Last week, we took a look at Fire Emblem Three Hopes, a sort of side-game to Fire Emblem Three Houses, that also was supposed to serve as a pseudo-sequel to the Warriors game that came before it. However, as I mentioned in that article, Three Hopes fails on quite a few levels to live up the spectacle and hype of a traditional Warriors game, which is to the detriment of the overall experience. It’s a fun game, but just not as amazing as it could have been.
Fire Emblem Warriors, the 2017 precursor, is a whole other beast entirely. There’s a lot of little points to go over here, so let’s just start at the top and work our way down, covering the positives and the negatives.
Most of the game is locked behind completing the Story Mode, so that will be your first order of business when you begin this journey. The Story Mode will help you learn the game’s mechanics, unlock about 70% of the game’s roster, and give you some money, experience points, and weapons to help you jump into the meat of the game once the credits roll. It’s a relatively breezy 15-hour adventure (not counting additional time to fully complete each level), but the biggest shame is that it’s…not really…that good.
It isn’t a bad story, just an extremely predictable, cliched, and uninspired story. Twin heirs to the throne, Rowan and Lianna, must gather up an army of history’s greatest fighters (thanks to multiverse/time travel portal shenanigans) in order to battle against a generic evil Empire. The plot is broken up into arcs as you visit the three main worlds of this game (Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon, Fire Emblem Awakening, and Fire Emblem Fates), but each of those arcs just serve as truncated retellings of the plots of the games they are based on. Nothing feels too special or inventive.
The levels within the Story Mode are still standout experiences of spectacle and tense strategy micromanagement, like all Warriors games are known for. The locales and environments are varied, the unique level gimmicks are a nice change of pace, and surprising twists and turns keep you on your toes as you fight against overwhelming odds to eke out a victory. For those who value gameplay over narrative, the Story Mode has definitely got you covered in that department.
It’s also worth mentioning that in the audio department, Fire Emblem Warriors excels in spades. The entire game is voice acted, and the cast (full of returning, and a few brand new, voices) all do a superb job at representing this massive group of eclectic warriors. Likewise, the soundtrack is phenomenal, and is equal parts new material and hardcore remixes of classic Fire Emblem tunes. They definitely get your blood pumping, and may very well worm their way into your brain long after shutting the game down.
There IS one great moment of surprise near the story’s end, but maybe the reason I liked it was because the bar was so low. Rowan and Lianna have a good friend, Darios, who inevitably betrays them by revealing he’s the son of the evil emperor. No big surprise there. But then, he betrays his own dad by stabbing him in the heart and taking control of the dark evil army himself! It was actually pretty shocking, doubly so because it happened in a fully animated cutscene. Suffice to say, but Darios is probably the best part of the Story Mode.
But the game just ends with a giant dragon fight anyway, so what’s it matter? *sigh* Keep on being Fire Emblem, Fire Emblem.
So, okay. You’ve finished the Story Mode. What comes next? A lot. A whole lot. Like, so much it might be even be extremely overwhelming at first. The only other game with this much content packed into it is Hyrule Warriors (which might even have triple the content of this already stuffed game), but this article is all about praising this game, and not that one. It can wait its turn.
The big bulk of your playtime in Fire Emblem Warriors will be devoted to History Mode. History Mode is comprised of remixed versions of a bunch of different Fire Emblem titles (not just those represented in this game), and these fun little stories are collected into Chapters. Each Chapter is comprised of thirty or more brand new levels and challenge maps you have to complete in order to see the story through to the end and finish that Chapter.
Along the way, you’ll unlock goodies hand over fist, which constantly keeps you in a dopamine-inducing addictive loop. You’ll earn money, better weapons, and crafting materials, and also unique things like new outfits for your favorite characters, special items that boost a warrior’s true potential, accessories that grant you additional effects, and more. Not even to mention how all this fighting will improve your characters, and specific level restrictions ensure you’re always maintaining a balanced roster and not just hyper-leveling one or two heroes.
