Dynasty Warriors 5 Empires is the second spinoff title for Dynasty Warriors 5. Like the previous Empires game, much of it involves taking over territories and building up an army with the intended goal of unifying China. Its catchphrase in Japan is "Govern with wisdom and rule with force.", further highlighting the distinction between political insight and military warfare. The English port's marketing expounds on it with two impactful sentences "Without power, you cannot build a dynasty. Without wisdom, you cannot build an empire."
Gameplay
Political Phase
While this part of the game retains much of the same mechanics as before, many changes and additions have been implemented to refine the system even more. In addition to the original twenty-four regions making a comeback, one new area is now available for the taking. Regions are given defense levels to indicate how well-fortified they are under a faction's control. Higher regional defenses make it easier to fend off invaders and gain the upper hand during defensive battles. If a kingdom has access to border regions, they can enact trading policies to earn more gold and create rare items. Random events may occasionally happen during a player's turn, either providing them unexpected boons or misfortunes.
New policies are added to the mix, giving the player more tools at their disposal. While selecting between different pairs of policies is the norm, one can opt to delegate everything to a favored officer or assign a single chosen policy instead. Should a particular officer be assigned with delegation repeatedly, he or she will eventually be promoted as a strategist just like in the last Empires title. The latter option is highly useful for players looking to enact a particular strategy or effect, thereby providing them with an even greater degree of control. Policy making is determined by the amount of orders allotted per turn; more territories means more orders.
Additional items made to enhance steeds and other warfare animals are now available via land development or trading policies. Unlike before, regions will not automatically produce local items for the player upon being taken. They must be manufactured manually via policy making. Up to nine copies of the same item can be stocked at a time.
Officers fighting under a family member or loved one will always refuse offers to defect or join other armies unless their leader happens to be recruited first. They also have a hiring value determined by their current experience and strength. If a recruited officer happens to have a child or sibling, he or she may offer their services once they come of age.
Aside from the inclusion of new character events and story dialogues, certain movie scenes from the base game may trigger provided the player fulfills specific conditions during the political phase. Unlocking these is necessary to gain access to more character artworks in the archives.
Battle Phase
The battle system preserves the changes implemented in the base title while adhering to the format set by the prior Empires games. During combat, players can order their allies to perform certain actions collectively by tapping one of the buttons of the directional pad: orders include attacking the nearest base (up button), defending a base from the enemy (down button), gathering together around the player (left button), or doing whatever they want (right button). This allows for more tactical control when invading or defending regions.
In mid-battle, it is possible to give officers individual orders by pausing the game and going to the unit info menu. They may be entrusted with targeting specific enemy officers, going after certain bases, providing allied units with aid, or guarding a base from invaders.
The number of items a defeated officer respawns is now dependent on the current strength of their forces with ten being the most amount of times they can return to the field. Relief generals and lieutenants may be deployed to later serve as reinforcements for their side. Military achievements are accomplished both individually and as a whole.
When deciding on a strategy before heading to battle, the player is allowed to select two different tactical plans from an inventory of five. Formulating a new strategy through policy making means having to discard previous plans if the stockpile happens to be full. Some strategies work actively for the entirety of a single battle while others require manual activation via the pause menu.
Winning a battle earns the victor various spoils such as gold, growth items, and weapon attribute scrolls. Note that these items are automatically distributed or used. Superior items can be acquired in harder battles. Should a character achieve 1,000 KOs in battle, they will be marked with a star and receive an extra item slot for their troubles. Obtaining an officer's fourth weapon, on the other hand, requires them to accumulate 500 KOs after maximizing the tech level of the corresponding blacksmith type.
If the second player chooses to quit co-op play, their character will be controlled by the AI for the remainder of the battle.
The game brings back more music tracks from previous installments.
Modes
Empire Mode
Functions the same like in the last Empires game, though players can now choose between different historical scenarios leading up to the formation of the Three Kingdoms. Difficulty levels from Dynasty Warriors 5: Xtreme Legends are kept intact. Other minor settings include selecting auto-map options, enabling officers to retain experience gained from past playthroughs, imposing turn limits, allowing edit officers to appear, and deciding the number of generals a faction can keep. Turn limits in particular have been extended to 200.
Players may choose to easily take over a hostile nation's territories through annexation. Setting it to Ruler enables the victor to take all of their enemy's lands if they happen to successfully invade the latter's capital region. Meanwhile, the Isolate option has a similar effect if an enemy leader is cut off from their areas and left cornered as a result.
