Gameplay
Suikoden IV continues many of the gameplay concepts pioneered by it predecessors along with changes. It is the first game in the Suikoden series to feature voice acting for most characters, except the hero. Suikoden IV is the first game of the series to be set at sea; travel on the world map is accomplished by ship. In contrast to Suikoden III, where the six person party was divided into three controllable groups, Suikoden IV's party consists of four individually controllable characters. During combat, characters can combine effort in the form of physical "Unite attacks" or runic magic combinations. As with previous games in the series, there are individual battles (duels) as well as battles between customizable naval forces. The naval forces can be customized to use particular runic elements through choice of captains and commanding officers; each element has a weakness and strength over another element. There are several mini-games contained within the game, unrelated to the main storyline. On the first play through the game, only a fraction of the world map is viewable, a feature not seen before in a Suikoden Game.
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