The Fire Emblem series rules.

From the mainline tactical RPGs, to the mobile cutdown Tactical RPG, to the cheesy spinoff Warriors games, I love this franchise.

As such I am always pumped when a new game is released, and so 2023 is starting with a bang thanks to Fire Emblem Engage.

Fire Emblem Engage starts on a weird note.

The opening cutscenes throw us into a battle where our new protagonist is in a massive battle. Alongside her are a bunch of allies including ghostly looking versions of protagonists from previous entries in the series. It culminates in a battle with our protagonist Alear, who is a divine dragon, and the big bad Fell Dragon. Here we go through a basic battle to introduce us to the game’s mechanics including the new Engage function.

More on that later.

The battle happens and Alear falls asleep. 1000 years later she wakes up to find some people have been keeping watch over her for generations. I won’t go too much more into the plot, because well there isn’t too much more.

In short, the Fell Dragon is awakened and so Alear has to stop it.

To do this she needs to visit all the kingdoms, collect all the Emblems, and battle the big baddie. The plot is relatively thin, but to be honest that’s totally fine with me. The story is just interesting enough to get you through the story, but the supporting characters are awesome to learn more about, and I’m here more for the battles.

Speaking of battles, Fire Emblem Engage has still got it. For newbies to the series / tactical RPG genre, basically the battle is set on a grid. Each character can move so many spots in a turn, and if in range of an enemy you can attack them.

Once everyone on your side has had a turn, the enemy’s troops get their turn, and you back and forth until the battle is finished. There are nuances like abilities that characters can use on troops positioned by them, and sometimes they can even help with attacks depending on their placement on the field. This core gameplay has been perfected with the series and they don’t deviate from what is fun about the game.

What is new is the aforementioned Engage mechanic. Basically you earn Emblem rings throughout the game.

Equipping this to one of your troops gives them a boost in stats and some help with fighting. During a turn you can even get them to Engage with the Emblem which merges them into a new look with some new abilities. Your character may be able to travel further, use a different attack / spell, or even use their ability to do a more powerful move.

This has a bar that depletes as you use it, and can be filled up throughout the battle. It’s the kind of mechanic that is perfect for a game like Fire Emblem Engage, where it’s new, but fits the old mechanics so naturally.

On top of this the game is an absolute looker. Fire Emblem has for a long time pulled away from the battle scene to show a little battle animation which has been getting more awesome as the series has progressed. They have taken a step up here with the occasional attack including showing the character moving through the scenery which is a minor thing but really adds to the vibes.

The beautiful anime scenery, characters, and animations are a real treat, both in handheld and on my big TV.

If you pick up the expansion pass it initially comes with some handy items, but also some new Emblems. To not mess with the number of Emblem rings in the story they are presented as Emblem bracelets. The initial release gives you one for the characters from the Three Houses with a neat little mechanic where as the fight goes it changes which house head will be selected until you engage which locks one in. The other bracelet is for the series icon Tiki, where you need to go battle here to earn her bracelet, and when in use you can transform your character into her dragon form. There are more bracelets incoming in later releases as well as some story DLC.

Fire Emblem Engage may not have the best story, but holy crap it is a fun game.

The use of old characters as Emblems gives the right balance of fan service, without alienating new fans. You don’t have to know who these characters were in their respective games, some I didn’t even know, but it’s an added slice of awesome for older fans.

It is everything I needed from a new Fire Emblem game, jump in!

The post Fire Emblem Engage (Nintendo Switch) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

The Warriors spin off games are amazing.

Fire Emblem Warriors was an absolute blast of fandom by giving you heaps of franchise favourites and letting you hack and slash your way through enemies.

After Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity expanded on the Breath of the Wild universe we discovered that they can actually be a great way to tell a side story. Now Fire Emblem: Three Houses is getting the Warriors side story treatment with Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes.

