Romance Of The Three Kingdoms 9

There are many games that have been out for nearly two decades this year (and many more than that). They've had a lot of time to stew in its fan's brains that only seems to have added affection from them. Romance of the Three Kingdoms 9 is a part of a strong series that has seen great success previously.

The ninth installment introduced a renewed level of interest from the developers and fans alike as Koei (now Koei Tecmo) released it nearly 2 seasons ahead of schedule for foreign (outside of Japan) audiences. It was a release that trumped all the rest because of the detailed personality Dependent and Officer Development Systems along with masterful direction. These systems, along with several others and the primary gameplay elements, all create a great experience that seems to keep on giving, even as you reach total control over all of China.

Thoughtful Strategy

To be honest, the only way to succeed at this game is to consider each and every piece of it with great care. You’re going to need to take things slow and allow yourself to lose a few times before you fully understand everything (at least that was my experience given my relative aversion to strategy titles). Regardless, building defenses and training an army in this game will hardly be enough. Considering that its your goal to rule the entire country, you’ll also need to be focused on farming, developing trade between other settlements, creating alliances, and maintaining your citizens. What was truly interesting about this ninth installment, which is often a difficult mark to reach in a series that’s been around for so long, is that Koei completely reworked the battle and turn system.

By comparison, 9’s time moves a lot quicker than in 8 given that you now have complete control over when and how things are done each turn. You’ve got 36 turns to work with per year and you aren’t limited by anything other than your own thought process and resources. If you want to see why games like Sid Meier’s Civilization series or even Age of Empires are able to succeed today, look no further than the complexities offered in this game.

Endless Opportunities

It would be an understatement to say that any one of these games could last hours. If you’re anything like me, anyways, you could be there all day because you’re terrible at planning and diverting the correct resources at appropriate times. Still, there are 25 total scenarios, 5 of them being ‘what if’ type scenarios where you’re thrown into a world where X happened differently, 15 historical scenarios somewhat based on the reality of the Han Dynasty in China, and 5 challenge scenarios that further push your skills to the limit.

Bottom Line

There’s also some multiplayer opportunity in this game that can keep you invested endlessly. All in all, I really enjoyed how this game was able to play with history, giving you the reigns to design your own military/political powerhouse, and how you could be rewarded or punished for your actions.

Pros:

• In-depth progression/maintenance system
• Variety of gameplay methods
• Great maps, challenge scenarios, and overall historical implementation

Cons:

• Learning curve can be steep
• Some scenarios were barebones compared to others, others incredibly hard
• Definitely a takeoff from Romance Of The Three Kingdoms 8, older fans might now take to this one well at first