Warriors Orochi 2 Review
By Jonathan Hunt - Posted Sep 24, 2008KOEI is back with a sequel to their hack and slash, cross genre action title, Warriors Orochi 2 for the Xbox 360, PS2, and PSP. X-Play has the review!
The Pros
- More crossed-over characters to choose
- Gentler difficulty curve
- Team gameplay is still a big plus
The Cons
- Dated graphics
- Corny voice acting
- Crossover concept isn't as much fun a second time
There's both less and more to Koei's second Warriors Orochi. If you toted up a list of every bit of content in it, and compared that to what's in the original game, it would obviously appear to have a lot more to it. Adding something more isn't necessarily adding something new, though, and Warriors Orochi 2 often feels like the novelty's wearing off.
If you missed the first game, it's a simple enough concept. Orochi mashes the characters from Samurai Warriors and Dynasty Warriors into one fictitious setting. It's kind of like a crossover between Marvel and DC superheroes, except with Liu Bei versus Miyamoto Musashi instead of Superman versus the Hulk. This worked pretty well in Warriors Orochi, along with some welcome improvements to the gameplay of Koei's venerable action-strategy series. Warriors Orochi 2 is largely more of the same. Even if it’s a whole lot more of the same, that still doesn't make it any more original.
When Worlds Collide
Of course, there's a bigger character lineup to pick from in Warriors Orochi 2. Koei advertises more than 90 historical figures and fictional villains, compared to 70-some in the original Warriors Orochi. The three-man team gameplay works as well as it did in the last game, too – it's a fine answer to one of the most common criticisms of the Warriors series. Hacking and slashing with the same character through so many levels of the story mode can wear thin after a while. Swapping through three team members at will makes for a more varied campaign.
Every campaign is playable on four difficulty levels; from "Easy" (pretty darned easy) up through "Chaos" (stretches the definition of "fun" to its breaking point). In general, though, the difficulty seems to have been toned down a little compared to the last game, which served up some shockingly hard-hitting enemies. Hardcore types can still test their skills on the higher levels, but mortal gamers should find a more comfortable challenge at the default setting.
In addition to the main story mode, the sequel also includes a new "Dream" mode, a collection of one-shot scenarios starring teams that all have some historical theme or personality trait in common. It's a clever way to play on Orochi's mix of characters, and there's a surprising amount of extra gameplay there – about two dozen different scenarios to clear.
Haven't Been There, Still Done That
Crossing over medieval Japan and ancient China adds a lot more variety as well, but judging from this sequel, the concept has a limited shelf-life. The first time, it was interesting in that who-would-win-in-a-fight kind of way. The second time, though, it's not quite as interesting anymore, and it cuts at one of the roots of the franchise's appeal, which is the historical setting.
After all, the historical characters are only a part of it – it's fun to control them, but it's especially fun to control them in a re-creation of real events, or something that's at least loosely like them. The most intriguing campaigns in the earlier games, too, have been the ones that let you fight your way to an outcome that didn't actually happen in real life. All the campaigns in Orochi are equally fictitious, though, which throws the appeal of rewriting history out the window. Everyone's just hacking and slashing their way through a standard-brand fantasy world, and those are a dime a dozen in videogames.
Way Back When
Aesthetically, Koei's design sense is as strong as ever. Nevertheless, there are some harsh notes here and there. These games have always featured exaggerated character designs – the real historical figures probably didn't dress up quite this fancy – but the voice acting takes it to yet another level, and not necessarily in a good way. Kojiro Sasaki goes past "effeminate" to "downright creepy." Zhuge Liang's venerable old-man voice tries way too hard as well. In general, many of the voices could have toned it down a fair bit and still matched the over-the-top visuals just fine.Also, while it's not really fair to judge the last generation's hardware by the standards of the next one, the PS2 versions of these games are getting harder and harder on the eyes. Koei's development teams have done their best to keep up, and the character modeling here is still pretty impressive, but the drab backgrounds and draw-in show the age of the technology.
Despite all the complaints here, there's still plenty to like about Warriors Orochi 2. The new campaigns definitely have their moments, and deeper in the game there are some subtler improvements, like the expanded weapon fusion system. If Koei's developers plan to visit this particular well a third time, though, they're going to have to add a whole lot more than just more of the same.
Review by: D.F. Smith
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