Officially announced at the Tokyo Game Show, Suikoden I and Suikoden II are finally returning. And not just with a simple port of both games, as they're both getting the HD remaster treatment. Suikoden I & II HD Remaster Gate Rune and Dunan Unification, a double-pack of the first two games in the series, will be coming to Switch in 2023. And they're confirmed for an English release.
Released on the PlayStation in 1995 and 1998 respectively, Suikoden I and II are often considered two of the best JRPGs on the system. This is the first "game" to bear the Suikoden name since the Japanese PSP exclusive Gensō Suikoden: Tsumugareshi Hyakunen no Toki in 2012, and the HD remasters will be coming to PS4, Xbox One, and PC via Steam too. The series' most-famous aspect is that you can recruit 108 Stars of Destiny, who will either become party members to use in battles or allies to assist you at your base, which you can build up over the course of the game.
These remasters bring updated backgrounds and illustrations, with series artist Junko Kawano returning to assist with the redone portraits. New quality-of-life additions included updated sound effects, autosave, a fast-forward feature, and a conversation log. Suikoden I and II are often seen as a pair — you can transfer your save file from I to II to get extra bonuses in the PS1 game, and many characters from I make an appearance in the sequel.
Konami shared a few comparison shots, which pop scenes from the PS1 game next to the upcoming remaster, and you can certainly see the difference:


Here's what Konami had to share about these surprise remasters from the game's Steam page:
A hero's destiny is written in the Stars
The legendary Konami JRPGs Suikoden I and Suikoden II have now been remastered in HD!
The Story of Suikoden I
A once-renowned hero turns into a violent tyrant, and an empire falls into decline.
A Liberation Army is rising up in an act of rebellion against an oppressive rule.
One by one the 108 stars of Destiny gather to shape the course of history.The Story of Suikoden II
Our story's hero and his friend Jowy are members of the Unicorn Youth Brigade, which participated in a drawn-out border dispute between the Highland Kingdom and the City-States of Jowstown .A few months earlier, a truth agreement was signed between the two forces, both of which were happy to see an end to the fighting.
However, hidden under the momentary peace the fires of a new war continued to smolder…Features of Suikoden I & Suikoden II HD
・All background illustrations have been upgraded to HD
・Updated effects breathe new life into the pixel art animation
・New environmental sounds effects to immerse yourself in this fantasy world
・Battle SFX are also now HD and add a new level of realism
・Newly added auto-save
・Battle Fast Forward
・Conversation Log
This means that Suikoden I & II, and Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes — Suikoden's spiritual successor, made by series creator Yoshitaka Murayama — will be launching in the same year. Suikoden fans are really feasting in 2023.
You can also check out a few screens from the game to see what the new backgrounds will look like. Some of them are striking if we say so ourselves. We're getting a little emotional just looking at them!
Suikoden I & II HD Remaster Gate Rune and Dunan Unification will be coming out on the Switch next year, and we'll bring you more info as soon as we have it.
Are you a Suikoden fan? Excited to see the return of a classic duo? Let us know in the comments.
Comments 95
Konami saw the money Eiyuden Chronicles pulled just by using the Suikoden name and realized people still like this franchise.
I think I feel light headed. Would not have believed it if I hadn’t seen it. Super excited!
Looks great! Hopefully we can get Suikoden 3-5 in the future too.
Rated DD for "double-dip" - and here I thought I was already lucky to have snatched both games from Vita PS Store! Started the first game as well but barely moved the story onward since the walkthrough I grabbed (good luck gathering all 108 characters blindly) suggested an option to grind up and procure a rare rune early on. Guess even that much will have to wait for next year now. Switch's 2023 just got yet another bit juicier.
I'm not crying! Somebody put sliced onions on my pillow!
@Rika_Yoshitake Does it matter?
If there’s one thing the Switch needs, it’s more RPGs. At least another 108, anyway. Hurrah!
The Switch either has or will be getting JRPGs from yesteryear, it's like the dream system you wanted when you were 14.
Finally coming true!
Looking forward to playing through these classics again, but remastered. Hopefully they give us the PS2 Suikodens in the future.
Konami needs to start creating more new innovative entries to their IPs if they want to stay relevant in the future. At some point, the older gen gamers will be gone and not even their pachinko machines will save them.
