Romance of the Three Kingdoms (video game series)

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Video game series

Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Romance of the Three Kingdoms for the Nintendo Entertainment System, with the logo in the bottom-right corner

Genre(s)| Strategy
Developer(s)| Koei (now Kou Shibusawa)
Publisher(s)| Koei (now Koei Temco)
Creator(s)| Yōichi Erikawa
First release| Romance of the Three Kingdoms
10 December 1985
Latest release| Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIV
16 January 2020
Spin-offs| Dynasty Warriors
Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Chinese name
Traditional Chinese| 三國志
Simplified Chinese| 三国志
Literal meaning| Records of the Three Kingdoms
| Transcriptions

Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin| Sānguózhì
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese| Tam quốc chí
Hán-Nôm| 三國志
Korean name
Hangul| 삼국지
Hanja| 三國志
| Transcriptions

Revised Romanization| Samgugji
Japanese name
Kanji| 三國志
Hiragana| さんごくし
| Transcriptions

Revised Hepburn| Sangokushi

Romance of the Three Kingdoms (三國志, Sangokushi, lit. "Records of the Three Kingdoms") is a series of turn-based tactical role-playing simulation grand strategy wargames produced by Koei.[1][2] Originating from Japan in 1985, fourteen installments of the game have been published in Japan, Taiwan, China, South Korea and North America to date. While the game's title as it was released in English refers to the 14th century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms (三國演義) by Luo Guanzhong, the title as it was released in Japan and Chinese regions refers to the 3rd century historical text Records of the Three Kingdoms (三國志) by Chen Shou.

## Overview

[edit]

The series are based on the romanticized Romance of the Three Kingdoms novel and the historical text Records of the Three Kingdoms, the storyline takes place during the Han dynasty in China with many warring factions that included the Shu Han, Cao Wei and Eastern Wu kingdoms. Gameplay revolves around managing numerical statistics, each representing an attribute of a city or a character. A city is described by statistics such as stored grain supplies, vulnerability to disasters such as floods and earthquakes, treasury funds, domestic affairs and populace loyalty. Characters are numerically characterized by their leadership abilities, melee prowess, intellects and loyalty, as well as special traits or even magical abilities that can be called upon whether during wartime, diplomacy or domestic affairs. Players can increase these numbers before waging war on neighbouring territories or intending diplomatic efforts.

While generally presented as a turn-based strategy game, the seventh, eighth and tenth editions offer role-playing features, allowing the player to play as a rank-and-file character instead of leading a kingdom.

Several spin-offs based on the series include the tactical action hack and slash video game series Dynasty Warriors, Dynasty Tactics which is a hybrid of Dynasty Warriors and Romance of the Three Kingdoms, as well as the three tactical role-playing games Sangokushi Eiketsuden (Liu Bei), Sangokushi Koumeiden (Zhuge Liang), and Sangokushi Sousouden (Cao Cao). Kessen II is a real-time tactics game on PS2.

Another spin-off is the mobile game Three Kingdoms Tactics, based on Koei Tecmo's series.[3] It was published by Chinese company Alibaba Group in September 2019. It has grossed $1.2 billion worldwide as of March 2021[update], making it Alibaba's most successful mobile game.[4]

## Games in the series

[edit]

The release dates provided are for original Japanese releases.

### Main series

[edit]

* Romance of the Three Kingdoms II (1989, PC-88) – Also available on Amiga, MS-DOS, MSX2, NES, SNES, Mega Drive (1989), X68000, WonderSwan, Windows (2000), mobile phones
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms III: Dragon of Destiny (1992, PC-98) – Also available on MS-DOS, SNES, Mega Drive (1992), Windows (2001), NDS (2006)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms IV: Wall of Fire (1994, PC-98) – Also available on SNES, Sega 32X, MS-DOS, Sega Saturn, PlayStation (1994), Game Boy Advance, Windows (2001), NDS (2007)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms V (1995, PC-98) – Also available on Sega Saturn, PlayStation, Windows (1995), PlayStation Portable (2005), NDS (2010), 3DS (2013)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms VI: Awakening of the Dragon (1996, Windows) – Also available on PlayStation, Dreamcast (1999), PlayStation Portable (2005)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms VII (2000, Windows) – Also available on PlayStation, PlayStation 2 (2000), PlayStation Portable (2006)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms VIII (2001, Windows) – Also available on PlayStation 2 (2002), PlayStation Portable (2007)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms IX (2003, Windows) – Also available on PlayStation 2 (2004), PlayStation Portable (2011)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms X (2004, Windows) – Also available on PlayStation 2 (2005)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI (2006, Windows) – Also available on PlayStation 2 (2006), Wii (2007)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms XII (2012, Windows) – Also available on PlayStation 3, Wii U (2012), PlayStation Vita (2013)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIII (2016, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Windows) – Also available on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation Vita (2017)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIV (2020, Windows, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch)

