Ever wondered who are those characters that appear on Suikoden I NTSC Version?

[Sasarai10]

I guess top left is Barbarosa. But who on earth are the others? They don't seem to be Suikoden characters.

[wataru14]

The guy with the huge forehead under Barbarossa is Ted. Under him is Windy. Across from Barbarossa is Kyle Maclachlan as Tir. Under him is Odessa??? Futch and Black are in the middle.

[gildedtalon]

Isn't that Abomination boss from Suikoden 2 castle?

[sticky-runes]

This is Suikoden set in an alternative universe, where Ted and Futch are adult gay porn actors, Barbarossa is a pantomime villain, Leknaat is not blind, and she and Windy are dancers from rival burlesque clubs. Also, most of the Scarlett Moon Empire has been submerged by the Great Sea, and the demon sorcerer from the random encounters in Neclord's castle has a more prominent role as a titty grabber who wants to molest the 108 stars of destiny.

[Sasarai10]

The guy with the huge forehead under Barbarossa is Ted. Under him is Windy. Across from Barbarossa is Kyle Maclachlan as Tir. Under him is Odessa??? Futch and Black are in the middle.

Ted looks like 30 almost shirtless and black-haired??? hell no....he was supposed to be a 300 year old ginger "boy" who looks like 15 and he wore blue clothes.

And Windy was blonde and much older looking. She was like a woman in her 40s,although of course she was centuries older in fact.

But yeah those two on the left are an archer and a wizard respectively. So they might be Ted's or Windy's early versions. Like for example they thought making Ted a 30 year old archer but they decided to make him a 300 year old boy who looks like 15.

Across from Barbarossa must be Luc (he carries a rod) and under him,Leknaat maybe. (early versions again)

At least Futch and Black seem to be more real to me.

Isn't that Abomination boss from Suikoden 2 castle?

As sticky-rune said it was one of the random encounters in Neclord's Castle.

[sticky-runes]

I don't think the artist actually played the game or was even given much info about the story, he was probably just shown a few screenshots and a bit of game footage and drew it based on that. The only other male archers in the game are elves, so I doubt that guy is supposed to be anyone besides ted.

[wataru14]

the demon sorcerer from the random encounters in Neclord's castle has a more prominent role as a titty grabber who wants to molest the 108 stars of destiny.

I literally just spit my drink on my computer screen.

[sticky-runes]

It's probably not a good idea to eat or drink anything while reading my posts.

[Sasarai10]

I don't think the artist actually played the game or was even given much info about the story, he was probably just shown a few screenshots and a bit of game footage and drew it based on that. The only other male archers in the game are elves, so I doubt that guy is supposed to be anyone besides ted.

But it's irrelevant isn't it? Back in '96 when Suikoden was still unknown,many people might thought those characters appear in game. There are lots of people who would buy a game judging by its cover.

[BrucePrintscreen]

You are again reading far too much into something. Plenty of videogames back in the days were sold in boxes with crappy art that had little relevance with the game itself. They just used tropes and fashionable art to attract the eye.

Look at those marvels...



Looks like Megaman mh? Even worse:



Is that an accurate depiction of Megaman?

Another one?



This is supposed to be this in-game character:


Compare with the original box art:


And then when they did a sequel he was granted another horrendous art that looks nothing like the others:


so you want to know what the characters on this suikoden are? Well it's very simple, they are an half-arsed effort by a mediocre and underpaid artist at wrapping up quickly his duty to represent something that looks like the kind of stuff kids dig these days, regardless of what the game really looks like.

There's plenty of example of crappy videogame box arts on this website: http://s.emuparadise.org/Sega%20Genesis ... 8UE%29.png and some are really hilarious. I especially loved this one... here is the character in game:


And this is the character on the box art:

(sticky, that's your kind of dude, right?)

[Sasarai10]

Megaman looks like....just an adult version of Megaman,which is "acceptable".

As for Strider...it's plainly ridiculous.

But still irrelvant covers is an uncommon phenomenon,after mid-90s or so,due to improved graphics.

[sticky-runes]

My guess is that this Suikoden cover must have been on the tail end of the era of dodgy fantasy art covers for video games.

Luckily us PAL users got the official mural (the one that Ivanov creates in the game) on the cover for our version of Suikoden which perfectly sums up the characters and their roles in the story. And all other Suikoden covers have followed that particular design, with the hero being most prominent and other supporting characters scattered behind him. I'm assuming it was created by Junko Kawano herself, who was directly involved with the creation of the game and its characters.

Now don't get me wrong - I'm a big sucker for pulpy Western fantasy art, and artists such as Boris Vallejo and Frank Frazetta, and all those buff bulging barbarians, and the NTSC suikoden cover looks like it would be perfect for an 80s high fantasy movie or board game or something, but it's not Suikoden. Suikoden has a brilliant range of diverse characters, and we know that Ted and Futch are not hulking barbarians (Futch in S3 perhaps, but not in the first game) Viktor is more of the Conan type hero, while Ted is a scrawny little boy with a terrifying hidden power. And Windy is not a slutty looking sorceress in a skimpy outfit, she comes draped in a bulky cape with massive shoulder pads that keeps her form totally covered. Jeane is more of the provocatively dressed sorceress type character. But we know this because we have been playing the games over and over again and dissecting the characters and their stories. The artist who created the NTSC cover had nowhere near the level of knowledge we have of the game, and whoever paid him to design it probably didn't think the audience at the time would care.

[ENDmyinitials]

It's Barbarossa, Ted is below him, and Windy is below Ted. And on the left it's Tir...and below him is ummm....It can't be Odessa she has red hair, right? Has to be Windy's sister...Even though she's blind....Maybe it's pergesmara(how ever it's spelled) unmasked. And in the middle it's Ted again??? With Black.

[Sasarai10]

It's Barbarossa, Ted is below him, and Windy is below Ted. And on the left it's Tir...and below him is ummm....It can't be Odessa she has red hair, right? Has to be Windy's sister...Even though she's blind....Maybe it's pergesmara(how ever it's spelled) unmasked. And in the middle it's Ted again??? With Black.

Pesmerga you mean? Hell no.

Pesmerga is a guy 100% (he appears in males bath). I think she's a non-blind version of Leknaat.

[BrucePrintscreen]

Pesmerga is not important enough to be depicted on the box. It is likely the two females on this artwork are generic representations and were not inspired by any character in particular.