hack and slash
Hack and slash, also known as hack and slay (H&S or HnS) or slash 'em up, refers to a type of gameplay that emphasizes combat with melee-based weapons (such as swords or blades). They may also feature projectile-based weapons as well (such as ...
video game for
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...
and
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation ...
, developed by
Koei
Koei Co., Ltd. was a Japanese video game publisher, developer, and distributor founded in 1978. The company is known for its ''Dynasty Warriors'' games based on the novel ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'', as well as simulation games based on p ...
and
Omega Force
(stylised as ''ω-Force'') is a Japanese video game developer and a division of Koei Tecmo, founded in 1996 by Akihiro Suzuki and Kenichi Ogasawara, and is best known for the ''Dynasty Warriors'' video games.
History
Omega Force was founde ...
. It is a
crossover
Crossover may refer to:
Entertainment
Albums and songs
* ''Cross Over'' (Dan Peek album)
* ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987
* ''Crossover'' (Intrigue album)
* ''Crossover'' (Hitomi Shimatani album)
* ''Crossover'' (Yoshino ...
of two of Koei's popular video game series, ''
Dynasty Warriors
is a series of Japanese hack and slash action video games created by Omega Force and Koei (now is Koei Tecmo). The series is a spin-off of Koei's turn-based strategy '' Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' series, based upon the Chinese novel of ...
'' and ''
Samurai Warriors
is the first title in the series of hack and slash video games created by Koei's Omega Force team based closely around the Sengoku ("Warring States") period of Japanese history and it is a sister series of the ''Dynasty Warriors'' series, rele ...
'' (specifically ''
Dynasty Warriors 5
is a hack and slash video game set in China and the fifth installment in the ''Dynasty Warriors'' series, developed by Omega Force and published by Koei. The game was released on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. It is based on the Chinese novel ''Roma ...
'' and ''
Samurai Warriors 2
is a sequel to the original ''Samurai Warriors'', created by Koei and Omega Force. The game was released in 2006 for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360, and ported to Microsoft Windows in 2008. Like the ''Dynasty Warriors'' series, an ''Empires'' e ...
'') and the first title in the ''Warriors Orochi'' series.
The game was released on March 21, 2007, in Japan, September 18 in North America, September 21 in Europe, September 27 in Australia and September 28 in New Zealand. The game came out for the Xbox 360 in Japan on September 13, and the European version came out on the same date as the PlayStation 2 version in the North America. The game was ported to the
PlayStation Portable
The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...
, released in Japan on February 2008, March 25 in North America, and March 28 in Europe. A PC version was released in North America on March 25, 2008.
Plot
The fictional events of the game begin when the Serpent King
Orochi
, or simply , is a legendary eight-headed and eight-tailed Japanese dragon/serpent.
Mythology
Yamata no Orochi legends are originally recorded in two ancient texts about Japanese mythology and history. The 712 AD transcribes this dragon name ...
created a rift in time and space. By creating a twisted new world and bringing together warriors from the Three Kingdoms era of
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
and the
Warring States period
The Warring States period () was an era in History of China#Ancient China, ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded ...
of
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
(more than 1,300 years apart in history), Orochi wished to test the might of the warriors of these two eras.
The story is told in four separate but related subplots. Each subplot starts the player with three characters. More characters are unlocked as the player progresses through the story or satisfies certain conditions in certain stages. Each subplot is named after one of the Three Kingdoms, and one from the perspective of the Samurai Warriors characters. Characters from different factions band together in each subplot to confront Orochi. Because of the storyline, most of the characters have split from their respective factions in the original games and have been forced into other scenarios. However, the character selection screen still places all the characters in their original positions.
Shu story
In the
Shu Han
Han (; 221–263), known in historiography as Shu Han ( ) or Ji Han ( "Junior Han"), or often shortened to Shu (; pinyin: ''shŭ'' <
Zhao Yun
Zhao Yun ( ) (died 229), courtesy name Zilong (), was a military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. Originally a subordinate of the northern warlord Gongsun Zan, Zhao Yun later came ...
was captured by Orochi's forces and held prisoner in
Ueda Castle
is a Japanese castle located in Ueda, northern Nagano Prefecture, Japan. At the end of the Edo period, Ueda Castle was home to a cadet branch of the Matsudaira clan, ''daimyō'' of Ueda Domain, but the castle is better known for its association ...
. He is later rescued by
Zuo Ci
Zuo Ci (), courtesy name Yuanfang, was a legendary personage of the late Eastern Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period (20 BC–280 AD) of China. Though he is known to be from Lujiang Commandery (盧江郡; around present-day Lu'an, Anhui) ...
Xing Cai
Empress Zhang ( 237–264), personal name unknown, was an empress of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period. She was the daughter of the Shu general Zhang Fei and a younger sister of Empress Jing'ai. In 237, she became an Imperial C ...
