Konami went for a Gust (developer) dated feel and game was published before thoroughly bug tested!
In the other Suikoden games(1,2,3,5) the plot, in depth characters, and sheer enjoyment of finding the 108 stars of destiny are extremely well done. Not only does this game fail miserably in those aspects, but just moving around the world is a tedious act.
Since the game takes place in the island nations, you spend much of your time sailing around in your ship. Unfortunately the random battles in this game are also very high. I have nothing against random battles, and often enjoy them. However, a battle every couple seconds while moving around the world map is a bit extreme.
This game is extremely short,(actually a blessing) which is probably why you have random encounters every 3 seconds, otherwise this no plot game would last 10 hours. The only positives I can say for the game are the very nice looking graphics, perhaps the best in the series. However, I would gladly trade the graphics for a much better plot and character development.
Fortunately, Suikoden got back on track with the 5th installment. I can only recommend this game for those of you who must have every game in the series.