Suikoden is a role-playing video game published by Konami. A North American release followed one year later, and a mainland European release came the following April.

The Story Behind Suikoden

Recruiting the help of Odessa's brother, former imperial strategist Mathiu Silverberg, the Hero becomes the new Liberation Army leader. Pahn, unsure of where his loyalty lies, decided to side with the Empire. Many of the characters in this game also appear in later games in the Suikoden franchise.Characters include Tir McDohl (canonical, but referred to as Tir,) Gremio, Pahn, Cleo, Yuber, Viki, Viktor, Flik, Kraze, Barbarossa, Teo McDohl, Futch, Ted, Odessa, Mathiu, Luc, Kasumi, Leknaat, Jeane, Windy, Valeria, Ain Gide, Apple, Kanaan, Lepant, Mina, Neclord, Pesmerga, Sarah, Sheena, Varkas, Sydonia, Tai Ho, Window, Camille, Hix, Tengaar, and many more.

A high-definition English localization version of the compilation under the title Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars released worldwide on March 6, 2025 for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. The game is loosely based on the Chinese novel Water Margin, and features a vast array of characters both controllable and not, with over ninety characters usable in combat and many more able to help or hinder the hero in a variety of ways. A compilation of the first two Suikoden games, Suikoden I & II, was released for PlayStation Portable in Japan on February 23, 2006.

How Suikoden Plays

Suikoden plays like a traditional role-playing video game, with the player moving characters across a landscape, advancing the plot by completing tasks and talking with other characters. Information gathering and character recruiting is also a commonplace occurrence within towns. For instance, a character with four level 1 spell slots and a Water Rune could cast "Kindness Drops" (the level 1 Water Rune spell) four times.

Other runes offer different benefits such as allowing a character to deal double damage at the cost of a 50% reduction in defence. Attack beats defend, defend beats special and special beats attack. Two other types of battle systems exist: duel battles and war battles.

Why Players Still Load It Up

It was directed by Norihito Nakayashiki and ran in Tokyo and Kyoto in December 2025. He considered the game as a "warm-up" for upcoming RPGs such as Wild Arms or Final Fantasy VII. During the inaugural Interactive Achievement Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Suikoden for "Console Game of the Year" and "Console Role-Playing Game of the Year".

At the time of its release, Suikoden received mostly positive reviews. He identified the graphics as his one point of criticism, citing the pixelization when the game zooms and the absence of full motion video. They described it as the most ambitious PlayStation RPG to date, while noting that it was soon to be eclipsed by Final Fantasy VII.

Suikoden — Frequently Asked Questions