The story kicks off with Shez, our new protagonist, on the battlefield. You choose if it is male or female Shez, and they are trying to take out the big bag ashen demon. The Ashen Demon is our old friend, the protagonist of Three Houses, Byleth.  Immediately it should be clear that having played Three Houses is going to be of massive benefit here.  Shez gets her ass kicked, but in doing so unleashes a heap of power she didn’t know she had.

A bit of plot later and Shez is on the hunt for Jeralt and Byleth, and she comes across our old friends, the leaders from Three Houses.

Then we wind up with this kind of alternative history type of story. Shez makes her way to Garreg Mach where you meet all the same classmates from the original game and you follow this new story.

I won’t touch the story too much because it is worth enjoying it for yourself, as it has some good twists and turns.

If you are a fan of Warriors games, but haven’t played Three Houses, then there may be some bits that will be quite different for you.

The biggest is the amount of talking to people you will do.  Lifted straight from the previous game you will talk to a lot of your classmates, and saying the right things will build your relationship with them. This has a massive impact on their development so like with Three Houses,  it is an important part of the game. Some of the writing is a bit… below average, but the general plot is pretty good.  The voice acting is very good though, so you win some and you lose some.

If you have played a Warriors game before, then when it comes to gameplay you basically know what to expect. If you haven’t, the missions basically drop you onto a massive battlefield. You get missions as the level progresses which generally involves going to this location and killing the enemies there, or defending this point against an inbound enemy. These missions come hard and fast in the game and you need to keep on top of them by sending units to complete tasks while you also get down and into the action.

The biggest hook for the games outside of that is the absolutely massive fields of enemies you will mow down with the slash of a sword. Major enemies like fort leaders take a few hits, but as the battlefield grows you wind up slashing at dozens of enemies at a time flinging them in the air. One of the most addictive parts of the game is trying to get the combo counter up, which can get into the thousands.

It is so damn satisfying.

The game looks incredible too. That beautiful style and character design has been lifted and enhanced from Three houses.

The Warriors games have generally been pretty resource intensive and can chug like crazy on Switch. I mean it has to animate heaps of bodies being slashed into the air at once so I am not surprised. Age of Calamity was pretty good when it came to performance, and Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes has run surprisingly well.  It really only chugged 2 or 2 times the whole time I played it which is impressive.

Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes really is a Warriors game for Fire Emblem fans.

The massive amount of conversations and relationship building may be a shock to people who haven’t experienced Fire Emblem. But for Fire Emblem: Three Houses fans, this is a banger for you. Check it out.

The post Fire Emblem Warriors : Three Hopes (Switch) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

Like many in the west, I fell in love with Fire Emblem when Fire Emblem Awakening landed on the 3DS. Its strategy RPG combat was refined to perfection, with animations and characters that weren’t totally original by anime standards, but again so well put together that it had me glued to my 3DS for 80+ hours. Then with Fire Emblem Fates and Fire Emblem: Echos also being outstanding entries, it has quickly become a fan favourite series.

Now its first entry on the Switch with Fire Emblem: Three Houses is here with some significant changes, leaving us questioning whether it will hold up to fans of the series past.

Fire Emblem: Three Houses kicks off like previous games with you choosing the gender of the protagonist, in this case Byleth, before it throws you some story beats that make little to no sense. You are spoken to by a mysterious green haired woman and find yourself soon on a battlefield that fans of the series will recognise. Byleth is a mercenary with her father and after a battle they venture to a massive monastery that her father has a past with.

The weirdness escalated quickly as Byleth, who has little knowledge of the monastery, is made into a professor at the monastery’s school and needs to choose a house to lead. The three houses represent three kingdoms who used to be at war but are now in peace time but each of the houses have a leader who are all royals at their kingdoms. Once a house is chosen you are kicked into the meat of the game.

If you watched any of the pre-release footage you will know that the intro of the game is the time at the school before something triggers a war between the kingdoms, what I didn’t expect was the massive amount of time you dedicate to the school time. I was well past 30 hours of play while still at the school phase of the game as you spend your time training your class and trying to recruit other students to your class.

