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GoNintendo 'End of Day' thought - Fire Emblem Fates review

Till permadeath do us part
by rawmeatcowboy
18 February 2016
GN Version 5.0

Wanted to post this up one more time for the End of Day thought. It went live when the embargo was up, but I know a few people didn't get a chance to check it out. Hopefully it helps you decide if Fates is worth a purchase! See you in a few, short hours.


Role-Playing Game. Tactical. Permadeath. These are all phrases from the world of video games that scare the crap out of me. I'm a simple man in my gaming tastes. I like to run and jump directly. I like to move left to right, and sometimes bottom to top. These are the areas where I feel safe...where I feel like I'm in my element. Whenever I came across a title that included any of those scary words I listed above, I ran about as far as I could. That's how I lived my gaming life until I started up GoNintendo about a billion years ago.

I knew I should have embraced other game types. I knew I should have put aside my worries and ventured into unfamiliar territory. It took running GoNintendo to make that happen. Sometimes a game comes across my desk that I'd otherwise never pick up. I'm glad GoNintendo has given me the perfect excuse to experience gaming scenarios that I would have never otherwise taken on. Out of all of those experiences that I've come to embrace through my years working on GN, I'd have to say that I'm most thankful for the Fire Emblem side of things.

There were Nintendo fans that, for years, were saddened to see the Big N scoff at the idea of localizing a Fire Emblem game. The series lived on happily in Japan, but gamers around the world never got to see a single entry localized. It didn't matter to me, but damnit, it should have! Thankfully Nintendo decided to bring Fire Emblem to eager fans around the world, and now the rest is history. The series is going through a bit of a renaissance right now, thanks to Fire Emblem Awakening. That single entry managed to save the series altogether, and that's commentary coming from Nintendo themselves. With that newfound success, especially outside of Japan, the series rolls on with a newfound passion.

That's why we're seeing another installment land on 3DS already. Fire Emblem Fates aims to capitalize on the success of Fire Emblem Awakening. Where Awakening aimed to be the best entry in the series to date, Fates looks to expand on just about everything possible, all while offering up new ideas along the way. It has everything you've come to love from the series, a lot more of it and even some new twists along the way. Yes, it even has all those words/phrases that give me the nervous chills. I can say that and at the same time recognize that the franchise is all the better for it.

Here's something I didn't expect to be part of my experience in Fire Emblem Fates. While previous entries have indeed had some elements that made you wince in agony, Fates really tugs at the heartstrings. It's also not afraid to do that quite often. Fates is going to force some tough decisions upon you, and it's also going to make you sit back and watch some terrible things play out. It's no secret that a huge turning point in the game comes from choosing which side you're going to fight for. The real secret is, the story that gets you there makes the decision much harder than you might first expect.

I really don't want to ruin the agonizing details that go into setting up which side of the adventure you're going to take on. Sure, some people are going to play both sides and then go back for the DLC as well. You'll get to experience everything that the game can possibly offer and I don't think there's a single thing wrong with that. Then there's the more stubborn gamers that will pick one path and stick with it. They'll read about the other path online or in a guide book, but they're going to make a decision for themselves that directs their gameplay path. I can also respect that as well. I also do not envy everyone play this game for the same reason. Making your choice is a really tough one, and no matter what side you pick, the story will continuously hit you with moments that make you question if you did the right thing.

The gameplay of the Fire Emblem series is super addicting, but this storyline really adds a completely different layer to the experience. I've enjoy stories of previous games and character development has certainly gotten better over the years, but Fates really pushes the envelope for the series. If you go the permadeath route, you'll have plenty of reasons to mourn losses along the way. If you go the casual route where fallen brothers/sisters come back to life at the end of a chapter, you're still going to experience a storyline that really eats away at you. I honestly can't stress enough just how engaging I found the story to be, and how much emotion it managed to pull out of me.

