Wanted to play this before going through the Shadow Hearts games. Yes, the combat is just as slow and painful as everyone says (and is also on a grid for some reason?) and has a lot of random encounters as you're trying to explore which is a real Old RPG pet peeve of mine BUT I'm really forgiving on this one because I was absolutely enthralled the entire way.

The vibes in Koudelka are unmatched. This game has such a sense of style in every single audio and visual aspect, and so much of it is made up of things that you rarely see in video games. The story is told in what I can only explain as theater-like segments that are voiced and motion captured (in 1999!) by stage actors which brings these characters to life so much. The way characters will subtly talk over each other and react to each other in a natural way makes you actively realize how clunky video game voice acting usually is, even in games that pride themselves on being 'cinematic'.

The environment design and UI is absolutely gorgeous, and fully commits to this vaguely European gothic aesthetic. The music is RPG-like but is fully aware of it's surroundings and is used sparingly to hold the mood and tension of the game.

It also just uses the PS1 Hardware incredibly well and pushes it to its limits. This isn't always a good thing - load times in battle are weird and slow as it seemingly often can't render in all three characters and enemies all at once - but overall this means that you get some of the best looking character models, environments and cutscenes from the entire PS1 era.

For this reason it also is probably the shortest 4 disc game in the PS1 library - each disc is no longer than 3 hours long, but it also maintains such a high standard of quality across every disc. I feel like with this era of games especially, the 'unfinished, overly ambitious masterpiece' gets talked about a lot, and while far from a masterpiece, Koudelka's insane ambition pays off in such an even and consistent way across its duration.

Not for everyone, but definitely worth a go if you're feeling intrigued.

Koudelka was a more thorough exploration of Parasite Eve's genre-bordering. Like PE, it pairs survival horror elements with JRPG encounters, with a few differences though: A sluggish SRPG combat system instead of ATB, and a focus on the supernatural and religious subject matter over sci-fi horror. Its fixed camera and single-building setting requiring exploration, backtracking and puzzle-solving make it a more faithful interpreter of Resident Evil, but the real merit - however, lies in the long, dramatic, CGI cutscenes with plenty of voice acting and personality, approaching Metal Gear Solid's own drawn out passages. The battle system may be nothing special, and backtracking gets a little tedious, but its interesting cast and dark, disturbing themes paint the experience into something worthwhile.

The voice acting and the characters kept me engaged the whole timeee.
I did use a emulator and after awhile it was nice being able to speed up the battles cause they get pretty repetitive but the story is amazing for what it is.
Enemy designs are really interesting in a good creepy way (those baby angel faces are cursed) especially for being on the PS1, I didn't expect to like this game let alone love the characters and setting so much. I Honestly think this game is super underrated and has more of an artistic and emotional even religious take on things. It's a fun Gothic time and I loved almost every minute of it c:

I love to see survival horror mixed with other genres, especially RPGs. And even more I love to see it done good. Sadly, this is not the case.

This game peaked my interest a long time ago, for me being a fan of survival horror AND TRPGs. But as I played Koudelka I realized that this game has little to offer in both of it's genres.

Koudelka is a weak TRPG: you basically just spam all enemies with four spells, level ups are so frequent that you don't even need to heal between (slow and easy) battles.

Koudelka is a weak survival horror: the puzzles are easy, you don't need to manage any resources.

So the gameplay isn't that good, yeah. But what is? Koudelka is one of the creepiest and unsettling games on the PS1 all thanks to it's great atmosphere and creative monster design. I like that, it's cool.

However... Koudelka made me not want to play Shadow Hearts games. I don't like this "mankind is cruel" point they all try to make.

Koudelka é um jogo de RPG que possui uma atmosfera que passa uma sensação similar a Resident Evil, apesar de uma temática mais próxima ao período vitoriano, algo na vibe de Castlevania, mesmo que possua armas e outros equipamentos mais modernos. Tem a ver com o local onde o jogo se passa, que possui um ambiente puxado da arquitetura católica europeia.

O gameplay, infelizmente, é bem lento, com mudanças frequentes de câmera fixa, bem nos moldes dos RE de PS1, e praguejado de combates com animações que demoram a iniciar depois de selecionadas, loadings entre os combates e os saves beirando o insuportável de tão demorados, além de personagens pouco carismáticos. Isso é parcialmente solucionável acelerando o jogo se tiver jogando em emulador.