That’s not to say that the plot for this time is slow, a lot happens in the story during the school year, and nearer to the end of your time there the plot goes off the rails in a way that can be best described as fantastically Fire Emblem. I won’t touch on the plot anymore because you should get ready to enjoy the hell out of the game in the same way I enjoyed it.

The biggest change to the game from the series is the significant amount of time you will spend managing your time out of battles. Every week you get a series of options, go for some battles, explore the monastery, or give your students a lecture. Going for battles is the most fun portion of the game, but the only benefit is leveling your students up with experience, a lecture on the other hand gives significant boosts to yours and your students skills. The biggest time burn is free roaming around the monastery.

This allows you to interact with all the students as well as boosting Byleth’s skill and professor level. Completing little missions’ gets you some goodwill and items, as well as some side tasks like fishing or gardening. This is an excellent way to increase your bonds with students and to try convincing other students to join your class.

Recruiting students requires Byleth to increase their skills in areas that the student likes. I wasted a lot of my activity points spreading my points too thin hoping to grab all the students I wanted, which cost me in the end as I couldn’t max out as many skills as if I had smashed one at a time. Not knowing how close to getting a student you were was an annoying quirk that made using that time feel wasted far too often.

The real meat of the game that fans will be in for is those sweet battles.

As with previous games it is based on a grid and operates, well pretty much the same as previous games. The beautiful anime design of the characters has followed through with wonderful animations to replace the classic sprites from previous entries, so overall it plays like a classic Fire Emblem game and looks like a beautiful 2019 quality game.

Once you adjust to the new tasks which initially feel like busy work, this does make for an amazing new title into the Fire Emblem series. The battles feel as great as ever and look amazing with a story starting off at a decent pace which escalates massively with interesting characters throughout.

Fire Emblem: Three Houses is an excellent evolution for the series while keeping its core as amazing as ever.

The post Fire Emblem: Three Houses (Switch) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

Hacking and slashing what feels like million hapless goons has been the order of the day for the Warriors franchise for as long as I can remember. Loud and brash, from the outside and without playing it, the genre it always seemed fairly repetitious to the point of boredom. But then Nintendo announced an unexpected partnership between the Warriors (or musou) and Legend of Zelda franchise. Starved for games for my Wii U I bought it out of curiosity. It was a strange game to be sure, but somehow the unholy mix worked. Sure the resolution and framerate left much to be desired, but Hyrule Warriors gained a cult following amongst Nintendo diehards.

Spurred on by Hyrule Warriors’ success (including a 3DS port), Nintendo have melded together another core franchise with the venerable hack and slash genre, and it may be somewhat surprising: Fire Emblem. The series, known for its careful tactical combat and nuptial matchmaking, now finds its feet as a faster, less careful game. At first the two series seem antithetical to each other, but through a series of small and larger changes to the standard musou formula, the developers have brought together chocolate and cheese to create a tasty treat for owners of the Nintendo Switch (and Nintendo 3DS, though only the Switch version has been reviewed here).

Most of your time with Fire Emblem Warriors will be spent the same as with any other Warriors title – button mashing ridiculous looking attacks, capturing enemy forts and taking out special units, including occasional bosses. If you’ve played five minutes of any other Warriors game then you’ll be right at home here. And whether you like it or not will be nearly entirely up to you. I know many people can’t stand it, but for me it’s almost a relaxing and cathartic time when I pick up the controller. When played for hours in a row, yes, it can become repetitive, but it was great for a pick up title between other, more serious games.

Outside the gameplay itself there’s also the usual weapon and ability upgrade system, based almost entirely off the loot you’ve picked up from enemies defeated in-game. Amiibo support returns in the same way as Hyrule Warriors – that is, scan up to five amiibo per day to receive a weapon that can then be equipped or used as upgrade material.

