“fantasy pack” sweepstakes - Hardcore Gamer

Publisher : Koei
Genre(s) : Do-It-Yourself Empire Building
Developer : Omega Force Category : Action and Strategy
Release Date : 03/28/06
Rating : “RP” - Rating Pending
# of players : 1-2
Koei’s Dynasty Warriors line of games had a diehard fanbase
that a lot of other publishers would kill for. Not only have
they carried the franchise to a staggering five games, but
for the past few years they’ve been willing to support
multiple editions of the same sequels. To be fair,
each of the variants on a Dynasty Warriors sequel
offers some unique content, but not enough to
entice most gamers into going back through
a title they’ve already played. The Dynasty
Warriors fan is a breed apart.
Knowing this makes writing a review of this
game feel somewhat academic.
Nothing written here will dissuade a
diehard Dynasty Warriors fan from
picking this game up and loving it
to death, and of course a diehard fan hardly
needs persuading. By the same token,
someone who is not already a Dynasty
Warriors fan is probably not going to
be convinced to want this game at all
if they’ve already played another version
of it. Empires’s strategy elements
put only a slightly different spin on
DW5. The core gameplay feels basically
the same, especially if you choose to do
campaigns playing as a core DW5 cast
member instead of creating your
own character.
There are still definite differences between Empires and vanilla
DW5. While most of the map areas and character cast are basically
the same, the way you progress through the game is very different.
There’s still a mode for doing one-off battles, but the meat of the
3 of 5
Review by Lyunxara
Rating : 3 of 5
2nd opinion by 4thletter • Alternate Rating : 3 of 5
game is the Campaign mode where you can opt
to play as part of the DW5 cast or as an original
character you’ve created. The game progresses
in a loosely turn-based way, with battles happening
when your units try to advance into enemy
territory, or when enemies try to advance on
your territory. When not battling you get to
manage your kingdom using a highly simplified
version of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms
strategy engine. It’s honestly a bit too simplified,
such that what you do during the strategy
phase doesn’t feel like it has much significance
compared to what goes on during the combat
portions of the game. The only real reward
for advancing in the game is unlocking more
character creation options, but even with everything
unlocked, it’s really hard to make anything
with the character editor that feels unique.
Basically, Empires is just a new way to play DW5 again. Dynasty
Warriors fanatics are probably going to love it,
but people already bored by the Dynasty Warriors
gameplay style just aren’t going to find anything
here to hold their interest. Even as a Dynasty Warriors
fan, Empires releasing as a stand-alone title
feels like a bit much. How many times has this
game been released in the past twelve months
already? Is there some reason why the strategic
elements and character editor of Empires
can’t be part of the standard Dynasty
Warriors releases? It seems like that would
result in a better Dynasty Warriors to start with.
You’ve played this game before. If you’re a DW fan, this will be comfortably
familiar to you. To everyone else, choose carefully.
58_REVIEW_DYNASTY WARRIORS 5: EMPIRES HARDCORE GAMER MAGAZINE_VOLUME 1_ISSUE 11_GIRL POWER
A N e w H e r o . A N e w E r a .
A C o m p l e t e l y N e w O n i m u s h a .
®
Breathtaking open ended
environments to explore
Choose from five all new
playable characters
Two-playable characters
on screen at once,
switch between characters
at any time
www.capcom.com/onimusha
Team up with a friend
in unlockable
co-op mode
©CAPCOM CO., LTD. 2006 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ONIMUSHA, CAPCOM and the CAPCOM LOGO are registered trademarks of CAPCOM CO., LTD. “PlayStation” and the
“PS” Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. The ratings icon is a registered trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. All
other trademarks are owned by their respective owners.
®