A passionate indie take on ancient heroism that shines in moments—despite rough edges and a now-silent dev team.

This is a retelling of the early Romance of the Three Kingdoms saga, focusing on Zhao Yun’s rise from village youth to legendary spear-wielding warrior. The narrative spans the turbulent years between 189 and 208 CE, blending historical conflict with light fantasy touches (of course there had to be an occasional harem trope involving Zhao Yun’s trio of female companions, too).

Gameplay leans heavily into action-RPG territory, with hack-and-slash combat and loot systems reminiscent of classic Diablo-likes. Progressing through drawn-out battles can get tedious, but the overall structure — populated locations, skirmishes, boss fights, story progressions — keeps things moving. City hubs like Xiapi offer some welcome life, filled with NPCs and side content, though quieter areas suffer from lack of background music and environmental detail.

Since the interface system is janky and lacking of intuitiveness, I haven't understood or seen much use of the crafting features. Only the upgrade feature is seen useful later on in the story, to enhance my gear for battles.

While mostly all the story dialogues are translated, the English localization is spotty, with missing translation on some side dialogues. Sadly, the developer has since disbanded, leaving little hope for post-launch polish or updates. Still, for fans of the Three Kingdoms era or those craving a Chinese twist on the ARPG formula, this flawed gem has just enough heart to be worth the journey in the path of Zhao Yun.