Warriors Orochi 3: Ultimate

Even though Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate is buried in some slightly lacklustre content, you're definitely getting your money's worth with this shockingly robust package. The franchise's seemingly simplistic alterations to the Warriors formula hide some extraordinary depth, and the gigantic character roster will be enough to send most fans into a daze. Even if you're new to Tecmo Koei's divisive software, this may be a perfect starting point thanks to its standalone, over the top story – just try not to burn yourself out before the next inevitable release.

Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate is a tough game to score, make no mistake. Fans of the series will chastise us for rating it so low, and that's probably fair. If you're a fan, you'll enjoy it due to the sheer amount of characters on hand from all of the Warriors universes, and that over-the-top hack and slash gameplay that you already like. If you're not already deeply involved with any of the franchises though, you're going to find a game that is inescapably fun at times and that shows an awful lot of promise, but which is ultimately let down by some poor design decisions and some somewhat dodgy AI.

Warriors Orochi 3: Ultimate Definitive Edition is a game that lives up to its definitive edition claim.

Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate Definitive Edition is exactly what it claims. A definitive version of Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate that had been upgraded and put into a single purchase. It still has the problems of Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate but it is still the peak of Musou gameplay with content, characters and music.

Warriors Orochi 3: Ultimate Definitive Edition is a strong remastering effort of what is one of the Musou franchise’s best entries. I was overwhelmed by the addictive and plentiful amounts of content on offer, as well as some frantic and varied gameplay. The few cracks that display the game’s age are small potatoes when stacked up to how much of a blast it all is. If you want a quintessential Musou game that is practically never-ending, you’ve come to the right place.

While perhaps not deserving of the "Definitive Edition" moniker, the long overdue Steam edition of Warriors Orochi 3 has got everything a franchise fan needs. Characters, missions, modes, weapons, levels, costumes, crossovers, meaty story - it's all here, minus online play and a few pieces of minor DLC. Ignore its aged looks and this is some of the best hacking and slashing in the franchise, the likes of which only the licensed Legend of Zelda entries come close to.

This is the perfect game to pick up if you want to get into the non-licensed musou titles, but also a fantastic game for veterans of the genre. There is a reason why so many consider it to be the peak of the IP. There are tons of characters to play that you are bound to have a bunch that fit right into your playstyle. The story is fun, the character interactions are charming, there really is nothing too negative I can say about it.

It may seem strange releasing Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate Definitive Edition on PC now, but as they say, better late than never. It feels archaic in some ways, but there’s no denying that even all these years later it’s still one of the best Warriors titles. And with it comprising of the base game and pretty much all of the content released post-launch, it offers a lot of bang for your buck.

Gauntlet mode is a fantastic contrast to the main Story mode of Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate Definitive Edition, plus a great means of “grinding” characters without feeling like you’re just replaying the same things over and over again. You can jump into it right from your first moments with Warriors Orochi 3, so long as you’re careful — but the mode is solid and substantial enough to also make for excellent endgame content, potentially keeping you busy into perpetuity.

If you are a fan of musou games then you probably already have this one on the myriad of consoles it had been ported over the years. However if this is your first time, or you’re looking for some titles for your brand new Steam Deck (where it ended up fitting surprisingly well, glitches aside), then Warriors Orochi 3 provides a solid entry point for the genre. It provides players with dozens upon dozens of hours of content to dig into the button mashing genre of musou.