Gameplay: 9.5
Graphics: 7.5
Sound: 8
Replay: 9
Multiplayer: Yes (2)

Dynasty Warriors has revolutionized hack and slash gaming, it's a fact. There is simply no other game like it. No other game on the market today gives you the ability to literally kill hundreds upon hundreds of people per level. No hack and slash game has nearly the massiveness of the levels that this game has. It literally takes about 2 minutes to ride on horseback (running on foot takes about 5) across the whole map. Now the 4th installment to this amazing series is here. Can Dynasty Warriors 4 keep the flame going or will it let the fire die out?
Man oh man, the fire is burning bigger than ever. This is Dynasty Warriors with a vengeance. It's not that there is an incredible amount of new stuff over the third installment, but this game is just so much freakin' fun. It's crazy how addicting this game is. For some reason even after killing over ten thousand guys who look exactly like it's still fun to keep killing them. I have never played a game like that before and I doubt many of you have either.

Hacking and slashing has never been so much fun. The gameplay in this game is easily the best part. It's simple, kill everybody. The best part is you have many ways to go about doing it. Two attack buttons that you can mix together to create cool combos, and a musou mode that you can use to wipe out everybody around you. There are many different types of attacks and it is up to you to find the best way to use them.

There aren't very many new additions to the gameplay. There are a couple of new weapons that the enemies will use against you. There are more types of enemies. The bodyguard system had a serious overhaul and they now upgrade with you and there are many more ways to customize them, including class, how agressive you want them to be, etc. There are now ten different levels for your weapon. Basically when you reach about level 3 or so with the weapon it turns into a new weapon and receives another attack (so now you can attack once more in a row than you could before and make better combos). There are also a few more items that were added into this game, such as making horse charge attacks stronger, etc.

Graphically this is just about the same game it has always been. It looks almost the same as every previous version. Sure, a couple more people can be on screen at once (the Xbox can hold significantly more) but other than that the characters and moves look exactly the same as in every other Dynasty Warriors game. But that's not to say it's overly bad. The characters still look very good and are well modeled. There still aren't enough different looks for the enemy and that should be improved on in the next game.

The voice-overs in this game are very well done. There is a good deal of dialogue and the characters voices match them very well. Characters will scream and groan while attack and being hit. Elephants will roar as they charge into the enemy full on. Enemies will scream in pain as they are trampled. The battle sounds are done very well. The musical score, the hard rock music, although somewhat strange when it is with this Ancient Chinese setting, actually goes well with this game.

There is a good deal of replay here. Playing through the game with friends in cooperative mode is incredibly fun and you will be pumping a lot of hours into this one. There are also a lot of unlockables and upgrades to be found here and every item you find or character you upgrade stays that way for the next time you play, which is very good.
So if you like hack and slash games definately buy this. If you have friends who like the game then definately buy this. If you aren't sure at least give this a rental when a friend is staying over and see if you like it, and you most likely won't be disappointed as this game is a load of fun.