Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIV launches February 28, 2020 in the west

Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIV will launch for PlayStation 4 and PC via Steam on February 28, 2020 in North America and Europe, publisher Koei Tecmo announced.

Early purchases of the game will include the additional scenario “Battle of Yiling.” It will be downloadable for free via the PlayStation Store and Steam for two weeks following release.

In Japan, the historical strategy simulation game was previously dated for release on January 16, 2020—about one and a half months ahead of the western release.

Here are the latest details on the game, via its official website:

■ Domestic System

Area Overseers

By appointing an area overseer to each of the centers of your areas, you can promote development and increase gold income. Since in area development, the type of development each area overseer is good at depends on their abilities and characters, how each area is developed will require strategic management of personnel.

Also, area overseers will automatically suppress the surrounding area with each turn. By expanding your controlled territory, not only does your territory increase, but you can also serve to cut off an enemy unit’s supply route. Such activities allows one to create a kind of “Offense Administration” that can cooperate with your military actions.

Cities / Gates

Cities, after fulfilling a number of conditions, will expand. Not only will it receive a number of benefits, like higher durability, increases in gold and supplies, and so on, certain of the cities will develop tactics that can be activated as counters during battle.

Also, in important locations there are Gates like Hulao Gate and Yangping Gate. Troops can be stationed there. These gates can also activate tactics. This means that city expansion and the use of gates become an important tool for defense and will greatly affect conflict around bases.

—The city changes visually as it expands.

—“Hulao” gate, where the battle takes place between the Anti Dong Zhuo Coalition and Lu Bu, is one of the important gates.

■ Battle System

Tactics

Deployed officers can use the tactics they know to greatly reduce enemy numbers, drop them into disorder and immobilization in order to make battle more advantageous for them.

In addition, some officers have unique and powerful tactics, which when triggered, can greatly change the flow of battle.
Tactics can be linked among nearby officers with high affinity, like sworn brothers, to release even more powerful effects. These will be of great aid to them in leading their force to victory.

—Each officer is assigned a formation, tactic, and troops when they are deployed.

—Xiahou Dun’s Towering Aura tactic. Has the effect of raising the morale of nearby troops and lowering the movement of the enemy they are battling.

—Linked tactics achieved by officers with high affinity who activate their tactics at the same time.

—With these linked tactic, the various effects of each officers’ tactics become stronger.

■ One Single Map

Buildings

The new battlefield allows the construction of various Buildings that allow the player to customize for his or her own advantage.

In addition to military facilities that automatically attack encroaching enemy or which lowers supply consumption, there are also Obstacles that restrict enemy actions and Traps that will cause damage to nearby enemy units. There are also Buildings like “Stone Soldiers” which only certain officers can construct.

By carefully mixing these buildings, you can recreate the dramatic fights of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms period, like the Battle of Yiling and its large scale fire attack.

—Buildings can be constructed by deployed units.

—The “Arrow Tower” attacks nearby enemy units.

—The “Camp” lowers the allied forces consumption of supplies.

—An “Earthen Wall” will stop an enemy advance.

—“Stone Soldiers” lower enemy morale and cause disorder.

—Setting traps will allow you to attack approaching enemies all at once.

Various Battles

Players will see various battle scenes as enemies meet in differing locations and situations.

The front lines will see a variety of battles: Siege battles that involve towers and catapults, Naval battles where attack ships and roofed ships clash furiously.
Where to meet the enemy, what kind of battle to fight. Strategies that take into account the battle conditions will be vital to your success.

—Siege, where siege weapons show their might.

—Naval battles, where having a powerful navy gives you the advantage.

■ Characters

Guo Jia

Minister under Cao Cao. Gained trust for his ingenuity and wisdom. Overcome with illness during the suppression of Neibei and died at age 38. Afterwards, Cao Cao often exclaimed, “If only Guo Jia were alive!”

Xun Yu

Minister under Cao Cao. A wise man whom Cao Cao called “My own Zhang Liang,” in reference to a famed strategist of early Han. Opposed the establishment of Wei and died of illness – or possibly suicide – shortly after.

Xiahou Yuan

Officer of Wei and Xiahou Dun’s cousin. A commander of Cao Cao’s army from its inception. Though especially skilled at surprise attacks, he was tricked by Fa Zheng of Shu at Mt. Dingjun and slain by Huang Zhong.

Lu Meng

Officer of Wu. A courageous general who matured into greatness after Sun Quan persuaded him to master academics as well. As viceroy of Wu, he led an army to reclaim Jing and captured Guan Yu.

Lu Su

Minister of Wu. Entered the service of Sun Quan under recommendation from Zhou Yu. Insisted on an alliance with Liu Bei in the battle of Chibi. Inherited the title of commander after Zhou Yu’s death. Excelled in land-based battles.

