bit-tech Shopping: Koei Romance of the Three Kingdoms VIII (PS2)

Rating: 8

Time with product: 2 Years

Strengths: Addictive gameplay w/ tons of replay value

Weaknesses: Too many tedious tasks, poor AI

Summary: Romance of the Three Kingdoms is a long running strategy series based on events that spun from Ancient China. With the release ROTK7, Koei took the series in a new direction, one that focuses more on rpg style elements than the traditional strategy fans of the series is used. VIII continues that trend, allowing you to play as any officer of any rank in war torn china. Playing as an officer from various positions (other than ruler) is fun at first since you have to socialize with others to get known and build rank through various deeds. The problem comes when you go to battle. Your computer controlled allies are, politely put, morons who usually just like to march straight for the enemy castle and attempt to break it's walls. As you will find out through play time, even with siege weapons it will take a while to bring down any city with decent defense. This is why I love it when I eventually become a ruler or prefect (if I had not chose that position at the start of the game). When at the higher positions of command you can fully control your entire army into battle and lay ambushes as well as properly using the fighting grounds to your advantage. Overall, ROTK VIII isn't the best the series has seen but it's an extremely enjoyable game that will suck hours away from your life.

Rating: 10

Time with product:

Strengths: Many different characters to choose, more menu choices, choices in game strategy affect the ending

Weaknesses: Very overwhelming

Summary: Wow. This game is amazing. For those who know the series, this game is probably the best in the series (I haven't seen 9 or 10 yet). There are more menu chioces than before, you can play as any one of who knows how many characters, and the replay value is so high that you could probably burn through the life of your PS2 before wanting to put this thing away.Now for those who are new to the series, let me say this... the game is very overwhelming at first and will take a while to get used to. Nonetheless, it is very much worth it. As you begin play, there will be small tutorials here and there as you encounter new things. However, these tutorials are very quick and do not cover everything you will need to know- just the basics. So I suggest reading the manual thoroughly and maybe even checking the internet for clues as you start to play and find yourself at a loss for what to do (or how).Overall, this game rocks. If you enjoy adventure games give it a try (make sure you have plenty of time available before picking it up) and if you already enjoy the series... well why the hell don't you own this one yet???

Rating: 8

Time with product: 14 Days

Strengths: Incredible depth

Weaknesses: Bland graphics

Summary: Romance of the Three Kingdoms VIII is an incredibly deep game--"mind-boggling" comes to mind. You can play as one of over 600 characters (!!!) and you also have the ability to create one hundred more characters... there are 54 main scenarios to play through, 81 item classes, nearly a 100 different events, and OVER 40 different endings... for those keeping track, those are absolutely insane numbers! This is basically a game that you can pore dozens upon dozens of hours into just trying to find all of its secrets, let alone master them. The game's only real defect is the graphics are incredibly dated, and seem better suited for the original Playstation than the Playstation 2. Recommended for strategy fans, and people who love to think.