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Romance of the Three Kingdoms is a turn-based strategy series that stands at eleven entries, and spans four console generations. With near as many titles, the Dynasty Warriors has been the leader in crowd-clearing chaos, full of the same eccentric personalities all seeking to conquer ancient China. The two series already share the same source material, so why not combine them to please both strategy and action fans? Thus Koei created Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires.
First, a minor annoyance. There are only two scenarios available from the start, with four more needing to be unlocked through successive plays. There are also options, such as executions, which are forbidden during the first play, making your initial time through feel more like a trial run for the true experience. Most scenarios follow historical lines, and will play to the tune of the Three Kingdoms saga, sprinkled with the occasional cut-scene...unless you choose to intervene. You can take charge of any kingdom on the map, or create a one with your own custom made generals and leftover lieutenants. Going off the beaten path will mean missing those historical events, but generic cut-scenes will still show off your characters in times of struggle and triumph, including an ending of your own personal China. At the same time, it's mildly disappointing the minor differences between these scenarios doesn't make it worth playing through them all, unless you're a die-hard completist. Free Mode makes up for this a bit, where you can play any map with any force you want, even including importing experience and weapons from the game's main mode.
Speaking of hard, don't bother with Empires at anything but Hard of Chaos difficulty. Normal just makes it too easy on the player, allowing you to spend most the game setting policies at random, and letting your allied generals pick flowers as you mow down everything in your path. Easy is barely worth mentioning. Hard is where you need to make your alliances with care, building up your army while keeping invaders off your terrain, and keeping your allies from growing too powerful, knowing that the day will come when you'll need to turn on them to gain full control of the empire.
Just another day of deciding the fate of ancient China
At the start of each round, you'll be able to Consult, Delegate, and Assign one to five policies, depending on just how much landmass currently under your control. Consult is a powwow of four of your most enlightened generals, proposing two policies apiece. This might not be exactly what you want to do, but it does let you get two jobs done for one turn, and it's also the only way to learn new policies. Delegate is a bit of a waste, where you choose one general to make all of your decisions, and only exists for the lazy. Assign is where you can have your forces do exactly what you want them to do, which is essential the times your generals aren't as wise as they pretend. These policies range far and wide, covering everything from building up the defense of your kingdom, creating items, recruiting officers, and preparing military tactics for later use.
Once the matter of state policy has been dealt with, it's time for the action. At the end of the round, you can choose to invade the adjacent territory of your choice, as long as it doesn't belong to an ally. Defeat the defenders, and the land is yours. At this time, allied kingdoms might call for help, either for invasion or defense, and your success there will net you between three to five thousand gold for your kingdom's coffers. While hostile neighbors might choose to invade your turf, forcing you on the defensive.
Combat is the standard Dynasty Warriors mold with a few twists. Most important is the ability to command up to seven generals you can bring into battle, along with the one you personally control. You can give them vague orders like attack, defend, or rush to your location, or you can lay it out for them directly, telling them exactly what forts to defend or take over, and what other generals to assist or grind into the dirt. The AI is fairly skilled when left to their own devices, but the right planning can turn a dire situation into certain victory. You won't need to keep your eyes glued to the map to track the flow of battle either, since both enemy and allied generals will shout out their current plans, or when they're in need of aid. Should you rush to their rescue, they'll even thank you. The only minor problem is these messages sometimes come so thick you'll be halfway to your next objective before your general brags the fort he took down.
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