The Dynasty Warriors games may not be high art, and the series’ quality has certainly declined over time, but even so, the appeal of musou action games is undeniable. After a bit of a hiatus, Dynasty Warriors is set to return soon with Dynasty Warriors: Origins, a game that is simultaneously looking like a familiar return to roots and a fresh beginning for the franchise, and as we count the days down to its launch, here, we’re going to go over the key details that you should know about it.
STORY DETAILS
Adapting Romance of the Three Kingdoms is what Dynasty Warriors has all been about, and that’s what Origins is doing again- though this time, Omega Force is going about it a little differently. Unlike its predecessors, Dynasty Warriors: Origins will only cover the events of about the first half of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, up to the Battle of the Red Cliffs. Speaking to TheGamer, director and series producer Tomohiko Sho said, “We really wanted to be thorough and intense in telling this story; it’s one of the epic points, so we’re only focusing on up until that point.”
PROTAGONIST
Past Dynasty Warriors titles have been known for letting players play as multiple different historical figures, though Origins is doing things a little differently. This time, the game focuses on a single protagonist, who is instead an original character who will serve as the lynchpin for the entire story. As confirmed by Omega Force while speaking with IGN, players can still expect to meet several key historical figures, including the likes of Liu Bei, Zhang Fei, and Lu Bu.
TACTICAL ACTION
With time, the Dynasty Warrior franchise has become more strongly associated with its large-scale battles and action than anything else, though with Origins, Omega Force is trying to go back to the series’ earlier entries, when the focus on tactical action was much more pronounced. Speaking to TheGamer, Sho called it a “back to the basics” experience, explaining, “From the very first game of the current Dynasty Warriors series, Dynasty Warriors 2 onwards, the theme is tactical action, and we really wanted to be able to express that in its fullest. That’s one of the key features of the series, and I think maybe in the past ten years of the Dynasty Warriors series, since Dynasty Warriors 9 and the more recent games, the tactical part was a little bit on the lower side. It was more focused on action.”
HERO MODE
Turning the difficulty down will let you play Dynasty Warriors: Origins as a hack-and-slash experience where you can just turn your brain off and have fun, similar to its predecessors, but if you’re looking for more of that aforementioned tactical edge, you’ll want to look into Hero Mode. Combat will be much more challenging in Hero Mode, with IGN’s preview claiming that even regular enemies can pose a decent threat, and that paying attention to parries and blocks becomes a necessity.
NOT OPEN WORLD
There was a lot wrong with Dynasty Warriors 9, and its open world was very, very high on that list. The perfect example of a trend-chasing decision going wrong after woeful execution, the game was made much worse by its decision to shoehorn in an open world- which, thankfully, is a mistake that Dynasty Warriors: Origins is learning from. Between battles, players will now instead traverse a diorama-esque overworld map, which means we can expect a more concise structure.
TACTICS
Commanding troops is an important part of the Dynasty Warriors loop, and Origins is fleshing that part out in interesting ways. Once again, players will be managing the morale of their troops, which, in turn will let you unleash a variety of different tactics or abilities, from attacking enemies with volleys of arrows to contingents flanking enemies. Managing morale and unleashing the right tactics at the right moments will be key.
GENERALS
As we touched on earlier, you’ll be spending the bulk of Dynasty Warriors: Origins playing as a single protagonist, though the game will still allow you to play as other characters at times. Each mission will see you choosing a companion general to take with you into battle, and for brief windows, you’ll even be able to play as them. Generals will come with their own unique weapons, movesets, and abilities, and will allow you to turn the tide of battle in a variety of ways.
THOUSANDS OF ON-SCREEN ENEMIES
Scale has always been a big part of Dynasty Warriors’ appeal, specifically, the series’ love for pitting players against mind-bogglingly large armies of enemies to mow down. Obviously, Origins isn’t looking to buck that trend. In fact, Omega Force is promising larger-scale battles than ever before, with players facing off against as many as 10,000 on-screen enemies at the same time, courtesy of current-gen consoles’ hardware capabilities.
ENDINGS
Like many of its predecessors, Dynasty Warriors: Origins will feature multiple endings, though we don’t yet have word on exactly how many. Speaking with Noisy Pixel about how the game’s different endings will function, Tomohiko Sho explained, “The branching paths are determined by the battles you choose, not dialogue options. At the end of the third chapter, players decide which kingdom to align with, shaping the story’s direction.”
LENGTH
Dynasty Warriors: Origins isn’t going to be a small game by any means, but it also won’t require hundreds of hours of time investment. Omega Force has confirmed that one playthrough of the game’s main story will take about 20 hours, though of course, those looking to see all the endings will be able to get much more out of the game.
PROGRESSION
Progression mechanics in Dynasty Warriors: Origins won’t deviate from the norm too much. Players will make their way through skill tress to unlock various perks and buffs, while over the course of the story, you will also get access to different weapons and arts, with more of them unlocking as you gain more proficiency. Existing arts will also be upgradable, while mastering different weapon styles and their unique strengths and attributes will also be crucial.
NO CO-OP
Dynasty Warriors games have offered co-op as an option for a long time now, though sadly, the option won’t be returning in Origins. Playing musou action games in the company of another player is one of life’s simplest pleasures, so it’s a shame that the feature has been left on the chopping floor. Whether we can expect it to be added in post-launch remains to be seen, but Omega Force and Koei Tecmo haven’t given any such indication as yet.
DEMO
Those looking to get a taste of Dynasty Warriors: Origins’ offerings before deciding to take the plunge can thankfully do so, courtesy of a demo that’s out right now on all platforms and lets players dive into the Battle of Sishui Gate. Including four usable weapons, a range of customization options, and no time limits, it’s a good way of dipping your toes in the water and get a sense of how the game is shaping up.
PS5 PRO SUPPORT
Omega Force has confirmed that upon launch, Dynasty Warriors: Origins will also feature full support for PS5 Pro, with enhancements also included in the game’s demo, which is available now. Whether we can expect any improvements over the demo’s implementation in the full game is unknown.
PC REQUIREMENTS
For those intending to play Dynasty Warriors: Origins on a PC, thankfully, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be a very demanding game. On minimum settings, you’ll need either an a Ryzen 5 2600, along with either a GeForce GTX 1060 or a Radeon RX 590, and 12 GB of RAM. On recommended settings, meanwhile, you’ll need either a i7-7700K or a Ryzen 7 5700X, alongside either a GeForce RTX 2070 or a Radeon RX 5700 XT, and 16 GB of RAM. 50 GB of storage will also be required.
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