Four brothers unite to overthrow a tyrant.
When powers are centralized for too long, it always splits.
However, disrupter power is doomed to be reunited.
It has been 400 years since Liu Ho, the founder of the Han Dynasty, established the country.
THE HAN DYNASTY WAS ABOUT TO FACE A TROUBLED TIME.
However, disrupter power is doomed to be reunited.
It has been 400 years since Liu Ho, the founder of the Han Dynasty, established the country.
THE HAN DYNASTY WAS ABOUT TO FACE A TROUBLED TIME.
Dynasty Wars, or Tenchi wo Kurau (天地を喰らう, Devouring Heaven and Earth) in it's original Japanese title, is a 1989 Hack and Slash arcade game released by Capcom.
The game is based on the Shonen Jump manga Tenchi wo Kurau
, itself loosely based on the classical Chinese epic, Romance of the Three Kingdoms. It follows the manga's story from the Yellow Turban Rebellion up until the the defeat of Dong Zhuo.
Players assume the role of the sworn brothers, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei; as well as Zhao Yun, to protect the Han Empire from the Yellow Turbans and to overthrow Dong Zhuo and his ruthless, power-hungry stepson and right-hand man, Lu Bu, in multiple levels.
The game receives a follow-up, Warriors of Fate, also produced by Capcom, but with a slightly different gameplay format.
Compare and contrast Dynasty Warriors, another game from over a decade later based the same historical period and its tales.
Subdue the Yellow Turbans, and Defeat Dong Zhuo! We are the Han Dynasty's only hope!
- Actually a Doombot: The first battle against Dong Zhuo, the Big Bad, have you discovering the boss you've slain is a Body Double. The real Dong Zhuo won't be fought until a whole separate level later.
- Adaptational Badass: The real-life Dong Zhuo, as ruthless a tyrant he is, was a Fat Bastard unceremoniously backstabbed by his adopted son, Lu Bu (who pulled a Dragon Ascendant) and publicly murdered, without putting up much of a fight. In the novels based on the Three Kingdoms, Dong Zhuo lasted barely a few volumes into the story. In this game however he's the Big Bad and an a dangerous Final Boss perfectly capable of fighting, whose battle takes up a huge chunk of the gameplay and goes down in a blaze of glory in the battlefield.
- Adaptational Heroism: Related to the above, the real-life Lu Bu is a Dragon Ascendant who murdered his godfather, Dong Zhuo, over a love affair. This game have Lu Bu portrayed as loyal to his godfather all the way until the end.
- Adapted Out: The original manga contained a large number of fantasy elements, all of which are missing from this game.
- Advertising by Association: The North American arcade flyer somehow needs to mention it's from "the company behind Ghosts 'n Goblins and Black Tiger".
- Arrows on Fire: Used on both sides, enemy mooks and allies will fire burning arrows into the battlefield periodically. The arrows with blue flames shot by your allies won't hurt you, though.
- Assist Character: Occasionally, you can summon soldiers and archers from your side to give you a hand. Your forces can either throw grenades or launch flaming arrows into the battlefield, capable of hurting only enemies.
- Battle Amongst the Flames: The naval raid on the yellow turban navy have their ships set alight while you're on board, necessitatiing you to fight enemies while avoiding pillars of flames. Later on there are levels with you riding uphill, as enemy soldiers empties cauldrons of burning oil which flows downwards as they set the oil on fire.
- Battle in the Rain: The first battle in the hills have you fighting enemies in heavy rain.
- Big Bad: Dong Zhuo, the tyrannical warlord from the original Three Kingdoms story, who is leading his armies on a massive rampage to conquer China.
- Bolt of Divine Retribution: As you battle the Tung Chow brothers, when the eldest brother (the one in blue armour) dies, he will be disintegrated by a sudden, stray thunderbolt from the heavens, for reasons unexplained. None of the other two brothers have this death animation (they just... die), nor do any of the other bosses either.
- Charged Attack: The player can hold down the attack button to release a powerful forward slash that can even kill enemy generals on horseback in a single slash, or take down an entire group of foes all at once. Put your finger on the button long enough and the attack results in an epic Blade Spam.
- Colour-Coded for Your Convenience: In occasions where you summon warriors from your side to back you up, your allies will be clad in blue (a colour seldom seen in enemies). Their projectiles are also marked in blue, including burning arrows with blue flames (which can burn mooks and bosses, but not you).
- Critical Annoyance: The low-health alert beeping sound goes off continuously when the condition is met and will keep going until either your character has his health restored or dies.
- Cut and Paste Environments: The game tends to recycle multiple levels, with minor changes in backgrounds and enemy varieties. Notably, the scene from the third level where you ride uphill while battling enemy soldiers was repeated at least three more times before the game ends.
- Dual Boss: The Tung Chow brothers, three Generals leading the yellow turbans, are fought together.
- "Get Back Here!" Boss: Dong Zhuo, in the final battle. Each time he's defeated, he'll turn tails and run, throwing his men into your way as he does. There's even a frantic chase scene where you pursue him who's aboard one of his carriages and must damage it until the carriage comes to a standstill.
- Giant Mook: Your enemies include giant, bare-chested mercenaries larger than you, who can tank plenty of hits before they die. They first appeared at the end of the second stage where you have to fight ten muscle-bound mercenaries armed with gigantic clubs at the same time; later on the muscular mooks reappear, this time carrying battleaxes instead.
- Half the Man He Used to Be: Although not shown in-game, some of the ending screens have you slicing the boss you just defeated into two, in perfectly gory detail.
- Heroes Prefer Swords: The weapon of choice for Liu Bei.
- Horseback Heroism: On both sides, you spend the whole battle on horseback fighting enemy soldiers. However all the bosses and some Elite Mook generals have steeds too.
- Sequel Hook: Having killed Dong Zhuo, the game ends with a short scene of a new tyrant, Cao Cao, taking over Dong Zhuo's rulership, gloating that he will start a new revolution and conquer China. This plotline forms the basis of the sequel, Warriors of Fate.
- Sequential Boss: Dong Zhuo needs to be fought three times in a row (NOT counting the first encounter where he's Actually a Doombot) - the first time he's riding two horses at the same time, giving him greater speed than you (...somehow?) until you shred his life meter to a fraction, at which point he flees. You catch up in the next area, only to see Dong Zhuo with a brand new life meter, and surrounded by mooks. You defeat him again, at which point Dong Zhuo escapes on a horse-drawn carriage with you in pursuit. The chase scene then ends with him in his palace, with another life meter, and this time with his halberd on fire.
- We Will Meet Again: Lu Bu, the stepson of Dong Zhuo and a Recurring Boss, makes this threat after you defeat him for the first time as he fled from the battlefield. A case of the creators having Shown Their Work, the real Lu Bu from history does exactly that after being defeated in a duel against Liu Bei and his allies.
- A great victory!Shout for our victory!Oh, oh, ohhh!!!
