Sudeki: A Battle Happy RPG

By Hardcore

Long have we anticipated the big two exclusive Xbox RPGs, Sudeki™ and Fable™. At last the former has arrived on shelves and into the happy and greedy hands of yours truly. Sudeki, like many of its brethren, believes in the longevity of its experience. This, of course, is greeted with glee by the hardcore community. That is, if the game is not artificially lengthened by worthless fetch quests and constant backtracking. Luckily, Sudeki suffers little from these frustrations, and so I’ve happily delved into its vibrant (and often bloody) world.

Role playing games like Sudeki offer diverging paths for those who wish to play them hardcore. You could plow your way through to the very end to see how fast and at what level (the lower the more impressive) you beat the game, and I wouldn’t blame you if that’s exactly what you did. On the other hand, you can employ some patience. I don’t rest until I feel a game has been bent to my will. All things must be obtained and all quests must be resolved! Here are a few guidelines I set for myself to ratchet up the intensity of the Sudeki experience.

Hardcore loves particle effects.

A Glutton for Side Quests
It’s not good enough to simply go where you’re told, achieve the primary objective, and go gallivanting off to the next plot point. For example, near the beginning of the game, you’re ordered by your dear old dad to dash off to the pretty little fishing villa of New Brightwater—smiting Aklorian baddies as you go—and escort Princess Ailish back to the castle. You could essentially grab her and take off, but you’d be leaving all the troubles of the townspeople behind.

How is the dude that runs the lighthouse going to retrieve the lost crystal for the lighthouse if you won’t help him? How are all the villagers going to retrieve their precious wares from a shipwrecked boat if you won’t rid the area of bloodthirsty plants and animals? There is plenty of experience and money to be had by helping these poor souls, and any gamer who would dare call themselves a “completist” will suck the village dry of all side quests and unattended valuables before taking the princess home.

A whole town awaits your help.

Hot Potato Battle
If one player lives at the end of a battle, everyone lives at the end of a battle. Those that were knocked out of commission miraculously right themselves and go about their adventuring business. It’s a good theory. You don’t want to worry about taking characters back to town to revive them or be forced to buy expensive items to do the trick. However, the hardcore cannot abide a fallen comrade. To assure the survival of all, I suggest using the hot potato battle method. You can switch to any of your four party-mates at any given time. See one in trouble, switch to them and see if you can’t get them out of a jam, or merely bring up the menu and let them imbibe a healing potion to cure what ails them. Constant awareness of the plight and might of your comrades is the order of the day. Get it? Got it? Good.

Don’t be Spirit Strike happy.

Saving for a Rainy Day
Spirit Strikes are to be used and used only when fighting a boss or in absolute dire circumstances. Otherwise, they’re an easy way out of a manageable situation, and frankly that just doesn’t pass muster if you want to be hardcore. Sure, they look pretty and I know you want to see them, but I urge you to put them away until they’re absolutely necessary. For those that do use them out of context, I can only imagine your look of consternation when you do get to a big boss creature and you don’t have enough Spirit Strike Points available to lay the wrath down Sudeki-style. Good luck with that, by the way.

Sudeki is a gigantic RPG both in scope and actual polygonal geography. Whether you want to tackle it with speed or exhaust all your options, you’re bound to find a hardcore way to play. Just remember, be vigilant with your hardcore mindset, and you’ll win the day.