Why You Should Play Fire Emblem (And Where To Begin)

[@ViviVariety]

So as I mentioned, here’s the list of all the translations and other useful stuff I used in the video. I can’t help as to where to source specific things, but the process is much simpler than you think. Creators will be credited below! And if I misspelled a name or forget a creator, please let me know and I’ll update accordingly Installation Video, by Mekkah kzbin.info/www/bejne/gIi8ZGmXmt2eisk&themeRefresh=1 1. Fire Emblem 1 -Translation Patch, by Quirino forums.serenesforest.net/index.php?/topic/20071-fire-emblem-nes-translation/ 2. Gaiden -Translation Patch, by artemis251 and Shimizu Hitomi artemis251.fobby.net/feg/index.html 3. Mystery of the Emblem -Translation Patch, by RPGuy96 and VincentASM forums.serenesforest.net/index.php?/topic/11596-fe3-mystery-of-the-emblem-translation-patch/ 4. Genealogy of the Holy War -Translation Patch, by Project Naga projectnaga.tumblr.com/post/144339946270/the-new-fire-emblem-genealogy-of-the-holy-war 5. Thracia 776 -Translation Patch, by Lil’ Manster (Munster?) forums.serenesforest.net/index.php?/topic/90189-fe5-lil-manster-%E2%80%93-translation-and-quality-of-life-patch-for-thracia-776/ -Mekkah’s Blind, Spoiler Free Guide to Thracia >This is for people who find themselves stumped by Thracia, and want a guide that keeps things vague, but explains enough to help you out through the tougher parts. Definitely worth checking out, it’ll save your bacon when the going gets tough. kzbin.info/www/bejne/kGqTnoxtYtprqpI 6. Binding Blade -Translation Patch, by DTN Translation Division and gringe forums.serenesforest.net/index.php?/topic/41095-fe6-localization-patch-v113-now-with-fully-functional-support-conversation-reader/#comment-2457854 7 and 8: -Danger Zone Mod, which allows you to view global enemy ranges (by circleseverywhere) feuniverse.us/t/fe7-8-enemy-range-display-hack/1417 9. Path of Radiance -HD Texture Pack, by Sebastrion >Basically just an HD upscale of Path of Radiance forums.dolphin-emu.org/Thread-fire-emblem-path-of-radiance-hd-texture-pack-v1-0-1-january-21-2021 10. Nothing, have fun! 11. Also nothing! 12. New Mystery of the Emblem -Translation Patch, by VincentASM and the Heroes of Light and Shadow forums.serenesforest.net/index.php?/topic/69176-updated-fe12-translation-patch-beta-2-released/ -Kris Removal Patch/Old Mystery Rewrite, by Darman >So this is a weird one I stumbled on recently, where basically, the mod skips past Kris’ dialogue, AND retains much of the original Mystery of the Emblem script. I finished this myself in my off time and found it incredibly solid! I think it’s one of the best ways to experience the original Old Mystery story, and still have the New Mystery additions! In addition, there’s a few adjustments to either retain the optional chapters, or revert some mechanics to the Old Mystery version if you wish. It’s not a complete 1:1 mechanical fix, but it is cool to get at least a little of the original game’s mechanics. feuniverse.us/t/fe12-old-mystery-of-the-emblem-2-0/7676 And another special mention to the Lo-fi Fire Emblem Music team! I only used a few of their tracks, but it’s worth checking out the entire collection. Full video for the music kzbin.info/www/bejne/mYDSppeHmNujadU Tracks I specifically used: Vulnerar-E Mart, by forblaze Lost In Thoughts All Alone, by dj shepard

[@darkpitt1]

Path of radiance will forever be held in my heart as my favorite.

[@ViviVariety]

It's one of the gold standards imo!

[@kap1618]

I still have my gamecube copy.

[@zeehero7280]

PoR and Radiant Dawn are part of the same story, and are both amazing. I like how ike is drawn as a teenager in Path of Radiance, and a grown man in Radiant Dawn cuz its been a few years and he grew up.

[@cd4playa1245]

The binding blade is very similar to POR if you haven’t played it. The binding blade is absolutely ingenious the more you play and find out about it. Of course most of these games are.

[@tiborn1559]

Really great video, one can tell you put a lot of effort into it. Really really appreciate this video Wow, somebody here really knows his nasu visual novels, mahotsukai no yoru was great imo

[@ViviVariety]

I'll always find an excuse to reference the Nasuverse somehow :)

[@tiborn1559]

Gotta respect Nasu enjoyers

[@wpdenni]

My first Three Houses attempt was with a Male Byleth, and I thought they did pretty well with the blank slate protagonist. At many points, it was hilarious because they wrote in reasons and backstory to explain why Byleth is so reserved, while also explaining that his blank expression is a great fear tactic when he slaughters enemies. Plus his base-stare portrait lands as a punchline 99% of the time.

[@ViviVariety]

I admit my perspective comes from someone who played a lot of JRPGs and reads a lot of books and visual novels, so that's the bar I compare FE protagonists to. But at the end of the day, I think I just feel like I don't get why Byleth was designed to be a blank slate and silent protagonist, when you can actually work with those as character traits IF written properly. For example, if Byleth had proper voice lines and slowly gained a sense of self in the story, I think many of the story's themes and ideas would work even better. Or having Byleth start out like an empty husk, but by the end be much more human and expressive as a result of their growth. If that makes sense. Even when it comes to silent protagonists, one of my absolute favorite examples is in Mother 3, where the main character is a silent protagonist, but has a very defined personality and a clear character arc. A more recent example with Omori does something very similar, and both examples use other characters, or specific moments to highlight that the player character is not a blank slate. However, I will say that Fem Byleth's deadpan stare is really, really funny after a while lol.

[@Bill_Oddie_Face_Mask]

Fire Emblem was my favorite franchise growing up. I was invested the moment I unlocked Marth in Melee back in '01 and I got FE7 on the day it came out. I remember how much I loved it, but also how mad I was that it had neither Marth nor Roy (I was a kid and didn't know about after credits scenes). My favorites are 4, 7 and 10. In terms of the order I would recommend to newcomers, it would probably be this: 7 (Fire Emblem) - prequel to Roy's story - SUPER HANDHOLDY mandatory Tutorial section 6 (Sword of Seals) - Roy's story 8 (Sacred Stones) - easy, straightforward story and a good introduction to FE characteristics absent in 6 and 7 9 (Path of Radiance) - Ike's story 10 (Radiant Dawn) - sequel to Ike's story and my personal favorite - hard, but in a fair and challenging not RNG-gimmicky way 4 (Genealogy of the Holy War) - introduced concepts revolutionary in gaming at the time, top tier story, influenced all subsequent FE games 5 (Thracia 776) - Sidestory to 4 - ludicrously unfair RNG 3 or 12 (Mystery of the Emblem) - Marth's story. Gameplay is more advanced and significantly more difficult in remake, but IMO everything else is better in the original) 2 or 15 (Gaiden or Shadows of Valencia) - sidestory to Marth's games. Play the old one for straightforward gameplay; play the remake if you like anime. 13 (Awakening) - The one with Chrom, Robin and Lucina. Sequel to Marth's games and the highly controversial franchise-saver that radically changed all games going forward 16 (Three Houses) - modern stuff that's in the zeitgeist at the moment I'd skip the others entirely. TBH if you're not concerned with the cultural zeitgeist I'd skip Awakening and Three Houses.

[@kdude1575]

Gotta say I love how many people are saying Radiant Dawn are their personnel favorites. I like how it merges old school and modern fire emblem while not really being "gimmicky" like Fates onward. I still think Awakening isn't too gimmicky but Fates, Three Houses and Engage just dial it up to 11. I wish they'd step back on that a bit, maybe to the level of Awakening if not all the way back to Radiant Dawn.

[@ViviVariety]

With FE7 being on the Nintendo online catalogue, I can definitely see that being one of the definitive starting points nowadays! Well, more than it already was lol. And while I think most of the series is still worth playing, I also completely understand why they're worth skipping. Modern FE is not for everyone, especially for a lot of fans who played the older games. I'd also love if IS would dial it back as well. I like the mechanical changes with the later entries, but I do want a story that feels more like a classic entry. I know 3H tried, and was generally pretty decent all things considered, but something like FE9/10/4 would do a lot of good for the series. And boy, the things I'd do for a game like Radiant Dawn again...