### Other games

[edit]

* Super Sangokushi (SNES)
* Sangokushi Eiketsuden (SNES)
* Sangokushi Koumeiden
* Sangokushi Sousouden
* Sangokushi Internet (1999, Windows) - Koei's first online video game of the series, developed by Koei Taiwan.
* Kessen II (2001, PS2)
* Dynasty Tactics (2002, PS2)
* Sangokushi Battlefield (2002, Windows)
* Dynasty Tactics 2 (2003, PS2)
* Sangokushi Online (2007, Windows )
* Yo-kai Sangokushi (2015, Nintendo 3DS) - Crossover with Level-5's Yo-Kai Watch series
* Sangokushi Mobile (Mobile phones)
* Sangokushi Mobile 2 (Mobile phones)
* Sangokushi Mobile 3 (Mobile phones)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms Touch (2009, iOS)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms 2 (2010, iOS)

## Reception

[edit]

Sangokushi received positive critical reception in North America when it was released there in 1988.

As of 2020, the main series has shipped more than 9 million copies worldwide.[5]

## See also

[edit]

* Nobunaga's Ambition
* Destiny of an Emperor
* Bandit Kings of Ancient China

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Encyclopædia Britannica
2. ^ "Romance of the Three Kingdoms". Legendra. Retrieved 2011-03-01.
3. ^ "Three Kingdoms Tactics". App Store. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
4. ^ Chapple, Craig (March 31, 2021). "Alibaba's Three Kingdoms Tactics Strikes Up $1 Billion and is 2021's No. 5 Grossing App Store Game So Far". Sensor Tower. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
5. ^ https://www.koeitecmo.co.jp/ir/docs/ir3_202310244.pdf [bare URL PDF]

## External links

[edit]

* The Romance of the Three Kingdoms series at MobyGames

* v
* t
* e

Koei's Romance of the Three Kingdoms video games

Main series|

* Romance of the Three Kingdoms
* II
* III: Dragon of Destiny
* IV: Wall of Fire
* V
* VI: Awakening of the Dragon
* VII
* VIII
* IX
* X
* XI
* 12
* XIII
* XIV

Spin-offs|

* Battlefield
* Online
* Kōmeiden
* Sōsōden
* Dynasty Warriors
* Dynasty Tactics
* Kessen II
* Yo-kai Sangokushi

* v
* t
* e

Koei Tecmo

List of video games

Franchises|

* Angelique
* Atelier
* Dead or Alive
* Deception
* Dynasty Warriors
* Fatal Frame
* G1 Jockey
* Gallop Racer
* Genghis Khan
* La Corda d'Oro
* Monster Rancher
* Ninja Gaiden
* Nioh
* Nobunaga's Ambition
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms
* Samurai Warriors
* Taikō Risshiden
* Uncharted Waters
* Winning Post
* Zill O'll

Divisions|

* KOU SHIBUSAWA
* ω-Force
* Team NINJA
* Gust
* Ruby Party

People|

* Hideo Yoshizawa
* Masato Kato
* Tomonobu Itagaki
* Makoto Shibata

Defunct|

* Koei
* Tecmo

Category

* v
* t
* e

Luo Guanzhong's Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Based on the end of the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period of China

Fictitious subplots|

* Oath of the Peach Garden
* The Three Visits

Characters|

| Historical|

* Liu Bei
* Guan Yu
* Zhang Fei
* Zhuge Liang
* Cao Cao
* Sun Quan
* Zhou Yu

|

Fictional|

* Diaochan
* Guan Suo
* Lady Li
* Zhou Cang

Adaptations and other derivative works

Theatre|

* Jeokbyeokga
* Red Cliff (Peking opera) (2008)

