Review: Dynasty Warriors 8

I was quite excited to be reviewing Dynasty Warriors 8. Not only was it my first big red review for the Barrel, it was also the first time I’d played a Dynasty Warriors game since the series began way back in the late nineties. The series has changed a hell of a lot from Koei’s Tekken-esque take on its own Romance of the Three Kingdoms series, a change that began with the release of Dynasty Warriors 2 at the start of this very century. The ancient setting of Dynasty Warriors 8 is quite appropriate then, as it seems to be stuck well and truly in the past.

Dynasty Warriors 8 is so plagued with problems it’s difficult to know where to begin. During my time with it, I went through several emotional phases that ultimately led to what can only be described as Stockholm Syndrome. The first hour or so fell into what I suppose you could call fun, but that didn’t last long.

The combat system suffers from a lack of the style or depth that you’d expect in a title like this. Attacks are the standard normal and strong affair, with the other face buttons home to a special (Musou) attack and jump. Every character has what is called an EX Attack that is activated by using a strong attack after X amount of normal attacks if the character has their favourite weapon equipped. The execution for the EX move differs between factions, which is why Dynasty Warriors 8 comes complete with four identical training levels to play, because explaining these differences in a tooltip would have been too easy. The battles quickly become boring and repetitive, and there is a depressing lack of impact to the hits, no satisfying crunch as my blades connect with wave after wave of identical foes.

After the ‘fun’ came the frustration. The game is absolutely littered with bugs; during the game’s four massive campaigns I encountered a camera that on several occasions decided it’d work better if it were underneath the floor, enemies that appeared from nowhere, and slow-down so severe it rendered the game almost completely unplayable. How this game ever got through quality assurance is beyond me. That’s not to say I’m blaming Koei’s testing team – give any half decent tester an afternoon with this and everything I’ve pointed out and more will be flagged. Unfortunately, there are a thousand and one reasons why bugs slip through the net, but I’ll write about that at a future date because I’m getting sidetracked.

Why won’t it end already?

I could forgive the bugs and lack of polish if the system were being pushed to its limits, but that isn’t the case, not by a long shot. I’ve never really been one to put too much emphasis on a game’s visuals, preferring instead to let the game-play do the talking. Unfortunately, Dynasty Warriors 8 leaves a lot to be desired, and it certainly isn’t representative of what consoles this late into their respective lifespans can do. The textures are practically non-existent, with enough shades of brown to rival even the blandest FPS. There are no smooth edges to be seen, and judging by the shape of the shadows, everyone is made of Lego. It’s without a doubt one of the most visually boring games I’ve seen this generation, if not ever.

The sound design is in keeping with the level of quality the game has offered so far – in that it feels rushed and incomplete. There are voice acted moments in Dynasty Warriors 8, namely cut-scenes and battlefield encounters, but there are too many times when it feels like there should be speech and there is none. For example, there is a map screen shown between missions depicting the state of the three kingdoms as they’re forming. The map is accompanied by a box of text explaining what had occurred in the time between the last battle and the next, and it’s completely devoid of speech. This section is silently screaming out for a narrator to explain this slightly exaggerated version of China’s history. An over-the-top Soul Calibur-style narration may have even given these screens something resembling charm.

The music doesn’t do much to help Dynasty Warriors 8‘s cause either. In a time where video game soundtracks rival, if not at times surpass, Hollywood in terms of quality, music of this standard really is a relic from a bygone age. Badly mixed J-rock guitar laid over artificial sounding strings and drums trying so hard to sound epic, it trips over it’s neck beard and lands firmly on its face. It feels so completely out-of-place here, it’s untrue. People often complain about the overuse of rock music in action games, and now I can see why. I’m only thankful Koei didn’t follow the current trend of drowning everything in Dubstep.

Do the YMCA! It’s super effective!

After several days of experiencing all of this, I was completely numb – I just didn’t care any more. I don’t know if I actually got better at the game or if I just got used to it and accepted it for the flawed piece of work that it is. I started having thoughts like “well, it’s trying to be good, that has to count for something, right?” I found myself actually feeling sorry for it. It had so much potential to be good and it kept falling short.

Believe it or not, I actually have something positive to say about Dynasty Warriors 8, and that’s in relation to the sheer amount of content on offer. This game is absolutely huge. There are four different campaigns telling the story of the formation of the three kingdoms, each lasting an impressive eight to twelve hours. There’s Free Mode, which is exactly what it sounds like, and then there is Ambition Mode.

The aim of Ambition Mode is to build a palace called Tonquetai in order to entice the Emperor (who is currently homeless) into an alliance. To do this, facilities must be built and levelled up, allies acquired, and fame achieved. This is accomplished by winning battles, lots of battles – endless battles, in fact. When going out into the field there are four battles to choose from, each with different difficulty ratings and prizes to be won. This approach to mission taking offers some variety in how the Tonquetai and surrounding area is levelled up. It’s a nice distraction from the campaigns, and will last long after they have been finished.

Because bare breasts are better armour than steel!

Character levels and weapons collected during Ambition Mode can be used in the campaigns themselves, so if a particular story mission is proving difficult it’s entirely possible to play around in ambition mode, level up and try again. It’s a nice touch, and one that keeps the action flowing. It doesn’t make things any more exciting, but for the hardcore fans Ambition Mode is worth the price of admission alone.

Dynasty Warriors already has a fan base, and it’s huge. And that’s part of the problem. Fan bases are a double edged sword, and can be as much of a hindrance to a franchise as a help. It feels like the fans have not only become used to the rinse-repeat gameplay and lacklustre visuals on offer here, they actually demand more. So what are Koei to do? They can either try to innovate and risk pissing of their already established fans, or stick to formula and guarantee sales. It’s through pursuing the latter that they have created a game that would have looked and felt like old at the start of start of this console generation, let alone the end of it.

If you are a fan, chances are you already own this game – and if you don’t, there’s also a chance that nothing I’ve said has deterred you in any way, and rightly so. This is a game for you, and you alone. It was made for you how you wanted it to be made, with all the things that you love about the series here and ready for you to play all over again. If you’re not a fan however, I can’t recommend this at all. Use the money saved from not buying it to take your partner out, or ask that person you’ve been Facebook stalking out on a real date. Buy some shoes, give it to charity, send it to me. There are literally thousands of other things you can do with your money, just don’t buy this.

Official Game Site

Tags: Dynasty Warriors 8, Tecmo Koei