Dynasty Warriors DS: Fighter's Battle fits exactly what you would expect from the series on the DS: a simplified, dumbed-down -- albeit fun -- way to vent some mild frustration.

Sure, the character sprites resemble a jumbled mess of pixels, but the gameplay is tight; stringing together combos -- especially over-the-top anime-style combos -- is both fun and easy to pull off. Plus, the three main characters bring different strategies to the table, particularly in Wi-Fi multiplayer, allowing you to choose speed over power or vice versa. One-on-one boss battles, however, aren't nearly as impressive as they sound. Rather, they're more like a series of pissing contests to see who can land the most attacks first. But since power attacks, once fully charged, are capable of one-hit kills, bosses go down too easily at times.
The included battle-deck card system, though new to the series, doesn't change the Dynasty formula too much. Instead, it adds ways to temporarily slow down your opponent as you race to conquer each other's bases and territories. Each character card not only acts as a final blockade for opponents trying to take over bases, but also -- and more importantly -- possesses powers known as obstacle attacks. These are randomly generated after collecting a certain number of coins from defeated enemies. Freeze, for example, temporarily stops your opponent from advancing; Whirlwind repositions your opponent to another spot on the map. It's awkward, though, since you don't have any control over which attack you wish to execute.