[@Rytom]

out the games I've played : Engage is my favorite gameplaywise HANDS DOWN, I didn't expect it to like it so much. I was afraid the game would solely be a fanservice game, but I was wrong. The fan service is done just right. If emblems were completely new characters and not the MCs from previous entries, the game would not lose its interest, and that is a strong point. While the story is okay, it's by no means bad. There are interesting twists and events having gameplay repercussions that blends the two together pretty well and help getting the point across. The music is also pretty good, even though it's a bit hard to listen to out of the game I feel. Except for "Tear Striked (ice)" slapping hard and the Solanel osts that are super chill. I've even been surprised at how I ended up liking characters I wouldn't expect to. Yunaa is a prime example of this. First encounter she grinded my gears. By the end of the game she was one of my favorite and strongest unit. Three Houses is close to be my personal favorite, but I simply cannot stop gushing about Shadows of Valentia. The game oozes style. The music, the artistic direction, the somewhat unorthodox gameplay, Alm and Celica, and the overall love and care that went into it. The title screen change after clearing the game still makes me happy looking at it years later. Now obviously, the one(s) I can't stand is fate. I felt so betrayed by that game in terms of character and story, I just can't look at it anymore, it's visceral. After enjoying Awakening, IS had my trust and I went for the collector edition containing the three games, what a harsh reality I was faced with :(

[@ViviVariety]

Would you ever wanna give the older games a shot? I know FE7 just hit the eshop not too long ago, and the others aren't hard to emulate.

[@Rytom]

@@ViviVariety I've played both path of radiance and binding blade to completion. I'm planning to play through FE7/8, radiant dawn, and the two remakes on DS but my backlog is ever expanding :( I believe in Nintendo doing Echoes remakes for FE4 and 5, I think that would be a neat way to experience them.

[@ViviVariety]

Ah gotcha, that makes sense! I feel you on the backlog as well, this year in in particular was kinda stacked. It feel the backlog just keeps growing. Luckily the older FEs aren't going anywhere, and it took me ages to actually play all of them as well. You'll get there eventually!

[@Rytom]

@@ViviVariety Yeah, it does...too many quality games to play, including indies, it is never ending and never will. Not to mention I play my games in japanese to practice the language so games take me even longer to finish. As a tactical enjoyer have you played Triangle Strategy, FF tactics, Tactics Ogre ? If not, you can add them to the backlog. Hey at least we have enough games to play until we die, we simply can't be bored.

[@thesilverwolfofnyc5077]

The MUSIC IS ALSO GODLIKE

[@ViviVariety]

I know! I actually had a section dedicated to the music and how literally every game has banger after banger...it ultimately got cut, but god DAMN is the music in this series good.

[@thesilverwolfofnyc5077]

@ViviVariety especially Three houses and by extention hopes every game in the series has 4 or 5 good ones some 1 or 2 but three houses literally gets better and better. First fire emblem game with dubstep cultists👌🏾👌🏾👌🏾

[@zeehero7280]

is Radiant Dawn really that rare now? Wow, gotta email my sister who I sold all my wii games and console to years ago, she needs to know what she has so she can take good care of it or sell it if she wants.

[@ViviVariety]

Yeah nowadays RD and PoR can go for a lot! One of my biggest regrets is going to a used bookstore in college, seeing a copy of PoR for like $80, and thinking "eh, that's too much". ....little did I know that was a bargain lol

[@joshuasensay8735]

I recently had that revelation like how you ended this video. It does feel like an old friend that I can come back to throughout my life. Just recently realized out of all the video game franchises. I've ever played at least 14 entries in this series which is more than my attention span can say about any other. Well said

[@ViviVariety]

I had that revelation not too long ago as well, which is crazy the more I think about it. There's a lot of series that had a profound impact on me, and a lot of them are either ones that faded away (like Mother or MGS), or ones I grew out of (like KH). And while Fire Emblem never had as big of an impact, it was always there, which really says a lot about the series over the years.

[@StivKobra]

Ah, a fellow Thracia 776 connoisseur.

[@ShadowAndRoseS]

Ya like Ballistas?

[@balaceanubogdan2231]

Great job making this series justice! As someone who discovered this series in gba era, for me it become a system seller. Bought 3ds and switch for it. And yes it is like an old friend.

[@RickyHadou]

My first Fire Emblem was actually Three Houses. I saw the trailer and was like “oh, this game sounds up my alley.” I got instantly hooked and scoured eBay to buy the classics (Awakening and Sacred Stones FTW) It’s easily one of my favorite series. I’m currently playing Engage. Despite the critics, I’m actually enjoying it. The combat is so damn good.

[@brokoblin6284]

Three Houses was also my first and I'm only now on my second (Shadows of Valentia) at about 30 hours in

[@Garvant_]

Im an awakening baby, or i guess man now, cant believe awakenings over 10 years old already but this video was so great man. Im currently playing FE3 and im blown away by how well the snes animations and art hold up (the pegasus galloping animation is genuinely beautiful) its been super fun so far, im also in the middle of my first three houses maddening run also fun and damn difficult. You really can enjoy any one of these games new or old greatly

[@ViviVariety]

Right? I remember being so worried that I wouldn't like the older games since I basically went Shadow Dragon > GBA > PoR/RD, so I was afraid of how older games held up. And sure, they all haven't aged well, but barring the NES ones all the older games have aged very gracefully. They are some quirks, some worse than others, but still, it's very impressive that most of the series is perfectly playable.

[@mugluvin3300]

My recommend begging point is always Sacred Stones. Good story, easy but not overly handholdy. Just a good start.

[@deckardshaw6696]

It was my first FE lol

[@whym6438]

I don't even own Smash Ultimate, and I'm *still* mad that neither of the two main characters from Sacred Stones are playable in it. That's how good the game is.

[@itsmedio6208]

@@whym6438 right, Smash really dropped the ball on adding memorable FE characters. I really wish they added Hector. They should've added an ax wielder and a lance wielder instead of most of them being sword wielders besides Robin. The weapon triangle is a big part of FE, can't believe they just shoved in all sword wielders in smash like c'mon.

[@ilikedota5]

@@itsmedio6208 most Lords are sword wielders. There are notable exceptions like Hector and Ephraim, but the overwhelming majority are sword users.

[@itsmedio6208]

@@ilikedota5 exactly why they should've included someone like Hector, Sigurd, or Ephraim in Smash. Marth and Lucina are carbon copies of each other. Should've been my boy Hector in there :'(

[@juicyjuustar121]

Hearing you talk about how Sacred Stones is so easy, even on hard mode, while thinking back to when I tried to beat hard mode and got myself completely stuck and couldn't finish it 😭

[@ViviVariety]

Truth be told difficulty is really subjective. Everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses, so one person's easy game is another person's kryptonite.

[@josephcavera7298]

My sister and I both struggled to keep everyone alive in Sacred Stones, even on Normal 😅

[@BknMoonStudios]

It's the fucking gargoyles and floating eyes, I swear! The boat map on Hard Mode is a NIGHTMARE if your don't cheese with Seth.

[@juicyjuustar121]

For me the trouble was chapter 19, the defend chapter with fog of war where they send onslaughts of promoted enemies at you. Tried it dozens of times to no avail. Definitely gonna give it a shot again eventually though, I'm definitely getting better at Fire Emblem bit by bit so it might be doable one day!

[@josephcavera7298]

@@BknMoonStudios thought the gargoyles were only in Echoes

[@kdude1575]

It's funny that you say "don't start with Radiant Dawn" as I bought it on a whim randomly and it's how I fell in love with the series. Edward and Mia are two of my favorite swordmasters in the series. I'll say Awakening is an excellent starting point as it's modern enough with visuals and it introduces you into making your units work together as well as the skill and reclassing system. It also has a serviceable story with neat characters (I'm looking at you Frederick, Chrom, Gregor, Tharja I could go on).

[@ViviVariety]

My SO has a similar story lol. She started with Awakening, but played RD as her first "classic" entry, and boy was that a trip. She ended up loving it enough to give the rest of the series a chance though, which really says a lot about how good RD is in general.

[@declanmcsherry9368]

My dad owned radiant dawn and I grew up playing it over and over again, took years before I even attempted another one and I can say none have ever held my attention like radiant dawn still does to this day

[@michaeloreto3222]

The why they rock section is my favorite section! It really encapsulates why I love playing them so much, with some that I didn't even realize myself. I love the complete chapter as fast as possible and I didn't even realize it. I love making my units as OP as possible and just one shotting everyone that gets in my way! Great video man keep it up.

