Dynasty Warriors 5

"Dynasty Warriors once again conquers all"

The place is the vast lands of China. The time is the turn of the 2nd century. This is the story of the Three Kingdoms which has been passed down for generations. A story of peace, chaos, prosperity, and decline. A story of brave heroes and treacherous villains. Witness the tales of these warriors, for the stories of yesterday are the history of tomorrow.

This is the intro to Dynasty Warriors 5 found in the manual. It truly explains the experience of the game. I have played Dynasty Warriors since the second one came out a few years ago. I have always loved Dynasty Warriors. Dynasty Warriors 5 lives up to the hype and beats out the first 4 by a landslide.

Game play-9.5 Yes, it is your classic button masher, but there is more to the game then that. There is some strategy involved. Should you attack here or there? Should you rush in or hold back? Now the button mashing can get a little boring, but the other elements of the game take away from the boredom. The game runs smooth even with hundreds of characters on screen at once. The only bad thing about the game play is the camera angle. Sometimes the camera can be facing in the wrong direction, causing you to be in a bind. However, it is a minor defect in an overall awesome experience. Everything else that was wrong in Dynasty Warriors 4, has been fixed to some degree.

Story line-10 What can I possibly say about this? The story lines in every Dynasty Warriors are phenomenal. This one is just as good. You pick one character to follow throughout the story mode. You help his kingdom conquer China. Every single general has a unique story to follow making every new general just as exciting as the old. The battles that you encounter on your path to victory are based on true events. The storyline is truly one of the best out there for a game based on history.

Graphics/Sound-10 The graphics in Dynasty Warriors 5 are really good. Even with hundreds of people on camera at once, you can still see very good detail. The clothing of the officers is very elaborate and is shown perfectly. The maps are designed with a lot of detail that really adds to the game by its life-like appearance. The sound isn't something for Dynasty Warriors to brag about, but it adds to the game more then you would think. The tone and speed of the songs being played really reflect the battle you are fighting. There aren't any songs to an extent, but more music. However, the music is very good.

Play Time/Replay Value-10 This is one of the cool aspects of Dynasty Warriors 5. Every single general has a unique story, so no matter who you pick you will get a whole new experience. This adds a lot of fun into the game. Being able to pick a new general and travel his path that is completely different then your last general's path. The play time for each general (as long as your not on easy mode) is fairly long. It's definitely longer then Dynasty Warriors 4 was.

Final Rating-10 This is a game to buy if your into this style of game play. Even if your not I would recommend at least renting it. The fact that you are one guy versus one thousand is enough to make me want to play it. With every battle being different, the time you can spend playing is endless. The game play is crisp and the graphics are sharp. This is truly the best Dynasty Warriors to date and Koei really made this game very fun to play. All in all, this game gets a 10 from me. It is an extremely fun and addicting game to play and I would recommend everyone to at least rent the game. However, for any fan of the Dynasty Warriors series, it is a definite buy.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 03/31/05