Dynasty Warriors 6 (真・三國無双5, Shin Sangoku Musou 5) is the sixth title in the Dynasty Warriors series. It is a total revamp from previous games that has been rebuilt from the ground up. Koei planned to make this game feel like an old kung-fu action movie as the attacks are motion-captured by real life martial artists.
Though the game was designed to be released exclusively for next-gen consoles, the company decided to release a PlayStation 2 version of the title.
Tomohiko Sho is director and Kenji Tanigaki is the opening movie director.
Gameplay
Battle System
As the game has been rebuilt from scratch by Koei, many new features are introduced in the game while some have been removed. A new system takes place of the old attack chains, called Renbu (連舞, lit. Chain Dance). In previous ports, the number of attacks available to use were affected by the level and quality of the wielded weapon. The more powerful weapons would allow more attacks.
However, in this game, a meter called the "Renbu Gauge", fills as the player's character builds up more combos. The level of the gauge ranges from One, Two, Three, and Infinite. As the gauge grows higher, attacks will have longer range and will become more powerful. If the player does not attack for a period or takes heavy damage, the Renbu Gauge will decrease. The new Renbu system allows character, even at Gauge level 1 to execute infinite attack strings. Without unlocking Renbu Level 3 and Infinite, however, character can only access up to Level 2 except when he/she receives a Renbu Earring, which provides thirty seconds of Infinite Renbu.
- The branching attack system has been removed. For example, attack strings were previously
; 
, ; , , ; etc. This has been replaced by one-button strings, such as , , , , or , , , .
- For the first time in the series, characters can perform a running attack.
- When running for a set amount of time, a brief wind effect occurs which is used as an indicator for being able to perform a running attack, just like how moving on horseback for long enough causes the same effect to occur to indicate that a running horse jump is possible (carried over from Samurai Warriors 2).
- Like Samurai Warriors, characters can evade and perform unique attack animations when they win deadlocks.
- All characters can now perform a Killing Array (殺陣, Tate) akin to Samurai Warriors 2, but functions as an unblockable grab/grapple and not as a deadlock attack counter, done by pressing or while the character is blocking. The grab-physics unlike back in Dynasty Warriors 4 are more refined and less buggy.
- Deadlock attacks from Samurai Warriors 1 and 2 are also added in the form of the "Tsubazeri'ai" (鍔迫り合い, lit. Sword-to-Sword Guard-Locking") Counter, including the tug-of-war gauge. As a result unlike in prior titles, deadlocks can also immediately end if either person involved in the deadlock fully maxes out their side of the tug-of-war gauge, instead of merely needing to last a set amount of time on their own.
- Special Attacks, received from the Tome item drop, allows characters to use a devastating skill to defeat enemies and help out the player. The drop can usually be found off of defeated Guard Captains of bases. There are five attack types - Swift Attack, Volley, Fire, True Speed, and Rockfall.
- Swift Attack: immediately boosts the user's Renbu gauge up to the Infinite Renbu, and grants higher attack and defense power. When used when the player is at low, red health, the effects of Swift Attack increase.
- Volley: releases waves of arrows surrounding the player to annihilate enemies. Element may be added.
- Fire: sets off multiple eruptions of fire in random areas surrounding the character. When used on a base, the base is engulfed in fire and all opposing base forces inside of it are damaged.
- True Speed: greatly boosts the character's speed and are given unique attacks whilst running. When used on a horse, the Tome Attack also boosts the horse's traveling speed. Also increases range and/or adds an extra attack to the strong dashing attack.
- Rockfall: lets loose giant boulders of land on the enemy and, when used near a cliff or an area with elevation differences, the rocks fall down and slide on the ground.
- Dueling returns from Dynasty Warriors 4, though it differs from the previous system. There is a chance where an opposing officer will challenge the player into a duel, then surrounding officers and foot soldiers will form a circle around the two duelists. When the player gets too close to the enemy's side, a foot soldier will attack the player to get them back inside the duel; the same goes for the dueling enemy. Officers from either side can join the fray and the duel can be prematurely ended when either duelist exits the circle formation.
