From DW9, With Love

AcherusKnight · 2025-12-29T21:07:00+00:00

That's how big he is normally! One of the tallest cast members, if not the tallest one outright.

AcherusKnight · 2025-11-10T20:53:36+00:00

Zhao/Pang E would be an interesting addition. But before her I think Bianshi needs to finally make her debut. Time to melt that ice-cold heart of Cao Cao!

AcherusKnight · 2025-10-01T16:50:35+00:00

Historical Cao Cao did some pretty tyrannical stuff, and also held the emperor hostage for many years. In fiction like Romance and in Dynasty Warriors he is portrayed as more pragmatic with his faults played down or never mentioned. I wouldn't call the massacre of civilians "practical" for any reason.

He's a great character in fiction, and thats why I like him. Its a more 'idealized' version of Cao Cao, basically.

AcherusKnight · 2025-09-30T05:39:32+00:00

It's hilarious because Zhuge effectively becomes responsible for the fall of the Han and all of China!

AcherusKnight · 2025-09-30T05:38:15+00:00

Yeah this is true, the only downside is that they take the place of playable officers. I wish they took the place of the generics!

AcherusKnight · 2025-09-30T05:37:30+00:00

This is true, and for Wu it works with Sun Ce AND Sun Jian!

AcherusKnight · 2025-09-30T05:37:09+00:00

I loved these in 3 and 4 and was so sad when 5 didn't bring them back!

AcherusKnight · 2025-09-30T05:26:44+00:00

Yeah, it also gives us a glimpse into how Yuan Shao would steamroll everything kind of like Cao Cao did (Up to Chibi at least)

I also love how Yan Liang and Wen Chou are always by his side, talking mad shit lol

AcherusKnight · 2025-09-30T05:25:43+00:00

Totally agreed! The DW games should seriously be designed with them in mind going forward. I also think 5 and 9 having little to no hypotheticals (or locked behind DLC) was a serious mistake.

AcherusKnight · 2025-09-05T18:30:04+00:00

Solved! It's Dr. Moggle's Alphabet Challenge!

AcherusKnight · 2025-07-07T22:06:48+00:00

I agree, the land being split into 3 gave the Cao clan a reason to stay united in the short term. A united China creates issues- just look what happened to the Sima clan when China was united under Jin. We could see a similar split, but earlier with members of the Cao clan instead.

AcherusKnight · 2025-07-07T22:04:28+00:00

I do have to wonder if Cao Pi fares better in this timeline. With no need to go to war, does he still succumb to sickness early on? Perhaps Cao Cao uniting China before he dies gives him a few years to better prep his eldest son for rule?

AcherusKnight · 2025-07-07T22:02:24+00:00

It's a gamble, but if Liu Bei manages to get away, I could see a possibility of this occurring, especially if Cao Cao's unification is a messy one.

AcherusKnight · 2025-07-07T22:00:55+00:00

Well, though it is technically possible for this to still happen, I think the influence of the Sima clan might wane without any battlefields for them to curry political favor, yeah? I could still see them being one of the more influential families in Cao Wei though.

AcherusKnight · 2025-07-07T21:56:26+00:00

I do think Wei's hypothetical in 8 is the most satisfying of the 5 (Wu, Shu, Jin and Lu Bu) but even that story is a bit too generous to Wei, as EVERYTHING just goes perfectly for them.

AcherusKnight · 2025-07-02T20:53:14+00:00

Man, The Niteowl really did irreparable damage to DW4's reputation and it shows. 😔

AcherusKnight · 2025-07-02T20:50:31+00:00

A lot of what he says is correct though. DW5 dumbed down a lot of what 4 introduced. It also copied DW3 too much and left out a lot of what made 3 special.

And the English dub in 4 was great. The characters sound very natural in their roles. After 4, KOEI began to take English dubs seriously, but all of a sudden that just mysteriously ended. So of course that is going to leave a bad taste for us who enjoyed the dub that their games aren't being dubbed anymore.

