#RePlay When was the Last Time You Played Dynasty Warriors?

Hello and welcome to this week's #RePlay feature!

If you happen to be scratching your head and wondering just what in the world #RePlay is, it is pretty much a weekly series that features games from the past. It does not matter if it is a PlayStation game, a Nintendo 64 game, or whichever retro console it is. As long as it is an oldie but a goodie, we will feature it here.

#RePlay features also an one important question in each feature: is it possible to play this oldie but goodie game today given the more modern consoles that we have?

For this week's feature, we focus on a certain PlayStation game that became the first of a series of titles that focuses on a Chinese historical text known as the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms." It is none other than Dynasty Warriors!

#RePlay Feature: Dynasty Warriors

#RePlay When was the Last Time You Played Dynasty Warriors?

(Photo : Koei / Screenshot taken from the YouTube video of xTimelessGaming)

Published by Koei, Dynasty Warriros was released in 1997. It is a 3D fighting game, which actually differentiates it from the eventual sequels as they fall under the the hack and slash action genre instead.

As previously mentioned, the game (as well as the series) is based on the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms." Therefore, the playable characters in the game are actual historical figures from China's Three Kingdoms era. However, this game also includes two historical figures from Japan's Warring States period.

There are 16 playable characters in the games as seen below:

Cao Cao
Dian Wei
Diao Chan
Guan Yu
Lu Bu
Lu Xun
Nobunaga (Japan's Warring States period)
Sun Shang Xiang
Taishi Ci
Toukichi (Japan's Warring States period)
Xiaohou Dun
Xu Zhu
Zhang Fei
Zhao Yu
Zhao Yun
Zhuge Liang

Combat in Dynasty Warriors is weapon-based, which you can see for yourself in this YouTube video:

Dynasty Warriors Series

As mentioned earlier, Dynasty Warriors eventually became a hack and slash series. As of press time, there are a total of nine games in main series. The most recent title, Dynasty Warriors 9, was released worldwide in February 2022.

Two expansion lines have also been introduced for the series. The first expansion line is known as Xtreme Legends. Every game starting from Dynasty Warriors 3 have this expansion, except for the sixth game in the series.

The second expansion line, on the other hand, is known as Empires. Every game beginning from Dynasty Warriors 4 has this expansion. This expansion also does not require the original game disc, unlike the Xtreme Legends expansion.

Is It Still Possible to #RePlay Dynasty Warriors Today?

Unfortunately, the answer to that question to that is no, unless you still have a PlayStation, the first one, that still works and you happen to get your hands on a disc of Dynasty Warriors.

However, you can play the more recent titles that are part of the Dynasty Warriors series. For example, the following games are available for purchase on Steam: