These
days, a fall without a Dynasty Warriors game is about as unlikely as
Intellivision returning to the hardware industry (burn on YOU, Intellivision!).
Unfortunately, most of these are not terribly different whatsoever, utilizing
the same gameplay formulas and elements as Dynasty Warriors 2, a PS2 launch
title. Dynasty Warriors Vol. 2 is one such title. Vol. 2 is a sequel to the PSP
Dynasty Warriors game that came out back when that system launched. While it
does add a few new elements, like ad-hoc multiplayer and branching stages in the
Musou mode. However, when it all boils down to it, Dynasty Warriors Vol. 2 is
just another Dynasty Warriors game with little to set it apart.
Dynasty
Warriors Vol. 2 puts you in the shoes of ancient Chinese warriors pulled from
history and pits you against hordes of enemies as you fight though the
battlefield. You generally win through two ways, you either kill off all the
enemies in an area, or you kill off their leader and the rest will back down.
The new
stage branching system in the Musou mode works well in theory, as it switches
things up by allowing you to choose where you’d like to go after a battle,
giving you some choice in the matter. However, the choice is severely limited by
the gameplay itself. Choosing between fighting this clump of guys and fighting
that clump of guys doesn’t really present itself as “choice” in gameplay.
The
other addition to Vol. 2 is the new multiplayer element, which lets up to four
people play together in competitive ad-hoc games. For what it is, the
multiplayer matches are a good inclusion, but the lack of an infrastructure mode
and, perhaps more importantly, a co-op mode make the multiplayer feel very
limited in scope.
My main
gripe with Dynasty Warriors Vol. 2 is pretty much my gripe with the series as a
whole. The game is extremely repetitive, just hacking and slashing your way
through countless scores of enemies with no real change in the formula. It would
be bad enough if the game felt this way on it’s own, but the entire series has
been troublingly stagnant for years now. For too long, new entries in the series
have been little more than more characters and areas. While the new additions in
Vol. 2 are certainly welcome (the multiplayer is a nice extra, albeit very
limited), they just aren’t enough to bring the series up to snuff.
Graphically, Dynasty Warriors Vol. 2 is an improvement over it’s PSP
predecessor, but not by much. The draw distance has been cleaned up a lot, so it
doesn’t look like the London fog is descending over the battlefield. However,
the game still has framerate issues and gets really boggy when the battle gets
hairy.
Soundwise, Dynasty Warriors Vol. 2 is on par with the rest of the series. Expect
guttural war cries to the tune of 80’s butt-rock.
Dynasty
Warriors Vol. 2 adds a new multiplayer element to the series’ foray onto the PSP,
but adds little overall to the overall scope of the series.
|
Review Scoring Details for Dynasty Warriors Vol. 2 |
Gameplay: 6.5
The game feels
like every other Dynasty Warriors game out there, with repetitious hack’n slash.
While the stage-branching element is a nice thought, the battles are diverse
enough to make it interesting.
Graphics: 7.5
The draw distance
has increased a bit, meaning that you’ll be able to see the scope of the
battlefield a lot better. However, the game still has framerate problems.
Sound: 7.0
The cheesy rock
soundtrack is identical to what you’ll find in any other game from the DW
series.
Difficulty: Medium
Multiplayer: 6.5
The game’s
multiplayer element is very limited. The ad-hoc for four players is nice, but
there is no infrastructure mode or co-op. Plus, the multiplayer side-games that
are here feel too similar to each other.
Concept: 6.5
Of all the
Dynasty Warriors games out there, this is another one!
Overall: 6.5
A half-baked
multiplayer mode and the same ‘ol gameplay mean that the Dynasty Warriors series
is showing its seams.
