Cao Cao was the Chancellor of the Han Dynasty, who laid the foundations for the future kingdom of Wei. A clean-cut tall, and crafty individual, Cao Cao excelled in war and politics. He was loved and feared for his perceptiveness and swift retaliations, as well as his very close relationship with many of his retainers. Chen Shou commented that he was a leader, who possessed a unique mindset and was a timeless hero.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms famously villainizes him to be a hot-blooded, sly, yet occasionally, dumbfounded schemer who sometimes survived his hardships on luck alone, said to be from the heavens themselves being right beside him. His legitimate successor is Cao Pi (Doug Erholtz/James Callis/Nobutoshi Canna), born from his consort Bianshi, Xiahou Dun (Kirk Thornton/Scott Cleverdon/Kazuya Nakai), Xiahou Yuan (Tony Oliver/Terence J. Rotolo/Yasuhiko Tokuyama), Cao Ren (Beau Billingslea/Phil LaMarr/Hisao Egawa) and Cao Hong are his well-known cousins.
His Dynasty Warriors incarnation ranked in seventeenth place in Gamecity's Dynasty Warriors 7 character popularity poll and is twenty-sixth in the Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends popularity poll. In Famitsu's character survey, he is the number one character fans would want as their boss. The latest poll for the eighth installment puts him in fifteenth. The character poll for overseas fans puts him in third place for the Wei division and fourteenth in the semi-final round.
Cao Cao is a leader who dedicates himself to his ambitions. A childhood friend of Yuan Shao (Christopher Corey Smith/Charlie Adler/Osamu Ryutani), he joins him at the Yellow Turban Rebellion and in the Allied Forces. After Dong Zhuo's (Richard Epcar/Scottie Ray/Yukitoshi Hori) death, however, Cao Cao disagrees with Yuan Shao and they face one another at Guandu. Cao Cao wins the conflict and gains Yuan Shao's territory soon after. A few titles also state his army capturing Guan Yu (Dave B. Mitchell/Christopher Judge/Yasunori Masutani) and having the general momentarily serve within his army during this time. Cao Cao often desires to have the brave general to serve him, but he respects Guan Yu's wishes to depart from Xuchang.
As the largest force of power in the land, he then targets Liu Bei (Dave B. Mitchell/David Kaye/Moriya Endo) and chases him at Changban. His naval fleet suffers defeat at Chibi, and Cao Cao's army is crippled from the loss. Even so, Cao Cao is able to rebound from the loss and orders Ma Teng's execution. His order sparks Ma Chao's (David Beron/TBD/Koji Haramaki R.I.P. Kevin Conroy) rebellion and he gathers the regional lords around Quan Zhong to be his allies. In most titles, Cao Cao has the opportunity to speak to Han Sui, and the latter's defection at Tong Gate turns the tides against Ma Chao. With Tong Gate under his control, Cao Cao may participate in Wei's battles at Hefei or Mt. Dingjun. In most titles, he lives to end either Shu or Wu. In recent scenarios, he may pass away due to illness after the events of Fan Castle.
His Legend Mode in Dynasty Warriors 4: Xtreme Legends details his escape from Chibi. With the army already faltering from the Allied Force's fire attack, Cao Cao runs for his life to escape Shu's generals. Cutting his way past Liu Bei and Sun Quan's (Gideon Emery/Judd Nelson/Hisayoshi Suganuma) generals, he faces Guan Yu guarding the exit. Mentioning the kindness he previously treated the general, Guan Yu turns his back on his duty and repays the debt that he owes Cao Cao.
Described as a scholar during peace and a villain during chaos, Cao Cao is a talented leader in Dynasty Warriors 5. Knowing that a better land lies beyond the chaos, he joins the efforts to defeat the early insurgents of the age. Zuo Ci (Dan Woren/Corey Burton/Masaharu Sato) magically appears near Cao Cao and repeatedly asks the warlord his vision for the land. Cao Cao does not grant him an answer, yet he is offended when the elderly sage compares him to the rogues he stands against. After assisting Liu Bei's request to slay Lu Bu (Jamieson Price/Greg Carey/Tetsu Inada) at Xiapi, he sets his sights on the nearest enemy to him. Knowing that Yuan Shao only believes in his family pride and neglects the good console of his advisors, Cao Cao believes his former friend to be threat to the land. For these reasons, he slays Yuan Shao at Guandu.