O combate possui um sistema um tanto confuso, com muitos atributos com múltiplas funções, caindo em velhos problemas de algo complexo demais pra ser bom. Ele também se utiliza de um sistema pouco ortodoxo de grid de batalha, que engana a primeira vista, pois não se trata de um sRPG, trazendo ao invés das convenções clássicas um sistema próprio de regras de movimentação e posicionamento.

Entretanto, a temática diferenciada e o escopo do jogo mixando puzzles e combate chamam a atenção o tornando um jogo bastante peculiar. A história também foge de clichês de RPG e traz algo fora do comum, misturando elementos de mistério, horror e suspense.

Contudo, as qualidades não são suficientes para vencer os defeitos que tornam o jogo bastante maçante e tedioso, resultando em uma experiência desagradável e com poucos momentos e características de destaque.

Yet another game that does Resident Evil but JRPG well. The voice acting is pretty decent for the time. It's still meme worthy of course.

Imagine running around with static camera angles in a mansion but then random encounter grid based rpg battles. That is essentially what this game is. It's really unique.

Now, here are some of the issues. Firstly, for some reason they have breakable weapons. Idk why they chose this. It serves no purpose but to annoy. Although it mostly is never an issue. Secondly, it's really flashy(not a game for the photosensitive). Thirdly, it's slow. combat is slow. You can't skip magic scenes. At a certain point, you get annoyed while exploring because you keep get stopped by encounters.

It is a great game. Music is really good. There are 2 endings if I remember(It has been about a year(early 2023) since I played it, so forgive me if I'm wrong). Neither are hard to get. You just gotta play the final boss again. Yet again, just a really nice experience. Fun but challenging. Story is cliche but the mystery of it all makes you want to keep going. The atmosphere and exploration is what drives this game. It's fantastic. If it was just an RE clone I don't think it would be as memorable. Although the combat isn't the best, it gives the game a unique flare that sets it apart from other RE clones.

I highly suggest playing this, that I feel like, is a hidden gem. As long as you are not photosensitive. If you like light grid based combat or survival horror, it is def worth you checking out.

Koudelka is my roman empire.

I think of this game a lot, and i think i prefer it to the rest of the shadow hearts canon.

Theres something special here, an aesthetic a vibe a feeling that seeps into every passing moment thats reminiscent of the way Silent Hill feels otherworldly.

The cast is small, the story narrow, but that doesnt stop me from loving this whole experience. The titular character Koudelka is a shot of adrenaline, a romani psychic drawn to the scene of absolute tragedy at the monastary, a headstrong and driven young woman willing to tackle any and all comers. Shes a fantastic lead, fully realized at a time when the medium wasnt too hot at handling female-led narratives.
I havent replayed this in close to five years, so do make allowances for any holes in memory, but i find Edward mostly tolerable. Feels like a rough draft for the character of Rick from The Mummy, a treasure hunting and schmoozy do-gooder here more for the vibe than any higher purpose. The final piece of the cast is James, a priest who ties directly to the overarching plot in ways that are not immediately apparent.

The game is maybe a bit weak as a game-the combat is fun but a solved puzzle after the first hour or so, and the exploration a clone of Resident Evil but somehow lacking.

But the vibes, man. The battle theme is an all timer, the monastary is spooky without veering too often into ludicrous (the spencer mansion is a bit goofy if we're being straight with one another.)

I'd say play this, but only if you love Silent Hill, Resident Evil, and are jonesing for a similar fix. Loses half a star because i cant in good faith recommend the game to everyone.

Finally played this one and what a blast!
A horror JRPG that's feels like the best theater play. The vocal performance of the actors really is as outstanding as everyone says!
The small setting with just the Monastery and the more personal stories of the three protagonists give the whole thing a really interesting atmosphere I've never seen anywhere else. Kikuta really came up with the idea to mix resident evil like puzzles with a fully voice acted (I'm talking EVERY scene!) intimate RPG story line.
I also love how the game has small little things like finding certain items changing the outcomes of cutscenes or the absolutely ridiculous choice to make a certain items be mandatory so you don't get the worst ending. What normally drives JRPG players totally mad is pretty much fine here as the game is only like 8-10 hours long. Even if you mess up and get a bad ending, playing the game again and exploring the monastery further isn't too much of an ask.
The battle system could have been better, I guess. It feels pretty generically turn based/ SRPG except when you're losing and you notice that positionining is important to actually revive your teammates.
The monster design is top notch though and so are the character stories and interactions. I really loved these flawed beings with their tragic back stories. This game is just awesome.

