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair - 7.51 (31 votes)
Policenauts - 7.5 (5 votes)
Erica - 7.5 (4 votes)

8

A very strong story that suffers from some pacing issues - perhaps somewhat due to the gameplay, but also due to the lack of urgency at some points. The game also has a very tacked-on final boss that feels like typical Suikoden: They just rushed the ending and didn't bother making it logical.

It starts SO slow I never got through much of it

However I did not get through enough that I feel justified to leave a vote. Someday I'll go back and play it proper.

Lopen posted...

It starts SO slow I never got through much of it

However I did not get through enough that I feel justified to leave a vote. Someday I'll go back and play it proper.

The game has not aged very well tbqh. The gameplay is so clunky and slow, which doesn't help matters when the pacing is already bad.

8.5

Has some 10/10 moments, but not consistently engaging enough to give any higher a score.

8.5

Very strong overall but yeah, has some pacing problems, especially toward the beginning (though not only there). When it gets going, it really gets going though.

9.5/10. I remember liking a lot of it. I didn't really mind the slow start either.

9

The pacing issues are all on the gameplay side of things imo

BlueCrystalTear posted...

The gameplay is so clunky and slow, which doesn't help matters when the pacing is already bad.

It really is. It reminds me of FFIX with the sluggish animations.

I'd love a remake where the battles zoom like Suikoden 1/2.

8.5/10

Really enjoyed it but I can see why others wouldn't. Isn't like the first 6-8 hours or so of the game basically tutorial-esque handholding?

9.5/10

Whoa, these are some great scores.

I won Suikoden V in an eBay auction complete-in-box for $90 a couple years ago, so I need to fire it up one of these days.

I think, and this is just through third hand observations, that the scores are slightly warped a little by it being one of those games where once you get through the harsh opening your rewarded with a great stort, but a whoooooole lot of people who tried to play dropped off before breaking that barrier and don't have enough under their belt to score it.

It's like it's got its own, self contained A Real Reborn within itself.

I would use Tales of Graces as an example, but on reply that opening is pretty strong.

9.5/10

Loved the story. Definitely one of my favorites in a video game. Couple things hold it back from being a 10, but it was what I was definitely looking for after Suikoden III and IV.

Eh, change to a

9/10

I probably was knocking it a bit for gameplay pacing.

9.5

The only reason why this isn't getting a solid 10 from me is because the pacing is not as tight as Suikoden II which may be a result of Suikoden V being a much longer game. I really hope this game gets a HD Remaster, which I can now say because there is a non zero chance.

Sir Georg Prime for Character Battle XI.

UshiromiyaEva posted...

one of those games where once you get through the harsh opening your rewarded with a great stort

Suikoden V does not have a "harsh opening". Sure it doesn't go into full gear right away but it starts off with a very compelling plot arc doing its job with amazing world building expositions all the way up to the coliseum tournament (still quite early in the game) where you are actively rooting for Belcoot to pull through, all the while mysteries are unfolding which happens to be ominous foreshadowing for things to come. Then the game goes into full gear. The beginning is only "slow" in comparison to what happens after. If anything the middle stretch is where things are a little "slow" but the various mini-arcs are all done very well and keeps you engaged throughout.

Really like to emphasize that the slow or so called harsh opening is grossly exaggerrated for people who haven't played the game.

Axl_Rose_85 posted...

Suikoden V does not have a "harsh opening". Sure it doesn't go into full gear right away but it starts off with a very compelling plot arc doing its job with amazing world building expositions all the way up to the coliseum tournament (still quite early in the game) where you are actively rooting for Belcoot to pull through, all the while mysteries are unfolding which happens to be ominous foreshadowing for things to come. Then the game goes into full gear.

Agree with this. I thought the opening was cool and did a nice job setting the stage. Also, when the plot suddenly picked up, it came as a sort of a surprise too.

UshiromiyaEva posted...

It's like it's got its own, self contained A Real Reborn within itself.

I would use Tales of Graces as an example, but on reply that opening is pretty strong.

Dude. Do you just jump on every negativity train by just looking at what other people post?

Take everything with a grain of salt. Play the game yourself and form your own opinion. Then whether it is a positive or negative take, you are entitled to your own opinion whether people like it or not.

UshiromiyaEva posted...

I think, and this is just through third hand observations, that the scores are slightly warped a little by it being one of those games where once you get through the harsh opening your rewarded with a great story, but a whoooooole lot of people who tried to play dropped off before breaking that barrier and don't have enough under their belt to score it.

It's like it's got its own, self contained A Real Reborn within itself.

I would use Tales of Graces as an example, but on reply that opening is pretty strong.