So far, so standard. But the developers Omega Force and Team Ninja have pulled in some of the tactical gameplay for which Fire Emblems is renowned. As in other Warriors games, you can have multiple playable characters on the battlefield. But now you have fine-grained controls over what they do at all times. Send them to capture forts, defeat certain enemies or guard areas and they will comply rather quickly. Alongside the introduction of Fire Emblem’s weapon triangle, it adds a new strategic dimension to the gameplay. And while it does tend to break up the flow of battle, it does make it significantly more interesting.

The Switch version of the game offers two modes – quality and performance. Quality Mode aims for 1080p and 30fps or you can choose 720p and “60fps” in Performance Mode, though it often seemed to fall far from that number. Split screen local co-op makes a welcome return, though basically requires you to use the performance option to maintain a playable frame-rate. While it’s an improvement over the abysmal performance of Hyrule Warriors on the Wii U, it’s still disappointing to see such low frame-rates on the system. At least we have the option now to try for a higher frame rate at the expense of visual quality. There has been an overall trend towards more graphic settings in console games, and for me it’s a welcome addition.

Let’s face it, Fire Emblem Warriors is more similar than dissimilar to other Warriors games. But while it doesn’t completely reinvent the franchise, and retains the old game engine from Dynasty Warriors 8 rather than the current-generation engine being developed for Dynasty Warriors 9, it does add enough new flavouring to keep this old dish fresh. And as a portable Warriors game it’s far above the 3DS or Vita versions. It further fleshes out the Switch’s offerings, which apart from racing are now fairly complete. If you aren’t a fan of Warriors games I don’t think this new entry offers enough new to bring you in unless you’re a Fire Emblems devotee, but for those familiar and engaged by it, Fire Emblem Warriors is a fantastic new addition that mashes all the right buttons.

The post Fire Emblem Warriors (Switch) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

When the continent of Valentia is in the mire of civil war and destruction, its only hopes are two long-lost childhood friends, who must gather allies, reunite, and bring peace back to the realm in Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, releasing today on Nintendo 3DS and 2DS. This re-envisioning of the previously Japan-only Fire Emblem Gaiden brings the classic strategy RPG to Australia and New Zealand for the first time, remade, remastered, and with more content than before.

Following the release of the free-to-start Fire Emblem Heroes for smart devices, Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia sees players take control of the two separate armies of Alm and Celica, as they each aim to bring peace to the continent of Valentia. The game also boasts expanded story content thanks to new heroes to recruit, new villains to oppose, and a new playable prologue that explores the previously unknown history between Alm and Celica. All character dialogue for the main story is now fully voiced in English, while animated cutscenes from movie animators Studio Khara bring the story to new life.

Battles in the Fire Emblem series see players take their small force of recruited soldiers and oppose increasingly powerful enemies in turn-based combat that requires careful tactical planning, as unsuccessful or missed attacks make units vulnerable to attack. Should a unit be cut down in the midst of battle in Fire Emblem’s traditional Classic Mode, they’ll either become too injured to ever return to the battlefield, or will be fatally wounded. Anyone who yearns for defeat to be temporary can play through in Casual Mode, which allows fallen allies to be revived after each battle, allowing for more comfortable story progression. In a new addition to the series, Mila’s Turnwheel will allow would-be strategists to go further by rewinding their last few turns, giving them a chance to reconsider their next strategic move and reverse any major tactical errors.

Another first for the series comes with Alm and Celica’s ability to freely explore dungeons and caves in three dimensions, allowing them to see enemies before battle and escape potentially dangerous conflicts, or make a pre-emptive strike to reduce their foe’s health for the ensuing conflict. Each dungeon also contains a Mila’s Statue, allowing characters to be promoted or their class changed, while some contain Sacred Springs that can grant heroes with permanent stat increases.

Players may also use the Alm and Celica amiibo figures available now to unlock an exclusive dungeon each, allowing heroes to earn items and level up their armies further by defeating bosses. During combat, players can also sacrifice some of Alm or Celica’s health to summon a temporary computer-controlled ally known as an Illusory Hero using either their respective amiibo, or Fire Emblem characters from the Super Smash Bros.