. Zuo Ci revealed startling news to Zhao Yun, which led him to embark upon a quest with help from unexpected allies.
Wei story
In the
Kingdom of Wei
Wei or WEI may refer to:
States
* Wey (state) (衛, 1040–209 BC), Wei in pinyin, but spelled Wey to distinguish from the bigger Wei of the Warring States
* Wei (state) (魏, 403–225 BC), one of the seven major states of the Warring States per ...
story,
Cao Cao
Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate Grand chancellor (China), grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the End of ...
had disappeared in his battle against Orochi's forces. His son,
Cao Pi
Cao Pi () ( – 29 June 226), courtesy name Zihuan, was the first emperor of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the second son of Cao Cao, a warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty, but the eldest son ...
, took up leadership of the Wei clan and allied himself with Orochi, under the offer sent by his strategist, Da Ji. There were a few Wei officers who refused to surrender, or ended up joining other forces opposing Orochi. Under the new alliance, Orochi orders Cao Pi to suppress all those who oppose him. Though Cao Pi obediently obeys Orochi's every command, he has an ulterior motive that he is planning as the story progresses.
Sun Jian
Sun Jian () () (155–191?), courtesy name Wentai, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He allied himself with Yuan Shu in 190 when warlords from eastern China formed a ...
and other Wu officers to blackmail the Sun family into servitude. Orochi demanded that rebel leaders and officers be turned over in exchange for the release of the captives.
Sun Ce
Sun Ce () () (175–200), courtesy name Bofu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was the eldest child of Sun Jian, who was killed during the Battle of Xiangyang w ...
is the first to rebel against Orochi, under the guidance of
Sakon Shima
, also known as Shima Tomoyuki and Shima Katsutake, was a Japanese samurai of the late Sengoku period. His nickname was (Shima the right hand). Sakon eventually left the service of the Hatakeyama clan, Tsutsui Junkei, Toyotomi Hidenaga and even ...
, and much to the disapproval of his siblings,
Quan
Quán is the Pinyin romanization of the Chinese family names / and , as well as a customary spelling of (pinyin: Guān). All written forms of the name are rare enough that they do not appear in the list of the 100 most common Chinese surnames.
...
Nobunaga Oda
was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period. He is regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan.
Nobunaga was head of the very powerful Oda clan, and launched a war against other ''daimyō'' to unify ...
, Shingen Takeda, and Kenshin Uesugi each maintained a resistance force against Orochi's army. Even in this most dire of circumstances, the three ''
daimyō
were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and n ...
s'' refuse to work together against Orochi. Each of them were focused on assimilating smaller resistance forces spread throughout the land into their own forces.
Orochi Army
The Orochi Army consists of pale-skinned troops that behave similarly to regular troops of the protagonist forces. Several major characters from both ''Dynasty Warriors'' and ''Samurai Warriors'' either aligned themselves or were subverted by Orochi, fighting in his name. Orochi's main headquarters is at Koshi Castle, where the final confrontation takes place for all four stories in the game.
In the original Japanese version, the Orochi officers are named after various legendary monsters ( youkai) in both Chinese and Japanese folklores, while the English version has them named after various species of snakes (using their common names) as a pun to Orochi being the Serpent King. The Orochi officers all share the same character
model
A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure.
Models c ...
, and are unplayable enemy characters.
Characters
A total of 79 characters encompasses the roster of ''Warriors Orochi'': 48 from ''Dynasty Warriors'', 29 from ''Samurai Warriors'' (including Yoshimoto Imagawa, Kunoichi and Goemon Ishikawa from the first ''Samurai Warriors'', left out in its sequel), and two new characters: the titular character and primary villain, the Serpent King and the mythological beast of Yamato; and
Da Ji
Daji () was the favourite consort of King Zhou of Shang, the last king of the Shang dynasty in ancient China. In legends and fictions, she is portrayed as a malevolent fox spirit who kills and impersonates the real Daji. Her identification as a f ...
(), the villainous
concubine
Concubinage is an interpersonal and sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple does not want, or cannot enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarded as similar but mutually exclusive.
Concubi ...
of
King Zhou of Shang
King Zhou (; ) was the pejorative posthumous name given to Di Xin of Shang () or King Shou of Shang (), the last king of the Shang dynasty of ancient China. He is also called Zhou Xin (). In Chinese, his name Zhòu ( 紂) also refers to a horse cr ...
from ''
Fengshen Yanyi
''The Investiture of the Gods'', also known by its Chinese names () and is a 16th-century Chinese novel and one of the major vernacular Chinese works in the gods and demons (''shenmo'') genre written during the Ming dynasty (1368–1644). Cons ...
