Shape History In Your Image
HIGH This is the scariest Lu Bu has ever been.
LOW A couple of classic weapons aren’t available.
WTF Did not expect ‘Romance’ to be this literal.
Well, they pulled it off.
After the absolutely dire Dynasty Warriors 9, with its stultifying attempt to move the series into an open-world framework that ultimately trapped the player in a barren wasteland, the developers at Omega Force needed to figure out another way to modernize their gameplay without throwing out everything people liked about the series.
Players have followed this franchise — and all its spinoffs — or over two decades because they adore the experience of colorful characters using elaborate special moves and bizarre weapons to wipe out hordes of enemies. To get that experience, they put up with dull fights with other heroes that are always a slog. Every character’s moveset is built around fighting crowds, and they universally falter when it’s time to duel… Until now, that is.
Dynasty Warriors Origins does a lot of things right — it looks fantastic, the crowds of enemies are bigger than ever, the recreation of the Three Kingdoms storyline is as detailed and compelling as ever — but the standout here is that at long last, there are no longer any bad parts to the combat.
The campaign is structured fairly traditionally for a Warriors game. The setting is the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history, when the ruling government collapsed and over a decade’s worth of civil war ensued. Players have access to a large map that allows them to quickly travel either to the next story-based conflict or a randomly-generated battle against bandits or pirates to practice their moves and level up their stats. When battles start, the gameplay is the same as it ever was — travel an enormous battlefield, slaughtering hordes of enemies and capture bases to turn the tide of battle.
The main difference — and it makes all the difference — is that Omega Force has fully embraced modern brawler design. Specifically, the parries and interrupts that have taken the action genres by storm.
Whenever an enemy strikes, their weapon will flash to let the player know that damage is on the way, and there’s a split second to parry the attack, damaging the officer and lowering their stun meter. Officers and heroes also have unparryable attacks that come with their own color code, and these need to be interrupted with special attacks, so it’s always a good idea to have a couple of energy points in reserve.
This one change has taken the combat from clunky to smooth, and I’ve gone from looking at the hero fights as the thing I had to put up before the next horde battle, to enjoying them as an added aspect of a fully-realized and satisfying combat experience.
The one-on-one fights are so improved that I almost didn’t notice the incredible development in the way Dynasty Warriors now handles epic boss battles.
Key generals on the battlefield have large forces on their side — armies of soldiers that are infinitely reinforced until the player can break their spirit by completing randomized objectives within the battle. That can include taking down different types of soldiers, winning duels, using certain kinds of special moves, all while hundreds of enemies and allies swarm around in a maelstrom of violence. Dynasty Warriors has never offered sequences that felt more like authentic battles, and as a result, they’ve never felt more satisfying to wade into armed with a truly impressive set of weapons and abilities.
Perhaps the biggest change this time is that rather than playing as actual historical figures, the player takes on the role of an amnesic warrior who belongs to a secret order of powerful martial artists who step in to protect China in times of strife. Narratively, the result is a mechanic where, at a certain point, the player will be allowed to choose which of three factions to ally with, and then take part in shaping history from there. I won’t spoil the plot turns — history has largely done that for me — but from an unusually in-depth look at the Yellow Turban Rebellion right up until the ending the player earns, this is the most compelling version of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms tale that the Warriors series has offered.
And just to be clear, having access to one playable character does not limit gameplay options. There are nine different weapons available, each with a variety of special attacks to be unlocked and mastered. All of the key generals and warriors appear as well, most them selectable as partners for at least a few battles, which gives the player to opportunity to switch over to playing as them, even if it’s only for a few minutes at a time.
Dynasty Warriors Origins isn’t just a high point for the series, it has the potential be a whole new beginning for its relevance and popularity. While I’m a huge fan of the series, my favorites have never been the mainline entries set in Ancient China. I’ve always preferred the Sengoku Japan-set Samurai Warriors series, or their many licensed entries, like One Piece Pirate Warriors and Zelda Warriors. However, Omega Force has successfully reshaped their flagship title, and perfected the formula — I just hope they’re able to spread this accomplishment around, and elevate their other franchises that deserve the same attention.
Rating: 8 out of 10
Disclosures: This game is developed by Omega Force and published by Koei Tecmo It is currently available on PS5, XBS/X and PC. Copies of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PS5. Approximately 60 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode. The game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes.
Parents: This game was rated M by the ESRB, and it contains Mild Language, Violence, Use of Alcohol. As is traditional for the series, all the combat is bloodless and defeating any enemy is referred to as a ‘KO’. Yes, people die in cutscenes, but it’s never excessive. Characters share drinks, but it’s not a central element of the story.
Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes.
Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: There are subtitles, and no significant audio cues that do not have visual cues alongside them. Subtitles cannot be resized. The game is fully accessible.
Remappable Controls: No, the game’s controls can be remapped. There is no control diagram. Thumbsticks are used to move the character and camera in a standard third-person control scheme. Face and shoulder buttons are used to attack, defend, use items, and call in a horse to ride. Thumbsticks and the control pad can be used to navigate menus.
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“there are no longer any bad parts to the combat”
I’ve been waiting literally decades for them to make a new Musou game that doesn’t play and feel exactly like DW2 for ps2. This review does not convey to me whether that’s actually the case here. A lack of parries and interrupts was not my main criticism.
Wanting to correct an error, controls are remappable. I did so myself during my play through because I didn’t like R2 as dodge.
Editor here, thanks for the message. I passed the comment on and confirmed this with Jason, it was a simple error on his part but we’ve corrected it now. Thanks for the heads up! = )