7 Video Game Sequels That Gave You LESS

Dynasty Warriors is a franchise that proves to many that you can never have too much of a good thing. The formula was pretty straightforward: Pick a Chinese warrior with weirdly specific weapon (Looking at you Huang Gai, you bloody boat boy), jump into a stage holding thousands of enemies and…well…have at thee. The series progressed very little up until Dynasty Warriors 9, which would attempt the revolutionise the stoic series with the addition of open world elements.

Whilst the button mashing mayhem of previous titles would remain, sections in between would have the player character traversing China on horseback; collecting resources for crafting, creating hideouts and taking on obligatory side quests from wandering NPCs.

Response to the game was mixed to say the least, and it was the open world which bore the brunt of critical ire. Whilst an ambitious move to try and shakeup the franchise, critics noted that the space between battles offered very little of any interest, and the battles themselves would do nothing to silence those who see Dynasty Warriors as just mindless distraction.

Sure enough, as is tradition, the strategy focussed Empires addition to the game was announced in September 2020, and publisher Koei Tecmo have gone on to say that, whilst the game will use some of the open world assets from the mainline title, the open world itself will not be carrying over. Although the game will not be out until February 2022, it’s fair to say that Dynasty Warriors’ foray into progression has been a one and done deal.