He then attacks Liu Bei, but his forces lose horribly at Chibi. Narrowly escaping with their lives, he rebuilds his forces and, to avenge his humiliation from Chibi, he claims victory at Hefei. Wu withdraws and Liu Bei passes away. In honor of the only man who he deemed to be the land's hero, Cao Cao decides to conquer Shu at Wuzhang Plains. Zuo Ci, impressed with Cao Cao's longevity, remarks that he will slay him for the good of the land. Cao Cao prevails in the conflict and Sun Quan dies at Hefei Castle. Though the land's wars are at an end, Cao Cao continues to fight in order to fashion a land worthy of his image.
He has two Legend Modes in the Xtreme Legends expansion. One he shares with Xiahou Dun, Dian Wei (Beau Billingslea/Fred Tatasciore/Kazuya Nakai), and Xu Zhu (Doug Stone/Jack Black/Takahiro Yoshimizu) To further his ambitions, Cao Cao leads an expedition to rescue the emperor from remnants of Dong Zhuo's army. With the young highness escorted to safety, Cao Cao designates himself as the emperor's new protector. He shares his second Legend Mode with Xiahou Yuan, Cao Ren and Zhang He (Yuri Lowenthal/Tony Daniels/Yoshiyuki Kono) as they band together against the Five Bushel Sect. Cao Cao has two goals he wants met in this battle. On one hand, he thinks the sect's teachings are preposterous and doesn't want a sham religion to proclaim to help the people. He also wants Yang Ping Gate subjugated as it impedes their march against Liu Bei in Hanzhong.
Dynasty Warriors 6 has Cao Cao start as a member of the Allied Forces. Although he is interested to end Dong Zhuo, his primary goal in the battle is to judge the other regional lords. He is the only one present who sets his eyes on the future and designates himself the land's hero as a result. To secure his lands, Cao Cao puts aside his fond memories of Yuan Shao and claims victory at Guandu. After winning victory against Liu Bei and Sun Quan at Chibi, the emperor congratulates his efforts and offers the throne to Cao Cao. The conqueror refuses, stating that he only wants to dedicate his efforts to creating the new future that he sees for the land. To do so, he is willing to sacrifice his body and soul for this vision. He then leads another march and claims Mt. Dingjun from the newly appointed king of Hanzhong, Liu Bei. Although he knows that Liu Bei is weakened, he remains weary of the former's ability to gain the people's trust and leaves Han Zhong in charge of his son.
With his forces keeping an eye on Liu Bei, Cao Cao decides to deal with Wu to bring a quicker end to the land's strife. Cao Ren struggles at Shi Ting and Cao Cao decides to personally reinforce his relative. Wu eventually falls in the wars and all that remains is Liu Bei. Deeming his final foe a worthy opponent, he wins the battle, and the new land he envisions is created. He decides to leave the fate of the land to the people. Cao Pi presumably assumes position as the new emperor and his generals protect the land's peace. Left with no other ambitions, Cao Cao removes himself from the capital and declares that he now walks the path of the heavens.
In Dynasty Warriors 7, Cao Cao begins his usual role of suppressing the Yellow Turbans Rebellion with his cousins. He desires to create a new world in which one's effort, not status, nourishes the land. Ignoring Yuan Shao's demands to eliminate the Ten Eunuchs as the Han Dynasty falls into decay, Cao Cao suspects Dong Zhuo to be the greater threat and is invited to Luoyang Castle. Using the opportunity to observe the tyrant for himself, Cao Cao refuses to help Dong Zhuo and stages a dramatic escape. He then joins Yuan Shao's coalition to rout Dong Zhuo. The lop-sided balance of power ends with the warlords disputing and Cao Cao low on men. Therefore, he decides to subjugate the remnant Yellow Turbans in Yan Province for himself, gaining Dian Wei and Xu Zhu in his command after compelling them with his resolve. Tao Qian aims to eliminate him at Xu Province, but Cao Cao's forces are too strong to topple.
