Warriors Orochi 4

Warriors Orochi 4 is a disappointingly cheap sequel. Stripped back and basic, it feels like a quick and easy apology aimed at fans who were left disgruntled by the dire Dynasty Warriors 9. There's still enjoyment to be found here, with the series' trademark action holding strong, but poor presentation and unstable performance drag the experience down. Koei Tecmo really needs to get its Warriors games back on track, but until that happens, you're better off nabbing the far superior Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate.

It's not for everyone, but Warriors Orochi 4's multitudinous hordes can be pleasurable to sweep through, despite the game feeling by-the-numbers in many ways. This is simply more, and while fans might be able to forgive the bland presentation, we'd wager that non-devotees would have a much better time with the Zelda or Fire Emblem spin-offs – with the characters, settings and accoutrement you know and love helping to temper the monotony when you're not quite ‘in the zone'.

Warriors Orochi 4 is like a dream Musou game: matching up the two largest rosters from Omega Force, but like a dream, can at times be pointless or without direction.

Warriors Orochi 4 is successful in maintaining the essence of the series while introducing new gameplay mechanics, making it a definite step in the right direction for the evolution of the series.

Sometimes a game comes along that completely splits your opinion in two. Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate is one of those games for me. It is the latest instalment in the Warriors Orochi crossover series; which fuses together the worlds and characters of Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors. I have always had a “love or hate” relationship with these games, as such I can see both sides of the argument. I’ve enjoyed time with some titles from this genre over the years but I’ve never really fallen hard for one. There’s a couple of things that really turn me off about this game. Firstly, it’s an almost perfect example of an adolescent power fantasy. I’m aware that many popular titles incorporate this theme and as a player, a part of us wants to live this fantasy (we’ve all taken to the streets of GTA with mayhem in mind), but Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate’s sole purpose is this yearning for power and destruction.

Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate chooses quantity over quality. While it includes tons of characters, the bland level and mission design lose their allure far too quickly, which is a shame. With a little more care and tweaks to mechanics, it could have been a strong entry in the series.

Warriors Orochi 4 is one of the best Warriors series games with more than 170 warriors, and the Ultimate version makes the gameplay even deeper. However, the updated content is very limited and a little bit expensive. For those gamers who already own Warriors Orochi 4, it doesn't seem worthy.

If you can look past the little annoyances like grinding and the frame rate, then Warrior Orochi 4, coupled with fun gameplay and pretty looking environments, makes for a rather welcome instalment into the franchise.

Perhaps the largest issue with Warriors Orochi 4 on Nintendo Switch is that it is on the Switch. With both Fire Emblem Warriors and Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition available on the console, choosing a lesser version of the game with less recognisable characters isn’t realistic. If you want a good hack-and-slash game then there are already two here, this just doesn’t come close.

Warriors Orochi 4 is a quintessential musou game, with all the genre's strengths and weaknesses. It stands out with improved visuals and satisfying combat but remains repetitive.