Fire Emblem Engage Nintendo Switch Review - Is It Worth It?

Fire Emblem N-Gage
Review written by PJ O'Reilly: www.nintendoli...
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Fire Emblem Engage
Review copy provided by Nintendo
#FireEmblemEngage #FireEmblem #NintendoSwitch

[@Madwofl]

As much as I liked Three Houses, running around Garreg Mach got quite tiring in second or third playthroughs, so I'm happy to see they toned that down a bit.

[@Smuggers.]

It really did, I couldn't even power through the other routes because it was such a chore to go through the game again with how focused it was on the monestary. It's nice the first time around, but it just gets in the way too much, I was so burned out on the game I didn't even finish the dlc.

[@Madwofl]

@@Smuggers. I did manage to beat all routes, but like you i didn't have the willpower to go back for the DLC.

[@oliverquach9614]

You can teleport

[@Smuggers.]

@@oliverquach9614 it has more to do with the amount of time required in the monetary each mission and how much of a drag it is in getting back into maps than anything else.

[@petuniamatters]

@@Smuggers. You can skip the monastery and go straight to the missions.

[@spiderdude2099]

Some people's biggest disappointments are going to be other people's biggest compliments. This game is gonna come down to "what does FE mean to YOU?"

[@FurrySpatula]

It's going to be fantastic!!!!!

[@charlestrudel8308]

so much so. a bit like SMT vs persona. i admin that p5r is the better game overall to smt5, but the way smt5 introduce more open zones in its later parts is just freaking great, meaning SMT5 is excellent himself. P5R thought is probably better than excellent.

[@anyroad5455]

I think it’s a bit of a betrayal and a super weird move to move away from what’s been a staple in Fire Emblem since Awakening, the game that single handedly revived the series.

[@NeroVingian40]

It looks the same like Three Houses to me.

[@crimsonstormsurge]

This game to be personally looks great but I understand if the 'die hard' fe fans probably won't like it terribly too much

[@thunderczar9272]

I wanted to know is how it compared to Awakening. I didn't think the relationship aspect was all that deep, but just present enough to make each character feel unique and presented a personalized story every time you played it. Your character actually felt unique as you got to make choices for them that actively changed the personal narrative. I just hope the character really are that good that it won't make a difference as that made Fire Emblem unique to other Tactical titles.

[@mayroque5296]

My thing is if I have no investment in the character by having some agency in their development then for me the permadeath challenge kinda goes as I don’t care about the characters. Sucks to lose a pawn with good stats but I won’t feel any lose beyond that.

[@gamesboy123able]

Im gonna be honest engage is soooo much better than awakening

[@thunderczar9272]

@@gamesboy123able I planned on getting it regardless, FE is one of my favorite franchises! I just had a hard time understanding all the different reviews saying stripping back features as a good thing. Thanks for the input! I am still pretty excited about the release.

[@euomu]

@@gamesboy123able Have you finished Engage?

[@peacorptv6502]

The game will still have support conversations.

[@naseraltaee]

It wasn’t necessarily the “relationship” aspect that I liked about this game’s predecessor (not in the sense of growing relationships, anyway), but having funny, interesting interactions and learning a lot about other characters.

[@naruconas2334]

I agree. I don't care if there are a lot of em or not, I just want to get to know these characters. some of my favorite interactions are ones that give you more about the characters. Stuff like Gaius and Maribelle from awakening or Bernadetta and Alois from 3 houses. I've always thought of supports as a way to worldbuild or develop characters. I don't think it needs the depth of three houses because frankly the amount of world building in 3 houses was insane, but if they do all end up being fluff I'll be kind of sad

[@crimsonstormsurge]

I think this game will still give the characters personality

[@naruconas2334]

@@crimsonstormsurge My worry is the presentation reminds me of Fates. Many over-the-top tropes and fluff as supports if the trailers and this review are indicative of the story side of things

[@chaosdestructionlove]

@@naruconas2334 it was absolutely overwhelming. I loved things from awakening more like when finding out Frederick will pick up all the pebbles in front of chrome lol

[@prawiraagung4011]

@@naruconas2334 bruh stop bitching. go out and get to know real life people

[@darkmage7752]

One of the biggest reasons I love this series is how vastly different each game is. I never know what to expect apart from a good time because the base gameplay is just so great. Truly so excited for this game

[@roseflamingo8102]

This is how I feel! From the grittiness of PoR and RD, to the school life of 3H, I love every single game for being completely unique yet keeping the core gameplay in place. Intelligent Systems are (IMO) the best in the business in creating tactical RPGs.

[@trolliestofalltrolls7141]

This is the only correct answer in the pile of 'WAHH FE IS NOT TO MY LIKING SINCE AWAKENING WAHH' . The recent games in the series really experiment and innovate novel experience, so I am so glad they're taking it in new directions compared to predecessors. If I want 'authentic' I would go back to play on emulator.

[@derekmaullo2865]

​@@roseflamingo8102Fire emblem fans are whiny brats

[@Dogofwar9]

Frankly I will miss three houses’ deep storytelling and deep characters BUT engage’s gameplay looks amazing. Engage mechanism and those supermoves look great

[@prawiraagung4011]

lmao deep 🤣

[@AzureRoxe]

They also look ridiculously OP.

