TGS2020] "Shin-Sangoku Musou 8 Empires" and the smartphone version of "Shin-Sangoku Musou" and other new information! Report on Koei Tecmo Games' "Shin-Sangoku Musou" 20th Anniversary Stage

Tokyo Game Show 2020 ONLINE (hereafter TGS2020) is being held online for the first time ever for four days from September 24 (Thursday) to September 27 (Sunday), 2020. Here is a report on the 20th anniversary stage of Koei Tecmo Games' "Shin-Sangoku Musou" that was broadcast from 3:00 p.m. on the fourth day of the event.

Shin-Sangoku Musou" is a 3D action game based on the "Legend of the Three Kingdoms. Since the first title in the series appeared in 2000, more than 30 titles, including derivative titles, have been released, with cumulative worldwide sales exceeding 21 million units. The series has sold more than 21 million copies worldwide.

Katsuhiko Hayashi, representative of the "Famitsu" group (left), Akihiro Suzuki, producer of the "Shin Mikuni Musou" series (center), and Naohira Taguchi, official MC of "TGS2020 ONLINE" (right)

First, they looked back at the chronology of the "Shin Mikuni Musou" series, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. Mr. Taguchi seemed to be particularly attached to "Shin Mikuni Musou 2" and said that when the game was released, he played it until late at night and learned about "Sangokushi" while enjoying the game. When Taguchi-san was asked about his thoughts on the 20th anniversary of the series, Suzuki-san replied, "I have been involved in the series for 20 years, but it has really flown by. He also said that he had participated in the first game in the series as director and lead programmer.

Chronology of the series

Next, the results of the "Let's talk about it in pictures! The results of the "Memorable Scenes" contest were announced. This project, which has been held in the past, was open to all titles in the "Shin-Sangoku Musou" series and asked for a set of screen shots of memorable scenes and comments on the pictures. The winner of the Excellence Award will receive a "Shin-Sangoku Musou 8" clear file set, and the Grand Prize winner will receive a "Shin-Sangoku Musou" series goods set.

Mr. Suzuki also picked out some items that did not win an award, but were personally good.

The first winner was Mochigome's submission. He wrote passionately about his feelings toward Zhao Yun along with a cut scene from the opening of "Shin Mikuni Musou 6. Mr. Suzuki said he chose this award based on the combination of the impressive scene and the submitter's comments.

Excellence Award #1

Other Excellence Award Winners

Grand Prize-winning works

After the four Excellence Award winners were announced, the Grand Prize was finally announced. The winner of the Grand Prize was the work by Kokkuri. The subject of his work was "Shin-Sangoku Musou 7 Empires," in which he described his memories of being able to realize his fantasy in a game, with an ending image of Shu unifying the continent and all the generals belonging to Shu. In the "Empires" series, which has strong simulation elements such as national politics and diplomacy, the outcome of the story is largely up to the player. Perhaps because of this, Suzuki said, "This is one of the ending scenes of "Shin Mikuni Warriors 7 Empires," so the outcome of the game shows up. I was impressed by the effort of starting the story with Liu Bei, gathering the generals by himself, and having them all the way to the ending".

Next, Mr. Hayashi went on to ask Mr. Suzuki various questions on behalf of the players of the "Shin-Sangoku Musou" series. The questions were solicited in advance from users. The first question was, "I want you to challenge me to play the sound game of the Musou series. The second question was, "If there was any part of "Shin-Sangoku Musou 8" that you found challenging or well received, please let us know. In "Shin-Sangoku Musou 8," the "state combo," in which the same button input changes the attack depending on the enemy's state, was well received. We would like to make use of this in the next title as well," said Suzuki.

Mr. Suzuki continued to answer various questions one by one, such as "Can't we have age-appropriate graphics for each character?

Next, information about the newest title in the "Shin-Sangoku Musou" series was revealed. First, he announced the release of the smartphone app "Shin-Sangoku Musou".

As soon as the announcement was made, Mr. Suzuki began to play the game on a real machine. In the battle scene, a large number of enemies appear, and the "Musou" feeling of cleaving them off is still there. The game also supports virtual pad input and autoplay, so there were no processing glitches during the intense action. The game can be played in either landscape or portrait mode.

In addition, a closed beta test of the application is scheduled to be held. The application period is from September 27 (Sun.) to October 5 (Mon.), 2020, and the number of participants is limited to 5,000. The application will be completed by registering your e-mail address on the official website.

Finally, a video of "Shin-Sangoku Musou 8 Empires," the latest in the "Empires" series, was shown. This title introduces a new element, "siege warfare," in which players fight over castles with their enemies on the battlefield. The player wins the battle by capturing the castle gates through various means, such as destruction, extermination, and infiltration, and by seizing control of the castle. In "Empires," the familiar "political strategy" strategy is the key to nation building, depending on how the player builds relationships with his generals. The "edit function," which allows players to create their own original warlords, is also still in place. According to Mr. Suzuki, "The edit function has been further enhanced, but we can't reveal the details yet, so please look forward to more information. It will be interesting to see how the "Shin-Sangoku Musou" series will evolve in the future.