[@tomasgarcia7499]

Oh, I’m so happy to see Thracia 776 love . I played it for the first time in December and I love it SOOO much. Three Houses, Genealogy, and Thracia are my top 3 FE games. So amazing. I’m one of the 3H noobs!!! My 1st FE game.

[@Garvant_]

Wow a three houses player going back to fe4 and thracia that's wild, good stuff man

[@Alicious_Al]

FE3H. What a game. Still playing it…850 hours in. 😅

[@skavenslayer1933]

This is what I love about Fire Emblem. You can drop 850 hours in nearly any of the games in the series. They are all unique, individual, every single one is both loved and hated by many. 3 Houses is incredible I agree, I vibed with Fates and Engage even more. Most people don't. They're all great. They are all timeless, and will never feel "obsolete" or outdated, due to the strategic gameplay, charm, and memorable characters. Fire Emblem is by and far my favorite game series, it's perfectly imperfect.

[@stephbenson7340]

Look. I will never say that Revelation is a must-play game, or even necessarily a good game. It has a lot of flaws and I don't deny them. But I still really enjoyed it, questionable writing at all. I really connected with Corrin as a protagonist for reasons I'd rather keep to myself, and the idea of choosing neither of the obvious paths and instead taking a third, less obvious and "harder" path and it paying off is nice. The utter weirdness of Valla and its key figures and backstory is such a fantasy departure and it was really interesting to learn about it and them. Again, I'm aware of its many flaws. But I am one of the few Revelation likers out there.

[@camillaquelladegliaggettiv4303]

I'm a child of divorce, always been torn apart between two parents (well, one pulled, and brainwashed me into thinking the other was pulling as well). I relate to saying "fuck you" to both branches of my family and going my way

[@poisontango]

26:20 You 100% nailed it. Man, the nostalgia... First time picking up the game, some kid sitting in his room for hours, but FE7 took me on a journey to other worlds!

[@unluckly9256]

As a fan of the series since 2016, this was a great watch all around! I think FE is a series that I genuinely don't think has a single actually bad *mainline* game so it's nice to see each game get the love it deserves. Only thing I'd disagree with is on the Awakening cast being weak. I will admit I'm a little biased since it's my favorite in the series, but I put an ungodly amount of time into trying to unlock every support conversation in Awakening (yes, even between children and parents...) and it only further cemented the cast as one of my favorites in gaming.

[@ViviVariety]

Glad you enjoyed it! I actually like most of the Awakening cast as well, as characters like Lucina and Chrom are better than they get credit for, and the others are good when the supports extend beyond a character's initial gimmick. I also really like the second generation overall, I can't think of any of the Gen 2 characters I dislike. My main issue is just the quantity over quality, as I personally would have liked less supports, but stronger writing on the ones that are there. I understand something like that simply isn't feasible since Awakening really encourages you to pair everyone together, but it's just my personal preference. It's why I like the Tellius and GBA casts so much.

[@gameboyn64]

I think awakening's problems are the first generation opposite sex supports and father child supports. Opposite sex first gen supports often talk about the same things and often roll back character growth established in other supports. Meanwhile father child supports are all cookie cutter because of how many combinations there are.

[@unluckly9256]

True, PoR does have best boy Ike after all, so I don't blame you there.

[@kueyteow6288]

I played Heroes first back in 2019 and got introduced to pretty much everyone in the Fire Emblem universe until now, I played Three Hopes and then had Engage as my first true FE experience and I don't think I could've asked for a better FE game as my first.

[@AutisticJesusGaming]

I played fe 7 first. It is one of the best to start with. It’s the most simple game and one that adequately balances difficulty

[@FoxFire128]

If possible, you should also really try the 3DS titles. I've played Awakening and all three Fates games and other than fire emblem Fates birthright, they were all pretty good. What I have to say my birthright, is it had probably some of the worst writing I've ever experienced in any Nintendo game. Fire emblem Fates conquest and Revelations are both really good though, especially conquest.

[@kueyteow6288]

@@FoxFire128 I really want to play all the Fire Emblem games, if that FE4 remake is true, then I wanna start playing from the GBA Era, then Tellius, 3DS, and then the FE4 remake. The Forging Bonds from FEH helped me get familiar with this characters and i really want to see their stories unfold. If FE5 isn't packaged in with the FE4 remake I'll try to find some way to play it

[@rhettmitchell]

I’d play Three Houses if you liked the cast of Three Hopes, it’s a lot more fleshed out character-wise. The game really expects you to have played 3Houses already

[@kueyteow6288]

@@rhettmitchell I've experienced the story of Three Houses and pretty much loved everyone there before playing Three Hopes, Shez is probably my favourite avatar character

[@hanzou1238]

My first game in the series was Shadow Dragon and I have played every game in the series since. FE4 is my favorite game in the series. People don't like the gameplay simply because the maps are too large and while yes they are I personally didn't find it to be that bad. At the beginning of my first playthrough I felt the maps dragged on but that's because I was trying to do an entire map at once like I do with other games, however once I started thinking about how each castle you seize is similar to a single map in other games it became more enjoyable. Every time I seized a castle I counted it as completing a normal map and cutting the maps down like that definitely helps. Just a tip that might help anyone wanting to play it.

[@ViviVariety]

Your point about the maps is something I'd also recommend, since FE4 maps are basically 3 to 4 normal maps smashed together. If you break up the maps into different sessions, it's less tedious for sure. Personally I still don't like FE4 all that much because I prefer smaller, tightly designed maps, but I do think pacing yourself and taking it once castle at a time helps a ton. Plus, I actually really like the item management aspect, and I hope that stays in the remake!

[@theprocrastinator6813]

Yea , the maps are huge in exchange for making the game have only 12 chapters, thankfully it lets us save each turn in case we mess up and arent forced to start from the very beginning, and just restart from the last turn instead. its a really interesting fire emblem entry in the series , especially since its split into 2 parts, where in the 2nd part you play as the children of the units in part 1. Meaning theres alot of possibilities of different pairings and who will inherit what ability/ weapons. The lore is also really interesting, as well as the shocking twists we see in the story

[@LancasterAJ]

Just came here to hear someone say something nice about Sacred Stones.

[@ViviVariety]

Sacred Stones might actually be my favorite of the GBA games, it's honestly just Fire Emblem at its purest.

[@misamisaa4547]

Shadow of Valentia was the first FE game I played & it made me fall in love with the series

[@leargamma4912]

Replayability is a series staple. Hell, I would stake my life on the idea that the very first game, dark dragon and the sword of light, has 10x the replay value of Super Mario Galaxy.

[@arthurmoreira49]

Shadow of Valentia seems to be one of the games I really want to try someday, I'm really a sucker for good story

[@rushpatriot2866]

Is it like dragon quest? Cause I can't stand dragon quest. It looks kid like and boring at the same time and plays that way with a full story.

[@ViviVariety]

If you're curious about SoV (and anyone is for that matter), the opening cinematic from the game should give you a decent idea of whether or not the game is for you! kzbin.info/www/bejne/jaHam2N3ps-Ljdk

[@yaboykirby7789]

@@rushpatriot2866 It is literally nothing like Dragon quest

[@tybellsprout]

The weirdest thing about watching your videos is how similar our tastes are in entertainment (Heroes, FromSoft, comics, FE). Another great video, hope you keep on going.

[@andrebaxter4023]

I'm new to the series. Started with Engage and loving it. Once done, I'll play through 3 Houses next. That said, yes like yourself, Smash Bros Melee was the first game that I saw Fire Emblem characters(Marth and Roy). I didn't know where they came from for years.

[@NintendoMasterNo1]

It's crazy how I agree with almost every opinion you said. It's almost like I wrote the video. I also mostly value gameplay over story in this series (although FE9 is my favorite game because I think it's the best mix of the two) which is why Thracia, Conquest and more recently Engage are some of my favorites.

[@wpdenni]

I need you to understand that this is the first video I've watched of yours, and because you seamlessly used Carl Weathers the Actor's iconic stew line, I'm sold on you. Well done.