[@Panda-xd5ey]

@@prawiraagung4011 No other fire emblem game deeply explored individual characters’ motives/interests/conflicts as Three Houses. Whether you personally found the supports and convos PROFOUND is irrelevant.

[@ericx6969]

they should make story deeper with dlc

[@ericx6969]

@@prawiraagung4011 u obviously didnt play or read lore of three houses

[@beauvogames]

I loved the social side of Three Houses and I appreciated that its levels were never too huge and never took too long to complete but I did feel all that extra stuff was a bit much. Sometimes after a long day I'd sit down and continue my 3H save file, play for about 2 hours or so... and I wouldn't do a single battle. I'd be so busy watching the several support cutscenes I unlocked after my previous battle, going around the castle in its entirety to collect every item and do all the stuff that changes between each level like go fishing, cook meals, talk to every character... and though fun it just really was all a lot. I like the battles and the tactics and the strategy but when I'd look at my final playthrough run time I'd think about how little of it was actual the battles 😅 So it'll be interesting to see what the balance is like this time, how much social stuff I want and if they get the battle balance just right or overcorrect just a tad too much. Brilliant review 😊

[@Enidx10]

Yeahhh. Typical female behavior. That’s what the SIMS or Animal Crossing is for.

[@alpha_c.]

no one is forcing you to collect every blue item or fish or watch all supports or talk to every character, you can skip all of those, thats wasting your own time. you can even opt out of doing any monastery at all if you really want to. you can just to an aux or a paralogue battle or skip straight to the main missjonn

[@beauvogames]

@@alpha_c. But I enjoyed all that stuff and the benefits that came with it. But like I said it's just that it took so long that sometimes I wouldn't even be able to get a battle in. It wasn't the end of the world or a huge frustration but a bit of a " wow that was a lot of stuff... I didn't even get around to a battle tonight"

[@alpha_c.]

@@beauvogames some of that stuff is literally a waste of time tho and has no reward. like getting every blue item and watching every support and talking to every character. most blue items will be useless or a lost item for someone who’s not even in your house. and there’s no reason to fish unless you are doing cringe profxp farming or you need it for a meal

[@beauvogames]

@@alpha_c. Yeah, I totally agree that a bunch of the interactions are literally going to go nowhere since you're never going to recruit every single student from every single house into your house. But when you're picking up blue items you don't always know what it's going to be / whether it's for your house or a character you want to recruit. So unless you're playing with a guide, you're still kind of encouraged to do this whole "do everything approach" and like I said I still find it fun, it was just way too time consuming and imbalanced with the battles and then as you rightly say, the payoff for a lot of that extra time can at points be almost pointless

[@YungcellyTV]

I like the monastery in three houses but towards the end of my first run, I pretty much was auto-instructing and just doing a few battles for gold or ore after the side quest was done. I'm just happy for the triangle systems return and I kinda like the new graphics. Very excited about the 20th!

[@replicant7076]

The social sim stuff in Three Houses is what made me fall in love with the game. Sad to hear that its been mostly gutted in this entry.

[@ActionJaxonH]

I really appreciate getting a FE more in line with Awakening again, where much less time is spent between battles (barring inventory management), and a stronger focus on getting right into the next battle. I LOVE Three Houses, it's just, I ALSO love the Awakening style Engage offers. Both are valid. It's nice to have one of each type on Switch.

[@ericx6969]

was awakening one that started romance and children's tho lmfao

[@leaffinite2001]

I get what youre saying but i think awakening is kinda the start of that trend. Almost all older FE games have very little going on between each level. So while Awakening does have less than 3H, both have more than most of the series

[@lazerboy4942]

The best system was tellius games imo, and those aren't even my favorite in the series

[@superbowyiming]

@@ericx6969 nope. Genealogy was the one started children, and is still the best one in this regard.

[@gallos8807]

@@leaffinite2001 Frankly Path of Radiance has a lot more stuff going on in between chapters than Awakening, unless you specifically support grind

[@Kev-O33]

I wil never get tired of the awsome zoom in during battles and the map. Satisfying to watch

[@timmy3822]

It’s a shame about the hub not having much in the way of character development. I really loved that aspect in Three Houses. The rest of the game sounds great though, so I’m sure it’ll be good fun.

[@blook741]

On one hand, I'm glad I don't feel the need to talk to 40 different characters each month, on the other hand it would have been nice to see Engage characters perspective on events.

[@joseph86255]

@@blook741 The way I see it, it's taking the same route as Trails of Cold Steel, which is a very good thing.

[@MellaniePlays]

Building and finding out funny and cute relationships between the characters is one of the most fun part for me of fire emblem besides tactic combat. I remember the time were we could create different children from getting an S rang with or party members. I was romancing them together to create a funny and strong child and family. But after awakening and fates they did not return this sadly. There is notting wrong with liking a romancing/friendshipping game that has good tactical combat and a great story.

[@StephenDickerman]

Speaking of Awakening, I think it'd be great if they did a Switch port of Awakening. I'd totally buy it again.

