Dynasty Warriors: Origins is a fresh take on the legendary series.

During the winter doldrums, I reached out to comfort media. For me, that means Chinese historical dramas. And while elaborate costumes and overly sweet romances are fun, sometimes a girl wants something with a little more teeth. Dynasty Warriors: Origins You gave me exactly what I needed.

Dynasty Warriors: OriginsDeveloped by Koei-Tecmo’s Omega Force, is an adaptation of the famous Chinese historical novel. Romance of the Three Kingdoms Enjoy knockdown, dragout, and 1v100 style combat. This is the tenth game in the series, dynasty warriors The franchise has developed a reputation for being stale. After all, it’s not often that you can reread the same story with the same characters and the same general gameplay without taking a single note. Dynasty Warriors: Origins, However, it is a welcome refreshment compared to its predecessor.

After launch dynasty warriors 9 In 2018, Omega Force took a brief hiatus from the series to work on licensed games including: Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, Persona 5 Strikersand Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes. A detour through a game that I thought was a great adaptation of Omega Force’s brand of hack-and-slash action gave the studio the fresh perspective it needed to return to and shake up its own franchise.

in birthInstead of switching between multiple characters during certain battles like in previous games, you witness the story through a single character called the Wanderer. You have no memory of yourself, and as you progress, you slowly regain your memories and special powers. The Drifter can use any type of weapon, which is another welcome change from previous games that locked weapons to specific characters. Each weapon has abilities that can be unlocked through continued use, and the Drifter himself has skills and perks that can be unlocked through a skill tree.

battle birth It’s simple to use. There are light and heavy attacks that can be modified by dodging or jumping. There is also a set of abilities that consume a resource called “Courage”, which is gained by landing hits on opponents. Lastly, there is a block and parry mechanic and an ultimate ability called “Musou” which is used when siege is not possible or additional damage needs to be inflicted on the enemy general.

This all sounds like a typical hack and slash game, but I was delighted. birth Made me work to win. Despite the standard difficulty and years of playing experience. warrior The game didn’t allow you to blindly hack your way through enemies. The generals attacked surprisingly hard, and if I didn’t use various abilities to mitigate or counter their attacks, they would constantly generate shields and I would have to keep chewing to take them down. Unfortunately, allied generals, who suffer automatic losses when killed, are made of tissue paper, so the longer the enemy general stays alive, the more likely you are to lose the battle.

Battles take place on large, rolling maps filled with bases to capture and enemy generals to defeat. Although defeating the enemy leader while keeping the friendly leader alive is generally the only victory condition, I was loved Being a perfectionist. When an ally was scared and cried out for help, it was fun to run and defend them even if the battle didn’t end quickly. It made me feel like a huge hero. And isn’t this the point of the game, where you can fight alongside legendary figures from Chinese history?

Playing the hero is the best part. birth And something largely missing from the franchise. Previous games were full of unnecessary systems, like open worlds that were brutal and slow. dynasty warriors 9 Or mindlessly pressing buttons with an empty mind. Dynasty Warriors 8. but birthExecuting special abilities can draw you into elaborate cutscenes with animations that look straight out of a martial arts movie. The choices I made during the game’s story moments allowed me to build relationships with the characters I loved so much across a variety of mediums.

I understand the criticisms of other reviews of Wanderer. As a character, he has no personality to speak of, and his quest to regain his memories is unconvincing. But I can easily overlook this. dynasty warriorsS. The only reason I’m here, and what this game has done for me tremendously, is eat meat buns and chase Lu Bu. And all the meat bread was gone.

Dynasty Warriors: Origins It’s out now on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC.