Dynasty Warriors 5 Empires

"Another game has fallen to my controller!"

Here we are with yet another instalment from the Dynasty Warriors series. I felt that the series has been bastardized with rehash after rehash of the same old thing (not that it's a bad game) with very little to no variation. I finally broke down and picked up a copy of Dynasty warriors 5: empires in the bargain bin of Circuit city for $30 just to have an addition for my 360 collection.

Game Play:
As a sequel I wouldn't rate DW very high; it does have the empire/strategy mode and the create an officer modes both of which are completely new and welcome additions, but still has that “been there done that” feel. With all of that said as a game on it's own merits Koei has yet another winner.

The DW games are basically a hack and slash style game that has you fighting through hundreds of enemies in different scenarios, there is strategy involved as “you can” go aimlessly plowing through hordes of enemies however you usually fare better by picking strategic battles like killing a gate captain in one location will limit/cut off the enemies reinforcements and possibly increase yours.

Strategy mode is basically like a watered down Romance of the three kingdoms; it's basically move here, allocate resources there, ally with X, and kill Y. I found it a little confusing at first and somewhat simple once you get the gist of it.
8 of 10

Story:
No major changes here; Dynasty Warriors 5: empires follows the same story lines as the it's predecessors. Rivaling factions of ancient china wage war to control the provinces.

In the free mode you play pretty much the same game/scenarios as the other DW games with any of the hundreds of characters. Each one of the scenarios has it's own story and objective.

While in the empire mode you follow a centralized story line for your empire with different mission stories and objectives. As you conquer more regions more items, and people appear to join your cause and benefit you or oppose/work against you. Honestly there's nothing original or unheard of before here but it's entertaining and an original/different way to present the story.
8 of 10

Graphics:
The visuals aren't (in my opinion) stellar or ground breaking what so ever compared to it's last gen counter parts. However they are animated very well; considering there are literally hundreds of characters on screen at once with all the movements and mayhem I haven't seen an ounce of slowdown.
Overall there really aren't any visual improvements to mention, DW was never a bad looking game, but was never acclaimed as being impressive in the visual department or a graphical powerhouse.
8 of 10

Audio:
As the saying goes “nothing ventured, nothing gained”. Same is to be said of DW5:E's sound, there really aren't any notable improvements or additions. As always the voice acting is great, and adds personality to each of the characters. Some of the comments will catch you off guard and keep you laughing like approaching a general/boss and your character saying something like “I've come for your head”.

The music is what I call Asian, electronic rock fusion; it's mood fitting enough to keep you in the game and go with the feel but none (except the title and mission win music) are really memorable. A nice addition is the custom sound track feature and although it's not really exclusive to this game it really doesn't hurt.
7 of 10

Controls:
The controls are simple and responsive. At heart DW5:E is a button masher but still has some precise combos that take a little work but the layout of the control make them flow really well. One complaint is the “slight” delay while trying to block certain combos (not a huge deal).
9 of 10

Re-playability
As repetitive as you've heard me say the DW franchise is the one thing that keeps us all coming back for more is the fact they're fun. This game has achievements to obtain, around 200 officers to unlock, 4 weapons for each, a free mode with more than 30 battles and the full story from the empire mode. This puppy will keep you entertained for a very long time.
7 of 10

Overall
Honestly there's not a lot of new changes or improvements between this instalment of DW and it's predecessors. I'm not a fan of rehashes but in this case the old adage holds true: “If it ain't broke don't try to fix it. The DW games are all known for their countless hours of game play and melee and carnage evoking fun.
The new Empire mode adds more depth and another side to an already well rounded game. Overall this game is a no brainer pickup for all 360 owners, previous fans of the series, and hack and slash lovers.
8 of 10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 03/28/07