Titled Dynasty Warriors 4: Xtreme Legends, this disc includes a ton of bonus content and is compatible with the regular Dynasty Warriors 4 game disc.  In fact, saved data is compatible between both games, adding new content to both of them.

Are you intrigued?  If you had fun playing through any of the previous games you are guaranteed to have fun with this one.

In terms of innovation not much has changed.  Dynasty Warriors is still essentially a single-player fighting game.  (It has multiplayer modes as well, but those are secondary.)  Battlefields are wide-open spaces, some mountainous, some tree-covered, and are always filled with several hundred enemies to kill.  This is where the previous games demonstrated PlayStation 2's power.  Now it seems like yesterday's news, but to this day I have not seen any other series cram so many realistic characters onto one screen.

Combos are executed by pressing one or two buttons in rapid succession.  Musou Attacks add power to your combo and can also add additional hits, but they can only be performed when your Musou gauge is full.  As you probably guessed, you charge the gauge by defeating enemies or by holding the circle button.  Doing it the latter way leaves you open for attack and is usually not the best way to do it.  Musou gauge-filling items are much more effective and can be found inside barrels and other perishable objects.

The basics may not have changed much, but the controls do feel as though the developers gave them a tune-up before the game was released.  They're a little more precise; it's easier to hop on a horse and go on a rampage than it was in the previous titles (this excludes Dynasty Warriors 4, the game that Xtreme Legends is based on).  It's also easier to get off the horse, and even easier to get knocked off the horse by a received jump attack!

You want new modes?  This game's got 'em.  Xtreme Mode is for the strong-willed.  The battles are randomly generated and are built tough to last long.  Points are nabbed along the way; turn them in for items that'll aid you in your quest.

Legend Mode.  This is a great mode, one that I would have never expected to be featured on an upgrade disc.  I could pass on the story, but the battles are great – in total there are 42 stages to conquer.

Stages are spread among the game's characters.  There are more than 10 characters, and each one has a unique scenario within those 42 stages.  Battles have slightly varying objectives; you'll usually have to kill the leading adversary, but you may also have to protect your allies in times of need.

In Challenge Mode you can use previously saved characters and weapons to score big and beat the record clear time or number of hits.  An all-new Arena course is available for one-on-one duels.  In addition there are the Endurance, Time Attack, Demolition (break as many objects as you can within the time limit), and Bridge Melee (try not to fall off while removing enemies from the bridge.  This one is also timed).

Now for the big question: "I own Dynasty Warriors 4...should I buy Xtreme Legends?"  That depends on how much you love DW4.  Xtreme Legends has five difficulty levels (including beginner and expert difficulties) and is a bit harsher than the majority of the games released these days.  Hardcore gamers are up to the challenge and casual players who love the series will not quit until they succeed.  But if you think the battles get repetitive after an hour of play, this upgrade is not for you.

"I don't own any Dynasty Warriors games but have enjoyed playing them in the past.  Should I buy DW4, Xtreme Legends or both?"  If you just want a ton of challenging battles at a fair price, Xtreme Legends is your game.  If you want a more involved experience (and less of a challenge), DW4 is the game to get.

Gameplay: 7.9
Characters galore, and game modes times more!  Dynasty Warriors 4: Xtreme Legends is a great upgrade disc.

You could say that it's a bit of a button-masher, but I've never had this much fun with a game of that kind.  The two-button combos make it a bit easier to waste enemies than if the game had used a deeper system, but that's part of its nature.  Without a few easy aspects the difficult challenges would seem too great.

The new Legend Mode makes the disc worth purchasing, and the Xtreme and Challenge modes are nice extras for anyone who wants to extend the Dynasty Warriors experience.

Graphics: 8
In terms of textures and lighting, Xtreme Legends won't make any jaws drop.  However, the game still deserves credit for what it has done – cram more characters into one battlefield than any other PS2 game.  You won't even find a superior title on Xbox.  Console power has little to do with.  Game developers have had years to top Koei and no one has.  (Except, of course, for Koei themselves.)

Sound: 7
Cheesy voice-acting, semi-decent music.

Difficulty: Medium/Hard
Want an extremely challenging legend to play through?  Xtreme Legends will kick you, knock you down, and kick you some more.  If you're up to the challenge, get back up and show 'em who the real master is!

Concept: 7.5
For an upgrade disc, Xtreme Legends is great.  It's not the most original concept, but the new content is superior to most console game upgrade discs.

Multiplayer: 7.5
The two-player mode is a fun way to do battle with a friend.

Developers, if you're listening, I'd like to request some more strategic elements for the multiplayer mode in Dynasty Warriors 5.  Each player could have their own army to control and guide to victory...or defeat.

Overall: 7.9
Xtreme Legends retails for $10 less than the average sequel but includes more content.  Granted, if this isn't your type of game, the price will have no bearing on whether or not you want to own it.  But if this is your kind of game, you couldn't find a better package.  Dynasty Warriors 4 is old enough to be found at $20-$30 used, so it is possible to get both DW4 and Xtreme Legends for $50.  That's a great deal.  These games have hours of gameplay in them.  They're repetitive, but not in the way that makes me want to never play them again.  I know that a year from now I'll go back and play this game, if only for an hour or two.  And that's after finishing it, which takes quite a while when you take into account the battle length and how many times I died.  With the exception of the Dynasty Warrior masters out there, death will not be avoided by anyone.  But that makes it more fun.  There are a few slightly similar games out there, but they're all easy and have no replay value because of it.