There is just so much to unpack with the very notion of Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake. You have to consider that this series of games, which go back to the NES days, has managed to survive for decade upon decade to find fans and purchase on nearly every console to date. You have to remember that it’s based around a book from the 14th century, considered the greatest story ever penned in China, and the game series was developed in Japan and sells exceedingly well across all of Asia. You further have to realize that number eight, in a series of fourteen mainline games, is so beloved that it finally got a Western official release in spite of only being on Windows, PS2 and PSP originally. And then you have to realize that I’ve put close to thirty hours into this game and barely feel like I’ve scratched the surface.

As a result, a review of a Three Kingdoms game can go one of two ways. The first is for the writer to basically create a Wikipedia entry with some bias mixed in and you have to clear your afternoon just to read the whole amalgamation of historic entries, character breakdowns and gameplay flowcharts. That feels honestly exhausting for all parties involved, and it is polarizing in a very negative way. Long time players will feel like I’m overexplaining and missing the forest for the trees, and newcomers will simply nope out and play something that seems less imposing, like Dwarf Fortress. I’ll do my best to hit a good middle ground with my review, because my time with 8 Remake was satisfying and engaging, though a bit difficult to articulate.

Have you ever played Civilization and thought “Being Ghandi is cool, but what if I was just some member of Ghandi’s advisory board instead?” That’s what Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 does and does exceptionally well. You have the choice to be one of the major figures in the chronicles of China’s ancient factions, and you can take all the responsibility that comes with it. Or, and I am very serious here, you can just be some dude, part of the miliary to a degree but not necessarily a big deal, and just move on from there. Your actions have impact, but you have the option to throw up your hands and say “do whatever, I’m just here for a paycheck” and that’s totally valid.

This approach might be good for some players, because, to the surprise of no one, Romance of the Three Kingdoms is incredibly dense with ideas and choices. When you become Lu Xun, for example, a single turn can take ten, fifteen minutes as you delegate different actions, invest your points into different areas, see how scenarios play out (if you choose to witness the full breadth of the animations and voice acting), and then confirming who you trust, who you hate, who you’re trying to get closer and who might be an absolute snake. It’s a ton of spinning plates that you never really “drop,” but you do feel the pinch when you realize you’ve forsaken one aspect or another. So to simply be a soldier who wants to work on studying science and spending time with your wife, it’s really quite a relief.

Granted, you will, unless you are purposely tanking a run, end up getting recognized and promoted, but the game never seems to give you more than you can handle. While there might become a massive network of alliances, plots and different infrastructure that needs to be addressed (this city constantly needs repairs), you can always fall back to the maps and flowcharts to see what needs to be addressed. Oddly, Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 wants you to succeed, which isn’t what a lot of simulation games present. You’re always doing something, but there’s never a massive pressure to finish it immediately. Instead, you’re taking the time to understand your role in the city and, as such, history. It’s compelling and turns what could be a very stressful gameplay loop into something relaxing.

When I played Nobunaga’s Ambition, it was a bit off putting to see how outside of the event I felt at all times. A lot of the factions that were moving didn’t care whether I was there or not, and the game turned into Risk with a majority of the players forgetting you’re there. By contrast, Romance 8 continues to focus on your actions while keeping you aware of the other groups, but not in an omnipresent way. The different connections feel personable, an amazing feat in a game that’s scripted to the 9s and has hundreds of hours of gameplay (if not thousands). When advisors criticized me, the complaints or suggestions were valid and thoughtful. When I was trying to convince the would-be emperor of something, the “combat” of debate was exciting, even if I was terrible at it. The most mundane events were done in a stimulating fashion.

Players who are coming into the Romance of the Three Kingdoms might be a bit overwhelmed initially, but the tutorial is done up in bite sized pieces with plenty of opportunity to expand should the opportunities present themselves. Unlike some simulation games (or even JRPGS) that throw the entire manual at you from the drop, I wasn’t versed in new ideas or sections until they became relevant. There’s an intuitive realization that this is a massive undertaking, and the developers don’t want players to be overwhelmed. The aforementioned debate combat? That didn’t come up until the twelve hour mark when I finally put my foot down and insisted my suggestions were better than Dong Zhuo thought they were (and they were not). It’s incredible for something to be this sprawling and still contained.

Additionally, the idea that action points can carry over between turns is a simple one but incredibly effective to the game’s longevity. Every action has different values; for example, training or doing research might take a lot of action points, but conversing with someone, accepting a request or even just changing your job takes significantly less. As a result, you’ll end up finishing a turn with a few errant points left, and you don’t simply lose those just because you put your attention on an uneven value of work. This choice makes for both less stressful turn taking and better strategic focus for longterm ideas: you can shirk off one or two events this turn and make up for it by doubling down next time around without penalizing yourself.

While the artwork for Romance of the Three Kingdom 8 Remake is more beautiful and detailed than the original PS2 release, there’s been some odd choices for animation. Every avatar has odd idling movements of light drifting, blinking and some breathing implications, like it’s always on the verge of doing something but waiting for the right cue. It’s very cool, don’t get me wrong, but it’s almost disconcerting to have something simulate being alive and active but still have their voice come from a disembodied location. Granted, things aren’t fully voiced, so that’s a bit of a non issue (it would be strange to only animate a mouth for the occasional “Osu”), but not having any mouth movement whatsoever makes for a bizarre presentation indeed.

On the other side of things, the soundtrack is positively gorgeous. There’s a massive undertaking to have the soundscape of the ancient world feel represented but not stereotyped, allowing players to enjoy a robust, orchestral soundtrack that seems to cover all walks of life and all styles of Chinese influenced music. The haunting vocals that accompany some overview tracks really adds to the tone and dynamics of what life could have been like in this period. I never really appreciate how much a good score can make a simulation game shift from a grinding chore of incremental nonsense into an immersive project of understanding and roleplaying.

Like many massive titles, Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake isn’t going to sway you if you’ve hard bounced off of other projects. However, if, like me, you’ve become burnt out on the extreme minutiae of certain series, this is a step back that doesn’t feel like a total reversal. You don’t end up in some kind of happy-go-lucky children’s sim, but you have enough here at a decent enough pace to simply be, enjoy and experience. Plus, the history lessons bleeding from every corner don’t hurt in making it intriguing as well as a great game. I have to say, as far as Romance titles go, I can clearly see why number eight needed a remake, and I hope that longtime players can finally celebrate this heralded entry getting a modern day release.

Graphics: 7.0 Koei has done a wonderful job of updating the graphics to preserve the original ideas but bring more details and fidelity to the modern consoles. Excellent performance on the Switch. Some odd idle movements can be uncanny at times, but the overall effect is good and pleasing.	Gameplay: 8.0 From the personal and pithy to the massive and significant, there is a drastic range of actions and ideas that take form each and every turn. In spite of the massive scope, players feel important in how they make their choices both in and outside the kingdom. New strategic alliance options make for interesting bedfellows.
Sound: 6.5 The music is grand and sweeping, with plenty of evocative moments when the seasons change, court is held and dramatic turns upend the future of the empires. Voice work is simply too short and fragmented, but at least there’s a good range of choices for the language of your sound clips.	Fun Factor: 7.5 An epic of longtime investment, I was pleased to see that I could pick up and play a handful of turns at a time, blow through an hour or so, and then put down the game to come back to the saga another day. It’s engrossing but not consuming, and it weaves a long, exciting tale like the source material. Highly recommended for fans of the genre.
Final Verdict: 7.5

Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake is available now on Steam, Playstation 4/5 and Nintendo Switch.

Reviewed on Nintendo Switch.

A copy of Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake was provided by the publisher.