[@shmat6858]

Play fe4 it’s a masterpiece

[@thevrex9237]

videos like this are such a valuable resource. Like other classic jrpgs, fire emblem suffers from its history making it daunting to new players. I know i was affraid jumping into it when i heard that I was playing the 13th entry in the series

[@Masqu33]

This is such an amazing video. I like the way you explain these games and edit your videos :) (btw I also love using Nephenee)

[@cobaltspace5283]

I got into Fire Emblem much later than most and in a weird way. I was coming off of playing Persona 3, 4, and 5 and kinda wanted something similar so my sophomore year of high school I picked up Fire Emblem Three Houses. It was genuinely one of the few games that I would just sit and replay for a whole year and after I’d done everything possible I really wanted to see what the other games were about. I got super lucky in that I never got rid of my 3DS and the used game store in my town had a copy of Awakening for a fairly good price. I’d say that’s what really cemented in my mind that this was a series I wanted to get invested in. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get my hands on any new titles until Engage released and in the middle of playing that I managed to get my hands on a Shadows of Valentia copy. I really can’t stop recommending the series because it really feels like it has something for everyone and that’s just after only playing four of the many entries. Hoping I’ll eventually be able to get my hands on more games but until then I love the stories I’ve experienced so far!

[@jaimereupert4247]

There's always emulation.

[@cobaltspace5283]

@@jaimereupert4247 I’ve definitely been looking into it! Unfortunately as of right now my computer is ancient and most of her space is being used so I can play through Baldur’s Gate 3. Hoping to have saved up enough cash by the end of winter to start building a new pc so crossing my fingers that some new Fire Emblem titles will be in my future 😅

[@jaimereupert4247]

@@cobaltspace5283 you can get emulators on the phone.

[@SonictheHedgehog1st]

​@cobaltspace5283 I know you didn't ask, but if you ever plan on dipping your toes into old FE through emulation I couldn't recommend Path of Radiance enough. It was my introduction to the series, and remains my personal favorite. The storytelling, setting, and characters are just so damn good.

[@Spyder-Marth]

I played FE Heroes as my first FE game, but I never heard of FE until I played Smash Ultimate. I'm so glad I decided to buy both Engage and Three Houses on my birthday. I love both games and I WILL replay them multiple times.

[@hylianfelldragon1308]

It's a little refreshing to see someone who enjoys both Switch games the same NGL.

[@giygas9305]

Is Engage better than 3 Houses? I just look at Engage and get turned off by the complete Anime artstyle

[@ViviVariety]

My own two cents is that Engage and 3H are basically the reverse of each other. 3H excels in characters and story but falters in gameplay, and Engage has stellar gameplay but weaker story and character writing. Personally I prefer Engage but that's because I prefer gameplay over story (generally). I also really liked 3H but recognize it's not the game for tight, strategy based gameplay.

[@giygas9305]

@@ViviVariety The gameplay cant be THAT much better can it? Three Houses was decent.

[@ViviVariety]

3H wasn't bad by any means in terms of gameplay, it was just a noticeable step down in map design and general strategy. Meanwhile Engage feels more closely to a classic FE game, but with new mechanics that add more depth to the gameplay. Obviously everyone's preference will vary, but I do think that Engage is a significant improvement over 3H when it comes to things like map design, strategy, and general balance. For example, Engage on the highest difficulty actually feels balanced, whereas 3H Maddening was really messy. I hope that made sense, I don't blame people for being turned off by Engage's art style. I'm personally not a fan either. But gameplay wise, it's awesome, and I couldn't recommend it enough in that regard.

[@AmirPrinceling]

It makes me happy to see someone advocating for the greatness that is Fire Emblem, honestly it's my favorite game series but damn the community could definitely be better. Such an amazing series, it's stories and characters have left such an indelible mark on me. I'll never forget the day when I randomly stumbled upon Awakening on the eshop, it being on sale at the time. I was never typically one to just start things on a whim but something about Chrom and the overall look of the game called to me. Fell in love with it once I started playing, and since then I've played every single game in the series and loved every moment (random flex but I was able to get a physical copy of RD for a really fair price a few years ago, definitely one of the games I'm most proud of having). Okay, I still need to play Engage but I'm at the moment but best believe I'm buying it first chance I get.

[@ViviVariety]

Damn, I'm almost jealous! I have the exact opposite story, when I was in college I found a used copy of PoR for like 80 bucks, but I remember my partner and I just said "eh, if we really want it we can get it later". ....Lo and behold, it was never seen again. One of my biggest regrets in life xD

[@AmirPrinceling]

@Vivi's Variety Show Yeah 80 bucks for PoR is a great deal compared to how it is these days. I actually was able to get RD for 60 bucks off Amazon just a few years ago (no idea why it was so low at the time) but I bought it and still have it. I even figured out a way to carry my save file from my emulation of PoR to my Wii and then be able to make use of the Transfer bonuses, very fun.

[@koalaaaa.]

Bro is a RRR connoisseur

[@Fayne_net]

Started with Awakening myself, was always into strategy games and very much into jrpgs and it was a match made in heaven. From there I played every mainline game, including all Fates routes. (Have yet to finish 2 routes in Three houses though). And also most spin-offs. I would personally recommend you start with whatever game you feel interests you the most. (E.g. if you liked Ike from brawl you could play Path of Radiance or Radiant Dawn). Although assuming you only have a switch and don’t want to emulate, then your choices are practically limited to Three Houses (which in my opinion is the best game in the series to date, and a bit more ‘mature’ vs the next game) and Engage (which I feel is a better choice if you’re into the anime style). And while I understand that Engage will get you into the other games, I quite frankly think you’re better off saving it for when you’ve played at least one or two other games in the series. As you’ll have some familiarity with the characters and a large part of the appeal is seeing them interact. So that’s an argument against it, but at the same time, if you’ve played any smash brothers game then you’ll already be familiar with some of the characters which has the same affect. Then one argument in favor of Three Houses is that it’s very open ended. You can go at your own pace and it’s more synonymous to the older FE (pre awakening) games in terms of style. Although it is the most different in terms of gameplay so ultimately that might be a bit deceiving. In fact both Three Houses and Engage in a way are very different from what came before.

[@Krishavoc14]

Remember playing three hours for the first time I played it so much and I finished all dlc all routes and had so much fun doing it

[@JazzoBeat]

I have an friend online who she's loves FE meanwhile I only had experience with smash FE. I have 3 houses but never put much time into it but after watching this video I feel more motivated to try and play through my first playthrough of 3 houses with the golden deers

[@MubarkAlKhatlan]

Have fun

[@talios6824]

Black Eagle run never disappoints!

[@avej99]

Deer gang rise up

[@bificommander7472]

Enjoy. Although, as someone who picked Golden Deer first: Blue Lions felt like the more natural story for a first playthrough. Do with that what you will.

[@Rockotarthepurplehatguy]

​@@bificommander7472 Golden deer is the better first story, because it answers most of the really important questions that the other routes leave hanging, and it's the only route where the Flame Emperor twist isn't spoiled by excessive foreshadowing. A twist that can never be surprising if you play any other route before Golden Deer. It's worth it for that moment alone.

[@eulisesmoreno3203]

My first experience was a weird one. One day I was looking for a new game to play and I saw fe7 sitting there so I picked it up and started playing it brought me joy and attachment to the series.

[@gameboyn64]

How i would describe the series. Fe 1-3 is like going to a museum. It's educational and interesting but not something you will probably ever go back to. Fe4-6 are difficult to get a hold of but are worthwhile experiences. Fe7-9 are all great first fire emblems that truly express what fire emblem is at its core. Fe10-12 are games that are truly appreciated by veterans who have a comprehensive understanding of the series mechanics. Fe13 is a good starting point for fe players who want to get into modern fe. Fe14 is a good sequel to fe13's design and mechanics. Fe15 is the game to relax and play at your own pace. Fe16 is the sandbox novel. Fe17 truly has a lot for veterans with well tuned mechanics, decent enough map design, without being overly exhausting.

[@ViviVariety]

Couldn't have said it better myself!

[@RoboticEdward]

Well I'm back here to say that as I type this, I just finished Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War, and god damn what an adventure. The maps really do drag as you say in the vid but I was really entranced by the gameplay improvememts and story all throughout for me to be all that annoyed. I won't be spoiling it here obviously since people should either play it for themselves or wait for the inevitable remake that may or may not exist. I played the entire game in Japanese and it was quite the experience as a learner of the language. I had to read a lot and even reread some passages of text but i thought it was worth the trouble. That just comes with the territory with learning a new language. I played via the Nintendo Switch Online Super Famicom app since it was convenient (also rewind cuz I'm a pu**y LMAO) but the rewind also helped with reading text too. Not sure if I'll just use this comment as like an "FE checklist" where i give quick thoughts but considering this vid reignited my interest in FE as a whole, I thought I'd help the vid by leaving a comment

[@lissybug0176]

My first FE game was Awakening and I’ve been a fan since.

