How many Chinese
warriors or Japanese samurai does it take to bring down a whole army?
Apparently, in Warriors Orochi, it takes only a tag team force of three
to bring down the massive armies of an evil force that brings the Dynasty
Warriors and Samurai Warriors together in one hacking-and-slashing
good time on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 2. Now Warriors Orochi
comes to the PSP and, interestingly enough, it manages to cram in ALL of
the features that the big boys offer. This also includes the repetitive action
that seems to recycle itself in every offering.
Likes long walks on the beach, Hello
Kitty! and slicing through her enemies by the dozen.
Still, there’s a
reason fans continue to offer their support and Warriors Orochi – while
not a new gaming experience – is still action-packed fun. Whether you enjoyed
the Dynasty era battles of the Dynasty Warriors games or the Feudal Japan
era action of Samurai Warriors, both series always seemed to contain some
historical value. In Warriors Orochi, however, the series takes an almost
supernatural twist that has the evil Serpent King Orochi magically teleport
warriors from the Three Kingdoms era of China and the Warring States period of
Japan into the battlefield to face off against each another.
Ok, that’s fine
and dandy but this three-way battle between the two different eras and the
Serpent King’s demon army should have been made for an epic story but it
doesn’t. Even with the different branching storylines and chapters, the story
doesn’t really take off despite the massive battles between each era’s warriors.
Still, we’re not fans of Koei’s button-masher for the story. It’s the action
that draws us to its world.
Whether you pick
the Shu, Wei, Wu or the Samurai era storylines, you’ll be able to pick and sort
through captains with their own unique skills and appearance. Like the console
games, you can later upgrade you characters and add various options such as
unlocking new warriors to aid you in battle. This game places you in a
three-warrior team that you can easily switch and use at the drop of a hat. Say
you’re fighting off against a particular mean enemy commander that requires a
big brute … just press the directional pad and select your big brawler.
“Oh my God, I so love your haircut, we can
totally pass for brothers.”
Much like the
console games, the maps are huge and the battles are lengthy affairs that pile
on the enemies on screen. This is one of the most impressive features of the PSP
as well and seeing all the enemies gather within the huge maps will not fail to
impress fans. The gameplay will not be a surprise to anyone who has picked up
and played a Dynasty Warriors game over the years since the controls and
gameplay are virtually the same. You’ll still chain together combos, dish out
charge attacks or hop on a horse to slash away at the growing hordes.
Aside from the
ability to change between characters, Warriors Orochi has some
interesting upgrades. You can, for example, equip weapon effects for your
weapons that will add flame, ice or even a lighting bolt attack. Also the fact
that you can play as Chinese warriors like Xing Cai or Zhang Liao as well as
samurai like Mitsuhide Akechi or Hanzo Hattori. In fact there are about 77
characters to use in the main mode or Free Mode. Really, how cool is that?
Of course, the
action becomes way too repetitive way too soon. Even with all the interesting
few new elements, the gameplay is the same. Thankfully, the game’s controls are
good and you can manually turn the camera (something you will do often) so you
can get a better look at the battlefield. The good news is that the framerate
doesn’t take a dip too often in the game so even with a lot of enemies on screen
the action doesn’t slow down. There’s even a co-op mode that allows you to play
along with a friend.
Bad Action Movie Idea #300: Babar’s
Revenge
Visually
speaking, Warriors Orochi is a rather eye-pleasing game on the PSP. It’s great
to see so much on display even on the handheld’s widescreen. The backgrounds are
crisp and the character models really stand out nicely enough. Sadly, there’s a
lot of pop-up action going on as well so within seconds enemies suddenly appear
out of thin air. Worst yet is the soundtrack that continues its awful guitar
rock tradition. The voice acting is somewhat decent at time and really bad in
other times. What happened to the Japanese voice acting cast? We miss it and
want to see it back.
Warriors
Orochi for the
PSP delivers a very familiar formula and does it well but it is still the
repetitive button-masher fans have been playing for quite awhile now. Still,
it’s impressive to see all the features and characters found in the console
games with some weak spots here and there. Fans of the series looking for a
portable hack-and-slash with all the works should check this one out. Anyone
else looking for something new will do best to skip this one.
|
#Review |
Gameplay: 7.0
The same
hack-and-slash action of the big boys in a portable format has been done before
but this time there are Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors
characters to use. The Serpent King storyline is just too weak, though.
Graphics: 7.0
The game’s
graphics are true to the console games and the cut scenes look really good.
Watching your characters rushing into a crowd of enemies is still impressivet.
Sound: 5.0
The cheesy
heavy guitar riffs are back and it’s cheesier than ever. The voice acting in the
game sounds phoned in and you’ll be wishing the game included the Japanese voice
cast. Other than that the sound effects are familiar territory.
Difficulty:
Medium
Whether you’re
slicing through the hordes with a staff or an umbrella, the action never gets
too hard and no commander too tough to beat. The upgrades and new weapons play a
role in helping you on the battle field but it’s the various power-ups that will
be your best friends.
Concept: 7.0
Warriors
Orochi is the
best of both worlds for Dynasty Warriors or Samurai Warriors fans
and there are dozens of upgrades, weapons and characters to use in the beefy
game modes. Sadly, the story goes nowhere and nothing has changed from past
games.
Multiplayer:
7.2
With up to 77
different characters to pick, you and a friend have plenty of choices to go rip
through enemies in co-op mode via Ad Hoc. The result is a solid tag team that
makes taking on the enemy commanders far more easier … and far more fun.
Overall: 7.0
Impressively
adding all the elements from both Koei hack-and-slash games, Warriors Orochi
is true to the series but shows us nothing genuinely or refreshingly new.
Repetitive gameplay aside, the game’s few flaws don’t take away from the action
or cool options. This is strictly for the fans.
