Summer is finally here, time to go outside, enjoy the weather and hook up with some friends. Or, you can carry around your Nintendo Switch everywhere you go because Nintendo decided to release one of its biggest games this week. Fire Emblem: Three Houses is the long-awaited return and the perfect starting point for those who never played a Fire Emblem before.
Shape your destiny
The game kicks off with a battle, the perfect way to dust off your Fire Emblem skills. For those new to the franchise, let me briefly explain the combat first. Fire Emblem is a turn-based strategy game where you move your characters on a grid. The boxes you can move forward all depend on your unit. Heavily armored warriors won’t be able to travel as fast as horsemen, to give you one example. The class of your character doesn’t only affect the way you travel over the grid, it also affects the combat itself. Once you meet an enemy on the grid, you can attack it up close or if he/she is in your range, you can attack it with long-distance attacks. Each attack has its own strengths and weaknesses, mages are very vulnerable to arrows, et cetera. As you can see, combat in Fire Emblem goes extremely deep and it has perhaps even one of the more complex mechanics in a game currently on Nintendo Switch. On top of the basics there’s come class switching, boss fights, weapon forging, and of course, leveling up your character.
If this scares you, don’t be afraid, Fire Emblem: Three Houses might be the most complex entry in the franchise but the developers made sure that everybody can enjoy this game. The first mission serves as an interactive tutorial where you’ll learn the basics in combat. Later on, you’re really free to explore the world at your own pace. Three Houses is all about shaping your own destiny and the game truly gives you an incredible amount of freedom to do so. You can check out extra tutorials at any time, you can learn more about the weapons, and you can even enter some friendly battles to master your skills. It’s never necessary but it’s a great addition for the newcomers. At first, it might all feel a bit overwhelming, but the more time you spend in the game, the better you’ll become at it. And, combat isn’t the only main feature…
Pick your house
Even though the game started with a battle, it quickly shifts focus to another main element, the Garreg Mach Monastery, home of the Church of Seiros, the main religion on Fódlan, and the Knights of Seiros. This church isn’t only there to maintain peace in the country but also houses the prestige Officers Academy. Those who train here will bear the responsibility of Fódlan’s future. It’s here where you’ll meet the three heirs to the most important houses in the region. Edelgard, leader of the Black Eagles, a future empress who adores magic. Dimitri, leader of the Blue Lions, excels at military tactics and Claude, leader of the Golden Deer, excels at long-ranged combat.
You’ll meet all three as students at the Acadamy and since you’re pointed out as a new teacher, you’ll have to pick one of the three houses to train for combat. This is a crucial decision in the game as it will form your battle party. Once chosen, you’ll follow the lives of one house and share their happiness and sadness throughout the entire game. During the first moments in the Monastery, you’re free to roam around and meet all the playable characters, to form the first bond and to wonder if their abilities will suit your playstyle. I went for the Black Eagles since Edelgard convinced me as a rightful leader and I was intrigued by the potential of magic. Of course, it’s up to you which house you’ll select but know that it’s without a doubt the biggest decision of the game. All houses have different stories, different characters, and different gameplay experiences.
Roam free in the Monastery
The Monastery is an important place in the game and I literally spent hours of my time in this place. It’s interesting to see how Three Houses managed to keep an amazing balance between combat, narratives, and free-roaming. Walking around freely is new to the franchise and it definitely is something I applaud. There are tons of things to do in the Monastery, most of those are designed to keep your characters happy, which results in better and more powerful special attacks on the battlefield. Everything is connected with each other in Fire Emblem and that’s truly something impressive. You wouldn’t think capturing fish, cooking with your scholars or giving them extra seminars would affect the game, but all of those things come with some crucial benefits.
That’s exactly why you’ll spend this much time in this place. You’re never forced to stay long since you can skip immediately to the new combat mission but you’ll miss out a lot if you do so. At first, I wanted to see as much of the game as possible so I went from mission to mission but without recruiting new characters and without giving my party the attention it needed, I soon came to the conclusion that my characters weren’t strong enough to defeat the enemies. Since I played in Classic mode, this also meant that if I lost a character, it was gone forever, a price I wasn’t willing to pay. Later on, the relationship and bond between characters proved of utmost importance since you’re only able to cast your most powerful attacks if you’re in complete synchronization with your partners. This does mean you’ll have to invest a lot of your time in side-missions but to be honest, I really liked that. I liked the change and I adored to see my characters grown from scholars to all-round warriors. As a teacher, I was proud of each and every one of them.
If I could turn back time
Just like many other Fire Emblem games, if you play in Classic mode, you better prepare to say goodbye to some of your favorite characters. This permadeath feature is a crucial mechanic in the game and although you’re never forced to play it like this, I do recommend to do so anyway. Since you’ll lose your character for good, you’ll think twice before you attack, making it a lot harder to win without any losses. Yes, this will give you an extra challenge but the game is really rewarding for those who play this way. The more you win, the better your characters and equipment get, including their special abilities.
Talking about special abilities, a new mechanic is the ability to turn back time. I won’t go into details on how you get this ability since it comes with some story spoilers but after a while, you’re able to go back in time, erasing your last moves to a certain point, allowing you to try again. This sounds like a small gimmick but if you play in Classic mode, it’s a gift from the gods. I used this mechanic a lot to save those who died in combat during the last turn. Thanks to the mechanic, you don’t need to replay the entire battle in hope for a different outcome. It’s a great mechanic but it does come with its limitations. You can’t use it endlessly and since the mechanic is in play, combat got a lot harder compared to the older entries. This time, you’ll face multiple enemies at once and event enormous bosses which won’t go down easily. Turning back time is great but it comes at a price. In the end, it’s a price I paid with pleasure since it not only offered me another shot at victory, it also served me a true challenge.
A perfect fit on Nintendo Switch
Fire Emblem: Three Houses is the first entry that lands on Nintendo Switch and it’s a perfect fit. Although it had some impressive console version, Fire Emblem is considered as a handheld franchise. Having it on the powerful hybrid console is a true blessing. Thanks to the system, the developers could combine the typical combat layout with impressive animated cutscenes and a truly interesting semi-open world to explore. It’s clear that they used the power of the Switch to their advantage without ever losing the handheld aspect out of sight. The game is completely playable in handheld mode, which is important to know if you want to play it on the upcoming Nintendo Switch Lite. It performs incredibly well in both handheld as docked mode, offering the best-looking entry so far. There are tons of little details waiting for you to discover them and I’m pretty sure you’ll have a blast finding out!
Conclusion:
Fire Emblem: Three Houses is an incredible game and by far the most complex entry in the franchise. It’s filled with narratives, deep combat, and a lot of mechanics to master. Although it might sound like a lot to overcome, the game gives you more than enough room to learn everything at your own pace without ever feeling like it’s a chore. The game got me hooked from the first minute and I’ve spent hours into it, always discovering something new. It’s the perfect game for the Summer and one of the best games currently on the Nintendo Switch, you should definitely give it a try.