Yeah, the early game can repel people, because there's not much interesting going on. The graphics are garbage for the time, the battles are clunky (and tbh weren't that great even by the standards of the day), and things don't get interesting until Godwin takes the castle hostage. Once that happens, the game is mostly interesting from there on out. One of the best parts is when Godwin's rival guy - I forget his name, think it started with a B - tries to "help" Frey with foreign mercenaries, and Sialeeds (I think?) comes up with the idea to attack them to prevent an alliance with someone sketchy AF, then calls him and his offspring "fops" to their faces. I also went for the True Ending and that was pretty great, with Frey becoming Captain of the Guard, marrying Lyon, and the young queen saying she'll choose her own husband instead of relying on a centuries-old ritual that gave her a slimy usurper like Godwin.

I honestly think if I were to revisit the game, I'd want to watch a playthrough of it that cuts out the battles and focuses only on the plot. Because the battles are slow and even more redundant than most JRPGs, it's harder to soak in things as they happen. There feels like there's too much space between events because of gameplay, which makes it harder to enjoy the story.

Tales of Graces has a great opening, as it's one of the most memorable parts of an otherwise forgettable story. The writers nailed the humor there but that's about it.

I enjoyed the early story of Suikoden V. It wasn't as compelling as what came after, but I could tell that it was clearly in the setup phase, and the setup was good and introduced a bunch of likable characters. My hangups with the game have only ever been about the gameplay, specifically the random battle encounter rate and the needlessly obtuse requirements for some Stars of Destiny.

Yeah, I enjoyed the early game story. (Which is way more enjoyable with the Champion Rune). I feel like Suikoden should just have an 'encounters off' button.

First of all Axl why did you make two seperate POSTS in a row quoting me THAT'S A MAJOR PET PEVE.

Second I have tried to start SuiV 3 times now over the last 12 years! I usually make it 3 or 4 hours in and stop.

I'm going to try again though. Got it working on my dang phone a few nights ago, gonna give this it's first shot in half a decade and I'm really looking forward to it!

Because I read through that post without seeing who the user was until I saw it was you. And this is not a shot against you or anything it is just an observation. You seem to be jumping on anything that has some sort of negativity bandwagon and accentuating it. It almost feels LMS-like, where you are generating your opinion based on other people's takes rather than forming your own based on your experiences.

Also at the time of my posting, it wasn't clear to me that you have even given the game a shot because of the way you posted it. The style of post was very LMS-like and the examples you used like A Realm Reborn (literally an MMORPG) and Tales of Graces (where the script is likely written by a 10-year old) certainly didn't help with that matter.

I'm not targeting or attacking you like Maria Taylor was doing in that FE Engage topic (which again contributed to my notion of you accentuating any negative press about a game) if that's what you think I'm doing. I'm just pointing out that this is an observation I have come to make over the last couple of topics I've seen you posting in.

I appreciate the candor even if I disagree with the implications.

I think Grace's and XIV are completely viable comparison points, both jRPGs with generally considered weak starts. Graces is less viable since it doesn't actually have that pickup afterwards, but depending on what my fresh take is on V it may be apt as an "RPG that's start is way underrated". The 10 year old comment is insulting...to 10 year olds, they could lead a way better story than Hideo Baba ever could.

I do think the "literally an MMO" comment towards XIV is way off base. It's a fully fleshed out jRPG story, one of if not THE best out there in fact by the end of it (the two highest rated jRPGs in this very topic are XIV expansions!) even with a terrible start. It's a pretty clean comparison!

And my opinions in the Engage topic were completely my own and had nothing to do with anyone else's opinions or statements! I have also cooled a while lot on those takes a while lot conlelelt on my own. Opinions change!

Nominate:
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
Pokemon Sword & Shield
Mega Man Legends
Golden Sun: Dark Dawn
Disgaia: Hour of Darkness
Lost Odyssey

6

The difference is ARR is a 200+ hour experience and for me the game never really picked up even at the end. I was just glad it was over. I heard the expansions are much better but I have no energy to spare anymore for an MMO, maybe ever.

Tales of Graces, bad as the childhood arc is, it is still considered the strongest part of the story (lol) and I agree, bad as it was, it was still better than the rest of the game.

So hence why I called your post, LMS-like because that dude posts the most random comparison with his current obsession (and by current I mean, something from several years back or maybe even a decade). I thought you were falsely advocating (without having played I assumed at the time) the already preposterous take on Suikoden V having a "horrendous start" when in actuality, its start has more things that happen than many other JRPGs have in their entire fetch-quest storylines.

All stuff you're entitled to the opinion on!

Not sure how someone manages to put 200 hours into ARR though lol.