His influence in the center is undeniable, which is instrumental for his right to house the emperor at Xuchang. Choosing to first deal with Zhang Xiu, he invades the area surrounding Wan Castle. Due to Jia Xu's (Vic Mignogna/Nolan North/Hideo Ishikawa) plot to feign a harmless surrender, Cao Cao and company are unknowingly trapped in an ambush at the castle. Cao Cao barely escapes the attack at the unfortunate cost of Dian Wei's life. Reuniting with his forces outside the castle, they lead a counteroffensive to drive Zhang Xiu into submission. Cao Cao personally corners Jia Xu and, though Xiahou Dun protests, decides to spare the man responsible for Dian Wei's death. While he compliments his new strategist's talents, he grimly warns Jia Xu to never double cross him. Soon after, Cao Cao and Liu Bei deal with Lu Bu at Xiapi.
After he orders Liu Bei to deal with Yuan Shu, Cao Cao learns the emperor had plotted an assassination for his life. He therefore confronts the emperor in person to learn the frightened man's intentions. Learning that the emperor is afraid of being killed by him, Cao Cao affirms his denial of the claim. A land without an emperor would cause the people to riot and render his ambitions meaningless. With the emperor left as his puppet to power, Cao Cao leads his army to conquer his former ally, Liu Bei, establishing Xu Province as his own. Uniting the north by defeating Yuan Shao, the common folk who fear Cao Cao follow Liu Bei's leadership. Demolishing Liu Bei's position in Jing Province, he orders that Liu Bei and the peasants be eliminated at Changban. He reasons that they have made their choice against his vision and are not worth of mercy.
He continues to pursue Liu Bei south and his navy suffers a deafening defeat at Chibi. Although heavily surrounded, Cao Cao escapes to safety. He inwardly feels unease by the losses he experienced and his uncertainties leak through at times, despite his will to suppress them for his ambition. After driving back Ma Chao's army, he seeks to take Hanzhong as his own and orders the majority of his army westward. Upon Xiahou Yuan's death, however, Cao Cao makes the hard choice of avoiding revenge and orders the withdraw from Mt. Dingjun. He does so in order to decimate Guan Yu's position in Jing Province, a man whose prowess stayed with Cao Cao as an impressive yet dangerous threat. With Guan Yu's death at Fan Castle, Cao Cao fortifies a strong future for Wei. Six months later, an ailing Cao Cao drops the pretense of living solely for his ambition. He speaks his honest thanks to Xiahou Dun, looks forward to reuniting with Dian Wei, and apologizes to Xiahou Yuan before he dies in bed.
Cao Cao's first Legendary Battle has him taking down Dong Zhuo before he can retreat to Xinyang. He fights through several officers blocking his path, including Lu Bu. In his second Legendary Battle, Cao Cao fights both Dong Zhuo and Yuan Shao to protect the emperor.
Dynasty Warriors Next has Cao Cao first appear as reinforcements near the end of the Yellow Turban Rebellion. His story begins in the second chapter as a part of the anti-Dong Zhuo coalition, seeking to gauge the threat of his future competition. After cutting down Dong Zhuo at Chang'an and assisting Yuan Shu's fall, he conquers the north and confronts Yuan Shao. He has Jia Xu soften the enemy assault before personally joining the front lines at Guandu. His general activities from the previous title are repeated up to Chibi.
His fate is decided by the scenario the player has chosen. Shu's final chapter has him mortally wounded by Liu Bei's army at Xuchang. Sun Quan spares him for his irreplaceable intelligence in Wu's scenario, and he swallows his pride to accept the offer. He and Liu Bei survive under Sun Quan's leadership. Lu Bu's chapter has him unite with the other warlords to eliminate Lu Bu and fail, perishing during his second attempt. Wei's scenario has him attack Shu after Guan Yu's death, Wu's retreat from Hefei, and Sima Yi's (Kyle Hebert/Cam Clarke/Tsuyoshi Takishita) strategies to weaken Shu take effect. He claims Chengdu as his own and personally defeats Sun Quan in honor of those who died for his cause. Despite achieving his unification, he ponders a future beyond his conquests. His soliloquy expresses his belief for every person to use their talents to find their purpose in life.
