Next-Gen Dynasty
We finally get to sit down with an English build of Dynasty Warriors 6 and dammit, we're hooked.
Published: January 15, 2008
Previews of a game are, by their very nature, supposed to be a quick, relatively objective peek at a game, leaving the full review to actually pick apart things and really go into depth about how the game plays. Most of the time, this means that just a few hours have to be spent playing the game to get the gist of its various ins and outs, at which time we can hurriedly whip up a preview for you, our dear readers to enjoy.
So why haven't we whipped up said preview of Dynasty Warriors 6 yet -- especially considering we got a fully playable Japanese build a good month or so ago? Simple, we can't stop playing it. Having a fairly wordy Japanese version of the game may have been a mild excuse (we really did get stopped early on because we weren't sure what to do), but now with weeks of access to what is, for all intents and purposes, a near-finished English build of the game, our only excuse is an addictive personality.
A basic word of warning, though: some of us in the office still like the Dynasty Warriors games, despite them being a bit... well, let's call it "similar" to the games that have come before it. While DW6 most certainly offers one of the bigger changes to the series since it was started (though admittedly the tag-team mash-up and tweaks introduced in Warriors Orochi were welcome, but sadly have been dismissed for DW6), it's more in line with the slight tweaks that have become part of each successive continuation of the series.
The biggest and perhaps most polarizing change will likely come in the complete character redesigns that KOEI made to the core cast of players. There was an attempt to update them -- some may say even modernize a little -- which is in contrast to the almost documentary-style approach to the cutscenes in the game. Personally, we didn't really have a problem with seeing Cao Cao and Lui Bei's new look (and if you folks are interested, we may showcase what they look like here in the near future), but we're more than ready, like KOEI, to admit that it's going to stir up the hornet's nest of die-hard Dynasty Warriors fans.
Other changes to the game aren't quite as radical. The upgrades system in the game is no longer purely level-based. Yes, your character will continue to grow and gain more hit points, more strength and so on as they rack up thousands of kills, but a combination of experience-based objectives for every level and an almost Sphere Grid-like advancement system (a la Final Fantasy X) have been added.
It's nowhere near as complex as FFX's Grid, mind you, but the option of guiding your character's advancement along multiple branching paths, picking how their attack, health, musou and so on are upgraded every level provides an unexpected level of depth and yet another layer of growth to manage as you plow through the all too familiar Musou, Free and Challenge modes (the latter of which isn't exactly a staple, but as the name suggests assigns you a basic task like getting a certain number of kills and isn't really all that different from the main game).
One of the other bits of advancement along the branched upgrade path is bolstering the Renbu Gauge. Along with redesigning the characters, KOEI also completely overhauled their movesets with new animations and a system that allows you to chain together attacks nigh-endlessly. As the chain of hits goes up, the Renbu Gauge builds, and with each successive increase to the gauge's level, more powerful and varied moves become available. At first, the gauge will only increase to level two, but eventually a third and "unlimited" gauge can be unlocked with skill points used on those branching paths.
So why haven't we whipped up said preview of Dynasty Warriors 6 yet -- especially considering we got a fully playable Japanese build a good month or so ago? Simple, we can't stop playing it. Having a fairly wordy Japanese version of the game may have been a mild excuse (we really did get stopped early on because we weren't sure what to do), but now with weeks of access to what is, for all intents and purposes, a near-finished English build of the game, our only excuse is an addictive personality.
A basic word of warning, though: some of us in the office still like the Dynasty Warriors games, despite them being a bit... well, let's call it "similar" to the games that have come before it. While DW6 most certainly offers one of the bigger changes to the series since it was started (though admittedly the tag-team mash-up and tweaks introduced in Warriors Orochi were welcome, but sadly have been dismissed for DW6), it's more in line with the slight tweaks that have become part of each successive continuation of the series.
The biggest and perhaps most polarizing change will likely come in the complete character redesigns that KOEI made to the core cast of players. There was an attempt to update them -- some may say even modernize a little -- which is in contrast to the almost documentary-style approach to the cutscenes in the game. Personally, we didn't really have a problem with seeing Cao Cao and Lui Bei's new look (and if you folks are interested, we may showcase what they look like here in the near future), but we're more than ready, like KOEI, to admit that it's going to stir up the hornet's nest of die-hard Dynasty Warriors fans.
Other changes to the game aren't quite as radical. The upgrades system in the game is no longer purely level-based. Yes, your character will continue to grow and gain more hit points, more strength and so on as they rack up thousands of kills, but a combination of experience-based objectives for every level and an almost Sphere Grid-like advancement system (a la Final Fantasy X) have been added.
It's nowhere near as complex as FFX's Grid, mind you, but the option of guiding your character's advancement along multiple branching paths, picking how their attack, health, musou and so on are upgraded every level provides an unexpected level of depth and yet another layer of growth to manage as you plow through the all too familiar Musou, Free and Challenge modes (the latter of which isn't exactly a staple, but as the name suggests assigns you a basic task like getting a certain number of kills and isn't really all that different from the main game).
One of the other bits of advancement along the branched upgrade path is bolstering the Renbu Gauge. Along with redesigning the characters, KOEI also completely overhauled their movesets with new animations and a system that allows you to chain together attacks nigh-endlessly. As the chain of hits goes up, the Renbu Gauge builds, and with each successive increase to the gauge's level, more powerful and varied moves become available. At first, the gauge will only increase to level two, but eventually a third and "unlimited" gauge can be unlocked with skill points used on those branching paths.
