Dynasty Warriors 4

"The Three Kingdoms has never been so much fun"

Dynasty Warriors...if you haven't heard this name before, you have not yet truly experienced Video Gaming at its best. Dynasty Warriors 2-4 is the game that has revolutionized war and action games into a game the likes not many have witnessed. Dynasty Warriors 3 was my first review, mainly because I wanted to expose how great that game was for me. Now just like yesterday it seems, Dynasty Warriors 4 is here and it's looking better than ever! Let’s take a look.

Graphics 10/10
One thing about the graphics I have noticed was the FMV’s. The FMV’s are top notch in this game and easily can compete with other games such as Final Fantasy X and Metal Gear Solid 2. The textures are just very well done and is no surprise from the excellent effort Koei puts into their graphics. The graphics in-game have also improved, there is less jaggies and such and the graphics have improved on characters and enemies as well. The character models have been completely redone and show more detail and look more realistic.

Story 10/10
As you already may know, Dynasty Warriors 4 is based on the time period in China called 'The Three Kingdoms' which was an event in history that took place with Three Kingdoms trying to unify China under their rule after the fall of the Han Dynasty. You may take place under Wei, Wu or Shu to help lead them to victory and accomplish their ambition. However in DW4, you are not limited to story modes of the Three Kingdoms anymore...for now there is Musou Mode for people you never thought...

Sound 10/10
I have always loved the music in this game probably more than any other music from any other game. Even though the soundtrack is completely redone, it still maintains a great sound. The music in DW3 was all rock and wanted to pump you up for excitement. In Dynasty Warriors 4, they wanted to make that more realistic and decided to add a more Chinese feel to the music. Don't think it's all calm music, it's still Rock, it's just that more traditional Chinese vocals have been added in, and in my opinion, make the music even better. The sounds as well fit war in general. The sounds of a sword clashing against a general, and the general or the player yelling in pain as they get cut by a blade. As well as hearing roaring troops as you begin to approach a roaring battle.

Controls 10/10
Another thing I love about this game is the controls. The controls aren't stiff at all and are extremely easy to memorize buttons and the whole control scheme is very smooth and very responsive. Analog works great on this game and you can freely move around in the direction you move the stick in. However a downside to this and to some people is that PSone Controllers do not work on this game. That is a downside to those who like to play games with PSone Controllers and do not have a PS2 Controller at the moment.

Game play 10/10+
Ahh the core and foundation on what makes this game what it is. The mind-blowing Game play. For those of you who do not know, Dynasty Warriors 4 is no sit around and command troops where to go and watch them battle. This game is a all out action game where enemies and allies are fighting each other, and you can just leave them alone and go fight elsewhere, or go give your allies a hand and cut down the enemies. There is over 50 Stages in DW4, which is a huge amount from its predecessors, about 42 generals which is around the same ranks of DW3, but with an addition of 3 new generals added to each kingdom. There also features an Edit Mode where you can make a bodyguard group, edit how they look and their names. Best of all, what we have all been waiting for is here, create a general! In this mode you can pick his head items, arms, body and legs. Then you can pick from weapons that are only in edit mode, or weapons that other generals use. The only downside is that the mode is very basic and there is not much customization. Musou Mode has expanded so much from DW3, and stages aren't crammed into one. Musou Mode is now broken into about 6 acts, and each act having about 3 stages about the act to play in. Musou mode takes roughly about 4-5 hours to complete just with 1 general. So multiply 5 by 42 to get how many hours it could possibly take you. Besides leveling up your generals, you can focus on getting items which can help boost statuses of your general. Plus there is an addition of special elemental orbs which can add special statuses to your weapon. Unlike DW3 which had set elemental weapons for set generals. Any general can have an elemental weapon proved you have the orb to equip to their weapon. There is also an addition to special siege weapons, instead of a gate magically opening or something, siege weapons can help break a gate open, harm enemies with arrows or fire, or help you get into a castle. The weapon system has been completely redone as well. Instead of beating generals and getting a weapon and hoping it is a new weapon upgrade, you earn experience points for your weapon and eventually level it up to a new weapon which allows more hits. Musou Mode is also extended in the fact that you can play as different generals who you may of defeated earlier in the game, and you can see what would of happened if they actually would of won instead of any of the Three Kingdoms. The Encyclopedia has been expanded, now being able to read about stories in the Three Kingdoms, and read about general’s lives in history. Challenge and VS modes have been expanded allowing more game play and different modes. Alright! Now that’s a lot of Game play! I haven't even said everything! These is just a basic outline of how much it’s improved since the last game, and believe me, you must play to find out.

Replay ability
Well with over 42 Generals who each have their own unique move set and to complete Musou Mode with all of them, you are going to be playing for a LONG TIME. However with the fun that this game has, it should be no problem and maybe even go too quickly for you! With all this game is packing, you should be able to play this game for over a month, and to get EVERYTHING, way over that.

Buy or Rent?
BUY BUY BUY I don't see how anyone could not like a game like this. Unless you totally hate action games that are so much fun and keeps you hooked for a long time. If you want an action game that can have the length or be longer than the length of an RPG, then this is definitely a game. I wouldn't even bother renting, this game is worth every penny, and I'm sure once you play it, you would agree.

Final Words
Koei just keeps improving and improving with their Dynasty Warriors series. I am sure as long as Koei keeps packing out these games they will make a revolution just like Final Fantasy has done to the world. Koei has done an amazing and hard earned job on this game and I give them my regards to such a game that will eventually shape the way we look at video games.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 03/31/03, Updated 03/31/03