The story will pull you through Fates in ways that previous games haven't enjoyed, but as it should be, the gameplay remains the main draw. Fire Emblem Fates is going to give you plenty of scenarios that have you scratching your head, pondering what move you should make next. You'll sit and stare at the screen, planning out every possible way a battle could go. Minutes will pass in the blink of an eye, and then when you finally do make your movements and watch the battles play out, you'll probably see things fall apart in front of your eyes. That's the cruel mistress of Fire Emblem gameplay, and Fates is only going to give you more ways to experience that pain as you play.

On a very basic level, all you're doing is moving around your players into positions that will hopefully help them deal great damage while avoiding death blows. When characters bump into each other on the grid-based map, the battle turns begin. On your turn, you get to attack first and perhaps deal with retaliation from the enemy depending on how you do. Once you've made a move for all your characters, the enemy gets to do the same and they attack first. Again, this could lead to your characters parrying back as well. This all depends on who you have in your party, where they're standing, what they have on hand and who they're paling it up with.

There's just so much that goes into a Fates battle that it's insane. It really is too much to talk about, but thankfully the game does a great job of giving you a nice ramp-up in difficulty and details. You won't get lumped into a crazy battle at first with no idea on how to play. Earlier battles are geared to both let you learn on your own, as well as teach you new mechanics. You'll see how elevation can play into your success or failure. You'll learn about the rock-paper-scissors aspects of weapons. You'll read about the importance of sticking characters side-by-side for stat bonuses, such as double attack power, chances of critical hits and so much more. There's so much to learn here, but again, the game never gives you a massive info dump that leaves your head spinning. All of this is taught at a very easy-going paced, and the missions where you're learning as you go are expertly crafted to maximize your understanding of what's being laid out before you.

It's all that content, all those battle details that make the experience so deep and rewarding. It's such a fantastic feeling to plan out a route of attack and account for everything you can think of, then see battles go just how you wanted them to. You really feel like you've accomplished something special! Of course, that great feeling is even better when you're playing on classic mode. That means permadeath is on, and if you lose an ally in battle, they simply aren't coming back. It makes the entire experience much more nerve-racking, but it also has you really appreciating the game's mechanics on a completely different level. That said, you don't have to play with permadeath. You can keep things nice and easy, never worrying about your buddies leaving you for the great beyond. I just couldn't play that way as it felt cheap to me, but I recognize the importance of having that aspect in the game. This is YOUR game to experience, and these options are available to make the experience fun and engaging for you.

There's also little tweaks along the entire experience that heighten submersion you experience. My personal favorite has to come from the way battles are visualized. Fates does a really fancy visual effect that swoops the camera from 2D grid mode straight down into the battle on the map. It feels like you're getting a bird's eye view of the battlefield, then flying in close and personal to watch the nitty-gritty content play out. It seems like a silly thing to mention, but it truly does make the battles that much more exciting, and it also makes the game's world feel more alive. That said, I know there are people out there that just want in/out of battles, which is why the game is more than happy to provide you with a fast-forward button to blow through battles and get to the next set of turns.

If its those battles that are worrying you, you don't have to freak out over losing in story chapters over and over again. You can get a much better handle on your tactics by taking on the game's map challenges. All you have to do is pay some in-game cash to send a scout out into the game world. The scout will uncover a new map challenge for you to take on. Basically you'll get a random battlefield with a certain level of enemies, and it's your goal to clear them all out. While on the field, you can also find random goodies to pick up, like gold, stat-boosting items and sometimes even weapons. These little side-missions give you a great way of grinding, learning how to better approach battles and enemy times, and they allow you to stock up on goodies that might give you a great edge in the main story.

Fighting, heart-wrenching story moments, death of your allies...it all sounds like it could be too much for a person to handle! Thankfully there are some lighter elements of Fates that help to give you a rest from the bullet-sweating you'll be doing most of the time. There is a (mostly) safe space where you can build up a kingdom of your own, and it's this place that lets you take your time, relax and enjoy some of the content that doesn't involve scraping through battles by the skin of your teeth.

