Suikoden III

Rating:
Summary: Not bad for a manga based off of a video game.
Review: I'm going to say right now that just from reading this one volume, the manga works better than the game does. The best thing about the game was the story and the manga does a great job of capturing the games story.
There are three main characters in this story
Hugo: He is the son of Lucia, Chief of Kariya village. This volume shows him as he grows from a little boy to a teenager. And it was nice to see this because in this we get to see things that were not covered in the game. Like how he met and became friends with Fubar.(A Gryphon.) And then he sees as the war goes on between his people and the Zexens and how horrible it is.

Chris Lightfellow: She is a knight of Zexen and has become very popular lately and (Due to a recent victory.) is now known as the Maiden of Silver. In this volume we get see how she got to where she in her life and how she got her title.
Again, I really liked this. I'm already beginning to like her more than I did in the game.

Geddoe: Unfortunately right now the manga shows very little of him. In the game he was my favorite character and I'm afraid he might get overshadowed by Chris & Hugo in the manga.

Now I said that the best thing about the game was story, but I would say it isn't the same with the Manga. The best thing abotu the manga is how well it captures the violent war that is going on.
This manga has a 13 & up rating and it is not afraid to violent. This is about a war so it needs to be violent and bloody to capture it properly. Don't worry about it being excessive though. It's just that it's pretty bloody for a manga with a 13 & Up rating.
And it also does a very good job of capturing the emotions that the characters are going through.

I have to say that I am really disappointed with the character design. Some of the characters barely look anything like their video game likenesses and that disappointed me. But it's more than just that. Even without having played the game I'd still have to say it's not very good. Some of the worst ones are Ace(One of my favorite characters in the game.) & Aila. While for some strange reason they seem have made all of the major characters actually look quite good. Hugo & Chris both look great & Geddoe looks just awesome. It really doesn't make much sense.
I'll say I'm very curious to see how Thomas ends up looking.

So I would say that even if you haven't played the game, that this manga is still worth checking out.

Rating:
Summary: Suikoden III
Review: The Suikoden series is the best video game RPG series of all time (yeah, you heard me Final Fantasy fans) and this manga is based on the third game. You don't really need to play the games to understand the manga but it will help keep you interested. This volume covers some of Chris and Hugo's back story and some of the events that take place early in the game. I could have done without a lot of Hugo's story but Chris' was pretty interesting. The art is pleasant but not overly stunning. Also, Geddoe fans will be disappointed because he's hardly in this volume. Other than that, this manga does a good job of staying true to the game and I'll be reading future volumes.

Rating:
Summary: Both Book and Game are Good
Review: There's alot of controversy (okay, so maybe not alot) as to whether or not one should simply read the book or play the game. The Suikoden 3 game is played out very similarly to the story, but the first book takes a look at the pasts of the characters of Hugo and Chris, where Geddoe stays mainly in the background. But never fear, Geddoe fans, because he's supposedly having a larger part in the third issue.

The first part of the book focuses on Hugo and his relationship with Fubar, which I felt was an excellent way to begin the story, especially for those who haven't played the game. Later we get some insight on Chris' character and how she became a knight. Geddoe, as mentioned before, gets little fame in this issue and is merely introduced.

There were some downsides to the manga as well. The art wasn't spectacular--more along the lines of average. Some of the characters, I'll be honest, looked downright ugly compared to the illustrations in the game, especially the Zexen knights. It might be that the author simply isn't accustomed to drawing them yet, but if you're looking for spectacular character art you're not going to find it here. All in all, it's a good retelling of the game and a nice book to read for the casual reader, but if you're looking for a spectacular way to spend your time and money, just put in the effort and buy the game instead.