Hell yeah! Now do Symphony of the Night!
Konami really isn't kidding about bringing back some fan favorite franchises. As someone who gamed back when Konami made GAMES (darnit!), I hope this bodes well for a full-on Konami revival.
YESSSS!! Loved the second one back in the day, one of my favs RPGs, will give it another run now! And also play the first one, which I never did.
What a gen for the RPG lovers!! We certainly can't complain
I'm glad we are getting a new release, but I wish they had given us the option to play with original graphics. The new visuals look so sterile.
I dont think I've been more excited for a remaster honestly! I love Suikoden and I cant wait to get them on my switch
Suikoden 2 is probably my favorite game of all time and while the remake looks nice at a glance I'm already seeing some choppiness just on the trailer, I don't have that much faith in konami to do the classic proper justice, but I guess we'll see.
I'm a bit of a penny scrimper on digital games these days, waiting for discounts, but this I'll buy day one. Both games are absolute masterpieces.
Just have to prepare myself for Soniere prison again....
Exciting news! Here's hoping this means the chances of a Suikoden V remaster are greater than 0% now! Best game in the series but, good grief, those loading times on PS2 are brutal.
When Dance Dance Revolution get a chance for modern consoles, Konami ?
Oh Snap! I had both games back in the day and sold them both for over £100 each... yet I still ended up regretting it. Can't wait to get them back!
@Krull they need another JRPG if it's Suikoden!
@AlanaHagues I just hope they bring out a physical release on 1 cartridge
Finally! Never got to play this before (I could've emulated, but never got around to doing it) but heard so many good things about these games. I'll finally be able to experience them, and on my Switch no less.
@Anti-Matter If Konami's reaching that deep into its games barrel, then I'd like ParaParaParadise please.
@ktej75 Me too! I only own Suikoden V physically.
Yeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
The only way this year could get any better is if a Panzer Dragoon Saga remake was announced. Has been an excellent year for gaming surprises.
Now we just need Castlevania: Requiem, or at least SotN to come to switch. The Parodius games would also be good.
Physical of Suikoden III please while you're at it, @Konami, as we never got a PAL release
Would have prefered a remake or a new Suikoden but i will take what i can get.
Oh YES BABY. YES.
No but for real. Those games are amazing. This is awesome. They were so much fun to play. Just trying to find new recruits to join was a game into itself.
Dang, never played these games. I bought them on PSN a while ago, so I think I'd better play the ones I already bought. It's nice to see that the new graphics are true to the original though, that's always good to see whenever a classic RPG gets a remake.
I palyed both games back in the day and literally remember nothing of the story 🙈
Awesome news! I played and really liked Suikoden 1 back then (nearly 30 years ago, wow…). I’ll definitely pick up this game if it’s a physical release.
@gcunit While we didn't get a physical release, Suikoden 3 was released digitally on the PS3 store. Not sure if that one is still online but if it is, it's actually really cheap.
But I am STILL getting these physical releases,. I love Suikoden enough to buy it a third time.
It's a little weird how Konami seems allergic to making new games, but I never played these so...nice.
Fantastic news, Konami is back on a roll again.
@ChHa We probably won't see a new Suikoden or if we do it probably won't had the same charms as the older ones as the original Suikoden dev team left Konami a long time ago.
@Daniel36 Thanks. I was aware as I have I-III on my Vita, but it's the physicals I'm after. I have IV, V and Tactics already, will get I & II for Switch, so it'll just be III I'm missing.
@gcunit what about Suikoden Tierkreis? That game was pretty good although the weaker of the other 4 (I haven't yet played III)
Unexpected, but welcome news.
@LavaTwilight No, I don't have that one. I understood it to be a bit weaker and so was never particularly interested by it. In other circumstances I'd possibly get it now to complete the series (assuming III does get a new life), but the price has risen sufficiently to make me think I don't need it.
I loved the Suikoden series back in the day, and I'm excited to get to play them again (my ps1 has been unhooked for over a decade now). I had no idea my copies of I and II were so valuable until recently.
@gcunit It has an amazing story. One day on an adventure you notice a huge statue ruin in the landscape that wasn't there before. What's weirder is that as far as everyone is concerned it had always been there for hundreds of years. As the game goes on it's revealed that different universes are being destroyed and blending with each other. The story is without a doubt one of the best but it's a shame that everything else is so weak. On top of that, it also could explain how Viki, Jeanne and Ted are able to be in multiple games, but none of them even get a mention. That really bothered me.