You'll be able to build up your own kingdom, which I honestly wasn't too interested in at first. I am more about the core gameplay of Fire Emblem titles, but Fates' side content actually does serve as a good way to prepare yourself for the bigger game at large. As you work through the game, you can expand your kingdom with shops that'll help stock you with all sorts of items. You can also buy better weapons for your entire time, as long as you have the scratch to do it. The more time you put into building up your kingdom, the more buildings you'll be able to craft that should help you in the long-run. Now you don't have to do any of this if you don't want. You can just hope right into the challenge battles or storyline, but there really are some great benefits to kingdom building that you won't want to miss out on.

Then, of course, there are the relationship elements of the game. Again, another part of the experience that I questioned when it was introduced years ago, but now I see the various purposes it serves. You can build up relationships between allies that will benefit you out on the battlefield. Allies can team up and make for better battles when you need a really dependable team to take on a particularly tough set of foes. You can also enjoy the relationships just for what they are...deeper bonds with characters that you gain through simple sideline stories. You can even find yourself a partner that you'd like to marry! Again, there are benefits to relationships like this, but also remember that playing in permadeath mode will make the loss of your loved one THAT much tougher to deal with!

All of this helps to keep Fates feeling super fresh, and it doesn't even take into account the happenings that crop up while you're actually in battle. You could think that you're clearing out a particular mission just fine, and then a enemy character drops into the field and causes a huge twist. One second you could be on the edge of victory, and the next you could be a single turn away from defeat. You never want to get too ahead of yourself. You constantly have to play smart and be ready for anything. You always have to be prepared and play with a guarded plan. If you rush into battles, I promise you that you'll lose quite quickly. You might be able to blow through a couple early chapters with a devil-may-care attitude, but that is NOT going to get you very far at all.

This is why Fates continues the tradition of Fire Emblem being so refreshing. There aren't too many games that have this level of depth, but are also friendly to newcomers. There aren't a lot of mainstream games that don't involve running and gunning. This type of game requires a different set of skills from your average player. Thankfully people really seemed to pick up on and enjoy that with Fire Emblem Awakening. All that is still deeply present in Fates, but it's expanded upon in every area you can think of. All that was here before remains, but it's been tweaked, updated and twisted in ways that makes the experience feel absolutely superb.

There's even content that I haven't touched on yet, like the DLC options and amiibo interactions. Fittingly, both of these aspects seem to have caused some debates among fans. A vocal group of gamers isn't too happy with how DLC/versions for Fates are being handled. Others find the support of certain amiibo to be a bit unfair or shoddy. In my opinion, these are all superfluous issues. I'm not usually one to weigh in on DLC and things of that nature. It is what it is and the developers do what they do. If you find the way DLC is being handled, don't buy it. If you feel all of this content should have been included in a single retail game, don't buy it. If you aren't happy about characters behind tied to amiibo, don't buy them. These are not decisions that I can make for you, nor are there right/wrong answers. You have to decide what is right for you, what you're comfortable with and how you feel about the overall implementation.

What I CAN tell you is that Fire Emblem Fates' out-of-box experience is a phenomenal one. Fire Emblem slowly gave me a gaming itch that I never knew I had. Fire Emblem Fates scratched that itch in such a satisfying way. There's really no second-guessing this purchase if you've enjoyed previous entries in this franchise. If you've liked anything about Fire Emblem over the years, you are going to have a ridiculously good time with Fates. Come for the punishing/addictive gameplay, stay for the surprisingly deep story and struggles it presents along the way. It's the way that those two elements tie together that gives Fates an extra special feeling.

Fire Emblem Fates does what any truly great game should do. It makes you cheer, cry, scream and sigh from relief...and that can all happen in the span of a half hour. Fire Emblem Fates' hardest decision has you choosing between Hoshido or Nohr. Thankfully the easiest decision comes from buying the game itself. No matter which side you choose, Fire Emblem Fates comes as close to a required purchase as possible.