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Once the opposing forces at any one area have been scattered, you’ll be checking the map for the next flashpoint, ad infinitum, until the battle’s won. Of course, this being a war and all, friendly units will often accompany you, just don’t expect them to contribute much. Lowly soldiers of both sides are usually content to stand motionless in front of each other, rather than bother to swing a weapon (just when you thought the battle couldn’t get less convincing).

Dynasty Warriors 7

Give it a whirl

To throw in a little variety, some missions take the action indoors, much to the detriment of the camera, which has to be cajoled into a useable angle much more often then when fighting outside. Further variety, in the shape of the more open ended ‘Conquest’ mode, at least offers something beyond the campaign, but even planning domination of the land requires the same old fights time and again.

Multiplayer options are similarly meagre, limited to a poorly implemented on-line two-player version of Conquest mode, which seems to hinder players starting a game at every turn.

Dynasty Warriors 7

Battle fatigue

Verdict

Lacking ambition, overly repetitive and with only barely passable special effects, Dynasty Warriors 7 feels like the gaming world’s equivalent of the straight to DVD movie – a cash-in built to take advantage of a loyal following. Now that’s done and the money has been made, can the inevitable eighth offer something new please – maybe some of the parkour and waterfall surfing hinted at during the introduction? ®

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Dynasty Warriors 7

Dynasty Warriors 7

Seven games later, will Dynasty Warriors finally break the mould and embrace current gen hardware? Available Xbox 360 (tested) and PS3.
Price: £50 RRP
Latest Comments

such a shame

the original game was so much fun and different when it came out

shame to see the franchise has become just another typical uninnovative franchise :(

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Ummm

It's been a long time since I was a hardcore gamer but Crysis springs to mind. That's on PC tho, maybe the fib factor is higher on teh consoles?

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re: ingame trailers

while your example is correct, i've noticed that trailers featuring in-game graphics or even gameplay are getting much more common - ala cod modernwankery2 and blackops etc.

the concept of a very flash looking prerendered trailer or intro movie is fast being replaced by ingame examples, due in no small part to the rapidly improving in game graphics.

10 years ago an FMV was needed for people to drop their jaws, nowadays just look at the frostbite2 engine gameplay trailers for battlefield3, or gameplay footage of crysis2, both of those can acheive the same effect using only what the game is built from already.

OT: the game looks bad. :(

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I mean, no offense....

But, when was the last time you saw an intro video to a game that showed you ACTUAL game footage/activities you can do....

If a Deathwing attack actually LOOKED like it does in the intro vid to WoW's Cataclysm, I MAY actually be terrified....but it doesn't.

So, one needs to think of these ads as just that, ads that are made to mind-fuck people into paying for said product.

Ah well, sigh.

Cheers!

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I'm a fan...

...and even I am not going to buy this. The first DW on next-gen consoles had only marginally better graphics than the PS2 version, and less missions. It also had a pitiful view distance and number of on-screen enemies. This got even worse, to the point of being nearly unplayable due to inability to figure out what was going on around you, if you played split-screen coop. This when at roughly the same time on the same platform we had Heavenly Sword and its countless legions of enemies, stretching for what looked like miles. Burn me once, shame on me - not going to get burned twice.

As I find myself saying all too frequently these days: if you can't do graphics, do gameplay; if you can't do gameplay, do graphics; if you can do neither graphics nor gameplay, do another freakin' job.

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