DYNASTY WARRIORS: ORIGINS Review

One of my big gaps in videogame knowledge is the Dynasty Warriors series. Though I’ve always been fascinated by the concept of fighting off whole armies of warriors like you’re swatting flies, my incessant need to play every title in the series made jumping in… difficult. However, with a new entry on the horizon with the tantalising suffix of “ORIGINS”, I eagerly hopped into the series with DYNASTY WARRIORS: ORIGINS.

Disclaimer: this is, honestly, my first foray into the series, so I will probably either whine or gush about mechanics or features as old as the original PlayStation. Bear with me.

Naturally he always has perfect hair

So, what is ORIGINS all about? Set in the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history, we live out the tumultuous battles and periods between the fall of the Han Dynasty and witness the growth of the Jin. Conversing with my series aficionados, apparently, almost every game in this series is in the same period, so I’m a bit puzzled about the “ORIGINS” aspect of this title. Regardless, we meet the iconic leaders and warriors of these triplicate factions, such as the sly Cao Cao, the compassionate Liu Bei, and the wise Sun Quan. As the political situation in China develops, we find ourselves taking part in numerous battles and working for different sides, taking on everything from bandits to disgruntled peasants, professional armies, and even old friends.

In a big departure from the series so far, we do not actually play as these warriors and leaders but as a completely original character, referred to as Wanderer. Dressed in a very smart attire of dark grey and sporting a crimson sash, Wanderer quickly catches the eye of many generals as he, well, absolutely destroyed whole platoons of enemies with ease. Sadly, there is little in terms of customisation to be had, as not much changes in our lovely Wanderer beyond the weapon he wields. Regardless, the design is pretty striking and you are quite easy to pick out on a battlefield, which is always appreciated.

Possibly the easiest game of Spot the Protag

Now, onto the actual gameplay, which can be divided into two categories: battles and everything else. When not cleaving a bloody swathe through whatever enemy du jour dares stand up to you, you spend your time on the map screen. Far beyond a simple bit of cloth, while not in battle, you can meander through the many provinces of the age, though most are locked off at first. Each area has its own level of peace, which you can help improve by taking on missions and completing objectives, each milestone being rewarded with some nifty gear! Additionally, you may find resources, such as Pyroxene (a crafting ingredient) or Old Coins lying about, take part in smaller conflicts, or meet up with the many faces of the Three Kingdoms.

In general, I liked the World Map! It’s fun just to roam around and collect little bits and bobs while occasionally taking over a fort or driving away bandits. It also gives some insight into the size and scale of the area while also portraying the political landscape. For example, certain factions have a much greater presence in some areas, whereas they are absent in others. I also simply like to have that small, serene break between the high-octane battles. Whilst I do have a few grievances, they are of more or less a personal nature.

Just look at it! It's adorable

While you meander the land, you will occasionally see a white, shining circle that denotes a side battle. This is fine and clear by itself, but these luminescent doughnuts have a bad habit of disappearing and appearing at the worst times! I tend to want to do everything I can while playing a game, so whenever I see a fun little battle, I go for it! However, after a while I noticed that they keep spawning, meaning I would be stuck in an eternal loop of little battles before ever setting foot in a proper story mission! As I mentioned, this is a personal issue, and you can safely skip these whenever you want! But the spawn rate could be a bit slower. Oh, and once they spawn, they should stick around, as I have chased down quite a few battles only to have them fizzle out mere seconds before my arrival!

As you galavant through the land, you can also visit camps and cities; in these areas, you can often purchase and sell equipment or take a load off at the local inn. The resthouses of the world act, surprisingly, as a base of operations of sorts for Wanderer. Here you can catch up on your correspondents, with characters sending you letters and items; you can sort through your equipment in preparation for the next assault, or you can use the Pyroxene you collected to craft helpful gems. There are other uses, but these are locked behind plot progression and mainly consist of rewatching cinematics, seeing your stats, and getting a gist of the goings-on in the world.

I also go to hotel rooms to do nothing but sit and stare

Now, on to the main event, the conflicts themselves. These can be further divided into side battles, side missions, and main story missions, though the difference between side missions and side battles is pretty vague. Starting off with the shortest of the bunch, what I call side battles are brief, small-scale conflicts with a singular objective which usually boil down to defeating officers or capturing a fort. These skirmishes often repeat on the map and are a source of minor XP and other rewards, though they are a good place to practise with the many weapons you wield!

Side missions, on the other hand, are the middle point between the small-scale skirmishes and the full-on battles of the main missions. Here you are often given a few goals to complete — usually tied to one of the larger factions — and play out much like the full-scale conflicts, but are relatively rare. While the amount of units on the field is still a long way from the massive armies of the main missions, these are still nothing to sneeze at and are a great way to get a quick taste of epic combat without all that posturing and positioning a lengthy main mission may require.

Though quick to traverse, the map is still fairly large

Speaking of, the main missions are where ORIGINS gets a chance to flaunt the power of modern graphical hardware in addition to shining in terms of mechanics in general. Preceding each mission, you are given a short briefing on the goals and units related to the battle. After this, you’ll be able to survey the map and see all of the forces in play. In some missions, you may even recruit a companion to join you in the fight.

Story battles are impressive in scale, as both your own army and the enemy forces number in the hundreds, if not thousands. It may sound like a lot on paper, but seeing the enemy horde before you as you charge in is something else! Additionally, these battles are much more dynamic, with officers setting up ambushes and charges that you can interact with, though we’ll discuss them a bit later. In short, the main missions, while lengthy, represent everything I was hoping for in the franchise.

Whiles you'll have little input at first, at least you'll know the plan

The combat itself is very much what one would expect from a Dynasty Warriors title: we face numerous enemies, both plain soldiers and elite officers, using bombastic moves to thin their forces and give our troops the edge. Wanderer can use nine different weapons, each with its own quirks and style, and can slowly build up proficiency to learn more moves and abilities. By gaining enough proficiency, you will reach a higher Rank Level, which will unlock more skills to learn and increase your stats in general.

It must be said, the skills and combos of the different weapon types are impressive and I appreciate how much variety there is. Though I tend to use everything equally, I can see players being able to focus on their favourite weapon and absolutely blaze through any army. A subset of the abilities can also be used to interrupt enemy attacks and cause them to stagger, which adds a certain ebb and flow to each duel with an officer. You also have an ultimate ability, or Musou Attack, that deals heavy damage on anyone it hits.

I uh... may have gotten excited

As is tradition, the normal enemies take very little effort to beat and are flung to the skies with a mere touch. The officers, on the other hand, are much more powerful and often demand your focus. Using very similar, if not the same, abilities as you, these elite enemies can turn the tide of battle if you are not careful. Thankfully, Wanderer is more than a strong arm, as you can dodge, block, and parry enemies to weaken their confidence. Hit them enough and they’ll be exhausted, allowing you to either deal extra damage or simply finish them off, though this can be easier said than done! Luckily, you have a small stash of dumplings you can snack on for health if you start feeling all of those millions of strikes.

Now, if you managed to drag a companion with you into the fray, a few nifty tricks are added to your arsenal. As your companion follows you around and attacks the enemy forces, they are sometimes able to follow up on your attacks; use a Special Art on a group and your Companion will jump in with their own, adding a nice bit of damage. Additionally, once the Swap Gauge (a small metre under the companion's name) is filled, you can even play as them for a small while. Finally, you and your companion can join together to perform an Extreme Musou Attack, which will devastate the nearby enemies.

As a quick aside, I have been told that previous Dynasty Warriors games have had a co-op mode, which ORIGINS lacks. This removal is slightly perplexing since this seems like a great game to play with friends, but I digress yet again.

Now, as we all know, one person can only do so much in a battle and getting bogged down in one conflict may end up with another part of your army being overrun. As such, most conflicts in ORIGINS have Wanderer act as a free-roaming agent of sorts; not tied to any larger force, you are free to go from battle to battle and help where it is needed. The current state of the conflict can be seen in a Morale bar, which displays how confident your troops are feeling. As your Morale grows, so does the strength of your army and vice versa.

Slaying enemy officers is a surefire way to raise morale, but you can also capture enemy bases and complete certain objectives. For example, the enemy may utilise a hallucinogenic mist that makes the enemies seem indomitable, lowering Morale at a rapid rate. By finding and breaking the Censers producing the miasma, hey presto the effect is over and your men are as happy as can be!

I know, I'll STAB IT!

As the battle progresses, either side’s commanders may activate a Grand Tactic, which varies depending on the battle and the instigator. These can be something plain, like gathering reinforcements, but can also include galeforce winds and tornados. Stopping an enemy from completing a Grand Tactic or aiding your ally in finishing theirs often becomes a crucial moment in whatever battle they appear in and can add some urgency when you find yourself on the wrong side of the map.

In addition to officers and Grand Tactics, there are also a few other variables that mix up the flow of battle: your forces may stop and prepare a charge that you can instigate by joining the commander or they may assign an area to be a spot for an ambush. Enemy commanders can also add their own twists, suddenly changing their targets mid-battle or calling down a hail of arrows to pepper your troops' health. In my experience, each battle has a tangible feel of flow that you can affect, though it did feel like there was always a “correct” chain of actions to take.

All in all, I was impressed by ORIGINS’ battle mechanics. Seeing that many units on the field at once is always great and the fact that, after each battle, the field will be littered with the gruesome remnants of both forces is both horrifying and wonderful. Thankfully, the general lack of gore does keep things more or less civil so you can live out your power fantasies without too much guilt.

It does kinda feel like being a single unit in a Total War game

In terms of visual design, ORIGINS does the job well. The different armies of the Three Kingdoms are polite enough to wear easily differentiated colours and Wanderer himself is not too bad to find on screen. The level designs are pretty good as well, though you may end up seeing more than your fill of certain areas, as they are repeated in side battles and missions.

The sound design is a bit of hit-or-miss, regretfully. The background music is the kind of squealing electric guitar one could expect, but there are also some more orchestral tracks to enjoy. The sound effects for attacks and units are also serviceable, though your guess is as good as mine on who just spoke at any given moment, which brings me to my biggest gripe for the game: the voice acting. While it’s never straight-up bad, it's middling at best for most. Most characters have a very similar voice and they emote very seldom, making the dialogue quite wooden at times. Finally, while it's probably a pet peeve, I did find it off-putting how poorly the lip movements matched the spoken words. I did play on the English dubs, so maybe that was the issue.

To summarise a long ramble, I enjoyed my time with DYNASTY WARRIORS: ORIGINS. The combat is entertaining and bombastic, so even the repetitive missions still had that kinetic fun. The larger missions did manage to give off that one-against-thousands feel the franchise has always advertised. While the missing aspects of the series are regrettable, I felt like this was a great place to hop into the series without being overwhelmed, so I do recommend it to anyone interested in testing their mettle!