Suikoden V

Suikoden V is a role-playing video game and thus features many of the usual traits. The player controls the Prince and travels with him around the world map, advancing the plot by completing tasks and talking with other characters. The Prince can also recruit new characters to his cause, which often involves a short sidequest. In towns, the player can gather information, sharpen character's weaponry, learn new skills and buy equipment; wilderness areas generally feature random encounters with monsters. The game runs at 60 FPS and is the first 3d Suikoden game to feature a camera system similar to the top down perspective of the first 2 games.

The battle system to Suikoden V features six person parties in combat rather than the four person parties of Suikoden IV, reversing a much-decried change. Each character is individually controllable, as well (as opposed to Suikoden III). A variety of statistics in Suikoden V determine in-game combat ability. Like in Suikoden III, there exists a skill system in Suikoden V; for instance, the "Stamina" skill increases a character's hit points.

Suikoden V takes place in the Queendom of Falena, portraying the events of that region of the Suikoden world six years before the events in Suikoden and 142 years after the events in Suikoden IV (~IS 449). The Queendom of Falena is a relatively rich land sustained by the Feitas River, which connects its disparate parts and enables trade and communication. It is ruled by Queen Arshtat and her husband Ferid, who have been a balancing and steady force since the demise of her somewhat rash mother. However, the tensions of the past have not been entirely settled.

Arshtat's mother and aunt had been engaged in a covert struggle for power over the succession. Falena's government also has powerful nobles who maintain their own separate forces, loyal to them. Arshtat's hand in marriage was seen as key to gaining power in the future by the nobles; a civil war was narrowly averted when Ferid, a neutral outsider, won the Sacred Games and thus the right to marry Arshtat.

Suikoden V was directed by Takahiro Sakiyama, a newcomer to the Suikoden franchise, and written by Kazuyoshi Tsugawa, who served as the writer for The Sword of Etheria and worked on the battle system design for Skies of Arcadia.

Development of the game started when Sakiyama was working on a side-game (gaiden) to the Suikoden series at a conceptual stage. Producer Noritada Matsukawa asked him if he was interested in directing Suikoden V. The gaiden project was cancelled and Sakiyama fully focused on the development of a main game. On the next day after having been asked to direct the game, he drafted the framework of the scenario.

Suikoden V had disappointing sales compared to earlier PlayStation 2 Suikodens. In 2006 in Japan, the game sold 194,780 copies, down from Suikoden IV's 303,069. Famitsu gave it a score of one nine, two eights, and one seven for a total of 32 out of 40.

Elsewhere, the game received "generally favorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. The plot received praise for the depth of its political maneuverings, even if the game starts off somewhat slowly: GameSpy said, "Suikoden V has a robust, well-done plot that doesn't telegraph every twist or conform to embarrassing clichés." Most reviewers also found the cast of characters engaging, as well; GameSpot said that "Suikoden's always been great at making the stars evince unique personalities with just a few exchanges of conversation, and there's lots of interesting people to meet and lure to your forces." Suikoden V also reversed some of the unpopular changes of Suikoden IV (such as 4-person parties), and offered some tie-ins to Suikoden and Suikoden II for fans of the original PlayStation games.