Lu Xun

Officer of Wu and Sun Ce’s son-in-law. Schemed with Lu Meng to slay Guan Yu. Annihilated the army of Shu as grand viceroy at the battle of Yiling. Appointed to defend Jing and later became prime minister of Wu.

Sun Jian

Said to be a descendant of Sun Tzu. Participated in the suppression of the Yellow Turbans and became the prefect of Changsha. Led the vanguard in the coalition against Dong Zhou. Died in battle at Xiangyang fighting Yuan Shu and Liu Biao. Posthumously named Emperor Wu Lie.

Xu Shu

Pupil of Sima Hui. Master of fencing. Acted as strategist under Liu Bei but submitted to serving Cao Cao after the latter kidnapped his mother. Recommended that Liu Bei employ Zhuge Liang.

Fa Zheng

Minister under Liu Bei. Originally served Liu Zhang. Planned Liu Bei’s conquest of Shu with Zhang Song. An accomplished schemer, he acted as staff adviser in the battle of Hanzhong. It is said that had Fa Zheng lived, Liu Bei would not have failed at Yiling.

Sima Yi

Minister of Wei. Served the fourth generation of the Cao clan and founded the Jin dynasty. Passed through Shu’s defenses and claimed victory over the kingdom. Fought with Cao Shuang and took control of Wei. Posthumously named Emperor Xuan.

Wang Yuanji

Wife to Sima Zhao. Gave birth to Sima Yan and Sima You. Brilliant enough to be able to recite classic texts at the mere age of 8, her grandfather Wang Lang despaired that she had not been born a man. She predicted Zhong Hui’s rebellion and warned Sima Zhao against him multiple times.

Yuan Shu

Prefect of Nanyang in late Han. Yuan Shao’s brother by a different mother. Given the imperial seal from Sun Jian as collateral for soldiers. Used the seal to claim himself emperor, but was soon overthrown for his misrule.

Zhang Bao

Zhang Jiao’s younger brother. He helped raise an army against the Han court with Zhang Jiao, and caused the Yellow Turbans Revolt. He led the revolt using his supernatural powers, but was killed.

Zhang Jue

Forefather of the Way of Peace. He spread his teachings among the people and gathered enormous support. He formed the Yellow Turbans Party and opposed the Han court, causing a revolt.

And here is an overview of the game in general, via Koei Tecmo:

The entire map of China becomes a grand battlefield in Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIV, with no boundaries to where fights can take place. Warfare includes everything from siege—such as battering rams and catapults, to battles on water with a variety of different assault boats. Players will even find famous landmarks from the period of The Three Kingdoms; including the Yangtze River and Yellow River, with the chance to claim them as part of their domain.

In Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIV, claiming land is vital to overthrowing enemy forces and uniting The Three Kingdoms. Once an area is controlled by ally forces an officer can be appointed the role of ‘Area Overseer’, tasked with advancing the land’s development to increase its income; in commerce, agriculture, etc. During each turn this overseer will supervise the area they have been assigned and increase the territory of their forces – this simplifies territorial expansion and can be used tactically to cut off local supply lines. Carefully choosing an officer with appropriate abilities and characteristics can ensure the developments they make will lead to a strong and prosperous domain. For example: Those with a high charm statistic or the fame characteristic, and who are proficient in domestics, can become a force to reckoned with.

Some domains envelop Cities and Gates, which are extremely important locations on the map. Cities are bases for armies that can grow in scale and raise durability, if the right conditions are met. This growth brings increased gold and supplies, as well as unique tactics to defend these locations from enemy units. Gates such as Hulao Gate – which guards Luoyang on the East—and Yangping Gate—which guards Hanzhong from invasion from the North – are just two points on the map which are crucial to control. These sturdy locations can be occupied by military units and, like some of the cities, can have tactics activated to swiftly repel enemies.

While it is pivotal for players to develop areas within domain, it is also important to use ally land to construct an assortment of buildings and obstacles to defend and attack from incoming foes. Faculties such as “Arrow Towers,” which attack enemy units in the area automatically, “Camps,” allowing allied forces to consume less supplies on long campaigns, and “Stone Soldiers,” lowering enemy morale and causing great disorder through their ranks, are just a few of the unique strategies players can use to their advantage to protect their land. Combined with Obstacles, which play both an offensive and defensive role, these structures can have a great impact on the flow of battle. Strategic construction can allow players to re-create famous moments from The Three Kingdoms—set-up a long string of fire trap obstacles and carry out a large-scale fire attack like Lu Xun did at the Battle of Yiling.

Watch a new trailer below. View a new set of screenshots at the gallery.

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