The Best 'Romance Of The Three Kingdoms' Games

Romance Of The Three Kingdoms XI was released in 2006 and 2007 in various markets and was made available on the PC for the first time in 12 years. It was also released on the Wii and the PlayStation 2. When it was released, the Japanese market saw the release of a premium version, which featured a walkthrough, tactical map, cards, and an orchestra soundtrack CD.

Like its predecessors, it featured a Power-up kit, which incorporated numerous advances made to the franchise that were either improved upon or made available for the first time in the game. Some of those advances included the ability for generals to research more than 50 new abilities, a new "Super" game difficulty setting, and a battle game mode.

The game was highly praised upon release, with IGN emphasizing the game's expansive play time. It did go on to explain that the pacing was problematic, but for the most part, the game's complexity and abundance of features were welcomed by fans of the franchise.

Romance Of The Three Kingdoms X is the 10th installment in the franchise. It abandoned many of the concepts of its predecessor, Sangokushi IX; instead, favoring the elements and concepts from Sangokushi VII, Sangokushi VIII, and Taikou Risshiden.

The game's overall objective is the reunification of China, and this is accomplished by the player character, who is a historical figure from the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

There were some factors that made the game better or worse, depending on where you played it. For example, the North American version was released only as a single-player game, where its releases in other regions allowed for multiplayer support.

The game was highly praised by critics, earning it a Metacritic score of 71 with a user score of 9.3. It was especially praised for its design, adherence to what makes the franchise strong, and its deep and engrossing story.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms VIII was released in 2001, and it added several improvements to the series from the titles that came before it.

The Power-up kit included the ability for general to marry and have children. It added a new tactical scenario campaign mode, which consisted of battles and events surrounding Cao Cao, Lu Xun, or Zhuge Liang. Additionally, three new scenarios were added with 60 additional generals. The editor could be used to change the general and the city's data, and the AI was significantly improved and enhanced.

The game scored incredibly well, which isn't unusual of the franchise. Famitsu magazine scored the PlayStation 2 version a 32 out of 40 while Metacritic gives the game a score of 77 with a user score of 8.5.

Romance Of The Three Kingdoms IX added several aspects to the franchise, which improved upon the game's successors. Within the game, there are 15 scenarios based upon historical examples, five challenges, and five "if" scenarios, each with the potential to feature a different story ending based upon the gameplay.

The Power-up kit featured several additions, including trial story mode, soldier scouting, an alliance system, advanced AI over previous versions, an expert mode, the ability to add waypoints, city tactics, a refined data editors and an item editor.

The game was received favorably by fans of the franchise, and it holds a score of 74 on Metacritic, which has a user score of 8.1. Praise was given for the overhauled tutorial, which made it easier to jump into the action with an updated user-friendly interface and easy-to-follow goals. All in all, Romance Of The Three Kingdoms IX is regarded as one of the most accessible games in the franchise.

The sixth installment of the franchise, titled Romance of the Three Kingdoms VI: Awakening of the Dragon, found its way to release on the Dreamcast and other consoles when it was first released in 1998 and 2000 in different markets. 

The game features a Power-up kit, which features a new tactical simulation mode consisting of historical battles. It also added events, three new scenarios, five new short scenarios, Duel mode, and a more advanced log and editor.

The game was relatively received by critics and fans, though it isn't considered one of the best games in the franchise. Still, there are plenty of people who still enjoy playing it despite being more than 20 years old.

The original game that started the franchise, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, was first released in 1985 for the PC-88. Over time, it was ported to other systems, including MD-DOS, the NES, Amiga, and several others. 

The game established many of the norms that have gone into subsequent turn-based strategy games. It was positively received across the board, and it must have been good, or it wouldn't have led to the creation of 13 sequels and counting.

While the graphics and interface are incredibly dated by 21st century standards, the game holds up to the test of time. It can be played on mobile or through abandonware websites, so it's still out there, and people are playing it. If you're a fan of the franchise and want to see where it all began, check it out.