The Jimquisition
Make no mistake about it, this is the worst Dynasty Warriors game of them all, at least as far as mainline entries go.
Metacritic: 70
Opencritic: 68
Digitally Downloaded
100
Koei Tecmo has done a remarkable job of telling the many stories of the many people that make Romance of the Three Kingdoms such a compelling book and period of history, and the beautiful cinematic consistency makes it the most perfect realisation of everything Koei Tecmo has been aiming for with this series over many years now.
Wccftech
85
Dynasty Warriors 9 has finally entered the next generation of gaming, bringing the series' tried and true 1-versus-1,000 fights into a massive open world while sticking true to its roots, for better or for worse.
Meristation
85
Dynasty Warriors 9 is the most ambitious title of the Musou series. For the first time, an open-world mechanics are embraced, which proves to be a success. If you never tried a Musou, now is the time.
Hobby Consolas
84
The open world, RPG elements and new battle system make Dynasty Warriors 9 the first refreshing entry in this old series. This is without a doubt the way to go for future games in the Dynasty franchise.
Gaming Nexus
80
Dynasty Warriors 9 is a fun and fresh take of the series with the familiar 1 vs 1000 action people expect but frame rate issues and no multiplayer component keep it from reaching it's full potential.
GamingTrend
80
Whether a die-hard fan or a newcomer to the series, Dynasty Warriors 9 is sure to delight lovers of the hack and slash genre. The story is interesting enough to keep you playing, but the main focus will be on the combat. The open world aspect of the game gives you more freedom of choice, which players will appreciate. There are a few issues, but nothing too overwhelming.
COGconnected
80
The fact of the matter is that Dynasty Warriors 9 works as an experiment. This is Omega Force’s first attempt at an open-world title, and though not every aspect is great, it is a package that over-delivers where it counts and that, at its core, retains and improves upon the original hack and slash experience.
3DJuegos
80
An incredible step forward for the classic musou franchise from Tecmo Koei. New game mechanics and a revamped graphic engine ensures a new level of freedom and enjoyment for musou fans.
Playstation Universe
80
The transition to an open world has not been easy, quite rough in fact. Still, Dynasty Warriors 9's many changes to the musou formula hold great promise for the future. This is the rebirth the series needed, regardless of its issues.
IGN Italia
78
With Dynasty Warrior 9 Koei Tecmo makes a decisive turning point for the saga, and despite several structural flaws, the game turns out to be a solid framework for the upcoming episodes.
Gaming Age
75
It’s neat to see the franchise trying something new, even if it doesn’t totally succeed. More importantly, none of the new stuff takes away from what makes Warriors games fun in the first place: you still get to single-handedly mow down enemy army after enemy army. No matter what else may have changed, that core fact remains the same in Dynasty Warriors 9 — and as long as that’s true, that’s really all that matters.
DualShockers
75
Dynasty Warriors 9 does a very good job of making you feel part of a larger war that is happening all around you.
SpazioGames
75
Dynasty Warriors 9 is far from perfection. It has technical issues, its gameplay needs time to be appreciated and seems a bit lazy when he must do something different from action. But it's also powerful and passionate, strictly following Guanzhong's original Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Perhaps the limited open-world system will seem a missed opportunity, but the advice we can give is to give it a chance, and to do it without any preconception.
IGN Spain
72
Dynasty Warriors 9, with the new open world sandbox-style, is a nice new approach to a formula too exploited, but that cannot stop it from being tedious within a few hours.
Vandal
70
Quotation forthcoming.
Hardcore Gamer
70
It’s fun yet flawed, and while it would be recommended to fans of this style, the recommendation comes with caveats. It doesn’t quite excel at being a traditional Dynasty Warriors game or taking the formula to a new open world format, but does a good enough job at both where it’s enjoyable but not exceptional.
GameSpot
70
Despite the obvious graphical flaws and some issues with combat lacking finer controls, the streamlined menus, open world atmosphere, and laughably fun moment-to-moment play makes Dynasty Warriors 9 not just a must for fans, but worth a look for the merely curious.
Press Start Australia
70
Dynasty Warriors 9 attempts to expand the scope of what a Dynasty Warriors game is with varying effects.
Gamersky
70
Koei wanted a brand-new look fpr Dynasty Warriors, so they decided to transform this game from an action game to an open world RPG. But this open world is like a rough stone, which has poor appearance and thoughtless design, with many boring side missions and too much time wasted on the way. The new combat system is fine, yet terrible graphics, tons of bugs, and low frame rates still ruined it, making this game a complete failure.
BaziCenter
70
Even with open world gameplay which is a nice addition to the series, Dynasty Warriors 9 is still far from what it wants to be. Positive changes are there, but they are not enough to convince new players. However, fans of the series will have a great time playing it.
Multiplayer.it
65
Quotation forthcoming.
Destructoid
65
If you're into the idea of playing an open world game where its arcadey elements are entwined with therapeutic but sometimes dry exploration, give it a shot.
VideoGamer
60
Dynasty Warriors 9 still has the 'levelling hundreds of dudes without breaking a sweat' core loop so you feel like a badass, but the open world removes some of the depth. Fans can still enjoy, but it won't win any new hearts this time.
PlayStation LifeStyle
60
Dynasty Warriors 9 is more of a foundation for the next title than the dawning of a new era for the franchise. That’s perfectly acceptable, too, given that series like Dynasty Warriors inevitably must evolve to stay relevant. Right now, there are just some growing pains, and anyone who was interested in the newest iteration because of its new gameplay features would do better waiting for the next one instead.
Attack of the Fanboy
60
Dynasty Warriors 9 felt more like an experiment than a single, cohesive experience. At times it felt like Dynasty Warriors, sometimes an open world RPG, occasionally neither and sometimes both. But if Omega Force learns from this endeavor and buckles down for the next entry, the result could be spectacular.
Cubed3
60
Where it works best is in its classic elements, but the open world needs a lot of work.
IGN
58
The lack of multiplayer, missing alternate game modes, and emptiness of ancient China left me far from satisfied.
Cheat Code Central
54
There are over 80 playable characters, but tedious missions, repetitive storylines, a world with large expanses of nothing and no multiplayer.
TheSixthAxis
50
Sadly, this isn’t the breakthrough fans were expecting. Omega Force took a pretty big risk with Dynasty Warriors 9, and while its open world integration can be seen as a small triumph, this newest entry is marred by its heavily outdated approach to combat design.
Eurogamer Italy
50
Dynasty Warriors 9 is a hack and slash game with stealth elements developed by Omega Force. The title revampS the gameplay of the series with the introduction of the open world environment. Unfortunately, the unpleasant graphical accuracy and the presence of annoying bugs make Dynasty Warriors 9 a second-rate game.
Push Square
50
Dynasty Warriors 9 goes open world and the result is a game of extreme ups and downs. For every gloriously huge battle there's a boring stint of traversal across a dreadfully barren map. For every interesting story moment or interaction, there's a horribly ugly graphical glitch. Factor in an unconvincing combat system overhaul, and you've got a Dynasty Warriors title that may disappoint even the most dedicated of fans. There's still some good historical hack and slash fun to be had here, but we expected much more from the return of this flagship series.