[@liamwilson7549]

FE7 is the perfect place to start. It is simplistic to a core. The Lyn path tutorial teaches you everything. FE8 is great too for beginners, but as an overall tutorial system i would say FE7 will teach you the game better.

[@ViviVariety]

Yeah the Lyn tutorial is also why I generally recommend 7 over 8 for most people. Simple story, length tutorial, likable characters, etc. Not that FE8 doesn't have that, but still. I also think characters like Lyn and Eliwood are a little more recognizable to the average gamer.

[@kyleefaren3075]

So many good entry points: Blazing Blade, Sacred Stones, Path of Radiance, Awakening, Echoes SoV, or 3 Houses.

[@ViviVariety]

Honestly it's easier to name games you SHOULDN'T start with, and even then, it's no big deal. I've known people who start with New Mystery or Radiant Dawn and still had fun, so it just shows there's no wrong way to get into Fire Emblem.

[@Anonymos185]

My dumbass heading to this video after already having beaten every game in the franchise

[@ViviVariety]

I'd have probably done the exact same thing if our roles were reversed lol

[@thealmightypuht.a.p.]

That intro was great. Tellius are my favorite games and Ike is my favorite ch and lord in the series so I abs loved how big they made his out to be. He was a type of living legend in RD. He was larger than life. People admired him, feared him and respected him. I remember when Michaiah group found out they weren’t just taking on the Laguz but it was being led by Ike. It was a “Oh shit….we are fucked” moment. 😂

[@razorloboerrol]

Its lovely that you're still around. I thought you might get discouraged due to the view counts & maybe quit. Great video as always. I will check the series out once my DS2 playthrough is over.

[@generalgarchomp333]

Engage is the FE tropeiest game in the series and I love it for that.

[@Blyeth-go4wr]

"Our boy, Roy!" finally, someone else.

[@MythrilZenith]

Had to leave a like just for that intro edit.

[@MysteryMedia2001]

I started playing with awakening, I liked it enough so I picked up fates and Shadows of valentia. Shadows of Valentia is the game that truly made me fall in love with the series. I adore almost every single character from that game and to me it is *my* fire emblem game.

[@Just_Shaun]

You deserve more views! I’m new, with engage being the first FE game I bought and played through from start to finish. It’s a weird one to start with, I’m sure. The amount of fan service was overwhelming but intriguing. I have very recently picked up 3 houses and both warriors games on the switch. Plus my 3DS and Wii-U are… magic 🙃, they can get free games!! So I’ve basically got access to the entire English released games. I don’t know where to go next, I should mention that the only other non-spinoff FE I got somewhat through was FE7, I got to about chapter 5~ of Eliwood’s story. So I’m at a crossroads of sort, I could easily go back to FE7 but I think I’d have to restart the game so I’m not completely lost. Or I could play through Awakening, Shadow Dragon or 3 houses. I don’t feel like scratching my head over patching fan translations. Ideally I would like to play a shorter game that isn’t too easy which would give me time to experience the game without rushing to complete it before Zelda Botw 2 comes out. Any ideas?

[@ViviVariety]

I'm glad you enjoyed the vid! And man, starting with Engage must have been weird, but I'm happy you enjoyed it enough to continue with the series! As for where to go next, personally, I'd recommend just finishing FE7. I think FE7 only has 31 chapters, not including the optional ones, so you're roughly about halfway through the game already if you include Lyn Mode being the first 10 or so. And if you feel really lost, the earlier chapters should go by much faster since you already played through it once before. But if you really don't wanna replay FE7, I'd say Shadow Dragon. It isn't too terribly long, and it's really streamlined to boot. Plus it really encourages you to accept deaths, as the game has many fail safes if you lose a lot of troops. And I definitely understand the apprehension about fan translations, I used to be really unsure about the installation process. In my pinned comment, there's a video by Mekkah where he outlines the process, and I'm sure other fans like myself would be more than happy to help if you're curious. Obviously I'm biased because a lot of my favorite games like FE5 and FE12 are Japan exclusive, but I do hope someday you're open to checking out the translated games!

[@geran4473]

Personally I'd say do Path of Radiance (fe9). Imo it's just the most solid fire emblem of all. The maps were good, story was good, supports were good, not too many mechanics thrown at you at once, easy to follow and great characters. If you liked it you can follow it up with its sequel Radiant Dawn.

[@ViviVariety]

So PoR is actually my first choice for like 90% of people, for basically being extremely strong all around. ...The big catch is availability, like obviously it isn't too hard to use Dolphin/homebrew, but it's still a legitimate barrier. Not to mention the insanity of the physical copies. All things being equal though, PoR is my first recommendation period, and if for any reason it's not an option, my second picks are FE8/7!

[@crazyeights8815]

I looooved engage. Sure it wasnt the deepest, but I had so much fun with the gameplay and tactics in a ways i didnt with a few of the more recent games.

[@ViviVariety]

A fellow Engage enjoyer! I feel the exact same, I can forgive a lackluster story if the game is fun, and Engage is so damn fun to replay and experiment with. I was so glad the tactical gameplay was up to par considering it's been we haven't had strong gameplay since like, Fates.

[@deatgr3623]

I’m a huge fire emblem fan but decided to check this out anyways, I’m about 2 minuets into this video and the Mekkah bridge pitfall joke has given me full confidence that it will be good Edit: also a based type moon fan??

[@ViviVariety]

I always like it when people catch stuff like that, I'm also the kind of person to watch a "Why You Should X" fully knowing that the X in question is something I'm already a huge fan of lol. And I'll ALWAYS look for an excuse to reference Type-Moon somehow. Heck, Mahayo is like my go-to choice of background music :)

[@Dew8Dew]

Wow, this has to be one of the best, if not THE best video to get introduced to Fire Emblem, I found myself agreeing with pretty much everything you said, and I really like how you can feel the love you have of the franchise, it felt like you had something positive to say for every game, and that's honestly impressive, considering your usual FE fan mostly focuses on the negatives and makes the series look very dull and bad, you did the opposite! I felt like I've fell in love with the series once again haha. Seriously, amazing video, looking forward to your Engage video too!

[@reflet466]

I love how you mentioned how many fire emblem fans make fun of the series and make a joke out of it, ive always been irritated by that lol

[@Dew8Dew]

@@reflet466 Yeah, unfortunately a lot of FE "fans" call themselves that, just to crap on every single game because *???* , personally the more I've stayed away from the fandom and weirdos like that, the more I could appreciete FE as a whole, and I think everyone should do the same.

[@geraq0]

Fantastic review and retrospective, I appreciate your honesty in highlighting both the highs and lows of each entry. I completely agree with your points about writing and storytelling (I really really dislike mute protagonists) and general recommendations for entry points into the series. That being said, I appreciate a lot SoV's faithfulness in recreating Gaiden as it was my favorite title up to that point because of its sheer ambition and potential, and speaking of which, I have a lot of esteem for Fates attempt at having opposite sides without any of them being downright villanous. Despite all its flaws I really like how both kingdoms are characterized through character designs and soundtrack, and how the same maps are reinterpreted in different routes. I'll share your video with a friend who is in the fence of getting into the series, thanks!

[@ViviVariety]

I appreciate the kind remarks for sure! And while I dislike many parts of Fates, I'll always respect the initial ideas. The idea of two warring kingdoms and a character caught in the middle is such an awesome premise, and it might actually be my favorite story premise in the series. Fates is mostly a problem with execution rather than ideas if that makes sense.

[@DouglasStewart99]

Yeah, you basically summed up why Fire Emblem's my favorite Nintendo franchise in one hour Vivi. Got into the series via Ike in Brawl and Awakening being my 1st game, fell in love with the franchise ever since! Still wanna play the Tellius games *so* badly. Also you get a sub and bell icon, because from both the music and visuals jokes, you're a fellow FE/Nasuverse fanboy of culture and I admire that! A stupid grin came on my face when New Dawn from F/SN's VN OST came on.

