Indeed, since 2016 alone, the publisher has included in its catalog titles such as Samurai Warriors Spirit of Sanada, Berserk And The Band of The Hawk, Fire Emble Warriors and Warriors All-Stars, to which is added the Definitive Edition of 'Hyrule Warriors as well as the ambitious Dynasty Warriors 9. With its open-world build, the latter was an opportunity for the Japanese studio to experiment with something a little different. But, despite the fixes and adjustments made since its release, the many technical problems encountered then seem to indicate that it is still too early to make it the new standard. This is why Warriors Orochi 4, the latest production to date, returns to the classic linear recipe while taking up the super crossover concept of the previous installments. Moreover, this new meeting between the great figures of the War of the Three Kingdoms and those of the Sengoku era now culminates in 170 playable characters, which earned Koei Tecmo and Omega Force a place in the Guinness Book of Records. With such a large list, it did not seem necessary to call on guests from other series, such as Hayabusa from Ninja Gaiden or Sophitia from SoulEdge, present in Warriors Orochi 3. But the story of this new episode has everything even served as a good excuse to include characters from Greek and Norse mythology. Indeed, amused by the battle which opposed the Chinese and Japanese generals to the dreadful Orochi, Zeus decided to relaunch the confrontation by adding a few joys of his own, namely the bracelets of power. And he does not hesitate to get involved himself in this big rat race, joined by Athena and Ares, then Odin and Loki.
A MYTHO(LOGICAL) WAR
However, it is certainly not for the scenario that connoisseurs should dwell on this Warriors Orochi 4: the story is above all a pretext to explain these improbable encounters and the narration remains as basic as possible, so as not to say austere. On the other hand, the intervention of mythological figures is also an opportunity to somewhat enrich the combat system, since each character has a divine weapon. This gives access to various additional attacks: in addition to the keys for quick attacks, so-called charged or Hyper attacks depending on whether you control a Dynasty Warriors or Samurai Warriors character, and the Musô attack, pressing a trigger gives access to magic variants to clear the battlefield with even more efficiency. Finally, it is again a question of going into battle with a squad of three fighters who follow one another on the battlefield even in the middle of combos; they are, moreover, accompanied by four support characters who improve statistics such as power or speed according to their personal affinity. Juggling with these different mechanics then allows you to fill the unit gauge in order to launch the ultimate attack bringing together your entire team for a spectacular explosion.
In the end, if critics of the genre should only see it as a game that is still just as nagging and repetitive, Warriors Orochi 4 is particularly energetic, especially since the many characters divided into three classes, namely powerful, fast and technical, bring a relative variety to the way of reaping the battlefield. As a result, for amateurs, the question is above all whether or not we arrive at a certain saturation. Indeed, a player who has recently returned other titles of the genre is likely to feel a great weariness. On the other hand, another who hasn't touched a Musô for a long time should find there a good opportunity to taste this big fat release again. Because, despite graphics that remain outdated, especially in terms of desperately empty sets or the questionable choice to reserve an additional mode for the holder of the seasonal pass, Warriors Orochi 4 at least has the merit of being effective in its genre.
