The PS1 played host to an incredible variety of unforgettable and prominent RPGs, among which was Konami’s SuikodenAfter that strong launching came a handful of follows up that ultimately puttered out throughout the 6th generation of consoles, and Konami has actually essentially deserted the series considering that. Not ones to be suppressed, some crucial members of the Suikoden team ultimately left Konami and established a brand-new group called Rabbit & & Bear, which began an effective crowdfunding project for this spiritual follower called Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred HeroesAfter a four-year advancement cycle, Eiyuden Chronicle is lastly in our hands and while it has its share of concerns, this is in general a deeply satisfying and sentimental JRPG that we’re sure is going to get a great deal of love.
The story is embeded in the imaginary land of Allraan and starts by concentrating on the increasing stress in between the effective royal nation of Galdea and a surrounding province called the League of Nations. There are technically 3 lead characters to this story, your primary character to start with is Nowa, a chipper boy from a peaceful border town who signs up with a little peacekeeping military system for the League of Nations. Nowa and atrioventricular bundle tackle their service stopping outlaw raids and assisting individuals to the very best of their capability, however quickly discover themselves captured in the middle of much bigger political stress that ultimately paves the way to war in between the Empire and the League. To recover his homeland and avenge his losses, Nowa hence sets out to construct a resistance and beat the Galdeans.
It feels like the pacing of the story can move in fits and begins in a lot of locations, we appreciate the scope of the story here. Any method you sufficed, appropriately stabilizing over a hundred distinct characters and detailing all the different global disputes impacting them is a hard request for any composing group, and whatever depth is lost in the overarching plot is discovered in the specific characterization. Not every member of the titular hundred heroes is similarly fleshed out, there’s nevertheless a ‘core’ cast here that establishes naturally as they experience the war together and grow closer since of it. It’s a strong story all around, then, if one that feels unwieldy occasionally.
Gameplay follows the standard JRPG design template of going to towns, cleaning out beasts in dungeons, and gradually checking out a grand world loaded with experience and capacity. It’s absolutely nothing you have not seen before, however the gameplay loop is carried out well here, buoyed by the continuous character recruitment system. As flagged in the title, there are over a hundred celebration members you can encourage to your cause, and while not all can be brought into fight, they include a lot of range to the experience.
Some celebration members are the benefit provided at the end of their own significant sidequests, such as an early hire who we assisted through a dungeon in a quick subplot so, together, we might beat the beast at the end, while others will sign up with merely by setting off a quick cutscene after strolling by them. Undoubtedly, those that fall under this latter group feel a bit like leftovers from cut material, however we however valued the fairly vigorous speed at which you’re fulfilling and engaging with this vibrant cast. Some of the characters are a little shallow and specified just by their trick, each one is unforgettable and includes something beneficial to the growing mangy lot. Our preferred hire was a sweet, mild therapist you satisfy reasonably early who flies into an unconfined rage at the tiniest justification.
As you crawl through the unlimited dungeons spread throughout the land, you’ll frequently get pulled into random fights which are the most apparent tribute to Suikoden. Here, you command a group of as much as 6 characters, 3 in the front and 3 in the back, in turn-based battle. A timeline at the top of the screen will constantly reveal you the order in which opponents and allies will act, and while you can’t mess around with this like you might in something like Grandia or Octopath Travelerit lets you focus on opponents throughout fight.
Something we especially took pleasure in is in charge battles, which typically include a “Gimmick” that alters how you approach them. Not just are these fights a great test of your team-building abilities, however these Gimmicks can include an entirely distinct measurement and a practically puzzle-like aspect. One manager has a series of rock walls that targeted characters can conceal behind while another sees your enemy running a device that does huge damage however can be turned versus them if you engage with it at the correct time.
At secret manager battles in the story, you likewise participate in significant individually battles which run on a practically rock-paper-scissors-esque system. Here, you need to thoroughly prepare when to push the offensive on your challenger and when to counter an upcoming strike, all in the hopes of developing to a huge ‘Break’ attack to shatter their guard and drain their health bar. These battles frequently feel simply as tense as the story paints them to be, and we especially valued how they likewise function as a sort of dialogue-filled cutscene occurring in between the dueling characters.
Outside the common JRPG gameplay loop, there are likewise a couple of other mechanics worth discussing. At significant story points you’ll often discover yourself pulled into a massive fight in War Mode, which plays out like a mini-Advance Wars-design battle where celebration members each command their own armies that you purchase around on a little grid. Routing opponents in this manner can be enjoyable, however the fights are too little for deep planning, and it can get a little dull seeing all the battle animations play out while you twiddle your thumbs and await the video game to offer you back manage.