In the coming weeks, players will also be able to expand their adventure further with five major downloadable content packs. The Rise of the Deliverance Pack allows players to explore the previously-untold history of Valentia, complete with brand new prologue story content, new voice-acting, and the ability to take command of a character players can’t control in the main game, while the Lost Altars Pack includes ten unique, mysterious Altars that allow heroes to be upgraded to new, exclusive classes. Additionally, the Cipher Companions Pack allows players to recruit four new heroes from Fire Emblem Cipher, the popular Japanese trading card game, while the other packs offer opportunities to strengthen their characters and earn in-game money and items.

Reunite childhood friends and restore peace to a warring continent in Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, out now for Nintendo 3DS family systems. A Limited Edition containing the game with reversible titlesheet, an artbook, metal pixel pin badges of Alm, Celica, and Marth and the Sound Selection CD is also available. The Alm and Celica amiibo are out now.

The post REUNITE CHILDHOOD FRIENDS AND RESTORE PEACE TO A WARRING CONTINENT appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

When civil war threatens to bring destruction to the realm, long-lost childhood friends with secret pasts must gather forces, reunite, and bring peace to the continent when Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia launches on Nintendo 3DS on the 20th of May 2017. Remade, remastered, and releasing outside of Japan for the first time, this reimagining of Fire Emblem Gaiden provides Australian and New Zealand players with a brand new Fire Emblem adventure with a revered past.

This game is the latest in the long-running and growing strategy RPG series, and comes hot on the heels of the recently released free-to-start title Fire Emblem Heroes on smart devices. Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia will see players take control of the two separate armies of Alm and Celica as their differing quests attempt to achieve the unified goal of bringing peace to the land of Valentia. Battles in the Fire Emblem series see players take their small force of recruited soldiers against increasingly powerful armies in turn-based battles that require careful tactical planning, as mistakes or failed attacks will see units become exposed and vulnerable to enemy attack.

Should a unit be cut down in the midst of battle in Fire Emblem’s traditional Classic Mode, they’ll either become too injured to ever return to the battlefield, or will be fatally wounded. In Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, players can use Mila’s Turnwheel to rewind the player’s last few turns, giving them a chance to reverse tactical errors and reconsider their next strategic move. Should players not wish defeat to be permanent, they can play through the game in Casual Mode, which allows fallen allies to be revived after each battle, letting players progress through the story more comfortably.

Players will also be able to enjoy expanded story content to propel them further into the intertwining adventures of Alm and Celica, including new recruitable heroes, new villains to defeat, and a new prologue that explores the previously hidden history of Alm and Celica. For the first time in the Fire Emblem series, all character dialogue for main story scenes is fully voiced in English, while beautifully animated cutscenes from movie animators Studio Khara will allow budding tacticians to soak in the story as never before.

In another first for the Fire Emblem series Alm and Celica can freely explore caves and dungeons in three dimensions, allowing them to see enemies before battle: players can gain a vital advantage by attacking enemies in these areas, causing them to begin the conflict with reduced health. Inside each dungeon is a Mila’s Statue, which can be used to promote characters and change their class, while some contain Sacred Springs, which can grant heroes with permanent stat increases.

When it launches on the 20th of May, Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia will be available as a solus game and special Limited Edition, featuring the packaged game with reversible titlesheet, an artbook, metal pixel pin badges of Alm, Celica, and Marth and the Sound Selection CD. The Limited Edition will launch exclusively via EB Games Australia and New Zealand for SRP AU$99.95. Also launching on the the same day are the Alm and Celica amiibo figures. When used, these amiibo will each activate their own exclusive dungeon, allowing heroes to earn items and level up their armies further by defeating bosses.

By selecting Mila’s Turnwheel from the menu on the overworld map, players will also be able to activate their Alm and Celica amiibo to use in battle. During combat, players can sacrifice a portion of Alm or Celica’s health in order to summon a computer-controlled Illusory Hero, which will act as a temporary ally for a single turn. As Alm and Celica get stronger, their stats can be saved to their respective amiibo, allowing their Phantom Helper to grow in strength alongside them.