[@joseph86255]

As someone who hasn't played it yet, same.

[@Christian-eq7uh]

I’ve played all of them since awakening and sadly I’ve only ever truly LOVED awakening. 😞

[@Newchiii]

I’m very happy to hear it’s more combat oriented.. as someone who has been a part of the franchise since the very early 2000s, Three Houses was a Soap Opera between battles and I’m not trying to play Fire Emblem: The Young and the Restless

[@derekmaullo2865]

Three houses have simp fans. Adults that act and speak like children

[@olr4512]

The bigger focus on combat is exactly what I wanted, so excited!

[@larsstavenuiter424]

naaah its good they focus on it but when you give a story like this..? most ppl like me just cant finish it if you play with statues with no emotion or whatever in them sadly.

[@olr4512]

@@larsstavenuiter424 Well, I didn't finish the game either so I guess you're right lol

[@MinkDaddy]

Lol, some people be like: "Back in my day, fire emblem designs weren't cringe with double colored hair!" Heath says hi...

[@NinnyVids]

I think the characters are one of the main aspects that made me love Three Houses so much. The depth of the characters and their motives made the world feel very much alive, so it's unfortunate to hear this game shoves those aspects out of the way.

[@-Undine-]

Which is unfortunate.. seems like they poured more effort into the gameplay instead of the actual characters.. and at this point.. prob even the story may be lackluster too

[@anyroad5455]

The reviews I’ve seen that even mention the story say that it’s generic. Chosen one with amnesia fights evil god-like monster. And that the roster is wide but shallow. The character development is pretty bad. :(

[@naruconas2334]

That's disappointing. Personally, I don't really care if there's a lot of support as long as they're interesting. And beyond the combat most of the other games are still interesting character dramas.

[@valchapdelaine7356]

I don't think I'll be dissapointed even tho I think 3 houses/3 hopes are games I'll be more likely to go back to, like Fodland raised the bar to an extent that I'll remember characters long after I've put down the game and want to know more about the world. (Be nice to get games set in Dagda or Almyra some day.) But it's unfair to expect that level of story telling to be maintained all the time, so I'm cool with an outing where the world is just a backdrop for some fun maps.

[@JRJuggernaut1]

My biggest question as far as gameplay goes is about class promotions, as 3 houses approached the subject in a way I was a little mixed about. On one hand I loved how flexible you could be with how you developed each of your characters’ classes, and how you could promote character several times. However it also felt like when you got to the final set of classes the options were not super plentiful, and I would like to see a greater variety of class options in engage! I don’t mind having less options for how I want to promote my characters as long as the variety of classes overall is still plentiful! Awakening I thought did it best where you had plenty of class options but you could also change your character’s class rather freely with the proper item!

[@ZacErickson1906]

I love that this get back to the Awakening style of FE that I fell in love with. I’m so in.

[@Mother_of_Pigeons]

I’m a huge fan of social sims, as well as in-depth story and characters. I really love 3 Houses for its combination of these things, and how much game play time they put into the social aspect of things. I am worrying a little bit that Engage may not be as much up my ally personally the more I hear about it. Still have it pre-ordered, but I hope I enjoy it even if I don’t end up liking it as much as 3H.

[@Katie-hb8iq]

To be fair, Fire Emblem isn't a social sim franchise. Until Three Houses, the 15 previous games did not have social sim elements beyond some supports (which changed from game to game. They were either exhaustive like Fates, or pretty basic like Radiant Dawn and everything in between). I'm worried some % of new players want Fire Emblem to become a social sim when that's not really something core to Fire Emblem. I think people who like social sims should buy social sims, not tactical rpgs, but that's just me. To the millions of players who did not like the social sim elements, these features really bogged down the game (especially on multiple playthroughs). The game forced the player to engage in the monastery and the monthly activities to optimize their playthrough, and this added about 10+ hours of busy work each time that just became tedious and repetitive. Not doing so would handcuff you, especially on harder difficulties. This really affected the replay value of the game, and I'm actually thankful they scaled this back considerably. They really had to. It's fine for the first 30 hours, but it just outstays its welcome, especially in a game that was designed for players to play all 4 routes which took about 50 hours each to complete. I get through the older games in about 18-25 hours with the same number of combat chapters - that's the time savings by not having the social sim.

[@allendelarosa0525]

3 houses is a dating sim.

[@Mother_of_Pigeons]

@@Katie-hb8iq Oh yes, all of that is completely true! I actually only got into 3 houses at all because it wasn't as much like past games and more in line with the type of games I tended to play, wich I completely understand is not reflective of the series as a whole. I really actually loved the tactical game play in 3 Houses but I think I liked it mixed with the other things as well. I am very much not the main demographic for the Fire Emblem series as a whole though, but I do still hope I enjoy Engage!

[@Tasspyboi]

@@Katie-hb8iq The main thing with the social sim aspects of 3H is it added depth and a sense of care between the characters. I ended up actually liking my characters during my playthrough and ended up loving the small things that happened to them. made progression feel like it lead somewhere, however they definitely needed to tone it down a few notches. I liked it, but it got too boring to read so much dialogue over and over again. My fear is they'll strip away the chance to get to know your characters in exchange for gameplay, because that would mean characters are bland and the replay value is decreased.

[@Danb-fk5iw]

The thing here is that the character rosters for every FE game before Echoes (excluding Gaiden and perhaps Genealogy) were all designed to account for the distinct possibility that you would end up losing some units over the course of your playthrough. It’s why most of the characters you recruit in the midgame and lategame end up being pre-promotes; they’re there to fill out any of the empty spaces left in your party if you got one of your mainstays killed. Both Echoes and Three Houses took an approach closer to that of a traditional RPG - the same few characters you start the first proper chapter with are probably the same few characters that you’ll be taking with you into the final chapter. They boast the smallest playable character rosters in the series, which gives them much more room to expand those characters, with the issue being that if you go and get one of them killed, it hits your gameplay performance incredibly hard because recruitment in Three Houses is such a huge chore if you’re not snatching up a teacher. On a related note, this was likely why the Turnwheel was introduced in Echoes, because resetting a map after losing one of the only 18-odd units you’ll be getting for that army is pretty fucking exhausting.

[@GreatAether58]

The clear focus on tactics instead of social aspects is a huge plus for me. Also I think Alear's hair looks cool!

[@emanuelcarmona9930]

I enjoyed the social hub but what kept me engaged was how I could create my own little army and tweak their classes and weapons. So it looks like it has improved and I'm very excited.

[@blakelarsen246]

Thank goodness this is more focused on combat. I thought the relationship building was always so long and tedious, and distracted from the story and gameplay. I'm glad that they worked it into the narrative instead

[@suki16d]

Very Excited to get a lot of replayability from this title, I'm really getting Sacred Stones vibes off of your guys review. I can't wait for Friday to play it!

[@Dustbowl121]

I'm so happy it tells more of its story in combat. Three houses wore me down, and it took three playthrough to know what the hell was going on. The school aspect got really old halfway through. I'm here for strats!

[@user-zr7mb5wy3b]

Boy I am stoked for FIre Emblem Engage, as a huge fan of the franchise! The new mechanics allow one to delve much deeper into the intricate strategy elements Fire Emblem is known for. Hopefully, the story turns out to be on the level that brought Three Houses critical acclaim.

[@NapaCat]

...it's not. Engage's story is not. Well, maybe Fell Xenologue, but that's it. It had potential, too.

[@fernandovillacis3728]

Honestly, I hated Three Houses for all the Monastery stuff… I’m glad Engage is more like the previous FEs Edit: I don’t like the hair, but it doesn’t bother me at all

[@tomdaturtle5792]

Why does every review care so much about the social aspect? The character designs are amazing, and there are still support conversations to be had. Stop comparing it to Three Houses when IT was the odd one out

[@BigLeagueChew11]

Thank you for this review! This game sounds like it’s is perfect to just play and put on a podcast. The combat has always been what I looked for the most in FE

[@AliO]

I'm so glad they returned back to a more focused direction on actual strategy gameplay rather than the tacked on romance building and life sim aspects. If I want a life sim I'll go play one of the many options out there. Thank you very much.

[@bumponalog5001]

I personally hated how heavy the social sim stiff was in Three Houses, so this sounds like a game I would enjoy more.

[@prodigous21]

Sadly had to skip this game, I know people want to dogpile on 3H being a waifu sim but it had ALOT of characterization, lore, and the story was deep. 50 percent of the reason for me playing 3H WAS because of the characters. From what ive seen in Engage, the gameplay is excellent but they really toned down the character interactions and backgrounds while the story feels really basic. I just find it overall silly that there couldnt be the best of both worlds and instead Intelligent Systems ends up wanting to cater to one crowd or the other

[@keeysOST]

Combat focused FE is what I'm here for. I hope the story can at least be Awakening level, although I won't set high expectations right now. I liked the social aspect of three houses, but it really because a slog on repeated playthroughs, so I'm fine if it's reduced.

[@sobbleissad7061]

Awaening is pretty good though story wise, atleast until 18 ish

[@zac-oros]

While I do believe social sim elements will be expanded upon in future titles, the return to an emphasis on combat is a welcome transition for someone like me who has only played Three Houses. Cannot be more excited for this game.

[@pinkgoldpeach3339]

I deeply hate 3H, but I love a lot of the older FE games so I'm thoroughly relieved this game is more like the older games. I had 0 interest in this game until this week when I was told it wasn't like 3H much. I'm so happy

[@FurrySpatula]

If I want persona I will play persona, if I want triangle strategy I will play fire emblem engage!

[@golemofwill4728]

While Im not big into the art style here, the gameplay looks great. I recently beat Three Houses which was good enough for me to buy this.