Films|

| Animated|

* Sangokushi (1982)
* Sangokushi (1985)
* Sangokushi II: Amakakeru Otoko-tachi (1986)
* Sangokushi: Dai Ichi Bu - Eiyuu-tachi no Yoake (1992)
* Sangokushi: Dai Ni Bu - Choukou Moyu! (1993)
* Sangokushi: Dai San Bu - Harukanaru Taichi (1994)

|

Live action|

* Dingjun Mountain (1905)
* The Witty Sorcerer (1931)
* Diao Chan (1938)
* Diau Charn (1958)
* Tiao Chan (1967)
* Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon (2008)
* Red Cliff (2008)
* The Lost Bladesman (2011)
* The Assassins (2012)
* Fantasy of Three Kingdoms: The Yellow Turban Uprising (2018)
* Fantasy of Three Kingdoms 2 (2018)
* Shadow (2018)
* Legend of Zhao Yun (2020)
* Knights of Valour (2021)
* Dynasty Warriors (2021)

TV|

| Animated|

* Yokoyama Mitsuteru Sangokushi (1991)
* Ginga Sengoku Gun'yūden Rai (1994)
* Chūka Ichiban! (1997)
* Ikki Tousen (2003)
* Gintama (2006)
* Kōtetsu Sangokushi (2007)
* Yawaraka Sangokushi Tsukisase!! Ryofuko-chan (2007)
* Sōten Kōro (2009)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms (2009)
* SD Gundam Sangokuden Brave Battle Warriors (2010)
* Prison School (2015)
* Soul Buster (2016)
* SD Gundam World Sangoku Soketsuden (2019)
* SD Gundam World Heroes (2021)
* Record of Ragnarok (2021)
* Fantasia Sango - Realm of Legends (2022)
* Ya Boy Kongming! (2022)
* The Ravages of Time (2023)

|

Live action|

* God of River Lok (1975)
* The Legendary Prime Minister – Zhuge Liang (1985)
* Zhuge Liang (1985)
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms (1994)
* Guan Gong (1996)
* The Legend of Guan Gong (2002)
* Where the Legend Begins (2002)
* K.O.3an Guo (2009)
* characters
* episodes
* Three Kingdoms (2010)
* Three Kingdoms RPG (2012)
* Legend of Goddess Luo (2013)
* Cao Cao (2015)
* God of War, Zhao Yun (2016)
* The Advisors Alliance (2017)
* The Wind Blows from Longxi (2022)

Video games|

* Romance of the Three Kingdoms (1985)
* Dynasty Wars (1989)
* Warriors of Fate (1992)
* The Sango Fighter (1993)
* Dynasty Warriors (1997)
* Dynasty Tactics series (2002)
* Fantasia Sango (2003)
* Warriors Orochi series (2007)
* Knights of Valour (1999)
* Destiny of an Emperor (1989)
* The Legend of Three Kingdoms (1998)
* Three Kingdoms: Fate of the Dragon (2001)
* Kessen II (2001)
* Dragon Throne: Battle of Red Cliffs (2002)
* Sangokushi Taisen (2005)
* Koihime Musō (2007)
* Heroes of Three Kingdoms (2009)
* Atlantica Online: Three Kingdoms (2011)
* Total War: Three Kingdoms (2019)
* Blood of Steel (2020)
* River City Saga: Three Kingdoms (2022)
* Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty (2023)
* Three Kingdoms Zhao Yun (2024)
* Kingdom Heroes M
* Historica
* Kingdom Story
* OMG!三国霸王 新马版 - Gods of Three Kingdoms
* Vua Thủ Thành
* Loạn Đấu Võ Lâm
* Huyết Chiến Thiên Hạ

Comics and manga|

* Sangokushi (1971)
* Tenchi wo Kurau (1983)
* Ginga Sengoku Gun'yūden Rai (1989)
* Three Kingdoms (1991)
* Ryūrōden (1993)
* Sōten Kōro (1994)
* Chūka Ichiban! (1995)
* Ikki Tousen (2000)
* The Ravages of Time (2001)
* Qwan (2002)
* Dragon Sister! (2002)
* Gintama (2003)
* Lord (2004)
* SD Gundam Sangokuden: Romance of the Three Kingdoms (2007)
* Yawaraka Sangokushi Tsukisase!! Ryofuko-chan (2007)
* Prison School (2011)
* Soul Buster (2016)
* Record of Ragnarok (2017)
* SD Gundam World Sangoku Soketsuden (2019)
* Ya Boy Kongming! (2019)

Card games|

* Portal Three Kingdoms (1997)
* Sangokushi Taisen (2005)
* Legends of the Three Kingdoms (2008)
* Daisenran!! Sangokushi Battle
* Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game : Ignition Assault and Eternity Code

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