[@lostsilver9215]

My first fire emblem game is Echoes…or was it awakening? Idk one of those two I completed them…I miss them and I wanna play them again now…I continued to Fates First birthright then conquest (Conquest still giving me nightmares 😭), I switched between the two Never completed them…3Ds is hidden 😓 Edit: Forgot about Warriors…completed that game after I finished awakening… I barely completed Shadow Dragon…I made my characters a bit too OP Level 20 before boss fight…like 3-4 stages ago… Now I’m playing New Mystery of The Emblem… (DAMNIT WHY COULDNT THERE BE A ENG VERSION 😭😭😭) And FE3H I’m on the 2nd year 1st month…ig a couple chapters before the time skip? Next im planning to play FE Genealogy of the Holy War, FE Thracia 776, FE The Blazing Blade, FE The Binding Blade/Sealing Sword, FE The Sacred Stone, FE3H (Hopes and yes…I CANT PLAY NEITHER OF THE FE GAMES FOR GAMECUBE AND WII (For now tho…)), then I’ll finish with Engage…hopefully there’s more cause I love FE Games An extra is Tokyo Mirage Sessions…although idk about that one…

[@Gag1800]

I started with Birthright, played the other two routes and went back to Awakening. But it was SoV that truly made me fall in love with the series, and Three Houses cemented it. I have to admit, though I enjoyed Engage, I think it made me realise I love the story and characters of Fire Emblem more than the gameplay. So Engage didn't quite grab me the same as the previous two entries, and coming off of Three Houses/Three Hopes, it really left a bit to be desired in that department.

[@ViviVariety]

I think a lot of fans who love FE for the story and characters feel the same. Personally I love Engage, it's just out of my top 5 in the series...but it's solely because I value gameplay over story. People who feel the opposite probably don't feel as positively as I do, for exactly the reasons you described. Still, I think you might like FE4, FE7, and the Tellius games, all of which are known for story and characters. 3H in particular carries a lot of FE4 and FE9/10 inspiration.

[@itsyaboijayyy2673]

not sure if it was intentional, but that subtle Shirou Emiya quote made me giggle

[@ViviVariety]

1000% intentional ;)

[@Ar0474]

My first FE was The Blazing Blade on GBA back in the day, didnt get super far into it though because i just wasnt good at making decisions back then! Im revisiting this series as a whole though and have an entire folder on my PC filled with english translated versions of the older games, and honestly im loving it!

[@akie708]

as my first FE game was FE8 I feel so glad that I started with probably the most friendliest game to do as even a child like me that time was able to play it and grasp it's concept to become a fan of the franchise

[@stadysugra1353]

I started with Engage... and Thracia was my second game... I technically played Heros first so... I'm weird.

[@ViviVariety]

That's a wild play order, but hopefully you enjoyed what you played?

[@stadysugra1353]

​@@ViviVariety I did enjoy it, and I literally researched FE lore before I played Engage lol.

[@mjbrownii]

I always have a sweet spot for my firsts. (First anime, first sport, first games) and since I’m no “veteran” I started at fates. And that’s my favorite one… despite its Flaws

[@flygonkerel781]

I started with the gba games and the tellius games are my FAVES of all time,then genealogy,three houses and awakening

[@thewindysage1538]

Emulation is very much ingrained in this series both due to like a third of them being Jp only and how the community has a very strong romhacking scene,which requires patching and an emulator normally

[@darkjammin79]

I tend to heavily favor units that gave me a good experience in my first playthrough. I'll just share a story where I had a plan and would burn a few turns setting up as I didn't adequately prepare units for it. However, making the best with what I had. Name dropping several characters from the Echoes:Shadows of Valentia entry and its on a late map. But, spoilers if you'd like to go in blind. Upfront note, my units have been undertrained for this point in the game. It was the attack on Rudolph's castle, where he and his army are deployed waiting on Alm's army in the courtyard. I noted the walls and only had one warp caster available, but it was to take out of my 5 elite units in Alms army. Letting Lukas, Alm and Delthea going down the front with the main body to take on the bulk of the army. Mathilda would lead the western wall assault with no backup. Clair on the east with backup, however after the first turn. The whole army marched towards Mathilda, keeping formation but leaving the east wall unopposed as Clair did need turns for backup to arrive up there. So the next two turns I sent up my tankiest units not Lukas to support and draw aggro, not a great idea as I also only had one Physic user at that point. My other Barons(heavy armors) were up there, they took far more damage than I estimated in the rounds it took for the front line get some of the aggro back towards them. Mathilda saved both of them while dodging bow rangers and wiping out any melee unit that reached her. The three managed to get it back under control but in my panic, I realized Rudolph too was on the move towards Mathilda. Heavily outstating everyone in my army where doubling the others would be a quick death, Mathilda could limit him to one attack. So with great tension, that was the new plan as her backup effectively fled to avoid slaughter while my healing spells were a little preoccupied in keeping the main army alive from the waves of enemies. But turn after turn, Mathilda held the line up there dealing with nearly everyone up there save a couple before Rudolph's arrival. They've clashed and throughout this, she managed many evade, crit, crit on his turns despite the numbers. Her evasion wasn't only thanks to the terrain I have used when I could, it was clutched often to keep herself fighting. To protect the rest of her friends and those that saved her minutes ago, she'd hold that line and eventually win. This performance alone catapulted her into my personal top 5 favorites in the series that I thought wouldn't break as an avid GBA era player. I've never had one defy the numbers so well to that degree. Mathilda still remains in my top 5 to this day despite how much I've enjoyed units and characters from Fates onwards.

[@therealjaystone2344]

One night, I was bored af and then decided to play awakening demo (I wasn’t interested back in the announcement of the game back in Nintendo direct 2012) and then it blew my mind.

[@torri776]

This video is a masterpiece. It has the editing quality of a channel with a million + subs, and its points are so well argued and structured. Greatly agree that Thracia 776 and FE12 are highly contingent on their predecessors being played first, considering I ADORED the continuity details in the latter game, and they're part of why it's my favorite FE ever. Personally, I find Fire Emblem 4 to be mediocre at best, but playing FE5 for the story and characters felt inCREDIBLY rewarding after playing through FE4 for the simple fact FE5 fleshes everything out with all those details and character arcs.

[@ViviVariety]

Thanks! I appreciate the kind remarks for sure, it genuinely means a lot to me. And it seems we're on the same page on a lot of points! I also reaaaally don't like FE4 that much, so by the time I got to Thracia, I wasn't all that invested...then soon enough, it just grabbed me in pretty much every aspect, especially with how well written Leif and the other characters were. And of course FE12 is fantastic, it's another one I didn't think I'd like nearly as much as I did, especially considering the negativity I always heard about it.

[@wertigon]

Jumping in to the series, I would either recommend FE3H or FE8, with the "must plays" (look at an LP if you don't want to play but still want to see them) being FE4, FE7, FE9 and FE3H. All other FEs are good too, but if you only want to play a good representation of what the series has to offer, these four are the "masterpieces". Just like the must-plays in Zelda are Zelda III, Zelda: OoT and Zelda: Wind Waker.

[@braman2539]

My first game in the series was "Awakening", because I wanted to play some JRPG after first getting acquainted with the genre as a whole, and the Russian translation was into one of the parts from 3DS (unfortunately the only one). There was no console at that time, so I tried it on an emulator and it was one of the most exciting experiences of the game, so now I've tried all the parts with 3DS and one with GBA, I'm still getting high with games.

[@RoboticEdward]

14:00 ngl I popped off a bit at this clip LMFAO. Wasn't expecting Gintama clips of all things (granted Chrom IS Gintoki) EDIT: I do admittedly have a weird history with this series. I started with Awakening, skipped the other two 3DS games, played 3H, FE and Gaiden in their original forms, played a little bit of FE3 but only beat Book 1, still need to finish Engage, etc. FE is a series I need to be in a certain mood for as I do think these games can be pretty unforgiving (and I admit I do suck so rip).

[@ViviVariety]

I'll always look for an excuse to reference Gintama somehow lol also I always forget Gintoki's VA voices Chrom, it's been so long since I played Awakening on Japanese. And that definitely is a weird FE path, it's basically going through the last few games then the first. I do think it can be a little rough for sure but as you gain more experience, you'll improve a ton. Some of the GBA games and PoR in particular aren't as punishing either, and you usually can make a few mistakes...that said I definitely agree it can be a mood thing. Even as I played through all 17 games for footage, I needed to space it out a lot, and I got the fatigue at many points.