[@PaulRoneClarke]

Much prefer this sort of game. After 80 hours in 3 houses I stopped playing because of the amount of relation stuff. I just wanted to get on with the combat. This is much better IMO

[@AdeOjoVA]

Im glad this game is positively received, can’t wait to get my hands on it myself 🙏🏾

[@minecraftotalwar]

It isnt, look at metacritic

[@TboTime]

@@minecraftotalwarpress F5

[@Spectral_Thief10]

@@minecraftotalwar it has an 82 on metacritic and most of the bad reviews wanted it to be like three houses. 82 is still pretty good

[@hardrubbernips_]

@@minecraftotalwar Since when is an 82 a bad score? Most of the bad reviews were upset Engage wasn't Three Houses 2.0 anyway

[@kristoffer8609]

You really shouldn't care how a game is received, only how you feel about it yourself. If a game is good, enjoy it and screw what other people say.

[@JSchlo401]

I’m a fan of the older Fire Emblem games for Nintendo DS/3DS. I found three houses really boring. I just want to move around the field and use strategy to win battles. I don’t care about running around a world and having conversations. 😅

[@ReineDeLaSeine14]

“Like Awakening and Three Houses” Damn, it’s like Fates didn’t even exist lol

[@kentsemenuk157]

Outside of combat this isn’t even fire emblem anymore….it irks me the amount of people saying 3 houses was my first fire emblem like cool you got the weakest one and than got this huge upset story and characters are crap and I wish they would go back to the awakening style so much better that was peak fire emblem

[@kmechwarrior1684]

Good to hear, I wanted to like Three Houses, but it seemed like I was spending more time meeting with students than in combat....

[@Spaghetti48284]

Does anyone know why this was reuploaded?

[@Krausen2]

By far the best fire emblem i've played in years, last fire emblem i really enjoyed and got myself lost for hours was Radiant Dawn. But with Engage i found myself fully inmersed in customizing the units, always wanting to land crits of my favorite class due to high class animations (a staple in old FE), amazed by the level of polish for all the details within the gameplay, flashy moves, engaging combat, etc. I really hope FE goes this route for the future.

[@brichan1851]

I have Three Houses. I’m getting Engage. I like how both are different. It’s nice that this new entry is different enough to where either game has something unique to offer. 🙂 Plus, it looks gorgeous!

[@chriswinfrey3744]

I wish more people thought like this. Pretty sure there are... however as the game has just launched recently you have the people making noise over how it's not Three Houses 2.0... Yet those same people could barely do one playthrough of that game without getting bored. The problem with people now days is it's a "raising bar" of expectations where they want bigger and better things... and expect to get it. It's like a Rose Garden... searching for a rose better then the last one you saw and comparing 2 different roses as if they were the same kind of rose... with ever raising expectations eventually... that Beautiful Lavish Rose Garden will look to the person visiting it like a Garden of Weeds... never finding that flower that was the pinnacle of absolute perfection. I think the ever rising bar is as unfair as the ever crazy high expectations parents "can" have for their children to be better then they were instead of treating them as their own person. The same thing applies to games and everything else in real life. For me... I don't place a bar very high. If it's beautiful, fun, stirs my emotions... I love it. Fire Emblem Engage does that without needing the overly complex structure of Three Houses.

[@brichan1851]

@@chriswinfrey3744 well said. Thank you for such a nice compliment. I couldn’t agree more with your assessment. I liken this to Final Fantasy or Street Fighter. Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike is a very different animal than Street Fighter IV. While both are quite similar. Ultra Street Fighter IV is 3D instead of 2D for 3rd Strike. They should be appreciated on their own merit. Final Fantasy VII vs. Final Fantasy X… which is better? I say both.

[@VagaBohn]

I cannot wait to play this. I really liked 3H but I’m looking forward to this much more personally.

[@Thedennati]

One thing that deterred me from trying Three Houses was all the fluff, now that I know that Engage has disposed with most of that, I'm actually a lot more inclined to give this a try! I love turn-based combat that has many aspects and elements to it, last game I really enjoyed that offered this was probably the XCOM reboot. Thanks for the video.

[@frostbyte4544]

"The Somniel quickly becomes a series of menus and hoops that you jump through in order to get your stat increases and get new gear." Respectfully, I'd like to hear how you think that's different from the Monastery in 3H. Just a series of lengthy, repetitive, poorly-animated-and-textured hoops.

[@Ryu_Teruyama]

Exactly. Monastery was just a big, ugly slog and not much more.

[@jcarlosfuentesra]

Since I was a kid and played Path of Radiance (my first Fire Emblem) and then the GBA games, for me the series was ALWAYS about the RPG-Tactical experience, I used to skip all the non-sense talking just to the get in to the next combat, I never found the main stories to be that attractive. That's why I'm totally hyped for this game, because it's all about the combat.

[@isimikehinde5584]

Thank you; i really can't take all that social stuff; it gets tiring really fast and takes away from the main thing about games; gameplay.

[@akalixevelynn2932]

i mean there are like a ton of rts and other games you can play for that this is the one that actually has had this social aspect

[@Fruitman1997]

If anything, the limiting of support options, romancing, and more a focus on story telling, and more importantly, combat, reminds me of Shadows of Valentia, and HOO BOY let me tell you that game is an absolutely phenominal Fire Emblem experience, widely lauded as one of the most enjoyable games in the series in the fandom. If if this game is taking a leaf more out of that game's book, I am HERE for it!

