Ever since the announcement that Dynasty Warriors was transitioning its tried and true hack-and-slash gameplay to the open-world setting, many--including myself--were wondering how exactly that would work.

　　Well, we finally got our answer during Sony's China Joy press conference. As the developers at Omega Force were on-hand to show off just what Dynasty Warriors looks like on the grand scale. In this video from Gematsu, we got about six minutes of gameplay to look at for the upcoming period-set action title.

　　Much like the previous games, Dynasty Warriors 9 takes place during the war of the three kingdoms period in ancient China. The armies of Wu, Shu, and Wei fight for control of the land, with each side vying for the favor of the people and resources. In this installment, there seems to be a larger focus on traversal and exploration of the land compared to past entries, which were set in isolated levels. We get a sense of the scale in this video, with Guan Yu--warrior of the Shu army--looking on from the cliffs above. Not long after, he fast travels to an on-going siege of a castle, and immediately goes into the 1 vs. 1000 style of gameplay the series is known for.

　　Releasing in Japan on PS4 first, then making its way over to the west soon after, Dynasty Warriors 9 is looking like a sizable upgrade from its predecessors. Though Dynasty Warriors, and many other games of its type, seem to be an acquired taste, I can't help but admire what they're trying to do with this new title. It's not easy reinventing the series into something more grand and epic, and it looks like they've got something that will perk up those who normally wouldn't give the series a second look.