While Resident Evil 2 is my favorite game of all time, I do sincerely believe Koudelka is the best horror game to grace the PS1. It's of course not without it's faults, with obtuse mechanics and combat that can become banal pretty quickly. But it's well realized Gothic Welsh setting is phenomenal, it's characters actually feel real and tangible (thanks to the fact that all the actors were seemingly all stage performers prior, and the impressive mocaping that required all the actors to actually be in the same room as one another. It's something uncommon now, but for the PS1, it was unheard of), an incredibly mature story that tackles some heavy topics that most horror games prior to Silent Hill 2 shyed away from, and some truly fantastic monster design that gives Ito a run for his money.

It is a game that really isn't for everyone, alienating a lot of fans from both the Survival Horror and JRPG crowd, but if you can stomach some admittedly wonky gameplay (which let's be real, neither FF7 or the classic Resident Evil games actually all that fun to "play"), you'll find a true diamond in the rough.

Ambitous and experimental, Koudelka has a lot going on. The combination of tank controls, fixed angles, and turn-based, grid-based combat is a good one. So is the granularity of the attribute system and richness of gear and items. While often deeply cheesy, there's an effort in the dialogue to explore the setting and to give each character some depth. But all this detail comes at a steep cost to gameplay - combat drips as slowly as molasses as animations and models load in. Even so, I appreciate the unique qualities of this one. Give more more detailed and weird pieces of historical fiction and horror in games any time.

This game was pretty good! Story was great, fun cast of characters, an incredible atmosphere, and of course the cutscenes are astounding for a PS1 game. Gameplay wise it got a sick blend of PS1 horror and exploration with (strategy?) JRPG. Music was good, but the boss theme just like Suikoden 1 got old halfway through; of course Koudelka had the decency of having a final boss theme lol. That being said while combat was neat, i can't deny it had some rough patches, like by the end i barely paid attention to the formation stuff (felt like it was safer to group the 3 together and go all out) and started to favour magic attacks. When it comes to endings, while i got the "bad" ending i felt as though it was a more satisfying outcome than the actual "good" ending.

This is certainly the hidden gem that I was most surprised by, learned to love and automatically entered into my favorite games of life.

Obviously, it has some major limitations linked to the gameplay of a JRPG at the time, a rather strange pacing and a greater absence of survival horror parts. However, the setting, the writing of the lines and, above all, the voice acting, which is above average for the console generation, make the game unique and very enjoyable to play.

That said, I recommend that anyone who reads this article or goes to this game's page gives it a go, as it was probably one of the best experiences I've had with a game in years. I felt like I was back when I was just a kid with a PS1 getting started in the world of gaming.

Me encanta la atmosfera que se genera sobre todo gracias a la música (no nos olvidemos que Sacnoth lo monto un compositor de música de videojuegos), y creo que hay una mezcla de survival horror y rol que funciona bien. La historia funciona menos por hechos que por tono y atmosfera, y aun así hay momentos realmente escalofriantes que han quedado algo obsoletos más de 20 años después, pero esto, la banda sonora, la ambientación gótica y la forma de usar las armas y los hechizos siguen teniendo no solo vigencia, sino también encanto.

This is a game which contains so much vision and a sense of sophistication that it is felt even through the more sloppy aspects, to the point where they largely read as the product of perhaps limited time or resources rather than poor taste. To see a Playstation game which does all of its dialogue through motion-captured scenes which play out as if on a stage, and with high fidelity voice acting is something I didn't even know had been done on the console I grew up on.

The combat sytem isn't very challenging by design, and the puzzle solving is not particularly well-planned out all the time, but the strength of the performances and the unique setting, charracters, and story make it a game that sticks with you.

I stumbled backwards blind into this game after stumbling backwards blind into Shadowhearts Covenant and thinking I was probably missing some context for that game.