The next installment in the River City franchise (also the next adaptation of Romance of the Three Kingdoms) has been revealed, with the announcement of the upcoming crossover title River City Saga: Three Kingdoms Next from Arc System Works. The new arcade-style beat ’em up is set to release on November 7, 2024, and has debuted a new reveal trailer that’s available to watch now.
Serving as a sequel to 2022’s River City Saga: Three Kingdoms, this new installment continues following the historical tale of Chinese literature classic Romance of the Three Kingdoms where the last entry left off. But, in classic River City-fashion, the wild cast of characters throw in a couple of new twists to the classic story with their infamously chaotic hijinks. The game will feature over 100 River City characters, with several of them taking on the role of iconic Romance of the Three Kingdoms characters. Notable re-castings include Kunio as Guan Yu, Misako as Zhuge Liang, Goda as Liu Bei, and Yamada as Cao Cao, fusing their River City personalities with the roles and traits of their Three Kingdoms counterparts.
River City Saga: Three Kingdoms Next will feature a new gameplay mechanic based around Kunio’s Red Hare motorcycle, allowing players to drive it through the battlefield, tossing enemies aside and accessing new moves. The Red Hare will be customizable with collectible parts, and Arc System Works teases that “meeting certain conditions can even change Red Hare into something other than a motorcycle.”
Combat will once again feature abilities inspired by the strategies of real military tacticians, called Tactics, that emulate authentic military maneuvers of the time. But in addition to the first game’s Fire and Water Tactics, a new Tactic is coming in Three Kingdoms Next that “summons generals who helped you in the past, to fight by your side.” These Tactics can be combined with the game’s diverse set of special moves to achieve victory against the numerous stages of enemies that are ready for battle.
River City Saga: Three Kingdoms Next is set to release this Fall on Steam, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 4. The game is available to pre-order and wishlist today on Steam and PlayStation 4, and August 8 on the Nintendo Switch.