Dynasty Warriors 3: Xtreme Legends

"Ancient Chinese Proverb Say Expansion is Cash Cow"

First off, Xtreme Warriors is basically an ''expansion'' of sorts to the original Dynasty Warriors 3, which I so humbly list as one of the PS2's top titles. Upgrades in XL include 5th-level weapons, varied scenarios, and 7 new Musou-available characters (Lu Bu, Dong Zhuo, Zhu Rong, Meng Huo, Zhang Jiao, Yuan Shao, and Diao Chan). Granted, most DW3-players had no intense desire to play as Dong Zhuo, but now they can anyway.

Gameplay - 9/10: Well, very little has changed in regards to gameplay. If you've played DW3, you'll find the same old song and dance here, though control seems slightly more responsive (not that it was an issue in the original). Quick, simple button combos are the standard fare, with no overt challenge in regards to maneuvering around and decimating your enemies.

One addition to the process is the ability to use playable characters as bodyguards, thus enabling rather painful-looking Musou combinations. Generic bodyguards can also be customized to some extent, rather than just giving them a different weapon as in DW3. A very nice touch.

Story - 7.5/10: Well, what's to say. The same story we saw in Dynasty Warriors 3 (and various other Koei titles), involving the struggles in China's past. Cut-scenes are solid, with acceptable voice-acting, and the in-game information engine provides data on the characters and so forth, for those who are curious. While story is by no means the focus of the game, it does a good job with what it does have. You may not want to rely on it to write your next history report, however.

Visuals - 8/10: Again, little change from the original. A tad enhanced, but nothing too terribly noticeable. Character models are excellent, and stage designs are well-done, if a little bland in areas.

Sound - 9/10: Dynasty Warriors 3 had an excellent OST to accompany it, and it's basically carried over into XL. As with most games of this nature, the novelty of the music wears off after you've played the same stage repeatedly a number of times. Fortunately, the tracks are nice enough that it should take slightly longer than normal.

Replay Value/Challenge - 8.5/10: There's little replay value here. It's not a bad thing, just that the game itself has quite a bit to accomplish, and Dynasty Warriors 4 should be making its appearance in stores shortly.

Challenge-wise, it has been stepped up (along with the addition of the 'very hard' difficulty setting), and many will encounter frustration before finally clearing a particular stage or obtaining a desired weapon. The difficulty is not the insane type, however, and with practice just about anyone will have a firm grasp of things.

Overall - 7/10:

XL is a fine expansion, though whether or not it's worth the money is based largely on personal taste. Those expecting a new game or those who had only a passing interest in DW3 will likely find better investments. If, however, you're looking for a quick DW3 fix until the next installment is released, or you just have a yearning to play as Lu Bu in Musou mode (or Dong Zhuo, I suppose), then by all means pick a copy up. The low price tag certainly doesn't hurt matters, either.

One complaint many have is with Koei's little ''anti-cheat device'' move, which will reward altered save data with a nice corrupted data message. I must agree; it's something I strongly urge Koei not to use in the future, since all they've effectively done is annoy many people who purchased the product. There also appears to be little reason for having a rank reset when DW3 data is imported, and as such it is a minor annoyance.

In the end, there's a lack of content here as a stand-alone, but when (successfully) coupled with Dynasty Warriors 3 it offers plenty of extra gameplay for fans, and as such comes recommended to those individuals.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 11/18/04