In addition, there’s some town-building gameplay that functions as a prolonged sidequest incentivizing you to regularly go back to base. Here, you can invest resources and appoint brand-new employees to develop numerous parts of the town, giving some gameplay advantages while likewise functioning as an enjoyable time sink as you pick how to embellish the town. It’s plainly not the primary focus of the experience, however we valued having a ‘home’ to go back to after finishing another mission, and it’s rewarding to see it grow and grow with time.
Eiyuden Chronicle was clearly developed as a caring tribute to JRPGs of the past, however in some cases it seems like it adheres simply a little too much to a few of the more tiresome and antiquated aspects of the category. One early mission sees a character asking you to take a trip to a particular dungeon to obtain 3 boar skins before he’ll join your team. Naturally, this dungeon is all the method on the other side of the map and you can’t quick take a trip to it, so you need to stroll all the method there and after that actually run around in circles when within, hoping that the next random encounter will include the needed opponent. What need to be a five-minute errand at a lot of hence ends up being a 15-to-20-minute workout in routine, and there are a great deal of points where the video game drags things out like this without validating the included length.
From a simply style and mechanical point of view, Eiyuden Chronicle is a quite good JRPG, however one location in which the Switch variation drops the ball quite hard is efficiency. This video game merely does not run well on the Switch, and you’re advised of this nearly continuously throughout the experience. The frame rate targets 30fps, the only time you’ll in fact see it anywhere near that is when you’re in an actually little and fixed location, like a product store. All over else, the frame rate will typically take huge dives into much choppier area, and it’s specifically visible in many dungeons and all of the overworld.
We want frame drops were the degree of the technical problems, however there’s regrettably more to cover here; the load times are annoyingly long and there are loads all over as you advance. You’ll be struck with a packing screen of anywhere from 4 to 7 (!!!) seconds every time a random encounter activates, and you’ll need to endure another one simply as quickly as the battle is over. In some cases the battle itself is much shorter than the load times.
This issue with filling even encompasses elements you would not anticipate it to, such as the menus. Each time you open the primary menu to play with your stock or celebration setup, you need to endure a brief, however obvious load for actually each private tab on the menu and you’ll need to sustain those little loads once again each time you close and resume the menu screen to do something else. Throughout 50-or-so hours, that might include actual hours to your play time.
The technical concerns do not stop there, either, as there are likewise periodic soft locks which require you to close the video game, hoping that there was a rather current autosave. We experienced an especially outright example of this where the video game got stuck in a loop on a packing screen after finishing an almost 40-minute onslaught of skirmishes, manager fights, and plot-heavy cutscenes with not a single save crystal in sight. Naturally, upon reloading, we found that the video game’s last autosave was only simply before all this began.
We feel it would be hyperbolic to call Eiyuden Chronicle a technical catastrophe on the Switch, its efficiency is definitely badand we’re hoping that the group is dealing with spots to bring it approximately an appropriate level. None of the problems here (with possibly the exception of the soft locks) are straight-out game-breaking, however they all integrate to produce something that seems like a definitely low quality experience on Switch. In spite of all the problems, we ‘d state that Eiyuden Chronicle is still well worth your time if you’re a JRPG fan, however we ‘d motivate you at minimum to wait a bit previous launch to see if these issues get cleaned out. They might be even worse, sure, however they might likewise be a lot much better, and it’s rather frustrating to see an otherwise terrific video game launched in such a state.
Efficiency troubles aside, Eiyuden Chronicle otherwise includes exceptional discussion. The visuals recollect the art designs of other contemporary retro RPGs such as Octopath Traveler II and Star Ocean: Second Story Rfitting together extremely in-depth 2D sprites with 3D environments and designs. The 3D things feels a little too blocky and dirty, the top quality spritework assists to sidetrack from this, general leaving an excellent impression.
The soundtrack is likewise pleasing, including a gratifying variety of music that effectively records the scope of the experience while likewise leaving lots of space for its quieter minutes. Whether you’re hearing the rousing track that initially plays when you get in the overworld or the woodwinds-laced music of getting in another town, it seems like the music truly includes that required additional layer for boosting immersion. In general, it’s a really peaceful collection of tunes, however it fits the tone of the narrative well for the many part.
Conclusion
Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes is the embodiment of a problematic gem– the type of video game that does a great deal of things ideal and we’re sure will command a devoted legion of fans, however has genuine issues that are difficult to neglect. The extensive story, stunning spritework, and addicting battle all assistance make it a simple suggestion to any timeless JRPG fan, however remember that it can feel dated in its style viewpoint which the Switch variation has a great deal of efficiency issues, a minimum of at launch. If you can surpass those problems, this is a satisfying and immersive RPG that mainly accomplishes what it set out to do.