Dynasty Warriors 4

Dynasty Warriors 4 (真・三國無双3, Shin Sangoku Musou 3) is the fourth entry in the Dynasty Warriors series and the fifth title made.

Aside from a number of aesthetic changes that carry onto later titles, many other radical direct changes have been made.

Gameplay

 * Aerial charge attacks are available (but they do not fill up Musou on hit). C1s (undefined) are unique to each character and C3s (,, undefined) are now multi-hitting combos known as Charge Rushes that can be followed by several taps from the undefined button; some of them can stun or stagger enemies.
 * Power guards (press while blocking) are replaced by Parries (press undefined while blocking). Performing this action can allow a character to dodge an enemy's attack and momentarily stun them. There is limited invincibility during the start of the animation, which can allow characters to evade attacks (as well as the hitbox lasting during nearly the whole counterattack animation).
 * Guarding no longer causes units to shift their front view towards the attacker when blocking attacks, and instead causes them to continue facing the direction.
 * Characters can announce their names by pressing R3. It surrounds them with an aura that stuns and breaks the guard of nearby opponents. It deals minute damage and cannot KO.
 * When meeting an enemy officer, there may be a chance that they will be additionally challenged to duel during the officer's introduction sequence. In the upper right hand corner, there will be a small gray gauge that allots a certain amount of time for the player's response. Choosing to accept transports both generals into a private arena that is separated from the main events on the field. Duels become more likely against a particular general if their rivalry with the player intensifies further.
 * Mounts no longer require ranks to ride them and allows players to pick up items while they're on the saddle. It's possible to dismount while the steed is running (as well as perform jump attacks and jump charges during said dismounts) and they no longer run over allies. Mounts also come in more extra colors that now vary personally for all units, playable and NPC.
 * Weapons can now be leveled up though its own leveling system. As the player defeats enemies, they will gradually gain more Weapon Points (WP). Similar to the stat boosts dropped by officers, players will additionally gain more points for their weapons if they defeat enemies with longer combos. This new system limits the players to one weapon (with only its natural attack stat as the provided bonus) yet it lets their weapons evolve over time to gain better stats. The maximum weapon level, level 10, needs special requirements to unlock.
 * Orbs can now be equipped individually onto characters, and elements all now require a full Musou gauge to activate. All Level 10 weapons can automatically cause most attacks to activate elements regardless of Musou Gauge.
 * Each character has six alternate outfits in this title. Their 5th and 6th outfits are their outfits from the previous installment for any returning characters, and any of their mirror CPU versions will have their 5th outfit on when encountered in battle.
 * All stages are part of a location set, which contain a series of reused locations that varies with each stage. As a result, all stages no longer use completely separate maps from one another.
 * The game's soundtrack uses more Chinese instruments than in the previous installment. From this game onward, scenario exclusive tracks are omitted for the stages with their own unique themes, regardless of the side the player is playing on.
 * Non-hostile siege vehicles (barring Juggernauts) have been added as damageable units. Towers and other structures can be destroyed by hitting them repeatedly; their sturdiness depending on the difficulty setting.

Musou Mode
In this game, the Musou Modes are made for each kingdom and not for individual characters. Each version has its own various stages or "Acts". As a result, during each stage preparation, the player(s) can switch characters back at the character selection screen.

Free Mode
Same as most of the other titles.

Versus Mode
Same as most of the other titles. However, in this installment, two players can no longer select the same character.

Edit Characters
Allows players to make their custom officers or bodyguard unit.

Data Base
Same as the previous title but includes a short summary of the Three Kingdoms timeline.

Characters
The game retains all characters from its previous installment, save for Fu Xi and Nu Wa. Those with bolded names are unlocked right from the start. Characters with an asterisk next to their names are new in this title.

Expansions

 * Dynasty Warriors 4: Xtreme Legends
 * Dynasty Warriors 4: Empires
 * Dynasty Warriors 4: Hyper - PC conversion of the game for Windows that uses higher resolution graphics. Includes the Japanese and English voice options. Number of enemies appearing on screen can be adjusted in the settings, and enemy A.I. is more enhanced than its PlayStation 2 counterpart.

Spin-Offs

 * Dynasty Warriors Advance
 * Dynasty Warriors (PSP)

Bugs and Glitches
Buggy grab attacks

All grabs will cause the victim to enter a "being lifted up" state, but if they happen to be left alone without the attacker following up on time (mainly due to a possible gimmick such as a bug or another unit interfering by pushing the attacker out of range) due to the state being solely stationary and not being fully captured onto the attacker's grasp, they will slowly drop down via knockdown with no damage. Some grabs can be bugged if they hit a midair/juggled opponent in that after the grab animation hits someone but does not change and knocks the target back while doing so, the attacker may go on with the throw attack animation anyway without anyone in their grasp.

Parry Locking

More of a trick rather than an actual bug or glitch, counterattacks can be countered by another parry, and two opposing units can continuously lock themselves into a chain of rapid parries. This is easiest done by two players in Vs. Mode.

Related Media
K'md released eight figurines of the cast. Koei released two drama CDs, Fuuen Ranbu and Gunsei Shoubu, based on events from this title. A light novel based on the drama CD's events and characters was also published. A sample can be read online here.

The twelve volume fanbook serialization, Shin Sangoku Musou Tsushin, also used this particular Dynasty Warriors entry as its base. It included commentary from developers, an exclusive illustration made by Hiroyuki Suwahara, stage walkthroughs, "what if?" designs for considered playable generals, and a showcase of letters and fanart from fans. The magazine also featured two characters from the game in each issue, several editorial comics, dream match novelizations between two characters, and mentions of other Three Kingdoms merchandise in Japan.

Aside from the official guide books, character illustration book, and scenario book, Koei officially funded the following publications for this game:


 * Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 3 ~ Battle Illusion Vol. 1 - collection of four panel parody comics created and illustrated by fans. ISBN: 4-7758-0075-2
 * Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 3 ~ Battle Illusion Vol. 2 - ISBN: 4-7758-0076-0
 * Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 3 ~ Battle Illusion Vol. 3 - ISBN: 4-7758-0110-4
 * Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 3 ~ Battle Illusion Vol. 4 - ISBN: 4-7758-0135-X
 * Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 3 ~ Battle Illusion Vol. 5 - ISBN: 4-7758-0136-8
 * Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 3 ~ Battle Illusion Vol. 6 - ISBN: 4-7758-0193-7
 * Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 3 ~ Battle Illusion Vol. 7 - ISBN: 4-7758-0207-0
 * Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 3 ~ Battle Illusion Vol. 8 - ISBN: 4-7758-0208-9
 * Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 3 Anthology ~Ten no Maki~ - collection of four panel parody comics and/or lengthier stories created by fans. Includes themes from the Xtreme Legends expansion as well. ISBN: 4-7758-0137-6
 * Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 3 Anthology ~Chi no Maki~ - ISBN: 4-7758-0138-4
 * Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 3 Anthology ~Jin no Maki~ - ISBN: 4-7758-0139-2

Image Song

 * Cross Colors


 * Performed by Yuki Koyanagi

Allusions

 * Characters outfits from this game later appear as alternate third costumes in Warriors Orochi 2.
 * The default names for the bodyguard units refer to several Koei titles such as Gitaroo-Man, Kessen II, and Nobunaga's Ambition. Sanzo, Shiga, and Ieyasu are also referenced. A group using the first names of the English voice actors was also created.