Dynasty Warriors 4: Empires

"A welcome addition to the Dynasty Warriors series."

First off, I would like to say that this is my first review.Secondly, I encourage you to read other reviews because mine is one of opinion.

Gameplay- 8/10
Now let me start off saying that this game offers a new mode of play that adds some variety into the mix.
Empire Mode- You start off choosing either historical or fictional mode. Historical mode sets each kingdom up with the rightful ruler in his own territory. Each ruler has a set 2 generals with him. You can either choose a ruler and start in his territory, or use a created character and start your own kingdom along with 2 random officers. If you choose to start your own kingdom, then you will get to choose which territory you start in. All other free territories will be filled in by the yellow turbans. In fictional mode you choose a character to be the ruler, then you get 2 random officers as your generals. After you pick your territory, other kingdoms will show up with random officers some will have 2 or 3 territories. Once you start, each officer presents 2 policies for you to choose from. Some of the policies include recruiting troops, upgrading items, hiring officers, forging alliances, etc. After you choose your set of policies, you can either wait for the next turn or attack another territory. The battles in this installment have been changed. Now you try to capture strongholds and advance your troops instead of taking gate's. Another change is generals returning to battle. No longer will a general stay defeated, but they will retreat after you defeat them and return after a few minutes. After 3 defeats, the general will challenge you to a duel. If you beat them, you will capture them, and if you lose, the battle is over. You can also cut off supplies to strongholds by capturing the strongholds the connect it to the main base. If you cut off supplies, then the territory will turn dark blue and the stronghold won't recieve reinforcements and the generals and officers will weaken. If you defeat a general in dark blue territory, you can capture him. Another welcome change is that if you lose a battle, it's not game over. You simply lose that territory if you were defending, or you simply do not gain the territory if you were attacking it. Plus, if you lose a battle there is a chance that several of your officers may be captured.
Versus Mode- There are 4 main modes for this. Pilfer is where you go around breaking boxes and collecting items. There are also supply captains that will drop items and officers that will wander the halls of the castle and fight you if they see you. Vanquish has you fighting hordes of enemies along with a friend. You have a summon meter that fills up that will allow you to summon troops. It starts out as bombardiers, and ends up with the great warrior Lu Bu, with other kinds of troops and officers in between. Th 3rd mode is Melee. In this mode you are on top of a wall, and you try to knock as many soldiers off the wall as you can, it's my favorite versus mode. The last mode is Endurance, which places you in a small area surrounded by poison water and troops continuously rush in.
Create a Warrior- Basically the same as DW4's CAW, except there are more model options. You can also choose from any of the main character's weapons, along with the great sword and rapier. You can choose a voice, a skill, and a set of stats. Some sets have high stats, but low speed and 1 item slot, while others have average stats, average speed, and 3 item slots. The new create-a-warrior is more detailed and is a welcome addition.

Graphics- 7/10
The graphics in the Dynasty Warriors series have never been great, but they get the job done. Character models are very detailed, but small things such as the way capes seem to go through your body and the way Zhou Tai's sword goes in it's sheath from the side prevent this area from getting a higher score.

Sound/Music- 7/10
Now some people don't get how heavy rock music can go with an environment such as ancient china, but I think it goes well with the type of game this is. I don't think many people would enjoy destroying hordes of enemies with classical chinese music playing in the backround. The voice acting is still very bad but atleast you can change the language this time around. The sound effects are nice but aren't anything wonderful.

Extras/Unlockables- 9/10
You can unlock various things such as hisorical battles, artwork, and an ending edit, so this is something to throw some more playtime into the mix.

A.I.- 9/10
I was impressed with the A.I. this time around. Now generals will use the same strategies you normally use (juggling, etc.) so it's more challenging. Ally generals aren't completely useless in this installment, if you leave them alone they usually capture enemy strongholds by themselves. Also, if generals get low on health, they will retreat to other strongholds to regain their life. This is a great improvement from the past games.

Replay Value- 8/10
The variety in gameplay, along with the unlockables keep me coming back to this game. The game is random and very non-linear, so every game is never the same.

Total Score- 8/10
I hope my review has influenced your decision on whether or not to buy the game. I enjoyed the game very much, but there could have been many improvements to make this game a lot better. If you've played and enjoyed the previous dynasty warriors, then I recommend this game to you. If you've never played a Dyansty Warrios game before, then I suggest you try out 3 or 4 first.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 09/13/04