Developer: Koei Tecmo
Publisher: Koei Tecmo
Platform: PC, Switch (2), PS4, PS5
Tested on: PC
Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake: Destiny and Strategy Expansion Pack – Review
Just when we thought we were out, Koei Tecmo pulls us back in. After we reviewed Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake back in 2023, we’d been dipping in and out of the grand strategy title every few months or so. Slowly but surely, we’d been making our way through the game’s massive campaign, but right before we were able to say we’d fully conquered the game, the developer hit us with a surprise. An expansion! The arrival of Destiny and Strategy, as it’s called, may have caught us off guard, but does it spell a turning point for the base game, or is it just more of the same?
Usually, an expansion pack isn’t exactly groundbreaking, but Destiny and Strategy breaks the mold in more ways than one. For starters, it’s an all-new expansion for a remake of a classic game. It’s not unheard of for a remake to expand on the original game, but more often than not, new content is pushed as a selling point, rather than something that is added two years down the line. Before we get to what that new content means for Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake’s gameplay, there is something that we feel obliged to address. In our review of the base game, one of our main gripes was that there was no Chinese voice acting. For a game that covers such a significant part of Chinese history, this felt like an oversight. We’re happy to say that Destiny and Strategy rectifies this. While we highly doubt that our review was the only domino piece that led to this, we’re still going to treat it as a personal victory.
Elsewhere, Destiny and Strategy’s new content significantly expands the base game with new tactical elements. Through the use of so-called Gems, new commands and abilities can be unlocked. These don’t dramatically alter the overall flow of Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake’s gameplay, but they do open up strategic options for budding commanders. The new Foresight Gem allows Tacticians to act twice in a single round, whereas the Overwhelm Gem increases your odds of winning duels. Perhaps the most important thing about these Gems is how naturally they fit in with the base gameplay. Destiny and Strategy’s content feels like the logical next step, deepening what was already there rather than feeling tacked on.
Another feature we didn’t even realize we needed until it was there is the Turning Point system. Specific opportunities can trigger dramatic high-stakes shifts in battle conditions, allowing for the reversal of stalemates. As much as we enjoyed Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake, after a while, repetitiveness inevitably started to kick in, and games started to feel very similar. Turning Points removes that feeling and adds a chaotic element to the flow of battle. That said, there is still some logic here, as you’re expected to work towards activating a Turning Point. They’re not entirely random events, although their outcome can be unpredictable. Examples include foreign tribes appearing or a decisive battle where different cities go to war with one another all at once. While Destiny and Strategy does add a handful of new scenarios, the bulk of the expansion is designed to be enjoyed through revisiting the base game as well as custom games. The expansion features enhanced in-game editing to make sure you can dive even deeper into the community-created content.
At €29.99, Destiny and Strategy’s price is on the higher side for an expansion. However, given that the base game isn’t just expanded upon, but improved, we’d say that the price tag is well worth it. The new content meaningfully deepens gameplay and ultimately makes for a much more realistic and enjoyable strategy experience. There is one massive elephant in the room here, however. For some baffling reason, Koei Tecmo decided that Destiny and Strategy will not be released for consoles in the West. It’s PC exclusive over here, even though Japanese players will be able to get the expansion on other platforms in their home region. Given that the expansion was localized in English for the PC version, and it does exist and run on console, there’s no logical reason we can think of for this omission. For now, you could import physical copies of the game + expansion bundle, but the price tag for those is of course significantly higher than that of a DLC launch. Here’s hoping there is enough fan outcry for Koei Tecmo to reverse course and officially bring this meaty expansion to the West after all.
Conclusion
If you already liked what Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake had to offer, then Destiny and Strategy is going to make you enjoy its blend of political intrigue and military strategy even more. The new mechanics feel like they’re filling gaps naturally, rather than coming across as tacked on. Not only that, but there is enough here to make it worth revisiting the base campaign and not just limiting yourself to the new scenarios. Chinese voices are the icing on the cake. Hopefully, console players will be able to get a slice of Destiny and Strategy soon as well.
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