Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon First Impressions

It's been awhile since I've posted anything on this sad excuse for a blog. So, without further ado, my first impressions of the newest iteration in the Fire Emblem saga.

Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon First Impressions

Fire Emblem games tend to go by the same formula- someplace or other falls under siege, your hero gradually picks up a motley crew with a decent amount of what you might call advanced "chess pieces," and you and your companions must fight, turn by turn, click by click (or, in this case, tap by tap), to regain control of your kingdom or, in some cases, fight for freedom. The story, no matter how much "Intelligent Systems" attempts to make it different, always follows the same basics that started the series.

Luckily for you, if you're playing a portable game like Fire Emblem, chances are you don't care about the story.

What Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon (herein referred to as FE:SD) lacks in creativity and story it makes up for in its gameplay. Like every Fire Emblem game in years past, FE:SD is one of the few turn-based strategy games on the market. Unlike other games in the genre, however, Fire Emblem can captivate you and, in a way unlike any other game, it allows you to think without truly making you think. Though it may punish you severely for being bold, you never have to worry about losing units if you understand a few basic concepts.

One of the great additions to this title is the ability to see every block on which your opponent can attack you with the press of a button. Through a touch of the "Y" button, your map is painted red with the classic Fire Emblem gameplay element, advanced for convenience. In games past, you had to highlight every enemy individually, then remember where they could move to and who they could attack. With this new feature, you can lock their attack range into place so you can maneuver your units out of harms way.

My last comment is about the AI. This game blows previous games out of the water with enemy smartness. Now, not only do they attack your weakest unit, they will attack whichever unit they can do the most damage on. It no longer feels like you're playing many separate enemies; it's as though it's a 1 vs. 1 contest of human and artificial intelligences. Just through playing through the first few chapters I've noticed this, so I can't wait until I get farther into the game.

I'll write a full review if there's any interest whatsoever, but my preemptive summary is as follows-

Recommend- Great gameplay, deep characters, amazing A.I., lasting appeal through Nintendo Wi-Fi connection.

Stay Away!- Sub-par story that seems overused, no support conversations, some other staples of the series from present games missing.

Verdict- A must buy for any Fire Emblem fan, or anybody who wants a hard core first-party DS game. If this is your first venture into the Fire Emblem series, steer clear; Sacred Stones would be a better investment. At first glance, an 8.5/10.

Closing Remarks

So there you have it- my first foray into game previewing and reviewing. If you have any questions, you can find me at chuban@rocketmail.com. For tips on big stories that you think are worth being investigated, email me at the address mentioned above.

-Chuban