In the eighth installment, Cao Cao is first seen after his failed attempt to assassinate Dong Zhuo. Despite this setback, he manages to escape from Lu Bu and Dong Zhuo's generals with help from his cousins, Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan with a mysterious dancer's (Carrie Savage/Sabrina Carpenter/Rika Komatsu) help. He soon joins Yuan Shao's coalition to claim victory over Dong Zhuo. Cao Cao quickly abandons the alliance in search of talented followers and opportunities for conquest, first pacifying the remnants of the Yellow Turbans. Within a few months time, he protects the emperor's carriage and his forces provide him shelter. Cao Cao becomes the emperor's protector through his act, well aware of his lord's disdain for him. His major conquests from the seventh title occur again for the historical narrative, except Cao Cao leads a secondary campaign to dispatch the remaining members of Yuan family and he personally captures Xu Shu (Darrel Guilbeau/Jason Griffith/Atsushi Kisaichi) at Xinye. Cao Cao passes away off screen shortly after Fan Castle.
The hypothetical route has Dian Wei survive Wancheng, Guo Jia (Quinton Flynn/Ben Diskin/Junichi Miyake) recover from his illness, and Xu Shu join Cao Cao willingly to allow Cao Cao to foil the fire attack at Chibi. Shortly after his victory, he continues his march through Wu and obliterates the Sun Family. While Cao Cao was preoccupied by Sun Quan, Liu Bei conquers the western side of the country, and the two compete for supremacy. Their struggle ends at Baidi Castle. Cao Cao retires and lets his son lead in government affairs, leaving Xuchang with his cousins for other horizons.
In Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends, Cao Cao is one of the main antagonists in Lu Bu's story. The Hero of Chaos first appears at Hulao Gate to cut down Dong Zhuo personally after his strategist Chen Gong (Jason Wishnov/Scott Williams/Hiromu Miyazaki) tests the might of Lu Bu for himself. He appears again later on at Puyang, surprised by the assault and is forced to retreat. After regrouping his men, Cao Cao follows Guo Jia's advice and attacks the undermanned garrison of Dingtao. In the historical route, he wins the previous conflict and regains control of Yan Province. When tensions flare between Lu Bu and Liu Bei, his sends Xiahou Dun along with his other top officers to Xiaopei to assist the latter. In a short amount of time, his men corner the "beast" at Xiapi. With a combination of fire and water attacks on the castle, he captures Lu Bu along with Chen Gong and Zhang Liao (Roger Craig Smith/Mick Wingert/Hirofumi Tanaka) while deciding to ignore Lu Bu's daughter (Lauren Landa/Karen Neill/Hiroko Ushida) and lets her escape. Cao Cao decides to ask them their thoughts on strength to determine their fate and executes his former officer, hire Zhang Liao, and cuts down Lu Bu himself. Noting his wildness to the end he says farewell to "the beast of the chaos".
In the hypothetical route, he loses at Dingtao facing Liu Bei and Yuan Shao's intervention on behalf of Diaochan. Cao Cao is forced to abandon Yan Province altogether and attacks Liu Bei at Xu Province to restore his power base. After losing once more, he is forced to work together with the other warlords by sending reinforcements to his old friend at Guandu, and gather whats left of his army to defend Chang'an with Yuan Shao, Sun Ce (Yuri Lowenthal/Josh Keaton/Takahiro Kawachi), Liu Bei, and the remnants of Dong Zhuo's army. As Lu Bu and his men approach the north-east corner, the Hero of Chaos will try to stop him, only to fall in battle with the other defenders.
Cao Cao is playable in two of Wei's Xtreme Legend stages. In the first one, he works with Dian Wei and Guo Jia to rescue Xiahou Yuan's regiment as well as drive back Zhuge Liang from Hanzhong in "Mt. Dingjun Rescue Mission". In the second one, he appears with Xiahou Dun and Yu Jin (Josh Tomar/TBD/Atsushi Miyauchi) defeat Guan Yu and his allies in "Pacification Of Jing Province". After the battle, the Shu and Wu get seriously weakened; allowing Cao Cao to end the chaos and celebrates with his men. Noticing Yu Jin by himself, he goes over to tell him that its okay to relax every now or then. Cao Cao praises the veteran for being at his side for so long.
