Is the Suikoden HD Remaster for Nintendo Switch worth your time in 2025? Suikoden is a series I worried was lost to time. The last time we saw a Suikoden game was way back in 2012 and even then, it was a spin-off so a series revisit was long overdue and there’s no better way to experience a series than the beginning.
This classic JRPG was originally released in 1995 for the Sony PlayStation followed by a port a few years later on the Sega Saturn. Personally, I find it hard to believe that three decades have passed since the original release, I guess I’m getting old! Thankfully, Konami has remastered and bundled the first two games in the series together as Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars. For this review, I will focus on the first game Suikoden I, also known as Gate Rune War which I will follow up with a full review of the second game once I have completed it.
What Is Suikoden I?
Suikoden I is a turn-based JRPG with a heavy emphasis on story. We play the game as Tir McDohl whose father is a general in the Scarlet Moon Empire. Due to Tir’s father’s high-ranking position, he has lived a life of somewhat luxury surrounded by a loyal group of friends and confidants. Without spoiling the plot too much, the Empire ends up being corrupt and after some very early game events, Tir falls into the role of leader of the resistance army with the ultimate goal of ousting the Empire.
To aid Tir in his adventures, he must enlist the help of the “108 Stars of Destiny” which are scattered throughout the game world and can be recruited to join your party. Each member has their own strengths and weaknesses with some offering unique skills like Blacksmithing or the ability to supply the Resistance with items back at your base of operations.
What’s New in the HD Remaster?
The whole game has been polished from the bottom to the top but the HD Remaster doesn’t go as far as say a full HD-2D style remake like some of Sqaure-Enix’s titles recently. We now have widescreen support, better sprites and a remastered soundtrack which retains the same feel as the original.
Several quality-of-life features have been added:
- Auto-battle and fast-forward cut out the tedium of having to select all 6 character’s moves just for the enemy to be dispatched in a single attack with the speed increase offering up to 3 times the normal game speed for much snappier grinding and fights.
- Auto-saving Suikoden now features a rather generous Auto-Save feature almost anywhere in the game.
Throughout Suikoden I, tons of little improvements make you forget you are playing a game from over 30 years ago.
Story and Characters
The overarching story is one of political intrigue mixed in some smaller character-driven moments between Tir or any of the 108 recruitable characters.
Suikoden’s story includes subjects such as self-sacrifice, love, regret and even loss and manages to pull it all off in under 25 hours. With Tir being the silent protagonist archetype, the story is more something that happens around you rather than to you. For example, there are many moments during the game where Tir will have to answer a question one of two ways, yet the game rarely lets you progress until you select the ‘correct’ answer and it does make the whole game feel a tad linear at times.
One other thing I should mention is that even though you can recruit all 108 Stars of Destiny, I’d say only around 10 or so are very important to the core story with others feeling a little like they have a single useful skill and then you don’t hear from them for the rest of the story.
Gameplay and Combat
Combat is where Suikoden shines in my opinion. It’s classic turn-bassed combat with Six playable characters on screen at any time. You start a battle by selecting all six party members’ moves and they all fire off in quick succession which makes the combat feel fast and satisfying.
The game introduces various subsystems:
- Unite Attacks: Combo moves performed by specific party combinations. The game never gives you any indication of which party members can team up and deal these devastating attacks so it’s worth experimenting with your party lineup often.
- Rune System: Magic is tied to runes which need to be equipped per party member essentially locking them into a type of elemental spell-casting affinity. Unfortunately, you cannot carry more than one rune on a character at a time (Unlike the sequel) but you can change them out freely back at your HQ.
- Battles and Duels: These happen sporadically throughout the story and are more cinematic than a standard battle. A duel is a one-on-one fight that happens a mere handful of times through the story but the Battles happen a lot more and will feature your entire roster of characters and have a weapons triangle system not too unlike the Fire Emblem games.
Performance on Nintendo Switch
I’m happy to report the game plays perfectly on the Nintendo Switch in both handheld play and docked with sprite work looking especially good on the OLED Switch.
There was no framerate issues, crashes or irregularities during my 22-hour playthrough, the only thing that did feel slightly weird was the occasional message appearing between screens showing that the Autosave was taking place. This could be because I was playing the game from the SD card, but was a very minor annoyance.
Nostalgia vs. 2025
The HD Remastered feels fantastic to play as someone who played the original games back when they were released. However, I do fear that Suikoden’s cult-like following and hype may disappoint some players who have yet to dive into the series. The game is quite easy overall and quite frankly not as good as its sequel. The story is great but the gameplay and pacing feel a little linear at times with its forced dialogue choices and it’s underutilized world maps.
Conclusion
Verdict
Suikoden I HD Remaster is now the definitive way to play this classic JRPG. There’s a great story here featuring some very memorable moments and a fantastic combat system. It’s the perfect entry point in the series for newcomers.
Pros:
- Deep Political Story
- 108 recruitable characters
- Satisfying and fast-paced combat
- Perfect performance on Switch
- Great soundtrack remaster
Cons:
- Limited inventory space per character
- Not enough backstory for some minor characters
- Fear of missing recruitable characters
8.5
Nintendo Switch review code kindly provided by Konami