Any officer defeated during the duel will immediately drop 200 EXP points. Duels are usually executed when there is an equal amount of forces in one area. However, when a duel is initiated with the player completely surrounded by enemies, the crowd of soldiers forming the boundary is more likely to attack. If a horse is called when one is taking place, it may come into the arena, but will eventually find its way and wait in-between allied troops.
Character Growth
- Dynasty Warriors 6 sports a Skill Tree unique to all characters. Each branch is attained by gaining a level and it will be complete by level 50. With it, players can unlock many items, ranging from stat-boosting or add-on skills. Also available is a special ability which allows wild animals to refrain from attacking and movement-quickening skills, such as swimming and running.
- Weapons are no longer quality-based ranks and unique Fourth Weapons have been removed. The weapons' capabilities and attack strengths are randomly chosen. Characters with Musou Modes have three different-looking weapons while characters without stories all retain one weapon's design. Each weapon is now divided into three categories - Strength, Standard, and Skill.
- Strength - usually have a higher attack power, at the cost of Renbu Chains being kept for a smaller amount of time. They also increase the likelihood of breaking enemies' guards as the Renbu Gauge increases. The noting color background is red.
- Standard - the default weapon type; increases range as the Renbu Gauge increases and keeps Renbu Chains at a medium amount of time. Noted by the color green.
- Skill - grants greater attack speeds when powered up by the Renbu Gauge. Icons will have a blue background.
- Saddles are now found randomly. They can be found after breaking a crate or jar or as a random drop from an officer. At the end of a stage, like weapons, found horses can be kept or rejected as a player can only have a maximum eight horses.
- Horses can be leveled up to level five, and a horse also has four attributes that can go up to five hundred. The attributes are Speed, Jump, Destruction, and Attack. Like weapons, saddles can also have special abilities attached to them, such as Water Spirit (exclusive to Hex King), Renbu Gait, Find Weapon, Find Saddle, etc. They can also be called to the players' side by pressing the down button on the direction pad. Pressing R1 (PS3) / RB (360) on a horse also causes the horse to jump.
- There are six unique horses, three which are historical. The historical steeds are Shadow Runner, Hex King (Hex Mark), Red Hare King (Red Hare).
Battlefield
- In previous games, players could only travel on land. In Dynasty Warriors 6, they can now swim and climb ladders. Ladders are usually attached to towers or gates, while the swimming feature takes place in only a few stages. Players can also jump off cliffs, bridges, and other high leveled platforms and land on lower ground. If the player does this and lands near an enemy unit, they can sometimes surprise them and catch them off guard.
- Bases have also been revamped. In previous games, a character would defeat a Defense Captain to open a base's gates. In this installment, however, gates need to be attacked in order to be opened. If the player rides a fast enough horse or use an unconventional method to enter a base, the gates do not need to be smashed. To capture the base, the player needs to K.O a certain number of enemies inside to lower its health. Corporal units count as twenty health points and, when the remaining number of points is one hundred or lower, a Guard Captain comes out. The defeat of a Guard Captain is an immediate surrender of the base. During a base's inactive time, its health can restore.
- Units now consist of twenty or so foot soldiers and a bannerman, where a unit in previous games would only consist of a head soldier, and lower-ranked soldiers. A bannerman wields an army's banner, and frequently raises it to raise morale. During a banner's raising, any ally standing next to the bannerman gains a temporary power-up, such as Speed Up, Attack Up, or Defense Up.
- Engineers have been provided a greater role on the battlefield. When attacking a gate, Engineer units build catapults, put up ladders, and build rams. Ballistae have also been placed on the tops of gates, and frequently launch attacks on catapults and rams. They can be destroyed. Captains of Gates defend gates and can attack anyone around.
- Base Captains, who previously guarded exits to the battlefield, have been removed.
