Gensō Suikoden Card Stories is a card-based role-playing game for the Game Boy Advance, set in the Suikoden universe, particularly following the narrative of Suikoden II. Players assume the role of a young member of the Highland Army's Unicorn Brigade, navigating a war-torn landscape after a camp attack. The gameplay primarily involves strategic card battles, utilizing character cards and mission cards, which can be obtained through shops, opponents, and dungeons.
Set in the Suikoden universe, the game closely follows the story of Suikoden II. The hero is a young member of the Unicorn Brigade of the Highland Army. One night, your camp is attacked. You and your best friend Jowy escape, and the fate takes you into different directions, when you get involved in a war between several nations.
Unlike the main Suikoden games, Gensō Suikoden Card Stories is a card-based RPG. Most of the game is spent playing a special card game with your opponents. The complex card game is not unlike a strategy battle: you have three types of cards, some of which take you to a specific "mission" (you open the game with such cards), while others represent various characters with different strengths and weaknesses. You can acquire cards in shops, get them from your opponents, and also look for them in randomly generated dungeons.