During Wu's expanded storyline, Cao Cao will appear at Shouchun, fresh from his victory at Guandu being attacked by Sun Jian (James Babson/Peter Cullen/Yasuhiko Tokuyama). During the battle, he will abandon his castle to charge at the allied main camp. He later appears at Runan opposing Yuan Shu's advance. At Lujiang, he is victorious at Chibi, and attempts to pursue the scattered Sun forces. He also appears to reinforce Liu Cong at Xiangyang. In Shu's storyline, Cao Cao reprises his role at the altered Changban, and is present in his final confrontation with Liu Bei at the Wuzhang Plains.
In Dynasty Warriors: Unleashed, Cao Cao first appears in Luoyang surrounded by enemy troops due to his failed attempt to assassinate Dong Zhuo. Though aided by Liu Bei's party, he still ends up becoming a recurring antagonist starting in the Xuzhou campaign.
The first Wei-focused scenario has Cao Cao suffering heavy losses from Dong Zhuo's forces while taking an arrow injury during his escape. He is only saved thanks the efforts of Cao Hong and the player. Disgusted by the Alliance's indulgent celebrations, he decides to take matters into his own hands by recruiting more troops from Yangzhou and eradicating bandits to earn the trust of the people. His campaign against Yuan Shao is repeated, though he takes considerable efforts to oust Liu Bei from Xiapi with great haste to prevent any distractions.
Cao Cao's bond story starts off with him being given a promising assessment from Xu Shao. Having become a savvy administrator and heroic warlord in his own right, he also sees promise in Cao Pi whose growing skills he praises through poetry. But despite the many achievements he accomplished, his one regret is not recruiting the doomed Guan Yu to his side.
In Dynasty Warriors 9, Cao Cao begins humbly as a minor official called to fight the Yellow Turbans. Sensing further chaos from the fighting, Cao Cao witnesses the dilapidation of the imperial court at Dong Zhuo's hands and attempts to assassinate him. When the attempt fails thanks to Lu Bu coming to his adopted father's aid, he simply joins Yuan Shao's call-to-arms against Dong Zhuo. Returning to his home village to recruit his new officers and family members, Cao Cao is also surprised by the arrival of Cao Xiu, who had travelled several miles to join his uncle's army.
Though they are victorious, Luoyang was in flames, the emperor was in Chang'an, the Imperial Seal lost, and Dong Zhuo already dead at Lu Bu's hands. With nothing left to do, Cao Cao and the rest of the warlords left for their respective domains. Gaining the services of multiple strategists, Cao Cao attacks Tao Qian to take Xu Province in revenge for his father's murder by one of Tao Qian's subordinates. Though he slays the governor, Lu Bu's attack on Yan Province spells the end for the campaign, and Cao Cao returns to retake his lost cities from the Demon of Chaos.
Beginning his claim for the central plains, Cao Cao decides to rescue Emperor Xian from the remnants of Dong Zhuo's forces and warding off other would-be caretakers in Chang'an. When the emperor declares Xuchang as the new capital, Cao Cao allies himself with other warlords to eliminate Lu Bu and Yuan Shu to prepare for the upcoming showdown against Yuan Shao at Guandu. Due to having the emperor under his grasp and a more massive army, Zhang Xiu submits to Cao Cao and invites the warlord to his domain at Wan Castle. As soon as the warlord arrives, it is revealed to be an ambush by Zhang Xiu's forces, but Dian Wei's sudden intrusion allows Cao Cao to escape with his life. Once Zhang Xiu is defeated, Zhang Xiu's strategist, Jia Xu, is allowed to join Cao Cao's forces. To his sudden sadness, Cao Cao learns that Dian Wei has passed away to his injuries.
Pushing on, Cao Cao prevails over Lu Bu at Xiapi and eliminates Yuan Shu at Shouchun in order to pave the way to his confrontation with Yuan Shao. Although outnumbered, the superior quality of Cao Cao's army allows them to prevail over the disadvantage, and Cao Cao becomes the undisputed power of the north. Turning his attention south, Cao Cao proceeds to attack Liu Bei and clashes with him at both Bowanpo and Xinye before Liu Bei flees to Sun Quan of Wu. Content to face the alliance, Cao Cao prepares a fleet and heads south to fight his foes at Wulin.
