Stage Sets:
- Yiling: Battle of Yiling, Campaign for Jing and Unification of Jing.
- Wuzhang Plains: Battle of Jieting, Battle of Wuzhang Plains and Battle of Tianshui.
- Hefei: Battle of Hefei, Battle of Shiting, Campaign Against Sun Jian and The Two Qiaos.
- Hanzhong: Battle of Mt. Dingjun, Battle of Hanzhong and Eliminate Zhang Jiao!
- Guandu: Battle of Guandu, Campaign Against Cao Cao and The Yellow Turban Fortress.
- Ji Province: Battle of Ji Province, The Yellow Turban Rebellion and Dong Zhuo in Ji.
- Xuchang: Guan Yu's Escape, Battle of Xuchang and Battle of Shishui Gate.
- Wu Territory: Battle of Jian'ye, Unification of Jiangdong and Campaign for Wu Territory.
- Luoyang: The Imperial Seal, Battle of Hulao Gate and Battle of Tong Gate.
- Xu Province: Battle of Xiapi, The Yellow Turban Menace, Campaign Against Liu Bei and Lu Bu's Offensive.
- Chengdu: Campaign for Chengdu, Battle of Chengdu and Battle of Luo Castle.
- Chibi: Battle of Xia Kou, Battle of Chibi and Battle of Chang Jiang.
- Xiangyang: Siege of Fan Castle, Battle of Fan Castle and Assault on Liu Biao.
- Runan: Battle of Bowanpo and Battle of Runan.
- Nanyang: Battle of Wan Castle and Lu Bu's Revolt.
- Nanzhong: Nanman Campaign and Defense of Nanman.
- Nan Territory: Battle of Changban, Race for Nan Territory and Battle of Mai Castle.
SneaselSawashiro (talk) 19:34, June 7, 2015 (UTC)
Aesthetic changes
Compared to the previous game, this game sets the staple for being one of the few installments that features by far one of the more radical changes in terms of aesthetics, making it look much more different from both Dynasty Warriors 2 and 3 alike in that sense.
In terms of outfit changes, a number of characters not only have completely different outfits from the third installment, but some of them reuse their outfits from the first and/or second installment, only with completely altered touches. An example includes Guan Yu and Gan Ning using revamped versions of their Dynasty Warriors 2 outfits in this game.
Other than that, a larger number of changes that visually set this game and the two previous installments are:
- 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 (in a style similar to being alternate swaps of each other). As a result, all stages no longer use completely separate maps from one another.
- Breakable jars are slightly bigger than before.
- 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.
- Unlike the previous installments, a majority of the soundtrack is original and does not feature many recycled BGM's.
- Mounts also come in more extra colors that now vary personally for all units, playable and NPC. For example, some playable generals now ride brown horses instead of all of them (barring some like Guan Yu and Lu Bu) only riding on white horses.
- All characters and units have radically alternated running animations/paces, which look a bit more realistic to some. A more general change is that nearly all pole-arm wielders, both playable general and NPC unit alike now hold their pole-arm more forward in front of themselves as they run.
- Some characters have altered/changed victory animations, but the camera style for them is still the same.
- All HP and Musou bars are now slanted via low-left upper-right fashion on both ends, but otherwise still remain completely horizontal.
- Once again, character portraits are redone. But this time however, flames are seen in rising up behind their said portrait by both the player character and displayed enemy unit's HP bars.
- The said flames behind the portraits grow bigger when the player is low on HP (and is another indicator for the availability for a True Musou Attack), and for both the player and displayed enemy units the flames now turn blue when they are K.O.ed (as opposed to their portrait losing its color and fading into black-and-white).
- As of this installment for the battle messages, a number of terms from the previous installment have stuck on since (such as "routed" replacing the term "destroyed/obliterated").
- A huge number of hit effects and special effects/graphics have being radically changed from both the second and third installments, especially the effects that occur upon units getting damaged. This also radically applies to both charge attacks and battlefield items alike.
- Enemy units now may or may not get knocked back and/or launched if they are K.O.ed by an attack that inflicts the said effect, and make simply fall over as if K.O.ed by a normal attack.
- A new majority of entirely new graphics have also been added, which also serve as a staple in the series to come. This also applies to certain character models becoming mainstays in the later parts of the series.
- The original x3 Meat Bun and Special Meat Bun items are respectively replaced by the Meat and Whole Chicken, allowing players to easier distinguish from other healing items.
- Several weapons wielded by both playable characters, enemy generals and peons (especially first/Lv. 1-to-3 and second/Lv. 4-to-6 weapons) are more realistically rendered.
- The models for both the guards and sergeants have been switched around as of this game. Several enemy unit names have also be radically altered (such as the changing of Guard Captains) and have been kept like so for future installments.
- All NPC units, especially named-officers/generals all have updated models different from both Dynasty Warriors 2 and 3.
- All physical Musou Attack finishing blows now have a new "booming" sound effect upon connecting, as opposed to a normal slashing and/or striking sound effect.
- New voice clips have been added in for several units, and all (returning) playable characters now have new English voice clips with new English voice actors (with a good number of them still voicing their characters in future installments). English in-game battle cries are also available as well, and the new voices also provide better lip-synching to the cutscenes.
- New Japanese voice clips for in-game battle cries are also added in as well, though for the English version the option to switch between Japanese and English audio has been removed.
- All NPC Nanman units however, no longer have their own unique battle cries.
SneaselSawashiro (talk) 18:48, August 9, 2015 (UTC)