@LavaTwilight If you haven't yet played Suikoden III, let me tell you something.
I had it in my possession for years, but it was a US copy so I had to do a lot of work-arounds to get it to work so I never bothered. I bought it on PS3's online store several years ago and a couple of months ago I FINALLY had the time to play it proper, after also finally finishing Suikoden 2 for the first time ever. (I had gotten to the end before but I was too annoyed at the Clive subquest to bother finishing it).
I know Suikoden III isn't held in as high a regard as I and II, but without spoiling anything, the story has a continuation in it from Suikoden I and II which I felt was amazing and I am glad I got to finally experience it. In fact, finishing III made me appreciate I and II even more, story-wise. The pay-off is amazing. I didn't bother getting the "true" ending you get when you find all 108, I just looked that one up on YouTube, but it is SO worth it!
Now that I think about it, I think the fact that I took so long between playing II and III was actually cool, since in-game III also takes place 15 years after II.
I've already got dozens of Rpgs in my backlog. Why they doing this to me? Will I ever finish XBC 2?
Definitely great news to have these game’s coming back. I have loved Konami’s retro collections, but I love even more that these are getting some reworked graphics. I have the originals from PSN, so getting some upgrades will be pretty nice.
More Suikoden to enjoy. Everybody wins.
Yesssss, MOAR PS1 RPGs on Switch, Please~
(C'mon, Square-Enix, give us a port of the PSP remakes of Star Ocean 2 and Valkyrie Profile)
As for Konami, you heard me. Vandal Hearts HD.
well that is wonderful news to hear
@NotoriousWhiz i am in the same boat to many rpg games i have in the backlog the boat is sinking...
Literally my most wanted port/remaster, day 1 purchase for me.
I just wish HD remasters in general would go a little less overboard with the added effects.
Whoops, for a second I got the name Suikoden mixed up with Bushido Blade and got excited.
i played back in the day suikoden 1 and 3 never got the chance to play 2 which is considered the best game in the series.
Totally unexpected, but welcome.
Fingers crossed these come with translation refinements. Two of my favorite JRPGs, but man is some of that dialog rough..........................................................
OMG!! SO MUCH YES!! I have wanted this for so many years. I've already played through both games multiple times, and will gladly pay for and do so again. These are two of my all time favorite JRPGs ever. The stories are grand and sweeping. The character interactions are great. Collecting up all the "stars of destiny" to fill out your fortress and army is actually really fun for me. This is an instant buy, whenever it finally comes out. I can't wait!
Put it on one cartridge/disc and you will have my money!!! Otherwise.... it would be a no from me.
@Rika_Yoshitake I never forgot I love the franchise. Got 1 and 2 emulated on my phone.
Damn, that is some news. I recently replayed these on my PS3 but it will be nice to see these prettier versions. It looks from the screenshots like they actually added the loading screen running animation to gameplay in S1. Science!
Oh my goodness, fantastic news
@Marshalbanana Agreed. These games already looked amazing and did not need a facelift.
Haven't played these in a looooong time, easy day one buy, hopefully collectors edition is announced as well!
Already on my personal "To Get" list!!!! I loved these on the PSX; they're easily some of the very best RPGs of that or any generation. The 108 Stars wasn't merely a gimmick, either; it essentially becomes a game-long side quest where you're building an entire community in your castle/fortress. You can hire a detective to find out secrets about the characters in your castle, or play Potch, a card game that I remember being a genuinely fun distraction. And there's a LOT more. The storylines are complex and full of intrigue, while the characters are all memorable in some way; you'll likely find favorites you want to stick in your party regularly, but because of the Army battles that occur at times, it pays to level up as many as possible because they won't be under your direct control (and you CAN lose them to permadeath, if memory serves). Getting 100 percent of the characters (there are plenty of missable ones!) and the best endings was always my personal goal, but the trip was well worth it. Can't recommend these games enough if you've never gotten to experience them.
How about the Parodius collection?
I’m happy for those that enjoy Suikoden, but holy hell when I played them back during launch day I found Suikoden II to be such a slog. It would benefit from some trimming down!
