Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake presents one of the series’ strongest instalments for both a new generation of strategy gamer and long-time fans, supercharging the PS2 original with new content and features. For those completely new to ROTK, it’s a grand strategy series that’s been around since the 1980s and takes place during the Three Kingdoms era in Ancient China – around the third century CE – in a time of nationwide turmoil that gives rise to stoic heroes and treacherous villains all vying for power.
Publisher Koei Tecmo has a well-established affinity for this historic setting. Dynasty Warriors – arguably the company’s flagship franchise – is also based on the somewhat fictionalised Romance of the Kingdoms, though it couldn’t be any more different than Koei’s strategy games. Where Dynasty Warriors focuses purely on high octane, button-bashing action, ROTK immerses players in a dense web of menus and dialogue exchanges that steer you on the path to conquest and unification.
In Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake, you can tackle a number of historic campaigns, selecting from a host of different factions, ranks, and characters to play as. At one end of the scale you can act as a ruler, with full military and political control. At the other end, you can become a free officer who, as the name implies, is free to wander Ancient China, aligning with whoever they wish, or potentially gathering their own army and territories. There are plenty of officer roles that fall in between the two, offering different privileges based on your rank and influence within a faction.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake is menu-heavy from the word go. That’s pretty much a staple for any game that falls under the grand strategy banner, though thankfully there are plenty of helpful tutorials on hand and Koei does a great job of easing players in without completely bombarding them, gently gesturing in the right direction without any obnoxious guard rails. There are a myriad of moving parts though it won’t take long for lapsed strategy fans and newcomers to get a grip on how everything works.
From slandering a rival officer and hosting banquets to increasing public order, you’ll have a limited number of points to spend on actions per turn. Then, by resting, time will progress to the next month, with each three-month season punctuated by a meeting of parliament (if you are aligned with a ruler). This is where more impactful decisions are made such as forging alliances, conducting espionage, or even marching to battle. These choices are made by high-ranking officers, of course, though even as a small retainer you can still have your say and put your name forward. Saying that, playing ROTK at the bottom of the ladder seems like a strange choice and one that leaves you fairly powerless until you gradually work your way through the ranks.
Compared to more recent entries in the series, ROTK 8 focuses on characters building relationships between one another. Although there’s plenty of planning, and politicising, you’ll spend most of your time simply getting to know your fellow officers, forging bonds that have a multitude of positive effects. Upon meeting certain conditions, you’ll also unlock Tales – character interactions that feed into a bigger, overarching narrative, usually reflecting what happened during specific points in history.
With the game having originally launched in 2001, there has been a significant visual overhaul from top to bottom. For a start, the city and campaign maps are far more dynamic and easier to navigate without shedding their charming ROTK aesthetic. Each officer is brought to life through gorgeous character artwork that transitions into 3D whenever you engage in the Duel and Debate mini-games, adding a welcome layer of immersion.
As for the battle system, there’s nothing overly complex. After deployment, armies will take it in turns to move their units, engage opponents, and activate stratagems. The outcome of most battles can usually be determined by who has the bigger army, though there is scope to tactically outmanoeuvre your foe, making use of the different unit types and arranging them in formations that confer morale bonuses. Table-turning stratagems can also come into play as well as emergent events such as having an enemy general challenge you to a one-on-one duel.
Through achieving dominance, both on and off the battlefield, you’ll eventually expand your territory and solidify an inner circle of confidents including a spouse and sworn siblings. Needless to say, the road to either total conquest or reaching any of the historical campaign victory requirements will take a very, very long time with many meandering paths depending on how you want your story to play out.