Modes
Musou Mode
Like the previous title, individual characters have their own Musou Modes. Out of all the playable characters, only seventeen are given unique stories. No extra story stages or alternative paths are available.
Free Mode
Free Mode in Dynasty Warriors 6 is essentially identical to the Free modes in all previous game titles. In Free mode, players may select any unlocked stage and play that stage with any unlocked character. Out of all 41 playable characters only 9 of them are available at the start of the game. Additional characters must be unlocked by playing through the Musou Modes of the original nine and completing specific objectives (listed as "Targets" within the battle preparation screen).
Challenge Mode
Set challenges that use characters' base stats and automatically assigned weapons. The five modes are:
- Rampage - Defeat as many enemies as possible in the allotted time
- Sudden Death - Defeat as many enemies as possible without getting defeated; players and AI can be defeated in one hit
- Speed Run - Reach all fortresses as quickly as possible
- Havoc - Destroy as many items as possible
- Gauntlet - Gather EXP to get the highest score
Encyclopedia
Known as "Data Base" in the Japanese version, this section summarizes the entire Three Kingdoms era, includes terminology from the time period, a consolidated timeline, and brief bios of all the characters in the game (playable and NPCs). The data combines history and information found in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms novel. Similar historical entries can also been found in Romance of the Three Kingdoms series.
Camp
Essentially the gallery mode in the game. Allows players to view and rotate character models, scan through skill trees, and watch movies found in characters' Musou Modes. Horses and weapons can also be viewed. If the character reaches level 50, a voice gallery will also be unlocked.
Characters
- See also Dynasty Warriors 6/Weapon Movesets
Forty one playable characters are in this game with no new characters being introduced into the series.
The selection is based on the Dynasty Warriors 5 character list with the omissions of Pang De, Xing Cai, Jiang Wei, Da Qiao, Zhu Rong, Meng Huo, and Zuo Ci. Removed characters are excluded throughout the majority of the game, though "the daughter of Zhang Fei" is mentioned in Lu Bu's Musou mode. The Encyclopedia mentions Da Qiao in Xiao Qiao's biography and Meng Huo is mentioned in any Nanman-related entries.
Characters without Musou modes are clones in terms of movesets, save for Xiao Qiao who retains twin fans as her weapon.
Achievements
| Icon | Name | Unlock Method | Xbox Points |
|---|---|---|---|
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First in Rampage | Rank 1st (Personal Best) in Rampage. | 10 |
 |
First in Sudden Death | Rank 1st (Personal Best) in Sudden Death. | 10 |
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First in Speed Run | Rank 1st (Personal Best) in Speed Run. | 10 |
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First in Havoc | Rank 1st (Personal Best) in Havoc. | 10 |
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First in Gauntlet | Rank 1st (Personal Best) in Gauntlet. | 10 |
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The Splendid One | Ma Chao has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Tiger General | Huang Zhong has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Barbarian Lord | Wei Yan has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Fledgling Phoenix | Pang Tong has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Wise Lady | Yue Ying has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Son of Guan Yu | Guan Ping has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Raging Tiger | Xu Zhu has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Courageous Lord | Xu Huang has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Arm of Cao Cao | Xiahou Yuan has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Lord of Beauty | Zhang He has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Lady of Wei | Zhen Ji has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Stalwart Defender | Cao Ren has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Emperor to Be | Cao Pi has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Ferocious Warrior | Taishi Ci has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Lord of Wu | Sun Quan has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Veteran General | Huang Gai has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Master General | Lu Meng has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Little Conqueror | Sun Ce has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Great Beauty | Xiao Qiao has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Loyal Warrior | Zhou Tai has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Spirited General | Ling Tong has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The General of Heaven | Zhang Jiao has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Usurper | Dong Zhuo has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Patriarch Of Yuan | Yuan Shao has been unlocked. | 10 |
