Dynasty Warriors Advance

Written by John Carswell  on August 05, 2005

Final Glimpse: Preferable to going against a Sicilian when death is on the line.

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Koei's popular Dynasty Warriors series is making the jump to 2D and GameBoy Advance with a taste for strategy. Fans of the series should be polishing their swords. This finely tuned Strategy/Action franchise has come along way by skillfully balancing strategic and role-playing elements with intense, visceral combat. Although the series has traditionally been presented in 3D, the word is that Koei has successfully translated Dynasty Warriors into a title that meets the GBA's technical shortcomings without diminishing series core gameplay.

In its main story mode, Dynasty Warriors Advance will allow players to choose which region of China's УThree KingdomsФ period they will represent. With each kingdom including its own story, the game quickly hits one hundred and eighty levels. Combined with the story mode are three bonus modes that will add a good deal of replay value to the game. These will test your speed at dispatching enemies, explore a curious secondary battle system that requires both skill and luck to progress, and replay levels in the main game.

Dynasty Warriors Advance's story mode is split into two distinct parts. The first mode will be a top-down map view where you see yourself, your army, and your enemy. This part of the game plays out much like a simplified, turn-based strategy game. You move your character one to two spaces depending on whether the area has been explored, and then the two AI-controlled armies progress towards one another. When you encounter the enemy, will be moved to the confrontation screen which launches the second part of the story mode.

From here, Dynasty Warriors Advance will play out in an isometric, Уbeat'em upФ fashion. Giving the player access to slow and fast assaults as well as combination attacks and devastating Musou attacks, the game will dole out five enemies at a time until the player or rival army is extinguished. This area is also where the player gains new weapons and experience points to strengthen their character.

Over the course of Dynasty Warriors Advance, the player's character should not only be the quintessential warrior of fortitude, but also wield magically enchanted weapons to scorch the world and enemies around him. Add to this a strong focus on story that is closer to a УTacticsФ RPG than your standard hack-and-slash affair, and you have a deceptively involving game that keep players interested from beginning to end.