
What’s interesting, though, is that the game allows you to play as a mercenary, whose objective- at least to begin with- is to rise through the ranks and make his own mark on Chinese history. Kingdoms XIII has a plethora of characters, and chances are that, because of the sheer numbers, you probably won’t be able to keep them all straight in your head, but the writing does an excellent job of defining and fleshing out these characters- the major ones at the very least.Īt the beginning of the game, Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIII gives you the option to select from a huge roster of available characters to play as throughout the game, and depending on the statistics and rank of your characters, your initial objectives and strategies will be affected.

The game has some notable excellent writing, which manages to convey all its major story beats without ever seeming too intensive or on-the-nose. The lore is, as we’ve already established, pretty rich, and it only helps to serve the plot in excellent ways.
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One of the biggest strengths of Kingdoms XIII is its narrative and the way it flows. "The game has some notable excellent writing, which manages to convey all its major story beats without ever seeming too intensive or on-the-nose." That said, the game does provide players with a pretty efficient tutorial in the form of Hero Mode, which has to be commended for effectively and crisply getting plenty of vital information across to the players. If you’re familiar with this rich pool of lore, you’re probably going to be a lot more comfortable than if this is your first time with it, because with endless lists of names of people, places and events- to start off- you might start feeling a little overwhelmed pretty early into your playthrough. Romance of the Three Kingdoms is based on the seminal works of author Luo Guanzhong, written way back in the fourteenth century, works that chart a well-known era of conflict and warring factions and houses in Chinese history before said factions ultimately came together under on unified banner. This Tecmo series, which made its debut all the way back in the 80s, hasn’t seen much mainstream popularity out in the western markets, but the series has still carved out a niche, hardcore fan base of its own. It’s incredibly complex, in terms of the plethora of mechanics it has on offer, and even more so in terms of the vast background of historical story it provides.


Let’s get something crucial out of the way right from the get go- Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIII isn’t a game for everyone.