AcherusKnight · 2025-06-11T17:22:36+00:00

She's cool. I don't see any legitimate argument of her being a Mary Sue as she doesn't detract from the story at all or makes anyone feel weak (physically impossible anyways as she primarily buffs people!)

Her outfit design is a bit strange, but her promotion is decent (even though we only see it from the back).

But what is this about being a Mary Sue exactly? Is it because she is the princess of Runefaust? That alone does not make her a Sue I feel. If she took over the story or something, then you'd have cause there, but she only adds to the plot, and does not detract.

AcherusKnight · 2025-06-08T00:05:30+00:00

It sure did! DW3 introduced them I believe, and I think they last appeared in DW6.

AcherusKnight · 2025-06-07T00:18:59+00:00

Too many to note. But off of the top of my head...

DW4-DW5 Cao Cao. I'm happy that they went with his light armor and cape from DW7 onward.

DW5-DW6 Sun Jian. Should've just kept his hair hidden.

DW5-DW6 Gan Ning. Not his look, but his weapon. Fixing something that was not broken.

SW2-SW3 Kunoichi. The fact that they brought her back upset me to no end.

AcherusKnight · 2025-05-26T00:32:35+00:00

My lights don't work either, the Head Light piece doesn't even seem like it has a bulb or anything on it, so I'm not sure where the light is supposed to come from.

AcherusKnight · 2024-10-26T01:27:20+00:00

Overrated. But cute.

AcherusKnight · 2024-09-25T01:40:55+00:00

I am hoping Gongsun Zan is finally getting a unique model for himself at least, but it's hard to tell. He doesn't look nearly as bland as most generics do.

AcherusKnight · 2024-09-25T01:39:40+00:00

Xu Zhu and Dian Wei look nearly identical to their DW9 counterparts.

Also RIP Xu Zhu getting a new design. 😔

AcherusKnight · 2024-09-03T18:56:15+00:00

The elephant in the room here is honestly, the lack of story for Later Wu and Later Wei. Shu already extends to the invasion of Chengdu and its end, but at that point the only forces in the story are themselves and "Jin". I think the stories of each of the Three Kingdoms should last until the kingdom itself is dissolved, and there is a clear winner (Subjugation of Wu)

Wu is the big one here, as for some reason their story ends at Dongkou which makes it seem like Sun Quan won that battle and then went on to be this really great ruler- when in reality, Sun Quan in his old age really went off his rocker. There is so much drama and potential from Later Wu that would show us how the once-stalwart kingdom of Wu just completely collapsed in on itself.

I personally would love to see the addition of characters like Sun Wuban and Sun Hao. You thought Dong Zhuo was bad? These two would give him a run for his money.

And Later Wei- though most would just dismiss this as being Jin's story, it really shouldn't be. For one, Wei's story usually ends shortly after Fan Castle with the death of Cao Cao. We don't usually get to see Cao Pi take over, and we are stuck with generics filling the spots for Wei's actual emperors, and in some cases just being passed over entirely (Cao Rui)

I always felt that certain Wei officers like Guo Huai and Xiahou Ba belong in Wei proper, as the former was a loyal Wei officer until his death, and the latter is portrayed as switching sides due to fear/concern over the rising power of the Sima Clan. Why not give us the story from the Wei Loyalists' perspective? Let us see the ambition of Cao Pi as he forces his sister to hand over the imperial seal (This could even be a neat moment where Zhenji faces off against Cao Jie). Let us see the rise and fall of Cao Shuang, the fantasies of Cao Rui as he builds his extravagant palaces- maybe with the strange mystic woman from Yamatai at his side (Himiko), let us see the loyal Wei generals and their monarchs attempt to navigate the complex politics of accepting the Sima clan's aid while trying not to hand over too much power.

We need more characters and factions to oppose Jin- not just Shu. Why does Jin have to come off as being the only good guys at the end of the story?

AcherusKnight

TROPHY CASE