[@RoboticEdward]

@@ViviVariety Well considering the main series is over but Ginpachi-sensei is coming out in the future, perhaps a vid explaining the greatness of Gintama would make for an entertaining video. Problem is despite the kind of series it is I'd be hard pressed to spoil ANYTHING about the series due to the payoff you get the closer you get to the end. EDIT: I'll definitely try to play it more in the future. As a JP learner myself I think I'll be more inclined to play the series in JP when time goes on so I can break the language barrier of the unlocalized games (except Thracia because I want to keep my fingers)

[@ViviVariety]

... So I may or may not have a Gintama video planned eventually... I've wanted to do one ever since the inception of the channel, and I think I have a good idea of how to approach it. Sadly it's gonna be a long time before I actually get to it because there's a few more projects I wanna finish first (Plus a rewatch wouldn't hurt). But I do really wanna talk about it eventually, it's my favorite show period and there's a lot of neat talking points worth getting into. And rock on for trying to play FE in the original JP! I will say that Thracia is...something, thats for sure, but maybe by the time you feel like checking it out, you'll be way more experienced. I think by the time I played Thracia, it was actually the only one I never played beforehand, so I was lucky to go into it as a series vet. Looking up a guide or two also helped as well, Mekkah has a really good guide that explained a lot while keeping it mostly spoiler free. Without that I'd probably have hated it xD

[@RoboticEdward]

@ViviVariety I look forward to the day that vid gets made. Funny thing is I showed Tama to a friend who's never watched Gintama before and they mentioned she looks like Elincia from the Tellius games. Kinda interesting since I barely know anything about those games beyond the Black Knight's true identity (thanks Smash) but hearing Elincia's importance reminds me of the best robo girl to ever be conceived. This vid has certainly wanted to get me back into the mood of playing FE though unfortunately with certain things like Tears of the Kingdom and the recent XC DLC (on top of language learning) it'll be hard to squeeze one in there at least til summer time.

[@88Spint]

AHHA u knew of the moment when we all went WOOOOOOOOO! LYN BE COOOOL!!! :D

[@CodeDonutz]

This video is incredible and probably the best "where to begin fire emblem" guide i've watched. I pretty much agree with everything besides I'm a bit less harsh on Revelations. Nice work!

[@baddragonite]

39:00 To be fair there were tons of retellings of King Arthur with "OCs" added in like that

[@ViviVariety]

Yeah that's basically the Arthurian legends in a nutshell, everyone's OCs merged into "canon"

[@turismofoegaming8806]

I just recently got an New 3DS LL with all the Handheld Fire Emblem games already on it!! I have been Playing Ehoes and Awakening and I Love them both! I started out with path of radiance on the Nintendo game cube and I played that game from beginning to end as it was the only game we had at the time and I absolutely enjoyed every minute of it!!

[@kierenbuckley370]

to me Awakening is the perfect entery point even though Three Houses is the most popular

[@j.p.walkman9671]

My rule for Permadeath is if you fail me too many times you're better off dead. I also like the latter games more cause I love grinding and they give me the option. Problem is I will usually forget about finishing the game and when I finally get to Endgame I am just destroying enemies with ease. My favourite was POR for a long time. It is such a wonderful story, Ike is a great protagonist. Then you have Black Knight and Ashnard as your bad guys. Sure it goes with the Parent's death which is a cliche in FE series. This one is shown in a cutscene and you're there in real time. You see Greil get stabbed you see Ike catch him and fall back with him. You see Ike pleading for him to get up. The Black Knight just stands there and walks away. Or maybe he teleports. You got the Laguz being treated like slaves and there's racism from other regions. You have the Begnion War and Sanaki taking the throne. Other characters were likeable and stood out. Especially Shinon, Tibarn, Nephenee, Soren, Sanaki, Renault, Volke and Rolf was a pretty good Sniper. It was my favourite. Now it's Three Houses. 4 different stories and an extra side story. All fun characters and a class system. Also you face your old class mates.

[@ViviVariety]

I don't prefer the grinding style most of the time, but when I'm mood for it, it feels so good. I had a lot of fun in Awakening min maxing, and same with 3H later. And yeah you really nailed why I love the Tellius games so much. Genuinely they're the entire package, and I'm glad 3H seemed to draw from Tellius and Jugdral for the story. My hope is future entries can refine that style even more.

[@federicogou]

Great video. Loved your insight. You can feel the passion and love you have for the series :)

[@zekkyauditore3021]

Fire Emblem deep dive that starts with Va-11 Hall-A music, we're off to a fantastic start

[@riggso]

Wow, kinda whack that I was 5 years old when Path of Radiance came out. Didn't even have any video game console back then, not even a handheld.

[@zekdom]

Time-stamp 9:28 - Dude, I’m telling you that Elthunder mage is guaranteed to land a critical if he survives the first round. Every single time I play PoR, that Elthunder mage lands a crit without fail. 13:23, 13:35 - Path of Radiance is not only a good starting point, its storytelling and atmosphere is on par with Genealogy of the Holy War. PoR has one of the most engaging stories in FE history. And for me, Geneaology of the Holy War has some of the best gameplay in FE history. The inheritance and skills system is so stimulating.

[@ViviVariety]

So I actually really like the item and inheritance aspect of FE4, even more than the actual maps. It's just the maps that can wear me down, as I personally prefer smaller, tightly designed maps over the sprawling massive ones. For the FE4 remake though, I hope they retain a lot of the item and inheritance mechanics, even if not being able to trade feels weird in a modern FE game.

[@zekdom]

@@ViviVarietyI’m a slow player, so the long drag didn’t bother me as much. But I can see how it’s more tedious for other players. Mekkah once said that Genealogy is more fun to plan out than actually play. (To phrase it another way, trading and planning out inheritance is the best aspect of the game.) I didn’t want to admit it, but I will finally concede there’s truth in his statement. It’s not even Chapter 2 that’s the issue; it’s Chapters 4 and 5 where you have to stroll through the endless forests and desert, respectively, that can kill the mood. If we ever get a remake, I do think a change is in order, but not in the map size. The map size is part of Genealogy’s theme: the scope of the maps feel like you’re engaging in war. Rather, we should add more events/activities/combat in-between different castles to make the long march not as dull. For example, in Chapter 2, we can have pirates arrive from the west to give Arden a chance to level up with his Pursuit Ring. *shrugs* That’s my take anyway.

[@bornanime3255]

Go off king👑

[@HeavensBane53]

As someone who came into the series randomly picking up Path of Radiance as a kid at target while searching for another game, I can heartily second the recommendation for it as a starting point. Up until 3 Houses came out it was my favorite game in the series (though I haven't played any of the games that came out before it, since outside of piracy they are nigh impossible to obtain). Plus, the Tellius games (Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn) are the only two games in the series that I think could be called anti-war, something rather interesting for a war game. Still, I think 3 Houses might be the best game for a modern gamer to start with, as evidenced by a friend of mine who was new to gaming getting really into it. Even if it can be a bit tedious there is still plenty to love about the gameplay, and god damn is the story compelling. Even people who might not be into strategy games could potentially enjoy 3H just for its story. For people who don't care about story, I'd say start with Engage. You have to really be willing to overlook a bad story, though. I had some fun with engage but outside of revelations it is the only FE game I've played I can confidently say I have 0 interest in ever going back to. The atrocious writing just turned the entire story into a complete joke and made it impossible for me to even get fully invested in the gameplay side of things.

[@ViviVariety]

Engage is weird to me because I kind of feel like I'd never want to recommend it for a myriad of reasons. Obviously if you loved 3H or something like FE4/PoR, Engage won't satisfy you, and as a newcomer, there's too much reliance on old games and it barely feels like Engage has much identity of its own. I guess like you said, it's worth checking out at as your first title if you honestly don't care for story at all? And if you're crazy enough to play it as your first title, it might get you interested in other games based on the retuning characters? That's my two cents at least, and I say that as someone who genuinely loved playing Engage and looks forward to playing it again...with my fingers mashing the "skip cutscenes" prompt at max speed lol.

