River City Saga Three Kingdoms Next Review (PlayStation 4)
River City Saga Three Kingdoms Next Review, Guan Yu defends Jingzhou on his own as a jab against Cao Cao. He attacks Cao Ren in Xiangyang, wielding his impressive military might to clutch Jingzhou and get within firing distance of Cao Cao. There isn’t long to rejoice, however, as Sima Yi brainwashes Sun Quan of the Wu into breaking his alliance and attacking Guan Yu. Lu Su helps him escape the perilous situation, and he barely manages to make it away alive. While Sun Quan’s betrayal enrages Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Lu Su convince him to help free Sun Quan from his brainwashing.
River City Saga Three Kingdoms Next Review Pros:
- Excellent chunky pixel art graphics.
- 4.98GB download size.
- Platinum trophy.
- Works on Playstation 5.
- Local two-player support.
- Game settings – text speed (alow/standard/fast/instant), display enemy hp and remap controls for both players.
- The gallery houses unlocked – characters, attacks, events, and music.
- The story has six chapters.
- Fast loading times.
- 2.5D brawler gameplay.
- Opening tutorial section.
- Hack and slash combat complete with a robust combo system.
- Cool Anime character interactions.
- Earn EXP and level up to get skill points.
- Learn new special attacks, special weapons, ultimate, and tactics by learning them with skill points and equipping them.
- Tactics are like a different ability, build the tactic bar up and set any learned tactics to a quick select menu.
- Combo counter.
- Breakable objects are littered around the world.
- Very accessible thanks to simple controls and a simple gameplay loop.
- Earn gold from enemies, and quests, find them, and use the ship for items.
- Meet some memorable unique characters.
- Pick up and use any weapons.
- Main hub city lets you get quests, use vendors, etc.
- Hit trees and bushes to maybe get loot from them.
- EXP earned bangs up as you earn it.
- Beautiful looking locations.
- I love the button-mashing style of combat, it’s simple but it looks good and is very engaging.
- Main and optional side quests.
- The Hud shows your exp level, health, etc.
- Many specials to learn and they are split into types – punch, kick, throw, aerial punch, aerial kick, punch and kick, shot, smash, and weapon.
- Each special shows a video of the special in action to help you decide what to buy.
- The map fills in with locations as you discover them and will show what the location offers.
- You can always fast travel back to your hub city.
- Along with skill points you earn stat points when leveling up and you can put them in – punch, kick, weapon, throw, intelligence, luck, and endurance.
- You can air juggle enemies with your attacks and combos.
- Running can be toggled on and off with a button press.
- Armour load out has three sets and lets you sell unwanted items there and then.
- When you level up your health gets reset to full.
River City Saga Three Kingdoms Next Review Cons:
- You have to unlock the co-op.
- Very slow starter as it just keeps stopping and starting with story and tutorials.
- Due to the 2.5D nature of the world, it can be hard to line up attacks or pick up items.
- Breadcrumbs to missions are not always clear to follow.
- No voice work.
- A lot of backtracking with missions and progress in general.
- Using the map and navigating the world is a real pain and not straightforward in how it works.
- I don’t like that saving is only when changing areas and it doesn’t have a hard save.
- Dealing with many enemies at once can be very frustrating.
- Entering an area and getting hit immediately is not fun and makes it very annoying.
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River City Saga Three Kingdoms Next:
Developer: Arc System Works.
Publisher: Arc System Works.
Store Links –
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7/10
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7/10
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7/10
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7/10
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7/10
Summary
The game boasts excellent chunky pixel art graphics that are visually appealing and engaging. With a download size of 4.98GB, it offers a platinum trophy and is compatible with PlayStation 5, supporting local two-player gameplay. The game settings are customizable, allowing players to adjust text speed, display enemy HP, and remap controls for both players. The gallery houses unlocked characters, attacks, events, and music, adding to the game’s replay value. The story spans six chapters, and the game features fast loading times, enhancing the overall experience.
The 2.5D brawler gameplay is complemented by an opening tutorial section and hack-and-slash combat with a robust combo system. The game includes cool anime character interactions, and players can earn EXP and level up to gain skill points. These points can be used to learn new special attacks, special weapons, ultimate moves, and tactics, which can be equipped and set to a quick-select menu. The combo counter and breakable objects scattered around the world add to the game’s dynamic nature. The game is very accessible, thanks to its simple controls and straightforward gameplay loop. Players can earn gold from enemies and quests, find items, and use the ship for various purposes. The game features memorable unique characters and allows players to pick up and use any weapons they find. The main hub city serves as a central location for quests, vendors, and other activities. Players can hit trees and bushes to potentially find loot, and the EXP earned accumulates as they progress. The game features beautiful locations and a button-mashing style of combat that is simple yet visually appealing and engaging. There are main and optional side quests, and the HUD displays the player’s EXP level, health, and other vital information. The game offers many specials to learn, categorized into types such as punch, kick, throw, aerial punch, aerial kick, punch and kick, shot, smash, and weapon. Each special comes with a video demonstration to help players decide what to buy. The map fills in with locations as they are discovered and shows what each location offers. Players can always fast-travel back to their hub city. Along with skill points, players earn stat points when leveling up, which can be allocated to punch, kick, weapon, throw, intelligence, luck, and endurance. Players can air juggle enemies with their attacks and combos, and running can be toggled on and off with a button press. The armor loadout has three sets and allows players to sell unwanted items on the spot. When players level up, their health is reset to full.
However, the game has its drawbacks. The co-op mode needs to be unlocked, and the game has a very slow start, frequently interrupted by story and tutorial segments. The 2.5D nature of the world can make it challenging to line up attacks or pick up items. Breadcrumbs to missions are not always clear, and there is no voice work, which might detract from the immersive experience. There is a lot of backtracking with missions and progress in general, and using the map and navigating the world can be frustrating and not straightforward. The game only allows saving when changing areas and does not have a hard save option, which can be inconvenient. Dealing with many enemies at once can be very frustrating, and entering an area and getting hit immediately is not fun and can be very annoying.
In summary, the game offers a visually appealing and engaging experience with its chunky pixel art graphics, robust combo system, and accessible gameplay. However, it has some drawbacks, such as a slow start, challenging navigation, and lack of voice work, which may affect the overall enjoyment. Despite these issues, the game’s strengths in combat, character interactions, and customization options make it a worthwhile experience for players.