Dynasty Warriors, the Chinese history lesson with 100% more ass kicking has always been a fan favorite. It seems every year (or twice a year) we get another Dynasty Warriors game to button mash through. The series has been loved and detested by many but the lovers have far outnumbered the haters. The PSP has seen one “official” Dynasty Warriors game around the launch window of the system. The result was anything but warm for the first outing because many believed it was rushed to get it done with the new handheld. Then, Dynasty Warrior’s “brother” Samurai Warriors was released with a better reception. With Omega Force’s third outing on the PSP can gamers expect the end all version with Dynasty Warriors Vol. 2? I think you already know the answer.

Features

300 generals and 48 Dynasty Warriors

Over 50 stages and 31 maps

Manage up to 8 horses or elephants

Branching story line

Gameplay
The gameplay is very standard for this kind of action game. It revolves around you picking a Chinese clan that wants to take over China. At first you have a handful of generals to pick from and as you win battles you unlock more generals to use as body guards and some generals are playable. All in all, there are 48 Dynasty Warriors (super generals) with 300 generals to unlock.

To win battles and unlock generals, you have to fight your way though a series of military campaigns with the general of your choice. Mashing the square button endlessly on a giant map, you’ll defeat hundreds if not thousands of enemies. That should be familiar to all fans of the series but Dynasty Warriors Vol. 2 goes about the mayhem a little differently.

Seeing that the PSP does have some technical limitations, a giant, sprawling map is not possible like the console versions of the DW series. So, like Samurai Warriors, DW Vol. 2 incorporates a grid system of fighting battles. There is an “over world” map that shows the entire battle field and each box is a different battle you can go to. From there, you enter a mini-battle where you have to “demoralize” the enemy. The moral meter shouldn’t be anything too new but in DW Vol. 2 it actually means something because you need to eliminate the opposing forces moral to win that box on the “over world” map. However, you need to watch your morale meter doesn’t drop to zero either. Sometimes there will be an important general where you face off against with his legion of peasants trying to stop you. If you beat the pulp out of him, you’ll receive a reward of a weapon (there are also rare “saddles” for horses and elephants). Weapons have all sorts of different attributes to them and it is up to you to pick the best one to wield.

The mini-battles are quick and fast and you can save after each one so you can progress rapidly if you pick-up and set-down the game often. It works very well for the PSP, and this seemingly technical limitation of no giant map was overcome by some cleaver thinking on the part of the developers to suit the handheld needs. While a nice change, the AI still needs some serious work. Dynasty Warriors Vol. 2 offers the complete experience of its console counterparts while making it work wonderfully on the PSP.