''. Orochi wields a very large
scythe
A scythe ( ) is an agricultural hand tool for mowing grass or harvesting crops. It is historically used to cut down or reap edible grains, before the process of threshing. The scythe has been largely replaced by horse-drawn and then tractor m ...
, named "Eternal Agony", while Da Ji fights with two floating orbs, called "the Orbs of Ruin".
There are many generic, non-playable officers who are also part of the game, all taken from the ''Samurai Warriors'' and ''Dynasty Warriors'' games. There are also exclusive non-playable officers that are in Orochi's forces.
''* Denotes new characters to the series''
''Bold denotes default characters''
Gameplay
The following are some new game play mechanics added exclusively to ''Warriors Orochi'':
* Players can take any three characters from the ''Dynasty'' and ''Samurai Warriors'' lineup into battle, forming a party, as seen in ''
Marvel vs. Capcom
is a series of crossover fighting games developed and published by Capcom, featuring characters from their own video game franchises and comic book series published by Marvel Comics. The series originated as coin-operated arcade games, though ...
''. Players can switch between the characters in their party any time during battle. Those that are inactive are invisible, during which their health and Musou energy regenerate. If one character is defeated, the game ends in defeat, even if the player's other two characters are still intact.
* All characters are grouped into one of the following character classes: Power, Technique and Speed. The first type hits hard and relatively (but not completely) slow; the second type demonstrates more "fancy" fighting moves with moderate strength and speed, and is able to perform a "counter-strike"; the third type usually attacks and moves faster than the previous two types, and is the only type that can double jump (see below).
* All characters have a new move called an Enhanced Strike. This move consumes Musou energy with all Power characters and sometimes with characters of other classes, and varies by character and their class.
* All characters have specific personal items that can be acquired by completing character-specific objectives. This also unlocks special features. These replace the final weapons of previous games, which had similar requirements, but are only another more powerful weapon in the game.
* Weapon improvements are performed with the new Weapon Fusion system. Players can combine attributes of multiple weapons of one character into one more powerful weapon.
The core game play combines elements from ''Dynasty Warriors 5'' and ''Samurai Warriors 2''. Many of these elements have been revised for ''Warriors Orochi'':
*Character selection screen: ''Dynasty Warriors'' characters are divided by their respective kingdoms. ''Samurai Warriors'' characters are divided by which game they made their first appearance.
*Correct pronunciation of names: Unlike the ''Dynasty Warriors'' games, the English-language version of ''Warriors Orochi'' utilizes the correct pronunciations of certain Three Kingdoms officers. The best example is Cao Cao, who in ''Dynasty Warriors'' is pronounced as "cow cow". Cao Cao is now "ts'au ts'au" following traditional Chinese pronunciation. This new pronunciation method also applies for Cao Pi, Cao Ren, and Xing Cai.
*Art gallery: Showcases CG art and trailers from past Warriors games. Trailers are removed from the US PlayStation 2, Xbox 360, PSP and PC versions.
*Chaos difficulty: This highest difficulty level is available in ''Warriors Orochi'' at the start. ''Dynasty Warriors 5'' and ''Samurai Warriors 2'', in comparison, offered the Chaos difficulty only after completing special requirements.
*Game soundtrack: Composed of the original music from both Dynasty Warriors'
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
-based soundtrack and Samurai Warriors'
techno
Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often ch ...
-based soundtrack. A few new songs were created exclusively for ''Warriors Orochi''. Lu Bu's theme song is given a rearrangement combining both rock and techno music styles.
*Multiplayer: Player 2 uses same team as Player 1, albeit with a swapped palette.
*Game stages: Recycles stages from both games, some of which are modified by Orochi's supernatural influence. Such stages have burnt ground and 16th-century Japanese buildings placed on some ''Dynasty Warriors'' stages. Koshi Castle, a stage made exclusively for this game, is the location of the final battle against Orochi for all stories.
*Equipment: Abilities acquired by characters during the game are equipped, as seen in ''Samurai Warriors 2''. Using an element from the first ''Samurai Warriors'' game, a limit is placed on the number of Abilities equipped at one time.
*Camera control: Players are given complete control over the game camera, similar to ''Samurai Warriors 2''.
*Special attacks: Following ''Samurai Warriors 2'' to an extent, characters perform their own Enhanced Strikes, varied by characters and their classes.
*Weapon deadlocks: No indication as to which character holds the advantage during a deadlock, following ''Dynasty Warriors 5''. In ''Samurai Warriors 2'', a tug-of-war-style bar is displayed during a deadlock, indicating which character holds the advantage.
*Double jumps: Expands on the concept of ''Samurai Warriors 2''. All Speed-class characters in ''Warriors Orochi'' can perform an Aerial Thrust, which keeps them in the air but propels them forward (or in a given direction as per player control); this can be used for example to avoid certain attacks or to reposition on the fly.