[@theolong6689]

This is exactly what I wanted from a new FE game. It seems like the game has a much clearer focus and is just a huge love letter to the people who grew up playing FE like myself. Cannot wait till Friday.

[@SK-do5rv]

I feel the same but every review I've seen says the stories horrible. I really wish we could go back to the gba FE or gamecube

[@sladejosephwilson2300]

@@SK-do5rv Don't trust reviewers. Trust the fans of the new and old games

[@theolong6689]

@@SK-do5rv Its going to be the same as all the others. Good but not great. You dont really play FE for story. Or really any Nintendo game for that matter lol

[@Ratorss]

@@theolong6689 xenoblade chronicles? Why is it a sin to want better stories not just basic fantasy stuff?

[@theolong6689]

@@Ratorss Oh yea good point xenoblade all had good stories. I personally liked all the FE stories for the most part. Zelda also has a very interesting method of story telling. So much of it is told through the environment and world rather than dialogue and cutscenes. Similar to the souls series and I personally love that form of story telling. But its just not going to be winning any awards for story telling like God of War. Still good though.

[@tostey]

Seems like Engage is a sort of return to form for the series. I’m not a huge Fire Emblem fan (I’ve tried and failed many times to get into the Strategy RPG genre), but I’m glad that it seems to have turned out well. Who knows, maybe I’ll give it a try some day!

[@rufusrupo]

Return to form? Three houses was one of the most successful fire emblem games of all time lol

[@tostey]

@@rufusrupo I never said it wasn’t. All I’m saying is that this game is much more similar to the older games, with more of a focus on combat than Three Houses. I never said Three Houses was bad; it’s just different than previous Fire Emblems, which is what it was meant to be.

[@k1ng_vic18]

@@rufusrupo3Houses was successful but nothing like the og games

[@unitlonda4925]

I'm kind of sad about the lack of real supports as that is something that really made me enjoy Three Houses but I guess I'll just have to see it for myself

[@Korican189]

I really hope the success of this entry brings in Remasters and/or translations of previous titles. FE is crack to me. Although divisive and cowardly, bring the rewind function. I hate losing 30 minutes to 1% crit and same-turn reinforcements...

[@gazetronix]

I would love the GameCube and Wii versions. 🥰

[@michaellao7264]

Thank goodness they focused on actual gameplay and not that social/vn/teacher aspect that bogged down 3H.

[@veronicaflores6474]

I'm pretty sure I'll still enjoy this game, since I enjoyed my old school FE, but I'm not quite excited about going back to not caring if a unit dies because their personality is just made of two old tropes.

[@Gblue162]

The previous relationship system was terrible imo. It was so bad that I didn't finish it. Glad that this game toned it down.

[@metalmilitia89]

That’s actually why I stopped playing Three Houses. The sim part was too overwhelming and convoluted.

[@champion5545]

thank GOD for this direction. I never cared for any of the relationships characters had in previous games... even in GBA FE, I basically skipped every single support conversation dialogue. My attachment to characters grows from what they can do on the battlefield, and what they become capable of as I invest resources into them. Was never a LTC kind of player, but I thoroughly enjoyed babying the fuck out of Nino in FF7 and watching her become very powerful by last chapter. Or practically any of the past swordmaster characters, because they tended to have the coolest animations and I loved dodge-tanking after tossing them on a forest tile and ending player turn. I'm excited for Engage.

[@Banned-I3]

I disliked three houses, so I’m happy with how this one looks

[@blakeandcamp]

I loved Three Houses but the Monastery stuff wears on you after a while. By the time I was deep into that game I was really tired of having to go around and do all the extra social stuff and wanted to get right back into battle. Particularly the teaching element of 3H was never really interesting and it felt tedious. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed getting to know all the characters in 3H, but I think Engage paring back the social elements is for the best. Most people play these games for the combat.

[@90shandheldgamer]

This is one of my top Nintendo switch games! A must play!

[@Kringle308]

I find these changes from Three Houses slightly refreshing. As much as I enjoyed all the Garreg Mach side content my first go round…After multiple playthroughs, especially on Maddening, it started to become a chore to me to get through just to get back to the main story

[@joshogden1081]

Got started with Awakening. Three Houses turned me off with the huge emphasis on the social sim. So this one looks like it'll click easier with me.

[@TheCrawl]

As someone who *vastly* prefers old-school FE over Three Houses, this sounds great to me. I may actually pick this up, after all!

[@freyalunar3633]

the title speak for itself " Engage" Not running around the monastery like an idiot to kill time !

[@wyamccor]

Not even a question if it's worth it or not. To me most definite yes.

[@rambo_ando]

Can't get over that Crest haircut, but the gameplay looks great. I've never played a Fire Emblem game but might finally be time to dip my toes in to the franchise!

[@Cookiedon15]

Ya, I'm glad they decided to focus on the combat. Three Houses was lacking in that, and while that game got away with it for me (because I was interested in its story), it felt like one-off thing never to be repeated in future FE games.