With his southern campaign failing at Chibi after his naval forces are wiped out by the Liu-Sun alliance's fire attack, Cao Cao has his troops abandon Nanjun to Guan Yu in order to create a rift between their enemies. To aggravate secret dissidents, Cao Cao then declares himself King of Wei, and Ma Teng of Liang Province launches a rebellion against he warlord at Xuchang. Cao Cao, however, is assisted by Cao Xiu and stops the rebellion, killing Ma Teng in the process.
Moving west to defeat the remaining resistance under Ma Chao at Tong Gate, Cao Cao secures Liang Province and takes Hanzhong from Zhang Lu. Negotiating with Sun Quan in private at Ruxukou to cease his alliance with Liu Bei, Cao Cao intentionally gives up Hanzhong to Liu Bei in order to make Guan Yu leave Jing. True to his plan, Guan Yu is killed thanks to the sudden betrayal by Wu when the God of War attempts to capture Fan Castle to secure a clear path from Jing Province to Xuchang and the Central Plains.
Preparing orders that the men are not to mobilize in the case Liu Bei would attack Wu in revenge for the loss of Guan Yu and Jing Province, Cao Cao agrees to Xiahou Dun's request to rest, though he only promises to do so after writing one more set of orders. Shortly after, Cao Cao quietly passes away, but his final orders are issued: That the men and officials not leave their posts and that he not be mourned traditionally and publicly. While many of the remaining officers respect Cao Cao's wish, Xiahou Dun, in a surprising act of defiance, orders his men to pay respects while asking for his cousin's forgiveness.
In Orochi's scenario, Cao Cao leads one of the main forces who initially opposed the snake demon (David Kaye/TBD/Ryotaro Okiayu). At Yiling, his army does well until they're bombarded by cannon fire, something that the men of Wei have never seen before. Quick to overcome the shock, he counters with a fire attack. Despite his efforts, he is defeated and wounded to the point of a coma. Dian Wei carries him off to safety and hides from the public eye. Since many reports said that he died, Cao Pi becomes Wei's ruler in his absence.
In Warriors Orochi, he triumphantly returns to reinforce his son's army at Yamazaki in Wei's story mode. Though he is reinstated as Wei's ruler, he lets Cao Pi be the commander in their final attack against Orochi.
Cao Cao resumes his role as Wei's leader in Warriors Orochi 2, joined by the Mystic, Nuwa (Jennifer Hale/TBD/Yuki Makishima). The latter decides to test Cao Cao's might and keeps quiet about the otherworldly events, including the Sun Wukong-led enemy (Yuri Lowenthal/TBD/Rikiya Koyama) army at Si Province. After defeating Lu Bu at Sishui Gate, Cao Cao, who had seen through Nu Wa's charade, demands an explanation, and she reveals that Da Ji (Stephanie Sheh/TBD/Mami Kingetsu) was planning to resurrect Orochi, prompting the Hero of Chaos to look to merge his forces with other factions.
As the war progresses, Nu Wa finds herself surprised how Cao Cao is able to turn any against-the-odds battle into a gain and opportunity. She fears if ever he would stray from the correct path, furthered by the straightforward words of Da Ji, who herself was scared that Nu Wa would not be able to stop Cao Cao.
After the battle at Tong Gate, he formally establishes and alliance with Nobunaga (Christopher Corey Smith/Frank Welker/Jurota Kosugi) and the pair launch a joint attack on Orochi X at Guandu. After reinforcements from both Wu and Shu arrive, Cao Cao's army finally slays the Serpent King. While Yuan Shao hosts a banquet for their success, Cao Cao remains with Nobunaga and Nuwa, and he sarcastically asks the mystic if she is still concerned if the world would be in danger.
Cao Cao shares his dream mode with the other Three Kingdoms rulers as they challenge the Three Unifiers of Japan at Osaka Castle. He also appears in another dream stage alongside Guan Yu and Mitsuhide (Vic Mignogna/Mark Hamill/Hikaru Midorikawa) to test their respective offsprings in battle.
