There's a fire burning in my Switch

On 08/15/2019 at 12:41 AM by SanAndreas

A couple of weeks ago, I was lucky enough to score the Seasons of Warfare Edition of Fire Emblem: Three Houses at Best Buy in Scottsdale. It was sold out everywhere else in town, and was only available online through scalpers selling it for $150-200 and up, so as soon as I found it at Best Buy I was on the 101 to snatch it up.

Ho. Lee. Shit. This game is awesome. This is easily the best game I've played all year, and it's going to be competing with Dragon Quest XI S for my Game of the Year.

The characters are extremely likeable. I picked the Black Eagles as my house, as did over half of FE's player base, according to the online stats. Edelgard must be the designated waifu of this game. The battles are a lot more strategic, for the most part, though you still have to take care not ot put a character in a position where he or she will be ganged up on by enemies, especially if you're playing in Classic (permadeath) mode. The visual presentation is gorgeous. You can zoom into the battlefield for a Valkyria Chronicles-style perspective or zoom it out for a more traditional grid. Either way, it's pretty. And "Fodlan Winds", the main battle theme, is stuck in my head right now.

I'm only in the earlier chapters so far, so the story is just starting to really heat up, but if the rest of the game is this good, it's going to be one of the best games ever and a new high-water mark in SRPGs. The whole game is just so beautifully and lovingly produced.

Super Step Contributing Writer

08/15/2019 at 08:47 AM

Would it be a good starting point for people new to SRPGs or does it work so well because it appeals to long-time SRPG gamers?

SanAndreas

08/15/2019 at 11:19 PM

Both. It's a lot more beginner-friendly than earlier Fire Emblem games. You can choose whether to have permadeath on or off when you start, there are plenty of guidss in-game to help you navigate battles, and at worst, there's a "rewind time" mechanic that lets you rewind the battle if you meet with disaster.

Cary Woodham

08/15/2019 at 03:37 PM

I'm not really big into strategy RPGs so I will skip out on this one. Although that didn't stop me from setting up a meeting with the folks making The Dark Crystal strategy RPG at PAX West coming up at the end of the month. I'm a sucker for anything Jim Henson related.

Some of the Fire Emblem characters I've seen look pretty cool, though. I saw one who had purple hair, and another one had red and white hair and bone goggles on her head! Any neat characters in that new one you'd think I'd like?

08/16/2019 at 02:48 PM

The main protagonist, Byleth, has blue-green hair, regardless of whether you choose Manleth or Femleth. Lady Rhea, leader of the monastery where FE's between-battle segments take place, has green hair.

Matt Snee Staff Writer

08/15/2019 at 06:17 PM

I'm really excited about this game, but I wanted to play the Pillars of Eternity port to Switch more, and I've been enjoying that. But eventually, I WILL play this.

08/16/2019 at 02:50 PM

i kind of looked at Pillars of Eternity. It's gotten my interest because it was made by Obsidian, which is probably my favorite western RPG maker based mostly on New Vegas and The Outer Worlds. Fire Emblem is a SRPG, though, and I love my SRPGs.

KnightDriver

08/15/2019 at 10:07 PM

I'm really envious. If I ever work again, I'll get a Switch to play this.

08/16/2019 at 02:51 PM

I hope you get to a point where you can get a Switch. Fire Emblem aside, it is an amazing little system. I haven't played PS4 much since I got it, save for occasional PS4 games I like that aren't on Switch.

08/16/2019 at 05:21 PM

I'm thinking of hooking up my Wii-U at home. I need a tv though. Can't plug it into my laptop. I have Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn I could play.

PixlBit