[@RedAceLeo]

As a long time fan of Fire Emblem (Since Awakening), I am happy to see that the more visual novel aspect of FE that has become normalize take a back seat. I am also happy to hear that the hub area isn't as needed as it was in Three Houses, which was ultimately my biggest gripe of the game on how often I needed it and how much stuff there was to do. (Not to mention you had to replay the first half of the game 3 / 4 different times in order to play all the routes) I am looking forward for the more linear Engage. Takes me back to Awakening where the story was deep, and the supports weren't long winded dialogue. I am excited for this game!

[@cbmatty9262]

I really hate to be that guy, but being around since Awakening does not make you a “long time fan”

[@johnathanera5863]

@@cbmatty9262 yes it does. A decade is a long time. Compared to fans have been into it for 2 decades? Not so much. But 10 years is a long time.

[@Ryu_Teruyama]

@@johnathanera5863 A long time fan means that you played many games of the series and knowing a lot the about the series, not how many time has passed between the releases. There are 16 Fire Emblem games (without Engage) and if you just played 4 (Awakenings, Fates, Shadows of Valentia and 3H) at max you are a fan, but not a "long time" fan.

[@johnathanera5863]

@@Ryu_Teruyama considering only half those games came out in the west, those are the only ones that matter to western fans. So the number is 9, not 16. And playing half the games released in the west and over the course of a decade makes you a long time fan imo. Not the longest time fan, but a long fucking time. Time does indeed matter, so does number of titles played tbf. Someone who started FF with final fantasy 7 is a long time fan, regardless of the 6 games that came before. Same with fire emblem.

[@Ryu_Teruyama]

@@johnathanera5863 There are fan translations for all FE games that didn't came out in the west, so it's not like you can't play them. Yes, I feel really sorry for all people who didn't play probably the peak of the series, FFVI. (After IX of course. 😉)

[@Rotomoo]

I showed my gf the roster and she asked me if this was Genshin. It explains perfectly why I dislike the art style so much. SoV was the peak of FE for me, everything after that has been downhill.

[@DeMafiaGirl]

I'm glad that they're focusing more on the combat. This is what I loved about fire emblem and I couldn't get through three houses because it put me to sleep. (I hate social sims lol) so I'll be getting this game for sure haha

[@roseflamingo8102]

I never completed all 4 routes in Three Houses just because the monastery became such a chore and boring after two playthroughs. Happy to hear that combat is the core focus in this game again - honestly I liked Radiant Dawn for the simple, bite-sized conversations in the base camp.

[@KeitrenGraves]

I'm actually kind of glad that they are returning to this type of style. I don't mind social aspects in a game since I do like Persona but it was a bit too much in three houses

[@renren47618]

And while Persona's social sim is always very fun, 3h one is boring Through the whole game the actions you make in the Monastery are the same, the dialogue lines are the same and etc., It's repetitive and boring

[@despicableone4495]

@@renren47618 Hey

[@CanadianAPX]

It is a fantastic game. Reminds me more of older school FE games. Feels more traditional and the reduced activities inside the somniel is much appreciated. It is a great blend between heroes / awakening / sacred stones. Just my opinion, if you disagree, that's ok too.

[@V-Jes]

Or to put short it's pretty much Fire emblem Fates 2: single route edition, as most things it does is pretty much just taken from Fates.

[@larryrucker5406]

More than "persona style" romance, what i loved about Three houses was the three diverging stories. How you could experience the story from 3 different points of view

[@xmixaplix]

I personally get the vibe of Fates with Three Houses facelift appearance. It certainly is very colorful with the choices of costumes and the Emblem Ring gimmick kind of kills me. Its like they throw that in there with the intent of a package deal to buy the game. Aside from that, I like everything else they got in place. Of course, to me I have still experience a new Fire Emblem that is comparable or top Awakening. Three Houses came close and honestly I wish they pulled a Fates move with Three Houses and make each House it's own game and if you got all 3, you can unlock the church ending. Perhaps that way the BE and Church route wouldn't be so short and flesh out better.

[@jlkomina778]

I like Fire Emblem Sacred Stones from the GBA era nd I am hooked from this franchise. Haven't played other FE games because I don't have money to buy a Nintendo Console until I bought a Switch. Played the Three Houses but it is not my kind of story, atmosphere etc. Maybe this game will return my love from this franchise.

[@RenegadeY2K6]

This sounds great. Can we get Advanced Wars 1+2 now please?

[@McD5791]

*P-L-E-E-E-A-S-E-!-!-!-!"*

[@dahgameps432]

NO! Clown World doesn't want it.

[@blakefenslerjr4858]

Is that pointless war over yet?! Nope...

[@ohpotatoesandmolasses]

My first FE games were on the Game Boy Advance. I fucking loathed Three Houses. Very excited that all the monastery garbage is gone in Engage.

[@sirfrancisdrake6956]

im glad they got rid of the extra stuff in this one

[@lunanoct8901]

The social aspect is what I will miss most simply because , Some of it lead to story moments that have stuck with me for years. Like in Awakening where I partnered my Robin with Chrom and lead to my Robin being Lucina's mother. Or why some people chose a specific house in Three houses, And to be honest it is a big hit for me personally. It made me feel and gave me visually representation that what I did mattered. The game might be great and it might have a great story will have to wait and see. But if its missing stuff like that it may rank lower for me. I do hope though that those who wanted less social stuff enjoy the game.