[@darkjackl999]

My first time was trying the game my neighbor had, the internal battery had died so I couldn't save progress but my god as soon as i saw Lyn's crit in the first chapter i fell in love, the gba sprite animations were AMAZING

[@ViviVariety]

LOL your neighbor basically was doing an Iron Man run

[@averageman7769]

Since this is a video about the fire emblem franchise, I think I’ll take the chance to bring up Kagas fire emblem spin offs. These are pretty niche games, but they are fire emblem games in all but name. Tearring saga; The 1st game kaga made after leaving IS, it feels like a strange combination of gaiden, Thracia, and Sacred stones. It’s a SNES game feels similar to sacred stones with monsters being a main antagonist, except all player characters have skills, similar to Thracia. This has the affect of making the game pretty easy, due to the combination of low enemy stats and powerful skills. The gameplay also suffers from mid-poor map design, particularly in its use of monster filler maps. Overall the characters feel really interesting and fun to use, but the game struggles to push back. As for the story, it’s dense with a lot of backstory, but this isn’t always to it’s benefit. The characters aren’t super connected to all of the world building, which can cause both to suffer. While it’s not the most replay able game, it is worth experiencing its novel concepts. I’d also recommend using a guide, as it has fe4 level hidden events that are impossible to see otherwise, and I think the game becomes tedious on a second playthrough. It’s nothing exceptional, but their also aren’t any weaknesses that don’t apply to other fire emblem games from this time period. Berwick saga; The one kaga game I’ve never played, it is by far the most divergent from normal fire emblem due to a number of unique mechanics. Not much more I can say about it. Vestria Saga 1 + 2; While I am lumping these two games together, it’s not because of their quality but simply due to their similarity. These are both very good games, having very strong story’s and character writing as well as compelling gameplay. That said, these games are made for series veterans, as the “puzzle based” maps are large, with some taking hours to complete. While both games feature generous save systems, the complexity of the maps makes this a necessity. The main drawbacks of these games is this hardcore difficulty, as well as the presentation. These were originally released in Japan as free rpg maker games, and that shows in the animation and art quality. While I personally got used to it, I play a lot of games with lower budgets, and these games can’t began to compare to the modern big budget fire emblem games. Overall, these are some of my favorite fire emblem games, and they play like the perfect game every hardcore kaga fan was waiting for, but it’s that fact that makes these games almost inaccessible to a casual audience. Still, that might be the cost of a fire emblem game with great characters, story, and gameplay.

[@ViviVariety]

I appreciate you explaining all this. Kaga's other games have always been on my backlog (which only seems to get bigger these days) and I've seen bits and pieces here and there. I've seen a bit of Tear Ring Saga from Mekkah, and I think a bit of Vestaria Saga from him as well. From what it looks like, Kaga' s other games very much have the spirit of Fire Emblem, and since I love Thracia so much, I'm sure I'd enjoy the others as well. I hope to get to them someday for sure.

[@Kabo003]

Great video! I started fire emblem blazing blade before knowing it was the game universe where Roy and Marth come from

[@returntooat7799]

I think the order I played was Three Houses, Awakening, Fates, then Engage

[@chipi4179]

My first one was fe sov, I love the game so much, this game introduced me into the series and I love it, it's true some maps are annoying, but as a first entry point to the saga, it's simplicity made it easy for me to understand everything I had fun, and the story, characters and music are all so beautiful

[@ViviVariety]

That's a good point in favor of SoV now that you mention it, it's really easy to grasp. I know more than a few entries are a little complicated, which turns away a lot of people.

[@RSimpkinuk57]

Some maps (in FE SoV) , annoying first time out, that I've grown to love. One slow burner in particular where the number of turns it takes to get Celica into action just makes the way she then one-rounds enemy archers all the more satisfying.

[@jaimereupert4247]

I have physical copies of 8 and 12 both in English, digital copies of 7, 9, 10, 3H, Awakening, hacks/randomizer of 8.

[@ViviVariety]

Nice! I have physical copies of everything post Awakening, but I think my only real collector's item is a physical copy of the Fates Special Edition that has all three routes on it. It's a common recurring joke with me and my fiancee that if we need any emergency cash, we just sell it and make bank from it lol.

[@talesoflizalfos661]

My start was with Awakening, though I always wanted to play the series since I heard about the series from Super Smash Bros Brawl. It's fine, though Three Houses is my favorite and Path of Radiance is the one I would recommend most to newcomers. This is mainly due to a balance where most units are good, the writing being some of the series best, and the tutorial movies in Easy/Normal actually teaching the player stuff like how to use canto, the use of attacking out of enemy range, and playing specific objectives.

[@ViviVariety]

Path of Radiance is also my go-to recommendation, for the exact reasons you mentioned. Its not too hard, it has great characters and worldbuilding, and there's a lot of variety in terms of objectives and mechanics. If only it wasn't so hard to play... (legally lol)

[@astrofenix9839]

wow, a video talking about Engage without saying that it's trash, thank you very much because the shit that is thrown at the game, especially the English community, is incredible

[@ViviVariety]

I will always always defend Engage mate. Is it perfect? Nope! But no entry is, and I love how much fun it is to just play. It's slowly becoming one of my favorites to pick up and play at any time.

[@marcusmitchell9513]

Is engage a good starting point?

[@ViviVariety]

Hmm, good question. I'd lean towards no, if only because Engage is very much a celebration of the series' history, and there's a lot of references and fanservice to the older games in Engage. That said, the story doesn't connect to any other game, so it you see Engage on sale or you just really wanna try it, go for it! I think it might also do a good job at getting you interested in the older games as well.

[@simondeep]

There was a long break between me playing Blazing Blade, Radiance, until finally Threehouses and Engage. Learning that Marth became a great grandpappy of a dynasty makes me happy. I kinda wish they worked in his sword and sandal aesthetic. Wouldve helped with that forefather vibe

[@ViviVariety]

Yo I love his sword and sandal look, like at first I thought it was kinda dumb, and to be fair it kinda is, but I really vibes with the whole "Hero King" mythos that was built around him. Very Greek and Roman inspired.

[@simondeep]

@@ViviVariety i guess it didnt match as they played the medieval style pretty straight. Also, it was probably too on the nose to give him the toga-His name was once Mars! Wouldve been the cherry on top after naming him the Hero-King

[@sinisterdesign]

Great video! Some of those background clip choices were friggin' hilarious. I started my own Fire Emblem journey with Path of Radiance, and it remains perhaps my favorite game in the series. I do also love Radiant Dawn and Conquest for the exact reasons you mention in the video. Engage, on the other hand...really hasn't clicked with me. Game recommendation: as someone who loves Fire Emblem for its emergent storytelling qualities, you might want to check out Together in Battle. It does some really interesting stuff with that.

[@ViviVariety]

I understand where you're coming from with Engage for sure. Part of me wonders if the reason it clicked with me was because it's the first "classic" style game since Conquest, and I'm also willing to look past the shortcomings, which are legitimate barriers to enjoyment. And I appreciate the recommendation for sure! I've never heard of Together in Battle, but I'm always willing to give FE adjacent stuff a try!

[@markberghel275]

Where to start? Anywhere but Engage, since you will be extremely confused about who the hell these people are (and why people talk about the series having good characters and writing). I personally say Path of Radiance, but I'm biased.

[@ViviVariety]

I shared the same initial impression about Engage, like I'd have thought that new players wouldn't really like all the callbacks and references to the older games because it's more overt than how Awakening was...but surprisingly, a lot of people got interested in the other games because of Engage, which is really neat honestly. And I fully agree that PoR is hands down the best starting point. To me it's almost the definitive Fire Emblem game.

[@mystletainnx]

I clicked this video to just to skim through the sections about the later games I've played, but the information was good enough that I ended up back tracking to other game's I've heard of, and before I knew it I had watched the whole video. Guess it's time for me to finish that FE7 playthrough I've put off for years.

[@annabunni64]

It's funny you used the story of King Arthur for the idea of adding a random new character to the story that's the main character's best friend who's so cool... because that's literally who Sir Lancelot is. A character added by later french writers wanting to add new drama to the old tales.

[@ViviVariety]

Oh yeah absolutely, I was actually surprised to find out that's literally how the Arthurian legends were; basically guys adding more lore and OCs to the pile from back then to now until ultimately "cannonized" to what we see now. I definitely meant that but to be a bit of a multilayer tongue in cheek joke, but in hindsight I could've read the initial line with more sarcasm added to sell it better lol. I even debated adding Lancelot himself in place of Edward before settling on the Jarhead because it was a tad funnier. I guess I underestimated how many viewers would've caught the Lancelot-Kris connections xD oh well, hindsight is 20-20.