In addition, amiibo of Marth, Roy, Ike, Robin, Lucina, and even the upcoming Corrin amiibo can be used to summon an Illusory Hero of that character, allowing players to seek assistance from spectral visages. All other currently available amiibo are also compatible, and will summon an additional monster to the battleground to assist players on the battlefield, proving some much needed help in case of a strategic emergency.

The fate of a continent is in your hands when Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia releases!

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The post THE FATE OF A CONTINENT IS IN YOUR HANDS… appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

Today’s launch of the Nintendo Switch video game console means that home console-quality gaming is no longer tethered exclusively to the living room TV. Nintendo Switch lets players enjoy their favourite games anytime, anywhere and with anyone. It comes in two colour options: a version with a set of grey Joy-Con controllers, and a version with one neon blue and one neon red Joy-Con controller.

Nintendo Switch connects to a TV at home and can instantly transform into an on-the-go handheld using its 6.2-inch high-definition screen. The screen includes capacitive multi-touch capabilities for compatible games. The left Joy-Con has a Capture Button that players can press to take instant screenshots of gameplay to share with friends on their social media pages. The right Joy-Con includes an NFC touchpoint for interaction with amiibo figures, as well as an IR Motion Camera that can approximate the distance, shape and motion of nearby objects in specially designed games. Both Joy-Con include motion controls and an advanced HD rumble feature. The Nintendo Switch Pro Controller, sold separately, includes all the same features (minus the IR Motion Camera) and comes in a more traditional form factor.

Today also marks the launch of the first epic Nintendo Switch game, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which breaks new boundaries while honouring the origins of the acclaimed series. The game is available for both Nintendo Switch and Wii U. New compatible amiibo launching today for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild include Link (Rider), Link (Archer), Zelda, and a Bokoblin amiibo. A massive new Guardian amiibo is also available today.

Also launching today is the head-to-head party game 1-2-Switch. From Wild West gunslinging to safecracking to competitive cow-milking, the 28 games in 1-2-Switch make creative use of a broad variety of Joy-Con features, such as motion controls, HD rumble and the IR Motion Camera. In a video game twist, the game asks players to look at each other instead of at the TV, creating a fun atmosphere that will liven up any party.

But today is just the start. A steady supply of games will arrive for Nintendo Switch throughout the rest of the year. Other first-party Nintendo Switch games on the horizon include Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (28th April 2017), ARMS (autumn), Splatoon 2 (winter), Fire Emblem Warriors (spring), Super Mario Odyssey (the 2017 holiday season) and Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (2017).

Nintendo eShop, Nintendo’s online storefront for downloadable games, will also be available from launch day. Both The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and 1-2-Switch are available for purchase and download today.

Also available on Nintendo eShop today is Snipperclips – Cut it out, together!, exclusive to Nintendo eShop. Two players cut their paper characters into new shapes to solve dynamic puzzles in a wonderfully creative and imaginative world. Nintendo eShop also provides access to a constantly updated library of great games from independent developers and publishers. Some of the games available for purchase today include FAST RMX from Shin’en Multimedia, and both Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment and Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove from Yacht Club Games.

Nintendo Switch is supported by world-class third-party publishers, including Activision Publishing Inc., Electronic Arts, Take-Two Interactive, Ubisoft, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and major Japanese publishers. Some publishers, such as Bethesda Softworks, are joining Nintendo for the first time. Third-party launch titles include Skylanders Imaginators, Just Dance 2017 and Super Bomberman R, plus players can look forward to major franchises on Nintendo Switch such as EA SPORTS FIFA, The Elder Scrolls, NBA 2K, Minecraft, Sonic the Hedgehog and Street Fighter, with Ultra Street Fighter II: The Final Challengers releasing on May 26th, 2017. Nintendo Switch software is not region locked.

