Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends: Complete Edition Review (PS4)

Whoops.

This is the first review in quite a while where I’ve actually struggled to put down the controller so I can focus on writing. Lu Bu and his gorgeous red pigtails, I mean…feathers? So distracting.

Anyway, here’s number eight. But Xtreme.

…

And Complete.

As if the absolutely outlandish fantasy combat in the series was never “Xtreme” or “Complete” enough, eh? I must say though, that even after every single damned iteration of Dynasty Warriors, on numerous consoles, Tecmo Koei somehow manages to keep its fans (and a few new converts) comin’ back. As I’m sure most of you who clicked through to read this review know, Xtreme Legends is technically an expansion upon Dynasty Warriors 8, and the complete edition is just everything smushed all together into a big, colorful, shiny and glorious sword-swinging mess of action and cheesy dialogue.

In this addition to number eight, you’ll see a campaign for Lu Bu (he’s got a rough “I don’t care what you think of me” exterior but inside he’s constantly worried about maintaining his luscious eyebrows), Challenge Mode, new goodies for Ambition Mode, new stages for other kingdoms and characters, a new EX attack for all the characters, and…count ’em, five new characters. We’ve got Chen Gong, Fa Zheng, Lu Lingqi, Yu Jin, and Zhu Ran. Oh, and let’s not forget that cross-platform play is now enabled!

As you can see, the PlayStation 4 received a bit of an upgrade in the visuals department, but let’s not get too ahead of ourselves here. Come on, TK, we know you’ve got a new engine hiding somewhere. Just bring it out and let this one slip gently into the sunset. Not that we’d really expect what amounts to an expansion to be really enhanced with a new engine, we can’t help but realize that this really is a waste of the capabilities of the PlayStation 4. Give the action some pizzazz, some physics love, some procedural animation flair. It really could add that certain somethin’ that would give the glorious and addictive trademark combat of Dynasty Warriors that extra edge that would make us gamers thirst for it even more. Give your PS4 customers something to really be excited about. Impart unto them something worthy of the grand nature of the Dynasty Warriors name.

Let’s move forward, yes? The new and loverly things brought to the table in DW8XLCE are sorta more icing on top of the…icing. There’s already so much you got goin’ on for ya with any given Dynasty Warriors title, the addition of a new main character, a campaign, new attacks, new characters and new stages can almost be overwhelming. Don’t worry though, you’ll get through it all.

Just make sure to set aside about a million years. I mean, golly gosh gee willikers Tecmo Koei, I just got done with all the content from DW6! You’re killin’ me!

Simply speaking, what you’re getting here is a good, polished expansion to an already good game that was absolutely bursting with content to begin with. While I don’t feel compelled to re-review the entire Dynasty Warriors 8 experience (because none of that core has changed, really), I do hope that you see that this is definitely worthy of a purchase, despite the obviously aged (albeit upgraded!) engine and same ol’ comfy (and safe) formula. Xtreme Legends can be had separately if you so choose, but if you’ve yet to jump into anything past Dynasty Warriors 7, then go ahead and grab the whole number eight shebang for PlayStation 4.

If you’re the kind to jump to the end of a review (because you’re impatient like that), take this with you:

Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends: Complete Edition is like a comfy blanket you’ve had for years and years. It’s starting to fall apart at the edges and smell, even though you’ve washed it to keep it looking respectable as it ages. You love the nostalgia and sentimentality it offers but you know in your heart you’re going to have to replace it with a new one someday. This saddens you, but you choose not to think about it, as you curl up every night with it until all that’s left are a few tattered threads. “Maybe the new one will last me even longer than you did” you whisper quietly. The thought brings a bittersweet smile to your face as you drift to sleep.