*Additional attacks: This is the ability for characters to perform hits beyond the standard six. Characters in ''Warriors Orochi'' gain this ability with experience, following ''Samurai Warriors''. ''Dynasty Warriors'' characters also gain an additional three attacks after their regular combo once they reach a high proficiency; the attacks are the same as the "Evolution" attacks from the ''Dynasty Warriors'' PSP games.
*Fourth weapons: These are the most powerful weapons a character can possess. They are obtained in Hard mode on a stage rated 3-stars or higher, or any stage in Chaos mode. Fourth weapons contain random elements. Lu Bu and Tadakatsu Honda possess the strongest of those weapons, both with Strength values up to 100.
*Calling horses: An ability exclusive to Yukimura Sanada and Keiji Maeda in ''Samurai Warriors 2'', any character can perform this ability in ''Warriors Orochi''. If the player character(s) did not start the game on horseback, however, s/he will be only able to call a low-level steed.
*Special mounts: Only the
Red Hare
The Red Hare or Chi Tu () was a famous horse owned by the warlord Lü Bu, who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China.
In historical records
The Red Hare was mentioned in Lü Bu's biographies in the historical texts ''Records of the T ...
from ''Dynasty Warriors 5'' and
Matsukaze
is a play of the third category, the woman's mode, by Kan'ami, revised by Zeami Motokiyo. One of the most highly regarded of Noh plays, it is mentioned more than any other in Zeami's own writings, and is depicted numerous times in the visual art ...
from ''Samurai Warriors 2'' are present when a player acquires a Level 10 Cavalier ability in the game. They can also be found mid-game by defeating either a mounted
Lu Bu
Lu, Lü, or LU may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Lu (music), Tibetan folk music
* Lu (duo), a Mexican band
** ''Lu'' (album)
* Character from Mike, Lu & Og
* Lupe Fiasco or Lu (born 1982), American musician
* Lebor na hUidre, a manuscri ...
or
Maeda Keiji
, better known as or Keijirō (慶次郎), was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period through early Edo period. He was famously the nephew of Maeda Toshiie and Maeda Matsu. In legends and fictions, he is one of the most celebrated '' kabukim ...
.
*Facial expressions: All characters, including the ''Dynasty Warriors'' characters, display different facial expressions in their in-game avatar when speaking, following ''Samurai Warriors 2''.
*Base captains: Following ''Samurai Warriors 2'', base captains carry shields, allowing them to withstand several hits before taking damage.
*Objectives: Following ''Dynasty Warriors 5'', some stages have certain objectives that, if completed successfully, greatly help the player in winning the stage. Not implemented is a feature from ''Samurai Warriors 2'', which awards the player additional gold if objectives are completed successfully.
The following elements were not incorporated into ''Warriors Orochi'':
*Musou Rage from ''Dynasty Warriors 5''.
*Musou refill from attacking ''Dynasty Warriors 5''.
*Use of bow and arrow from Dynasty Warriors 5 (except the character that already had bow as weapon).
*Bodyguards from ''Dynasty Warriors 5''.
*Dodge Roll from ''Samurai Warriors 2''.
*Special Stances from ''Samurai Warriors 2''. They are included in ''Warriors Orochi'' as Enhanced Strikes.
*Multi-tiered Musou Gauges from ''Samurai Warriors 2''.
*Counter Attack (performed on the PlayStation 2 version by holding the guard button and pressing the charge button) from ''Dynasty Warriors 5''. Only Technique-type characters can counterattack by pressing the R1 button (PlayStation 2 version) when attacked.
*The Create-A-Warrior system from ''Dynasty Warriors 5: XL/Empires'' and ''Samurai Warriors 2:Empires''
*The Double Jump ability of the ninjas from ''Samurai Warriors 2'', although characters with the speed abilities can jump forward after the first normal jump.
Reception
''Warriors Orochi'' was met with average to very mixed reception.
GameRankings
GameRankings was a video gaming review aggregator that was founded in 1999 and owned by CBS Interactive. It indexed over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 video games. GameRankings was discontinued in December 2019, with its staff bei ...
and
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
gave it a score of 65% and 62 out of 100 for the PSP version; 57% and 53 out of 100 for the Xbox 360 version; 54% and 55 out of 100 for the PlayStation 2 version; and 52% and 51 out of 100 for the PC version.
As of May 21, 2008, the game sold over 1.5 million units worldwide.
See also
*
List of Warriors Orochi characters
is a hack and slash video game for PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360, developed by Koei and Omega Force. It is a crossover of two of Koei's popular video game series, ''Dynasty Warriors'' and ''Samurai Warriors'' (specifically ''Dynasty Warriors 5'' ...