Dynasty Warriors 3

"A great game for any occasion."

Dynasty Warriors 3 is the third edition to the Dynasty Warriors series (it wasn't obvious, I know), and, dare I say, it rivals the second one very well and, in my opinion, surpasses it. Dynasty Warriors 2 was an innovative game and fell into a completely different genre than its predecessor. However, the improvements of DW3 from DW2 are numerous and remarkable, as will be explained.

Story – 8 / 10
Some may ask: “How can you grade the story? The game is based off a historical time period!” Well, here's what I did: I watched the various cut-scenes in the game, and graded the story based on how well they were presented. Many times, the scenes gave the player a good idea of what was going on (going through the Stone Sentinel Maze in Yi Ling, Wu side, for example). But, were the scenes spectacular? They were a bit melodramatic (Zhang Fei's repulsion of Cao Cao's troops at the Chang Ban Bridge), and they were nothing spectacular.

KOEI also included the fact that any character could perform any event. For example, instead of Zhang Fei defending the Chang Ban Bridge, you could do the same with any other character. Not a great improvement, but it was a great addition nonetheless.

The various battles in the game are also rather accurate when compared to the novel. For example, when a computer-controlled Guan Yu approaches Hua Xiong at Hu Lao Gate (Allied Forces), an event occurs that is similar to an event in the book (sorry, don't want to spoil the novel for you ^.^ ). They include key events as well, such as the fire attack at both Chi Bi and Yi Ling, Liu Bei's flight at Chang Ban, and the wooden ox supplies at Wu Zhang Plains.

Many characters were given a bit of a bigger personality than in DW2. Zhao Yun, Cao Cao, and Gan Ning, among others, are a few that stand out. I might as well mention Zhang He's “narcissistic” nature. I'm glad KOEI gave him at least a sense of individuality; something many characters lack (Lu Meng, for example).

All in all, KOEI did a good job representing the novel in this game. However, some of the scenes were melodramatic, while others were done in a very mediocre fashion. Additionally, many characters lack individuality.

Graphics – 8 / 10
The graphics are a step-up from DW2, but not a major one. The character models are a lot smoother, and KOEI did an above-average job of showing a bit of detail in the characters' faces. The scenes look a lot better, and the movie scenes are well done, despite the occasional strange movement performed by the characters (such as swinging an arm as though a neuron misfired).

The backgrounds in the levels are given a bit of detail, but nothing to get excited about. The environments aren't exactly interactive, nor do the objects give off that much detail. They do look nice, but they aren't the greatest.

Gameplay – 10 / 10
This is the section where DW3 really shines. Despite my knowledge of hack-n'-slash games, I would be so bold as to say it is unrivalled by any other series (yes, even LotR). Depending on the difficulty you play on, the game can be extremely fun or extremely challenging.

For example, playing the game on easy with a character whose stats are maxed makes for quite the fun time. Using Wu Zhang Plains as an example, you can stand near Sima Yi and rack up over 2000 kills before one of your ally generals kills the Gate Captain spawning these unfortunate peons.

Playing on normal provides you with a not-so-challenging challenge, but keeps you on your toes when fighting some of the more difficult generals (Lu Bu at Hu Lao Gate, Gan Ning at He Fei, the Wu Gate Captain at Yi Ling ^.~).

Playing on hard, however, is probably the most fun difficulty to play on (depending on your personal preferences). Many ally generals fall quickly in later levels, and so, many times, the only people left in the level will be you and your commander. This makes for an extremely fun kill-fest along with a great challenge.

KOEI also added playing on other, usually non-playable forces (such as Liu Zhang's forces or Liu Biao's forces). Nothing big, but noteworthy nonetheless.

Along with all this is the morale factor. Morale raises and lowers depending on your actions in battle. For example, after initiating the fire attack at Yi Ling, the Shu Force's morale will plummet, whereas the Wu Force's morale will soar. Defeating enemy generals raises (your) morale, whereas losing ally generals lowers it. Obtaining many KO's also increases morale; obtaining 1000 KO's maxes morale for all your ally generals. A high morale unit engaging with a low morale unit will have the advantage. Fighting high morale enemies is slightly more challenging than fighting low morale enemies. Alas, it's mostly common sense, and I'm sure you get the picture ^.^

KOEI also added items into the game; something DW2 did not have. Items let you customize your characters stats to a certain extent. There are items that let you raise a character's health or Musou gauge, or to increase their attacking or defensive power. This was a big step-up from DW2, since after maxing a character's stats in that game, faster characters were virtually better in every aspect of the game.

Last, but most certainly not least, was the new weapon system. After defeating an enemy officer, they may sometimes drop a weapon for you to collect. The great thing about this is weapons can now increase the amount of hits a character can perform. Equipping a level one weapon allows the character to perform four hits; equipping a level two weapon allows the character to perform five hits; and equipping a level three or four weapon allows the character to perform six hits. Along with the increase in moves came additional charge attacks. Every character's C5 (SSSSTT) allows them to knock the opponent into the air upon the first press of Triangle, and allows them to knock them back down with another tap of the Triangle button. The C6's are usually great crowd clearers or great attacks directed at a single enemy. Additionally, each weapon can come with some bonuses to your character's stats.

Level four weapons are the most challenging weapons to acquire. Certain requirements must be fulfilled on certain stages on the Hard difficulty setting, which led for a fun, challenging way to play the game (yet again). All the level four weapons come with pre-determined stat bonuses (usually high increases), and some weapons come with an elemental addition. This means, that some characters can set their opponents on fire, affect them with lightning (which was quite useless), or instantly kill them. This was a great addition on KOEI's part.

Sound – 7 / 10
Many of the voices in this game are sub-par. Wei Yan's voice is extremely annoying, and may in fact make your ears bleed. He was a capable general in the novel, yet KOEI gave him a voice as though he had been dropped on his head a numerous amount of times as an infant. Sun Shang Xiang was given a young, womanly appearance, but sounds like a forty-year-old woman. Sun Jian endlessly endorses Kellogg's Frosted Flakes. These are only a few examples of the bad voice acting in DW3. Of course, you could always change the voice acting to Japanese, which sounded a bit better; however, the difference wasn't that great (generic generals still sound annoying).

The music is a different story. Many themes are catchy (Siege of He Fei Castle, Wu forces, or Campaign for Cheng Du, Liu Bei's forces), while others are tolerable. I haven't really found a theme that greatly disturbs me, nor have I found a theme that made me download it off the Internet for free. The music was “not bad.”

Replayability – 10 / 10
The game doesn't really have an ending. You can finish everyone's Musou mode, max all your characters stats, acquire all the weapons and items (and max all the items), max all your characters ranks, unlock all levels, unlock sides, et cetera, and still not be bored of the game. Level four weapons give your characters a slight sense of individuality when concerning their fighting style. Some characters may fight better on a horse, whereas some may fight better on foot. Some may require a defensive fighting style, whereas others are all about offense. And because there is no ending, you can play all the levels over as many times as you want.

Controls – 10 / 10
A category that is not really fair to judge, the controls in this game are extremely simple. Square is to attack normally, Triangle is to use a charge attack, X is to jump, and Circle is to use your Musou (special) attack. You can initiate various special moves if you press triangle after a chain of Square button presses (SSST, for example).

Blocking and using a bow is straightforward. Changing your map look and turning on the enemy health bars take a fraction of a second to do. There are really no flaws to the controls in this game.

Average Score – 8.83~ / 10
My Verdict – 9 / 10
Okay, so the verdict and the average score are virtually the same. But, what if I had not given marks for each category? Hm? What then!?

…Anyway, the game is definitely worth both a rental and a buy. If you love hack-'n-slash games, this is the game for you. The improvements put into this game from DW2 are numerous and make the game all the more enjoyable. So do yourself a favor, and buy the game. Go. NOW. (^.^)

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 01/18/05, Updated 01/24/05