Nintendo Switch comes packaged with the main console, Joy-Con (L) and Joy-Con (R) controllers, a Joy-Con grip (to which two Joy-Con are attached and used as one controller), a set of Joy-Con straps, a Nintendo Switch dock (which holds the main console and connects it to a TV), a HDMI cable and an AC adapter.

The post Nintendo Switch is Here! appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

I greatly enjoyed Fire Emblem: Awakening and so getting my hands on the next installment, Fire Emblem: Fates had me more than excited. This afore mentioned tactical role playing held my imagination and interest in the past and I’m happy to say it does so again.

Fire Emblem: Fates has three story paths to follow. The two major paths,Birthright and Conquest, are actually sold as separate games with the third option, Revelation, being available as DLC. Though if you get your hands on the special edition, then you get all three. Each with different events and available characters. The first recommended play through is Birthright. This is what I started with. The game does inform us that Revelation should be played after at least playing through one of the other campaigns.

Fire emblem: Fates focuses on a created character which is you. The game has you create the hero, be it male or female and modify the character to some degree. From here you set off to help your chosen allegiance. Being of royal blood, whichever way you choose, you become the pinnacle of the events that determine life and death for many and the burden of your decisions weigh heavy on your shoulders, regardless if you personally made them. The story is very engaging and keeps the player very interested as events unfold.

The game has a heavy focus on character relationships. You can build them as you like. There can be some restrictions with certain characters but mostly you can marry off, befriend and marry whoever you like.I found myself very interested and even preoccupied with developing these relations between characters. It may sound possibly boring but the game has a small but intriguing set of interactions between most characters, that you can uncover and experience if you chase the building of the relationships between them. The friendships you build between characters can also impact combat as the better the relationship the better the support that a particular set of characters might offer one another.

The tactical gameplay is fantastic. One might assume a turn based game can lack for intensity but in spite of it Fire Emblem: Fates manages to really maintain a tense and exciting feel. You can take as long as you need between moves but this doesn’t take away any of its edginess but rather adds to it as you usually only take longer when the battle is quite a tough one. Each move is a vital one and so making the right move can take some serious consideration.

The actual process of maneuvering your team around the map is quite a fluid and well created system that mostly continues the same mechanics from Fire Emblem: Awakening; with its grid based maps that can include various obstacles, traps and even dragon veins that allow those with dragon blood to bend nature to their needs.  Maps are mostly unique and each presents its own difficulties and opportunities to utilizes various strategies.

You are also given good selection of classes to choose from. Most base classes can also later be upgrade to one of two choices. Further diversifying your option of class on the battle field. This both allows different techniques to be implemented and if you don’t like a character type there are ways to change a character’s class. I did find I had certain favorites and particular ways to use a certain class in combat but the enemy AI are well created and offer a very good challenge regardless of who you battle with.

There are various modes to complete the game. Apart from difficulty you can also make choices of things like turning on permadeath.I personally chose it to be on and was both a good and bad decision. I preferred high level of engagement brought about by not wanting a single character to die. This however did have me redo many battles as when a character did die, I just turned off the console and restarted the battle. To the games credit, this never compelled me to stop playing, I was just more determined than before to get through the battle with all my favorite characters alive.

The game has a home base area. Here you can construct new buildings, from shops to a miscellaneous group of other buildings that offer some small bonus or interactions. This area can be attacked by other players. There is a decent ingame focus on building defenses and giving bonuses to your party members specifically for battles in your castle. This however was generally unusable feature as playing in Australia doesn’t really see that many other players around the place. So sadly the features for this aspect mostly superfluous for someone living in this particular region.

The music score is amazing, there isn’t a moment I didn’t greatly enjoy both it and the atmosphere it brings about. The game does actually have a focus on the music, especially in some parts and it does a great job being impressive. Visually,for a 3DS game, it looks great and the animated cut scenes are quite spectacular.

Fire Emblem: Fates is a fantastic tactical RPG with a plethora of content available to players. The game really draws you in and makes care about your party and the relationships the have with each other. It incorporates an interesting story, engaging characters and well created gameplay to create an amazing experience on the 3DS.