[@minecraftotalwar]

For me too. Can we even call it firem emblem game if we dont care for the troops anymore? Like, wasnt it the differential of the series?

[@Curlorly06]

I wouldn’t be turned off quite yet! The game still has lots of social aspects. You can still cook meals, train, and have support conversations with all your allies in this game. Marriage might be out of the question but it looks like there will still be plenty of opportunities for character building. Contrary to the review building supports in this game is still just as important as the past titles, if the official trailers we have are anything to go by.

[@docireland]

Old school FE sounds great.

[@justinmorales9597]

Honestly a focus on combat sounds good to me. That’s why I like fire emblem after all.

[@Ghost1738-k4q]

A bit of a bummer for me that you can't really develop relationships & marriages but the action & the fighting definitely looks really awesome. I can't wait to get my copy Friday!

[@SebastionMinaj]

My first game for any Fire Emblem was Three houses and while playing Engage missed the differences yet still like it for what it is. Wanted to see what other thought about it so looking up review videos and it seems I’m the only one that really liked the heavy story base and character development 😭

[@sickman4273]

Tried doing maddening classic on my 1st play through. I’m at chapter 11 rn & realized I’m not built for this😭

[@wrathpsp]

Sickman, sickman, sickmaaaaaaan!

[@dee6561]

The biggest criticism I have seen in Metacritic reviews is the so called "cliche story" in exchange for very combat focused gameplay. Well that just hurts to hear.

[@tomiecacique]

Loved Three Houses social stuff but glad that this game is focusing more on what’s made Fire Emblem great, the turn base battling. Hype af.

[@TwilightWolf032]

It's precisely the ditching of the social aspects and focusing more on combat and story that I'm looking forward to! Having a marriage system for one or other game is fine, but nearly every single one after Awakening? Give me a break. Three Houses seems fun, but the school aspect is bothersome to me, I much prefer the quick menus of FE 9 and 10. Just let me outfit my characters, watch some support conversations and jump right into battle again, please!

[@exzisd]

As a fan of Fire Emblem from day 1 I get tired of reviewers saying that this game isn't social enough. Three Houses was a few steps over the top for me and brought in a new kind of gamer with the Switch install base. Historically the games haven't had this huge element on social gameplay until the recent generations. I think the 3DS games did it well though going back to the GBA I miss the simple story and focused tactics. I like playing the game and there's still way too much social stuff and mini games in here and nearly meaningless conversations to give yourself a little edge in battle that I feel were jammed into the game for fans of the characters and to make it a full price title. There is plenty of social elements and this is a great starting point for fans of the series. Just don't expect a good story. This is by far the worst story of any Fire Emblem game, the voice acting is atrocious but appreciated for having so much of it, it's graphically gorgeous, the tactics are fun with the weapon triangle back and things like break mechanics. There's a lot to love in this game. I don't think anyone besides a child would enjoy the story of this game but the gameplay itself is top notch and graphics are fantastic. The art style is a garbage mess with the red and blue hair but the rest of the game looks great compared to that and i'd love to see this style expanded on for the next game. I hope the next game can maintain a similar social balance and just bringing together a way more compelling story. I don't feel invested in these characters in the slightest and find many of them very unlikable.

[@stagfoo]

my worry is the rings, they seems very op like dynamaxing in pokemon. so im worried that its focused on combat and that combat is going to feel cheap because you are just waiting to use the ring all the time to win 🤔

[@EnderMon]

Idk man… I had so much fun playing match maker with all my units in three houses… it wasn’t even about the relationships the mc had, although that was a factor. Is none of that really in this game at all? The support dialogues were so fun to witness. If there is both no supports like this, AND no alternate routes, I’m not sure if I’ll enjoy it. Say what you will, but I loved three houses so much. For this to be such a drastically different game is a tough pill to swallow. I’ll have to sit on it for a while

[@argylega]

I never got into Three Houses because the focus on the relationships & the drawn-out talking & wandering around between battles wasn't my thing. So it sounds like this one might be tailor-made for me.

[@jell-orodriguez2792]

Hell yes, i got so tired of the social sim aspect of 3H, im so glad this game focuses less on that aspect and more on battling

[@JohnRambo1947-July-6th]

I'm naming my main character, Crest

[@tobiookuma1835]

Thank GOD we don't spend our time 50/50 in the somniel and in combat. The monastery was an ungodly boring chore by the halfway point, and it made the game feel like a slog in future playthroughs.

[@ArchAngel_M81]

I love the Fire Emblem series. I nearly have every game to leave Japan either physically or digitally. I say nearly because I didn’t buy the limited time release of the very first game a couple of years ago. I had the DS remake, and I was annoyed Nintendo was doing this limited time release for a number of other games as well.

[@shadowknight4738]

If this is basically an improved fire emblem path of radiance im in! This is what ive been asking for, guess its time to dust off the old switch lol hopefully characters can morph

[@AiminE2512]

I still like the old Fire Emblem The Sacred Stone style no matter how long it is 😁