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The Sleeping Dragon | Zhuge Liang has been unlocked. | 30 |
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The King of Shu | Liu Bei has been unlocked. | 30 |
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The Forthright Lord | Zhang Liao has been unlocked. | 30 |
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The King of Wei | Cao Cao has been unlocked. | 30 |
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The Reckless Pirate | Gan Ning has been unlocked. | 30 |
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The Tiger of Jiang Dong | Sun Jian has been unlocked. | 30 |
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The Beautiful Dancer | Diao Chan has been unlocked. | 30 |
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The God of War | Lu Bu has been unlocked. | 30 |
 |
Target Private | 50 or more targets achieved. | 30 |
 |
Target Corporal | 75 or more targets achieved. | 40 |
 |
Target Captain | 100 or more targets achieved. | 50 |
 |
Target General | All targets achieved. | 60 |
 |
Scenario Private | 10 or more scenarios cleared. | 20 |
 |
Scenario Corporal | 20 or more scenarios cleared. | 30 |
 |
Scenario Captain | 30 or more scenarios cleared. | 40 |
 |
Scenario General | All scenarios cleared. | 50 |
 |
Musou Mode Master | All Musou Modes cleared. | 50 |
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Master of Chaos | All scenarios cleared at chaos difficulty. | 50 |
 |
Completist | All officers advanced to level 50. | 50 |
Expansions
- Dynasty Warriors 6: Special is an update of the game exclusive to the PS2 and PSP. It downscales the graphics and removes features such as swimming and dueling, but gains new stages, Musou Modes, cutscenes, and individualizes six other characters' weapons and movesets.
- Dynasty Warriors 6: Empires continues the line of Empires Expansions, where the player can play generic and unique characters to conquer all of China. A Create-a-Warrior system has also been added. It features Special's roster but without the cut features and downscaled graphics. Meng Huo also returns with a new weapon and design, as well as new maps and features.
- Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce, avilable on the PSP, PS3 and Xbox 360. It introduces "Fury" forms, mythical transformations of the characters with exaggerated features and new abilities.
Related Media
Meister Japan created figurines and replicas of the game's characters and weapons.
Aside from the guide books and character illustrations book, Koei officially funded the following publications for this game:
- Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 5 ~ Rumble Mission Vol. 1 - collection of four panel parody comics created and illustrated by fans. ISBN: 978-4-7758-0642-5
- Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 5 ~ Rumble Mission Vol. 2 - ISBN: 978-4-7758-0643-2
- Comic Shin Sangoku Musou 5 ~ Rumble Mission Vol. 3 - ISBN: 978-4-7758-0644-9
Free samples of these books -as well as the previously mentioned fan comic books for this series- can be seen here.
Trivia
- This is the first Dynasty Warriors title to have the characters correctly pronounce Cao Cao's name (tsao tsao rather than "cow cow"). The first English dub from a Koei title to do the same -other than Romance of the Three Kingdoms- was the Warriors Orochi series.
- The character looks in this game later appear as alternate costumes in Warriors Orochi Z. However, a few of them have been slightly altered.
- Some of the battlefield items introduced in this game are later integrated in the series' online game.
- Zhao Yun, Diao Chan, and Sun Shang Xiang's costumes from this game appear as extra content in Ninja Gaiden Sigma II.
- One of the game's music tracks "Spring Of The East" was played during the swimming competition of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China.
- This is the first Dynasty Warriors to not have new characters being introduced into the series.
- TROPICAL WARS was supposed to play Nanman stage, Ultimately This soundtrack used Battle of He Fei instead. Presumably, The lack of Meng Huo being playable in 6.
Gallery
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Japanese cover
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Russian cover
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Treasure Box cover
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English ad flyer
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External Links
- Official North American Website (English)
- Official European Website (English)
- Official Japanese Website (Japanese)
- Official Korean Website (Korean)
- Official Chinese Website (Simplified Chinese)
- Official Taiwanese Website (Traditional Chinese)
- Official PlayStation Page (Japanese)
- StrategyWiki Page (English)
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