By Stephen J. Boothroyd
PLATFORM: SWITCH | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
Swords, lances, and tactical thinking caps at the ready, as Fire Emblem returns to the Nintendo Switch, this time bringing with it generations of past characters to please long-term fans of the series. It’s not just a return of old characters, though – for better and for worse, it’s a return to the old format. Whereas the previous instalment, Three Houses, pushed strategy and tactics aside and doubled down on relationship building, Engage does right by its older fans by giving them quite possibly the deepest strategy game in the series yet.
The main character is Alear, the Divine Dragon that’s woken up after thousands of years. The story’s general plot is that there are twelve emblem rings, each with the ability to summon a legendary Fire Emblem character. If someone controls all of the rings, they’ll have unimaginable power, and it’s up to Alear and his friends to ensure this doesn’t happen. This is an inventive way of bringing in all the Fire Emblem characters that many people will only know from the latest Smash Bros. game without them taking over too much at the expense of the new characters. Other than Marth, most don’t tend to say much and are just weapons.
The game removes a lot of things from the previous game, still having a hub world to walk around, but nothing like the size of the Three Houses school and with far less to do. In some ways, it’s disappointing, but in others, it brings back one of the series’ biggest strengths – replayability – as Three Houses was an absolute chore to play through a second time.
Aside from plenty of quality of life improvements, there’s a tonne of new mechanics to get your teeth into. The way characters assist in battle, either attacking or blocking, is now determined by class instead of a bond. The weapon triangle returns, inflicting a break that stops enemies from being able to attack back, but the biggest improvement is the aforementioned emblem rings. They offer a range of passive effects, such as allowing you to strike and then move or heal an ally. Once charged and active, you can either slowly drain them with small perks, such as shielding allies nearby or drain them of all their power and unleash a devastating attack.
Visually things have been toned back too. You’re no longer a massive army on a battlefield but, once again, a small band of soldiers. Post-battle, you can freely walk around the map in full 3D, which, although arbitrary, gives you a new perspective on the area.
Fire Emblem Engage doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it takes what was great about the previous entries and builds a deeper tactical system out of them. Fans of Three Houses might feel short-changed because of how different it is, but for everyone else, it’s a return to form that will keep you well and truly engaged.
