A true block buster hack & slash! Busting heads with destructive style and flair.
It has been said for a while that dynasty warriors graphics was very last generation and truth be told it was true and still is to some extent. Yet still though it just never gets old watching your characters armor and weapons in Dynasty warriors 7. Some of the scenery still looks a lil washed out as well as other npc's sometimes, but the graphics had definitely come a long way!
The unique animation for the characters weapons is a winning move too. By having the characters be able to use other characters weapons it still make their own Ex weapon feel like their own. Using a character's own Ex weapon just feels plain right. The fact that they scrapped the odd fighting system from DS6 and went back to the charge system brought back the enjoyable feel of and old school DS game, just with a new coat of paint and some chrome finish on top.
The campaign can feel a bit long since it's not separated out into the different characters viewpoints but it is still well done and gives a nice twist to the story telling style of the series. The narration is also long winded but bearable and makes for a better understanding of the history behind the series if you're into that.
What might be thought as a loss of free mode isn't totally. Conquest mode allows the use of any unlocked characters and you can gain experience (grind) there as well. Some of the battles seem to be taken directly from past battles that could've been fought in free mode anyway.
The buying of weapons was something to get used to also. The looting of past DS games will be missed but it was ok way of doing it.
Overall the experience of Dynasty Warriors 7 is one worth the price of admission. Great implementation of the fighting and graphics systems and a sign of some risk taking going in the right direction since DS6.