After clearing the game once, the option to let officers die outside of story events becomes available. This allows players to execute captured officers in the event that they cannot be recruited. Characters will also die of natural causes if enough turns have passed. Elderly officers like Huang Zhong and Zuo Ci are more likely to perish faster due to their advanced ages.
Free Mode
Unlike in the base titles, this mode features a list of standalone battles with a fixed set of generals. Difficulty settings and number of troops can be adjusted accordingly. Players also have the option of using developed characters or using only those at their initial strength.
Edit Mode
Functions the same like in Xtreme Legends.
Archives
Functions the same like in the last Empires game. Importing data from the base title and its Xtreme Legends expansion unlocks more artworks from the start.
Encyclopedia
Functions the same like in the base game.
Options
- Settings - Determines auto-map display settings.
- Controls - Changes button configuration according to the player's needs.
- Vibration - Turns on analog controller vibration.
- Bow Control - Sets targeting method of bow aiming to either normal or reverse.
- Setup - Reassigns buttons on the game controller.
- Sound - Adjusts music and sound effects.
- Speaker - Sets the speaker output through four different settings: Dolby Pro Logic II, Dolby Surround Pro Logic II, Stereo, and Mono.
- BGM Volume - Adjusts music volume level from 1 to 16.
- SE Volume - Adjusts sound volume level from 1 to 16.
- Sound Test - Allows the player to play different music tracks.
- Screen Adjust - Adjusts the screen position using the directional buttons. Can be reverted back to its original state by tapping the Start button.
- Save/Load - Allows the player to save their progress or load an old saved file.
- Reset Abilities - Resets the stats and experience points of all characters.
Items
Gameplay
Miscellaneous
Achievements
| Icon | Name | Unlock Method | Xbox Points |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Available Officers - 10 | Obtain 10 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 20 | Obtain 20 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 30 | Obtain 30 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 40 | Obtain 40 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 50 | Obtain 50 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 60 | Obtain 60 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 70 | Obtain 70 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 80 | Obtain 80 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 90 | Obtain 90 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 100 | Obtain 100 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 110 | Obtain 110 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 120 | Obtain 120 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 130 | Obtain 130 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 140 | Obtain 140 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 150 | Obtain 150 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 160 | Obtain 160 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 170 | Obtain 170 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 180 | Obtain 180 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 190 | Obtain 190 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 200 | Obtain 200 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 210 | Obtain 210 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 220 | Obtain 220 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 230 | Obtain 230 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 240 | Obtain 240 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Available Officers - 250 | Obtain 250 non-edit officers. | 20 |
 |
Play Yellow Turban Rebellion |
Clear the Yellow Turban Rebellion special stage. | 20 |
 |
Play the Battle of Hu Lao Gate |
Clear the Battle of Hu Lao Gate special stage. | 20 |
 |
Play the Battle of Guan Du | Clear the Battle of Guan Du special stage. | 20 |
 |
Play the Battle of Chi Bi | Clear the Battle of Chi Bi special stage. | 20 |
 |
Play the Battle of Yi Ling | Clear the Battle of Yi Ling special stage. | 20 |
 |
Cleared Yellow Turban Rebellion |
Control all 25 areas in Empire Mode scenario, Yellow Turban Rebellion. |
70 |
 |
Cleared Dong Zhuo in Luo Yang |
Control all 25 areas in Empire Mode scenario, Dong Zhuo in Luo Yang. |
70 |
 |
Cleared Divided Land | Control all 25 areas in Empire Mode scenario, Divided Land. |
70 |
 |
Cleared Guan Du | Control all 25 areas in Empire Mode scenario, Battle of Guan Du. |
70 |
 |
Cleared Flames over Chi Bi |
Control all 25 areas in Empire Mode scenario, Flames over Chi Bi. |
70 |
 |
Cleared A Gathering of Heroes |
Control all 25 areas in Empire Mode scenario, A Gathering of Heroes. |
50 |
Related Media
A strategy guide for the game had been released.
Console Differences
Below is a list of differences that the Xbox 360 has when compared to the PlayStation 2 version.
- It features HD display settings that allow for superior graphics.
- Dolby Digital 5.1 has been implemented to improve audio quality.
- The port has a staggering amount of 16 save slots.
- Unique characters only have up to two costumes.
- The ability to switch between different songs for battles is omitted.
- There are less music tracks from previous games.
Allusions
- Illustrations used for random events are taken from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms games.
Gallery
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Japanese cover
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Wallpaper
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External Links
- Official North American Website (English)
- Official Japanese Website (Japanese)
- Official Korean Website (Korean)
- Official Taiwanese Website (Traditional Chinese)
- Official PlayStation Page (Japanese)
- Official Xbox Page (English)
- Official Game Manual (English)
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