This is my all-time favorite JRPG series and I could not be more excited! I would have gladly settled for a straight port but this is beyond amazing. Absolutely a day 1 purchase for me. Best gaming news I’ve got in some time!
@thecricket I watched the announcement trailer and the gameplay clip ( Neclord battle from S2) and they absolutely made changes/updates to dialogue. I spotted new dialogue in the scene where Nanami & Riou wait outside Muse for Jowy. Also in the Neclord battle they refer to the Star Dragon Sword as the Celestial Sword instead.
I wonder if they’ve taken out the glitches like the Matilda glitch or infinite money glitch?
So excited about this! I hope we get a physical release. Any news on that?
@Highlar exactly! I loved filling the fortress with characters. Unlike other RPGs with many playable characters (looking at you Chrono cross) where you recruit a character and then never see them again unless you actually use them.
i am 100% sure it will be a physical release konami has released physical collections of castlevania and teenage mutant ninja turtles
@Fazermint don't forget Snatcher and Policenaults!
Oh man I have zero time for more JRPGs in my life, but I'll simply have to get these!
@Supadav03 Nice, thanks for the reply, those dialog tweaks were not something I noticed. Makes me even more excited to grab these!
YES!!!!
my Vita can die peacefully now
Yes!!!
Suikoden was the reason I worked all Summer to save up for a Playstation back in the late 90’s.
Is this real!?
(Yes, that is all I can think of to say. I'm in disbelief here.)
lets all get the games.. so the rest of the series can come to the switch..
Oh my god I am so happy! These games were extremely expensive used. I hope they are good ports/remasters.
the remasters or remakes look great
@Switch_Pro
Definitely hoping these end up being good versions and run well on switch (there have been 2d games with poor performance, especially if they have a bunch of extra post processing effects)
I imagine it could depend on who is handling the remasters.
Im happy to see games like this remastered since its nice for those who didnt get a chance to play them but also those who want to pick them up for a newer system, really its just nice seeing these widely available on pretty much every modern system. (something i wish square would do with the older FF games)
Very cool, I may pick this up. I've always been interested in the Suikoden series ever since I randomly picked up the Suikoden III manga as a kid, but never took the plunge. Better late than never I suppose.
I hope the first game is based on the Saturn version as it had new locations, new enemies and more cutscenes.
Never had the pleasure of finishing any of the games, but I spent a little time with Suikoden I-III on their respective original incarnations. Now that I have more disposable income and a handheld to play them on (truly the best way to play RPGs), I'm eager to sink my teeth into at least the first two games and see all they have to offer.
Suikoden II is one of my favourite games of all time. I'm so happy to see that these two gems will be available on modern platforms again. I'm surprised at the quality of how they look, very good!
@RPGreg2600 I am hoping myself, who knows, if Konami themselves won't do it? LRG will.
Took them long enough. I remember they passed up localizing the PSP compilation, and then they only got PSOne Classics release on PSN very late in the PS3's lifespan.
As we know, finding a PS1 copy of part 2, especially in English, is quite expensive. I can still remember the times I passed up a $60 loose CD at GameStop, before someone bought it.
@KingMike I got my copy new at Toys r Us for like 20 bucks. They had a few, I should have bought them all! Worse yet, I sold mine on eBay for $160 years ago, and months later the buyer cancelled the payment and I had to pay PayPal back! 😭
@Dualmask If they also release III, it's definitely worth your time as it continues story elements.
I do hope they will remove the Clive subquest timer.
@RPGreg2600 That's sad to hear.
Though months later... I thought Paypal had a 45 day limit?
@KingMike this was well over 10 years ago, policy must have been different back then.
@Serpenterror we need to be hopeful and give the new dev-gen a chance. So far this game looks great.
This AND Eiyuden Chronicle in the same year.
Joyous overload!
Now I only hope this gets a physical release.
I will pre-order this for a day one if its physical, for sure.
Odd, I was planning on re-playing my PS1 copies of these. Scratch that — HD time.
Please O please get physical with this. I'll want to shelf these forevermore, along with my PS1 copies.
Great. Now how about the Parodius games?
Yes! So excited to this. When will be this release?
Is it true that Suikoden 1 and 2 remastered was pushed back to sometimes in 2024?
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