As your warriors battle alongside each other, they gain support points which unlock new support conversations between them. These conversations range from funny little diversions to genuinely moving character development, but they are all entertaining and worth unlocking. As with the rest of the game, they are also fully voice-acted. An additional benefit of supporting units is that units with a strong bond can share their unique ability with each other, allowing for a wide range of customization options.
But wait…what about the actual combat and strategy gameplay? Is it as good as the title of this article would suggest? No…it’s even better.
Fire Emblem Warriors, unlike Three Hopes, ticks every single Warriors box with compromise. It is blisteringly fast, frenetic action combat, that runs at a mostly consistent 60 FPS and can handle hundreds of mooks on screen at once. Your warriors’ attacks and specials are as bombastic and screen-clearing as ever, and the maps are challenging and tactically demanding. However, the enemies are not insanely tanky or have unpredictable/unfair super armor at random times.
Like Three Hopes, this game also allows you to dictate orders to your squad, sending them racing across the battlefield to attack a stronghold, escort a helpless villager, or defend your home base, all while you are preoccupied with your own tasks. The weapon triangle is in full effect, along with a plethora of bonus weapon effects (the Falchion is good against dragons, Rapiers are good against armored enemies, etc.). You can control up to four warriors on one map, but can use eight in total (the other are commanded solely by the AI). Some units are flying or on horseback, giving them faster movement or the ability to cross broken bridges and gaps.
Borrowing from the home series, you can Pair Up in this game, and it’s just as broken as the Pair Up system always is. The stronger the support bond is between two units, the more benefits they receive. Not only does the unit in control get a stat boost from their partner, but their partner can also periodically block all damage with a magic shield, or can launch a devastating attack of their own to set up combos. If both the leader and the partner have their special move charged, they can unleash a Dual Special, a move so catastrophically destructive almost nothing in the game can survive it.
It is the Pair Up system that truly opens up a world of endless possibilities in Fire Emblem Warriors. Want your favorite character to be able to cross the battlefield more efficiently? Pair them up with a flying friend to ferry them about. Want your axe-using character to have an easier time against pesky sword-wielding mercs? Give them a partner with a lance, who can utilize their own weapon’s effectiveness against swords to open up a critical attack window! Maybe pair up a heavy sword user with a tome-wielding caster, so that you can beat down your foe no matter their defenses.
Fire Emblem Warriors just goes so far out of its way to ensure that it is always fun to play. Every single warrior is a blast to control, from the swift strikes of Lucina, to the overwhelming volley of arrows from Anna, to the sweeping ocean waves of Azura, to the unmatched devastation of Camilla (her one move is straight-up busted). Forming a perfect team is incredible fun, and the hours and hours of in-game content ensure that you’ll never want for something to do. There’s always more room to improve, more goodies to unlock.
One thing that absolutely must be addressed is the detrimental over-abundance of cloned characters. For as much fun as I have cutting my opponents to shreds as Lucina, she’s the exact same as Chrom (except for unique special moves). Camilla and Minerva are clones of each other. Caeda and Cordelia are clones of each other. Takumi, Sakura, Anna, AND Niles are all clones of each other. It really does reek of laziness, with the only saving grace being that at least the characters are all still fun and engaging to play as, even if they are clones.
There’s a bunch of fun little bonuses in Fire Emblem Warriors, too, which are always a joy to experience. There are character model viewers for every warrior in the game, and you can watch through their animations and check out their costumes. You can complete neat little illustrations and re-watch support conversations, and you can also set any warrior in the game as your narrator, so that their voice and special unique dialogue plays in each level and in the menus. On top of all of this, the game has split-screen multiplayer. It isn’t groundbreaking, but it is a lot of fun!
In conclusion, Fire Emblem Warriors is a really great game, and I think most fans tend to unfairly underrate it. It might not have a very good story, and the abundance of cloned characters is a letdown, but it’s still an extremely tactically engaging and addictive action game that lives up to both the Fire Emblem name and the other Warriors heavy-hitters. It’s no Hyrule Warriors, but it’s still an extremely great adventure that you can sink months into.
8/10
But hey, that’s just my opinion!
The Contrarian Corner 