Producer, Keniichi Ogasawara, chats to eu.playstation.com about the Dynasty Warriors saga coming exclusively to PSP.
This appears to be a departure from the Dynasty Warriors games that have come before on PSP. Can you elaborate on the reasons behind this new direction?
From the very start we envisioned a multiplayer Warriors game. That is why we decided not to continue the One vs. Thousand theme of the previous games. Instead, we chose to revamp the whole game system, wanting to give players a completely new and interesting way in tackling the game.
Up to now, a single player would battle against legions of enemies. We felt that implementing four-player multiplayer directly into this formula would not result in a very fun game. That is why we decided on a new idea of making really tough enemies which you cannot defeat if you do not work together against them as a team of four players. These enemies, we decided, would not only be human, but also massive armed fortresses which the players would have to take down.
In order for the players to be able to defeat these really tough enemies, we needed more action in there, finally coming up with the idea of Fury transformations. Taking the previous armed fortresses and the Fury ideas, we decided to use this as a base for a concept of high speed aerial battles based in armed fortresses.
Can you talk a little about the story that unfolds in Strikeforce?
The players will choose a warrior from one of the three kingdoms of Wu, Wei, or Shu. The story will continue until one of the kingdoms which the player has chosen to belong to occupies China. Firstly, you will fight against Zhang Jiao of the Yellow Turbans, then the tyrannous Dong Zhuo, and also as a separatist Lu Bu who betrays Dong Zhuo. From there on, you will continue the fight between the three kingdoms. We have based the story on the Three Kingdoms again, yet in Strikeforce we have given the characters and the fighting a more original side, making the players go head-to-head with armed fortresses and massive monsters, making for an awesome story.
How many characters will players be able choose from in the game?
There will be 36 playable characters from the start and five additional ones, making it a total of 41.
Do each of the different character's abilities differ from the other?
Yes. The initial abilities and upgrades of the character abilities and weapon levels do vary from character to character meaning that players can develop the character into something very different from any of the other characters.
There is also a new item system for players to master. Can you tell us a little about this and how it works?
The players can equip Weapons, Chi, Orbs, and Items. For Weapons, the attack motions will be different for each one. The higher the rank for each weapon, the stronger the attacks and the attributes you can attach will become. There are two types of weapons, one main and one secondary, and you can freely change between them anytime during battle.
The Chi is somewhat like armour. You can equip four of these (one for each hand and foot), and each one possesses special abilities such as double jumping, dashing, etc. The Orbs can be attached to weapons in order to increase their effects. You can attach fire, water, and other attack attributes, as well as make your attack range wider. The Orbs are mainly used to attach to weapons in order to improve your attacks.
In the previous series, equipping certain items would give you special effects. This time around, we have made the items all expendable. The players can take to the battlefield and use up to five items such as those for life recovery, poisoning the enemy, and many others.
And how does the Musou gauge work during play?
When the Musou gauge is full, pressing the Triangle and Circle buttons together at the same time will lead to a Fury transformation. The character's appearance changes in this state and each character gets superhuman abilities. The Chi also has special effects which can be used only in this state. When you are in Fury, the Musou gauge gradually depletes, and when it reaches zero, you return back to your normal form.
One of the most intriguing additions is that of four player co-op. What sort of modes will be available to players when they team up with friends on PSP?
All the story and downloadable quests that are playable in single player are also all playable in the multiplayer mode. If the quests are too hard to complete in the single player mode, you can take them on with your friends in the multiplayer mode.
Also, there is a multiplayer only VS Quest mode. In this mode, four players go head to head in two vs. two formation and try to take each other down.
Players will certainly have their hands full battling the huge mythical creatures. How many of these will they face over the course of the game?
Players will not only face the huge mythical creatures like Bi Xie, but will also face challenges as the stages with other bosses are going to be quests in themselves (e.g. fighting on a massive ship). There will be over 15 of these special boss battles.
And players can create their own weapons too by collecting pieces of metal throughout the game....
As well as the ability to earn experience points throughout the quest in order to level up, we have put a lot of emphasis on the ability to make new equipment which could be more useful in the actual quest. By collecting several materials and making really strong equipment, you can progress through really tough quests much more easily. This game is not about you having to go around and complete quest after quest so that you could just get to the end. We want you to enjoy the ability of powering up your character, so that is why we made this new system where you can go around and collect materials to make equipment that will make you stronger.
Are there any plans to release downloadable content to PlayStation Store?
We are definitely planning on adding new quests and new items.
Download the Dynasty Warriors Strikeforce demo from PlayStation Store now.
