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 - Dynasty Warriors--a giftI bought another version of dynasty warriors about a year ago and I hated it. I think it is a preference for a different kind of game play since when I bought this version for my boyfriend he loved it. He is much more talented at video games than I am anyhow. The graphics and music is great and other than the fact that it is a little too entertaining for boyfriends, I would recommend it. ;) Rating: - Can you read this?The only problem I can say I have with this game, is that it is very hard to read the screen. Other than that I love this game!! Rating: - If they would only synthesize......the ideas in DW, DW:XL and DW:E, I think that the series would really have some lifeblood into it. As it is, DW5:E is pretty fun, although the tedium factor can be high. First, the good. I've always liked the idea of seeting up your own empire, rather than playing through the incredibly set pieces offered in both DW5 and DW5:XL. Both have their place, but it seems fun to create a character and set him in the backdrop of ancient China as he tries to hammer out his place. Furthermore, there are many challenges to be found, such as attempting to play as, say, Zhang Yan, as he sits alone, precariously between Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, Gongsun Zan and Dong Zhuo. I also liked the fact that different elements of the ending were opened up depending on how you play the game. Play as an enlightened ruler, and you can become the prime minister, rebuilding the nation. Play as a despot, and you can become an evil emperor, complete with two lovelies who answer your beckon call. If you manage to declare the 5 tigers during the game, there is an ending sequence for that as well. I haven't found them all... But the bad is definitely nontrivial. First off, there is really zero strategy involved here. You don't want someone to attack you? Form a short (or long) alliance - the opponent will always accept. Although later you can change this, in the beginning you can conquer the entire territory of another lord by conquering the city he's in, and the computer AI shockingly often puts opposition rulers on the boundary. Furthermore, it is annoying to attempt to open up the better weapons for your army of warriors, and by the time you do, you're probably better off keeping your powered-up first weapon. I have never unlocked the level 4 weapons. I like the option of keeping the experience you've gained in previous games, but it makes for great difficulty in later scenarios (the box says there are 4, but I've already found 5) when your underpowered Liu Bei faces off against a behemoth in Cao Cao. However, the game moves quickly, and at 30 bucks (although amazon seems to be overcharging), you can't really go wrong. As for Newman's claim that the price dropped immediately upon release, it's nothing but a filthy lie ("Newman!")... Rating: - Never sick of this series.Every year, I tell myself that I'm not going to buy that next Dynasty Warriors game, and every year I make a liar out of myself....and have a great time doing it. This time I really meant it, too. I've played the hell out of every DW title to arrive on the xbox and the game has always remained the same, fighting the same battles, leveling up the same generals, unlocking the same items, and so on. Great fun was had, but one can only take so much. I began wishing for the Koei to release some Romance of the Three Kingdoms titles again. Old-school strategy buffs will remember that series which has the same historical setting and characters, but the emphasis was on turn-based strategy with no action to speak of. Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires gives you the best of both worlds: the strategic turn-based empire building of the ROTTK series AND the hardcore hack-and-slash epic wars of DW all rolled into one fantastic game with a discount price to boot. How could I possibly resist? The graphics are pretty last-gen, but the gameplay is solid and the custom soundtrack option is especially killer for this game. The strategic aspect could still be deeper and better implemented, but I'm pretty impressed at the challenges presented in the battles, even for a DW veteran like myself. The character creation system: also improved. Too bad they took away the bodyguards, though. Oh well, Koei giveth and Koei taketh away. This game is definitely worth your cash if you're looking for a fun pick-up- and-play game or an action game with stategic depth to it. You will get out of this game what you put into it. It can be as simple a hack-and-slasher as you want or it can be all about the stategies, alliances, and building up your empire. Either way, this is a really great addition to a personal favorite series of mine. Rating:  - Avoid! Snorsville!This game is awful. They attempted to make it both a fighting game and a strategy game and completely failed at both. I was tired of it in about ten minutes. No wonder the price dropped so fast on this one. It bites.
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