Dynasty Warriors 3
Dynasty Warriors 3 is the third installment in the Dynasty Warriors series in North America and the second installment in the Shin Sangoku Musou series in Japan. It is a spin-off of the video game Romance of the Three Kingdoms and is based on the book series of the same name by Luo Guanzhong. The game contains a number of fictional and non-fictional elements from the same era of Chinese history in which Romance of the Three Kingdoms is set. However, it follows the main events of the part of the story that is about uniting China under the unified rule of one kingdom.
Story
Dynasty Warriors 3 is set in ancient China at the time of the Three Kingdoms. The game starts with the fall of the Han Dynasty shortly after the death of Emperor Ling, when the leader of the Peace Way, Zhang Jiao, leads an uprising against the Empire. The game contains a strong mix of fact and fiction from Chinese history and often exaggerates the characters and their personalities, for example, Lu Bu is portrayed as a practically unbeatable, violent maniac. Most of the events and settings are said to have taken place in the Three Kingdoms period during the struggle for power. The three kingdoms that were primarily at stake, Shu, Wu and Wei, each sought so much power that they could overthrow the other two and unite China under their rule. Although the story in Dynasty Warriors isn't perfect, since it doesn't follow the historical events exactly, it has been modified to make the game more playable and less repetitive. For example, some of the characters in the game died during the period in which the game is set, but still appear in later stages. The game features environments that resemble ancient China and various items from that time, such as fairy wine and dim sums. It is also about mysticism, since some characters (Zhuge Liang, Sima Yi, Pang Tong) either have magical elements in their attacks or completely magical attacks.