A Dynasty Warriors 5 review for PS2
Jonathan Lavigne
A&E Editor
Editor in Chief
The hack and slash genre is taken to a new level in
Dynasty Warriors 5. Kill hundreds, nay, thousands of enemy troops on your
path to control all three kingdoms: Wu, Wei and Shu.
More than two decades
ago KOEI launched Romance of the Three Kingdoms, based on the popular novel
by Luo Guanzhong. The game went from a simple conquest game on the Nintendo
Entertainment System (NES) to a series of wildly popular games. Just like
when Friends spawned Joey on television, Romance spawned Dynasty Warriors,
Dynasty Warriors 2, and at last Dynasty Warriors 5 (DW5).
Arrays
of characters are offered as the game begins, six per clan or family. After
completing just a few storylines called "musou," many other characters
become unlocked to pursue in their own respective "musou" missions. With
each crate broken, or enemy officers defeated, you gain different weapons
and items to help you along the path to total domination. Each character has
their own distinct "musou" mission. However, some of these players will
participate in the same storylines, whether it is fighting on the same side
or on opposite teams. A cast of 48 characters are available to unlock and,
in most cases, each character has six "musou" missions, giving the player
hours of game play.
The graphics were seemingly flawless with little or no
glitches. There was a little fogging at some points, but who could blame
them when you have more than 50 active and moving characters on the screen
at a time. You are bound to have a few problems. The visuals for both charge
attacks and "musou" attacks are glorious - especially when running low on
life, when your character gains special life salvaging skills.
All in all,
this game is just eye candy for an attention deficit disorder generation,
where big bangs and killing dozens of enemies in one fell swoop is the key
to winning.
The game gains a particularly impressive cohesion when entering
the two player modes. Whether using the 'versus' mode or just cooperative
playing in "musou" mode, having a friend along for the ride makes those
battles more fun and exciting. Using a split screen format where one is on
top and the other on the bottom, keeping track of your player without
looking at the other half of the screen can be overly tempting and
distracting. Nevertheless, when facing a legion of thousands, having your
partner along to get you out of a pinch is more than useful.
While
many hours of game play are assured by the nearly fifty different
characters, all with a multitude of "musou" missions and weapons galore, it
boils down to a few simple words: run, run, hit, hit, hit, kill and repeat.
The game tends to get tedious as you progress through the one hundred
different missions that you need to complete. Wipe out the reds and yellows
on the map, kick the boss in the butt until he cries "Uncle", sugar to
taste, and then repeat. The only way through this is to have another game
where you can clean your mental palate by doing something else. Maybe go
outside and have a walk. Read a book.
:
If this is your first
foray into the kingdom of DW and you have nearly 50 clams to spend, by all
means, go for it. I suggest you try it first, rent it, play with it for more
than one evening, and see if the repetition is making you see Lu Bu in your
sleep. If the price is making you cringe, you have three options: buy an
older, used version from your local gaming emporium (I found DW3 for $8.99
at EB games), option two is to wait a few more weeks until DW5: Extreme
Legends comes out for only $29.99 in early November. Last, but not least,
you could pimp out your cat for extra dinero. Last piece of advice, take a
few breaks, every other hour to avoid muscle cramps and other related
injuries. Thank you to Rebecca M. Silva, LMP for the advice and
treatment.
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