Romance of The Three Kingdoms XIV’s map showcases the territory captured and the thrill of expansion using a simplified color system – paying homage to the original Romance of The Three Kingdoms XIV, released on PC back in 1985. Everything from war to diplomatic affairs will be geared toward managing and gathering land as players attempt to spread their strategies at will across the vast China map.

In addition, RTK14 will adopt the ruler-based system from RTK9 and RTK11 in order to help return classic gameplay to the series. This means that all actions – from domestic, to political, to battle – will now take place on a single map. Greater individuality among characters will also be on display; with officers from the Three Kingdoms, like Liu Bei and Guan Yu, asserting themselves at various situations in order to fully immerse players into the game’s rich history.

But that’s not all, as a new Evolved Artificial Intelligence system is also being implemented to challenge players across repeated playthroughs. With organizations now determined through each ruler’s ideals, different game experiences are now possible via different rulers. Even within the same faction; different policies now bring with them different strategies for expansion, making the wise use of various officers a cornerstone of advanced gameplay.

The Diplomacy and Strategy Expansion Pack is loaded with new possibilities, including trade with great Eurasian empires -- including Rome and India -- allowing for even broader strategies to unfold on a path to unify China. But that’s not all, as the expansion pack also introduces cities of foreign forces onto the map. Apart from conflicts in the central area, armies will now need to deal with intensified border clashes, upping the stakes in every skirmish.

In addition, new geographical advantages will be assigned to each province, so the strategies gamers will be able to choose from will vary dramatically depending on which provinces are conquered. For example: Conquering Qing Province expands the area you conquer, while conquering Yo Province allows you to open up trade with the nomadic tribe of the region, making the order of which province you conquer first now vitally important. 

New officer characteristics and special tactics have also been added, along with new buildings for specific topography, a calendar that enables you to reflect on previous activities in the game, and an all-new campaign entitled “War Chronicles Mode.”

The Romance of The Three Kingdoms XIV: Diplomacy and Strategy Expansion Pack is scheduled to release for PS4, PC (Steam), and making its series debut on Nintendo Switch on February 11, 2021.

In Romance of The Three Kingdoms XIV: Diplomacy and Strategy Expansion Pack, players are able to acquire geographical advantages once they have conquered a certain amount of cities within a province, with each province boasting its own unique advantages to help, turn the tides in battle. For example: conquering the Qing Province grants the High Reputation ability -- expanding the auto conquer range -- while conquering Southern Jing Province enhances the probability of recruiting free officers or captives with the Rhetorician advantage.

Once certain geographical advantages are unlocked, players can open-up trade routes with Eurasian countries – a series first! The four great empires that existed during the same era, Daqin (Rome), Anxi (Parthia), Guishuang (Kushan) and Tianzhu (India) can now become trade partners, and through developing strong relations with each empire, players will earn techniques or books, teaching special tactics. The Parthian Shot Tome, for example, enables commanders to learn the Parthian Shot ability for their units, while Mansumriti increases politics and prolongs the life of ally units. Some of these abilities are extremely powerful, so players must carefully consider their relations with Eurasian empires, while at the same time preventing enemy forces from commencing trade.

In addition, new officer characteristics focusing on trade have been added to the Diplomacy and Strategy Expansion Pack. March Leader decreases the number of days required for trade, while Special Envoy makes it easier to increase relation levels. These new characteristics help players smooth-out relationships with their trading partners.

Early purchase bonuses for Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIV: Diplomacy and Strategy Expansion Pack will be available to freely download within the first two weeks from launch. The bonus scenario ‘The Fall of Shu Han’ will be available for players on all platforms, while the ‘Battle of Yiling’ scenario, originally a bonus for the release of Romance of The Three Kingdoms XIV, will be available exclusively to Switch players.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIV is currently available for PS4 and PC.