Romance of the Three Kingdoms IX

This game was and still is awesome to me. Much improved over the past versions and a really goo condition. A must for those that are a fan of the series and still owns a PS2.

Like strategy games? Like to control all the forces on your side? You'll still have trouble even at the beginner level. Enough stats to increase/keep track of to kill a long winter with no NFL to watch. Koei does it best. Wish Gengis Khan was re-released for PlayStation.

I had the Game, back in 2002 or '03? It's not New to me, I like the simplicity of game flow much easier then other versions of the game.

A waste of money that's all I have to say about this game. This game has no right to be called Romance of the Three Kingdoms, what a waste of time and money I WANT MY MONEY BACK!! Hahaha just kidding.

I agree with some of his sentiment of other reviews. I think that KOEI tinkered with this series, and their changes leave me a bit baffled. Think of this as RTK stripped down. No more can you play as any character appearing in the book "Three Kingdoms"; you are now confined to play as a ruler again, harking back to RTK4 (which, incidentally, I love). The problem with this game is resource management. The computer takes every opportunity to attack you, no questions asked. There is little diplomacy from their side; they seem indifferent to the fact that you could just as easily win battles as lose them. Any decent player will see through the tactics in a matter of a game or two, and this is bad, in my opinion. RTK VII suffered from a similar malady (in that you could essentially make your army indestructible by waiting until they attack, allowing them to take four supply depots, and finally sweeping behind them and cut their lines, drastically reducing morale). While the pattern is not the same here, it is similarly easy to wipe out the computer with good use of tactics. One perk, though, is there are many bonuses to be had by destroying the computer with a certain flair. Also, there are some interesting additions. Most notably is the inclusion of "mini-missions" of sorts. I found some of these to be quite challenging. Many are hidden, which means you must fulfill certain requirements to open them. Probably the best change to the ruler scenarios is the real-time in which the armies move. I always found it silly in the RTK series that armies moved across China in one month, no matter how far apart the provinces travelled were. In the new installment, armies take time to move, and the further they move, the longer it takes. This is the one change that injects some realism into the game. All in all, a pretty enjoyable title, but I doubt it will satisfy the hardcore fans. This isn't as good as RTKVIII and it certainly isn't as good as RTKIV. Have fun!

It worked

Yes. Loved It

Koei's Romance of the Three Kingdoms series has always been a staple in my video game collection. Ever since when the first Romance captured the essence of novel for the first time to today Koei has been pumping out a new version about every 2 years. RTK 9 is arguably the greatest version of the game released and here's why.Since RTK 1-6 Koei has always stuck with the option of playing as the ruler in the game while adding better graphics, battle tactics and maps and various forms of military strategy with the game. When they released RTK 7 Koei decided to allow players the option of play as any character in the game, while an amusing experiment it doesn't work for a variety of reasons. If you choose to play as anyone other than the ruler, you'll find the game never progresses. The AI is not competent enough to use you when going to war or to go to war to begin with. They continued to try this route with RTK 8 and while it made some improvements to battle design and graphics it still suffered for a very slow and uninvolving game.When RTK 9 was released we were presented with a true return to Koei's routes of ruler playing alone however adding more real time strategy to the battles. Before, with the exception of RTK 6, most battles were turn based. Here you have battles that take a few turns to even get started, your units need time to reach their destination. This gives defenders an opportunity to build up before fielding units and therefore gives the game it's true essence, replayability. No game is the same. Depending on the course of battles and who rises to power (especially mulitplayer) this is a game that can be revisited over and over! Players are also challenged by several foreign tribes in their attempt to conquer the country, a feature not included since RTK 6. Battle tactics and unit formations also enrich the experience with such intriguing designs like tower and elephant units. Tactics like Onslaught, Flying and Arrowstorm can help turn the tide of battle quickly, but it relies heavily on your ability to use your officers effectively. The battles are highly detailed and complex. Again it's all about replayability.Koei has basically designed the ultimate strategy battle game for the series. Fans of games like Civilization and Starcraft will appreciate the interface and city development. If your looking for a more roleplaying game I suggest either RTK 8 (possibly RTK 10). Overall though neither game has the replayability factor and if your looking for the most bang for the buck in the series, this game is it.