Bandit Kings of Ancient China, also known as Suikoden-Tenmei no Chikai in Japan, is a turn-based strategy role-playing simulation video game developed and published by Koei, and released in 1989 for MS-DOS, Amiga and the Macintosh and in 1990 for the Nintendo Entertainment System. In 1996, Koei issued a remake for the Japanese Sega Saturn and Sony PlayStation featuring vastly improved graphics and new arrangements of the original songs.
Suikoden Tendou 108 Sei (ST108S), released on the Playstation and Sega Saturn, is the sequel to Suikoden-Tenmei no Chikai, though markedly different from the original - in terms of game play - is a worthy successor.
ST108S, like BKoAC, is an adaptation of the book, the Water Margin by Luo Guanzhong (the story, if not the volumes themselves, made wildly popular by the Konami series, Suikoden), and tells the stories of the one hundred and eight bandits of the Liang Marshes and their adversaries in the Late Song Dynasty of China (the game starts in 1101 Current Era). The player controls one of the main characters of that bandit hoard. By slowly gaining followers, popularity and territory, that bandit leader will rise to prominence to redeem the crimes of his past. The beauty of the game lies in how many different ways the player is allowed to get to that point.
There is a great deal of variety between the playable bandits in both their strengths and weaknesses as well as their starting positions. About half of all games start with the player's bandit in exile with nothing but the knowledge of how to fight. Moving into an unclaimed prefecture might yield some starting goods and followers and some extra popularity by killing beasts, or the player might get particularly unlucky and have most of the hard work from the journey negated by an innkeeper serving drugged wine. The followers gained while in exile, or later recruited, will teach the leader how to build new types of facilities or carry out other tasks based on the classes of those recruits.
The class system helps to give the player the feeling of being a know nothing bandit that needs a little help from his friends. Each follower will have at least one and at most two classes. Classes range from the enormously coveted Artisans, Wizards and Doctors to the seemingly less useful Innkeepers and Dancers (seemingly less useful, because with enough time, all the lemons become lemonade). The relative abundance of each class in the early game forces the player to deal with any shortages and craft strategies to work around any early missing necessities. Because of this, every early game has the chance to be completely different from the one before it. One game the player might be forced to fight using an unarmed peasant militia; the next, the player could have wizards and hunters. Even the worst possible early game class combination is surmountable given the right tactics.
The domestic phase of ST108S runs similarly to a RTS. The leader and his followers move around the prefecture doing assigned tasks: building new facilities, enhancing existing buildings, recruiting new followers, leaving and returning to the prefecture to rob from or negotiate with other leaders, etc. as the game days go by. Once a war breaks out, the game days pause and the action switches to a tactical RPG type battle. Bandits have a large arsenal of tactics they can use during battle based on their physical and mental stats as well as their classes. Battles can swing unpredictably due to a botched spell or an unforeseen trump card. This can turn even the most sure victory into a tense endeavor or even a reversed rout; a refreshing alternative to a lot of strategy games where battle is an afterthought to development and planning.
Another way the game puts the player into the role of no good bandit is with the tremendously rewarding ransack command. Every time a bandit destroys a facility in battle, there is a good possibility that bandit will regain some stamina (which is limited in battle) and/or the leader will gain a reward item. Without fail, the player will also receive all the goods stored in that facility. Coupling this with the option to go to war solely to ransack without any penalties for running away, can turn even the most well intentioned role player into a filthy marauder bent on treasure. [This reviewer goes so far as to level the rival prefectures into dust, and wishes there was an option to salt the earth afterward.]
About ten percent of all characters have a blood relation or spouse. These relationships can both hinder and help the player. Characters that have relations outside of the player's employ may try to leave to be with that relative and stopping them from leaving knocks off a huge amount of the leader's popularity. However, the character may have a much better (stats wise) relative visit the prefecture and immediately enlist with the player's leader even if that leader does not have the popularity necessary to recruit said relative. Another benefit to having a set of relatives is when they are assigned to the same task, they will finish it far faster than if they were not related to each other.
Manufacturer's description:
Chinese classic "Suikoden" fortress-based management simulation. Disturb the national interest "Koukyuu" intended to overthrow. Map changes in real time, such as the establishment of the clearing of land and buildings. Also, when fighting becomes turn-based combat simulation, of witchcraft, and one term, and the destruction of the facility, you can fight enemies by utilizing a variety of tactics.
Features:
- First & third person perspectives.
- 2D graphics
- Cartoon graphics
- Ancient China theme.
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