After Orochi's second defeat, Cao Cao wanted to unify the land under his country's name in the original timeline of Warriors Orochi 3. He once fought against Nobunaga for control but, during their power struggle, their forces were scattered and obliterated by Hydra and the serpent army. When the coalition return to Da Ji's past, Cao Cao's forces blocks their advance to Chengdu with a staunch defense at Fan Castle. Cao Cao and company oppose them on the assumption that they are obediently following Da Ji.
Although Ma Chao desires to avenge his slain clan when Cao Cao is defeated, the general spares him for the sake of saving the dimensional world's future. Convinced by the act of mercy, Cao Cao repays them by joining their cause. He later leads their army to reinforce Liu Bei and Ieyasu (Dave Mallow/Samuel L. Jackson/Jouji Nakata) at Chengdu.
Still a major warlord after the Hydra's defeat in Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate, Cao Cao personally leads Wei in order to continue furthering the pressure against former Orochi associates. He fends off against Ma Chao at Tetorigawa, while the latter is being misled by a duplicate of Nagamasa (Darrel Guilbeau/David Kaye/Hiroshi Kamiya). Seeing a new development of events, Cao Cao leads his forces to Mt. Niutou where Pang Tong (Richard Cansino/Frank Oz/Takahiro Kawachi) is being attacked by demons. To his surprise, Pang Tong directs the Shu reinforcements sent to rescue him against the Wei forces. When it's revealed that Pang Tong was also a fake, Cao Cao agrees to provide his forces to help stop Tamamo (Julie Ann Taylor/TBD/Yuka Komatsu). After Kyubi's (Alexis Tipton/TBD/Yuka Komatsu) final defeat and being returned to their world, he listens to Cao Pi and Guo Jia's comments on their latest "dream".
Cao Cao arrived late into the parallel world at Warriors Orochi 4, being transported alongside Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan and Xun Yu. Not long after their arrival do they find themselves wedged inside a battle between Ares' (Crispin Freeman/TBD/Makoto Furukawa) army and Lu Bu's. Fortunately, reinforcements from Liu Bei arrive, and two are able to repel both armies. As a result, Cao Cao takes his forces to join the Coalition.
Hoping to figure out his son's reasons for aiding Ares, Cao Cao, along Mitsunari (Wally Wingert/TBD/Eiji Takemoto) and the rest of Toyotomi (Brian Beacock/Eric Idle/Hideo Ishikawa) armies attacks his son at his castle. Breaking the defenders by his sudden arrival, Cao Cao receives his son's hidden letter, revealing the key to destroying the barriers protecting Zeus (Richard Epcar/TBD/Takashi Matsuyama).
He also leaves on a journey with Xun Yu to investigate the appearance of a large man with white hair, and a handsome, gentle man. Luring Guo Jia out with Oichi (Tara Platt/Cree Summer/Ai Maeda) and a jar of wine, Cao Cao defeats Pang De's (Keith Silverstein/Brian Drummond/Masakazu Morita) men and welcomes his strategist back to his side.
He also participate in final battle against Odin (Crispin Freeman/TBD/Sota Arai), with Liu Bei, Hideyoshi, Shingen (R. Bruce Elliott/Fred Tatasciore/Ryuzaburo Otomo R.I.P. Daisuke Gori), Zeus' army and bracelet wielders in order to destroy Yggdrasil.
During one of the DLC scenarios, Cao Cao and Motonari (Keith Silverstein/TBD/Hideo Ishikawa) learn of Yoshitsune Minamoto (Jeremy Kent Jackson/TBD/Yusei Oda) splitting from Odin's army to duel Kiyomori Taira (Dave B. Mitchell/TBD/Ryuzaburo Otomo), and assist the warrior in his quest. He also appears in a mock battle between the heroes of the Three Kingdoms against the heroes of the Warring States, leading the Chinese forces at Osaka alongside Zhuge Liang (Lex Lang/Phil LaMarr/Masaya Onosaka). After his forces are defeated, Kiyomori appears to try and attack the exhausted japanese forces, but Cao Cao leads his allies to return and rescue the other Coalition members.
In the final side story of Ultimate, Cao Cao is among the warlords called by Gaia (Tara Strong/TBD/Saori Hayami) for a farewell battle against the Gods before the humans return to their own worlds.
And he is reprised by Douglas Rye in the English dub and Yukimasa Hoshino in the Japanese dub.