Review for Orochi Warriors 4. Game for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the video game was released on 27/09/2018 The version for PC came out on 16/10/2018 The version for Nintendo Switch came out on 19/10/2018 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 19/10/2018 The version for Xbox One came out on 19/10/2018
Relating and consequently judging a product like Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate, revised and expanded version of the Koei Tecmo title, was not at all easy if you did not grow up on bread and musou. With great amazement, we feel we have had a lot of fun exterminating hordes of enemies that are actually too static and compliant, with the help of a myriad of freely selectable characters at the beginning of each mission. Because, clearly, having overcome the initial obstacle, basically due to the entry into a semi-unknown world, it is undeniable how surprisingly fascinating this has been able to be.
No, we do not feel like counting the product in question as a masterpiece, let alone say that it aims at this heavy nomenclature, because after all, for the umpteenth time, the fourth episode of the saga that we could define crossover between Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors is fundamentally conservative and firmly anchored to its enormous tradition and, above all, to that of the genre in question, but somehow manages to leave a mark, albeit a small one.
Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate, however, wants to offer something new, or at least tries, proposing together with the contents of the original game, released in 2018, a sequence of new additions, in the ultimate attempt to give aficionados of the saga itself one more reason to return to exterminate hordes of enemy soldiers and their respective lords. We have already said it and we repeat it: this Ultimate version is therefore to be considered a sort of update of the base chapter, even if the various additions are not to be considered completely marginal. Net of the honorable attempt, however, it is good to clarify a key question: Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate is and remains a niche title, a proud exponent of a saga that wants to offer something new while remaining strongly anchored to its origins. The result is still valid, clearly if you are part of the niche in question.
Freedom of judgment, and of action
As we said at the beginning, Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate is not a new episode of the long-lived saga, but a big update of the original title, with which it clearly shares a good part of both the playful and thematic and narrative structure. And just talking about the narrative of the title, we feel like giving a small applause to the production, since even if marginal - in full musou style - the general plot of the game is discreetly enjoyable and functional for the purposes of gameplay.
To bring together in the best way the many characters present in the roster, headed by those who are somewhat the main protagonists of the first part of the game, that is Naotora there, Tadakatsu Honda, and Naomasa there, the game uses the gimmick of gates interdimensional to blend everything together, thus creating a wider imaginary, albeit never truly inspired on the narrative front. The beginning of it all is… divine! In the strict sense of the word. To set the events in motion is none other than Zeus himself, who created, for obscure reasons, a universe of its own in which the main historical faces of the various chapters of the series (or series) find themselves catapulted without a apparent reason. Continuing with the story everything becomes clearer: their destiny is strongly linked to mysterious bracelets with divine powers, the finding of which is of fundamental importance in order to give the return to their realities to all the various warriors involved in the story.
Between one mission and another of the Story mode, of an impressive longevity, the game also offers the possibility to face secondary activities, linked to the subplots of some characters that in Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimamte are being expanded with the addition of new stories. Net of some interesting ideas, therefore, the substance is on the whole always the same. The plot is on the whole accessory and surrounds what, clearly, is the highlight of such a production: the gameplay. This is a gameplay that Warriors Orochi 4 and also its Ultimate version consequently tries to rewrite in some way, but only partially succeeding in the undertaking.
To arms!
In its original guise, as well as in this "new" version, Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate inserts some valid and interesting elements into the well-established classic musou formula, although not always exploited properly and / or in any case functional. If the very timid addition of some role-playing features, such as a simple skill tree and the development and enhancement of weapons, fails to be really useful or interesting, the same - fortunately - cannot be said of the mechanics related to the introduction in the saga of magic. Exterminating hordes of enemies using real spells (elemental and otherwise) very spectacular and above all unique to each character is a real panacea, but we admit that often and willingly you could find yourself abusing this possibility. It goes without saying therefore that the addition of Sacred Tresures, artifacts that give exclusive magical power to the warriors in the field, has certainly succeeded, just as we feel we can partly reward the dynamics of Deification, another system of power up of the characters which, however, is more linked to the story and therefore linked to some specific characters.
This sort of "awakening" is therefore the prerogative of some very specific roster members, who in turn are in most cases almost always well diversified in terms of animations and moveset. Thanks to this fundamental feature, having fun creating the party that best suits your needs will be an important aspect of the game, since not all enemies are sensitive to the strident Katanas of the most skilled warriors but, as for example in the case of the demons of Chaos (Chaos Origin), require characters with strong magical power to be used in battle. These special attacks are actually very simple to use and complement the simpler physical attacks in a sufficiently intuitive control scheme. With the pressure of the right trigger and the various triangle, circle and square you can therefore easily unleash these powerful attacks on the enemy troops, culminating in a sort of super final technique that involves both party members and those belonging to the troops of support, for an often decisive result. This last skill, however, takes a long time to cast and, honestly, on the one hand we are happy: otherwise we would have abused too much!
What's under the makeup?
As we also said at the beginning, Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate is not a remastered or a remake, but a gigantic upgrade of the original title. It can be seen, for better or for worse, even on a technical level, in which clearly there is no improvement whatsoever. On PlayStation 4 Pro (version we used for testing) Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate performs quite well but we must admit that, despite the paucity of polygonal models in strictly technical terms, we found ourselves once too many to witness phenomena such as the frame drop and a very annoying pop-up and pop-in of environmental elements and above all of the enemies. On an aesthetic level, however, we were surprised by the strong aesthetic characterization of each of the available warriors, both the old and the new ones.
We would like to mention among the new recruits Ryu Hayabusa, coming from the Ninja Gaiden brand and the gods Hades, Achilles and Gaia, with a special mention to the splendid reinterpretation of Giovanna D'Arco. In terms of content, however, Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate is not limited to the introduction of new warriors, but makes discrete additions to the basic formula of the title. In addition to the already mentioned new side missions of the story, the real highlight of the new production is the Infinity Mode, a hardcore mode that is unlocked after completing the fifth and final act of the main campaign. In this mode you can test your skills and challenge the rankings, venturing into real "towers" characterized by a long sequence of opponents gradually more and more difficult to defeat. All these small additions are therefore to be considered a sort of homage to fans of the saga and of the title in particular, since they aim not to revolutionize but to improve a product that, for fans of the genre, has been able to give good satisfaction in the last two years.
Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate is a real riot of content, ideal for those who loved the base game but also for those who want to look out over the brand in an immaculate way. Fun and frenetic, albeit repetitive to the bone, the title will be a great way to relax, perhaps in company, thanks to the presence of a quantity of content and playable characters at times disarming. The new additions, such as magic and special techniques but also the Infinity Mode, may be the key elements of this fourth chapter, polished for the occasion, but beware: if the genre is not for you, however timidly try it, Warriors Orochi 4 won't make you change your mind.
► Warriors Orochi 4 is a Sliding-RPG-Tactical Beat 'em up game developed by Omega Force and published by Koei Tecmo for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the video game was released on 27/09/2018 The version for PC came out on 16/10/2018 The version for Nintendo Switch came out on 19/10/2018 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 19/10/2018 The version for Xbox One came out on 19/10/2018
