Review of Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes: so much to adore

As they say, "A rising tide lifts all boats," and Fire Emblem is just one of the many Nintendo games that, as a result of the Nintendo Switch's popularity, have gained a lot of new followers. 3.4 million copies of Fire Emblem: Three Houses were sold in its first eighteen months of release in 2019, thanks to the game's outstanding reviews and strong sales.

I won't claim to be a fan of the Fire Emblem renaissance, but it is undeniably becoming more and more popular and seems more at home with the Nintendo heavyweights, Mario and Zelda. Presently, we have , the second musou spinoff from Koei Tecmo's Omega Force.It seems that Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes is prepared to welcome even more new players.After finishing one of the three narratives in Three Hopes, my major conclusion is that this is just a fantastic Fire Emblem game. Because it replaces the mainstream games' fighting mechanics with musou hack and slash while keeping almost all of the other elements that make these games so unique, it could appeal to a new demographic of Switch users.

However, it was done by the original Fire Emblem Warriors, right? What then makes Three Hopes so excellent? To put it simply, I believe that, in contrast to its predecessor, this seems like a mainstream Fire Emblem game. If it makes sense, it's similar to playing Yakuza 0 after you've played Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Despite the changes, it still seems like a part of the main series.

Three Hopes is a somewhat comprehensive work that includes a wide range of topics that, at first glance, could seem unrelated. For those who have played a musou game before, there are the fights that include intense 1v1000 action in which you must destroy fortifications or shield friends as they withdraw.

However, to just state, "here we go again, more of the same," would be reductive. This is an exquisitely balanced musou game that requires you to balance many aspects, adjust your course quickly, and monitor an array of ally troops and opponent attacks. Even if you feel like you're only one step away from losing many fights, you always manage to prevail.

You're gonna have to perform a ton of virtual chopping and slicing to accomplish that pulling through. There are many characters in the game, and each character belongs to a certain class. These classes also have various combinations. In the middle of a combat, you may also swap between up to four characters to cover various sections of the battlefield or take use of their unique abilities.

During the first few hours, I had a lot of fun learning the combinations, and it didn't end there. The richness of Three Houses is matched by the vast quantity and diversity of classes, each of which feels unique to play. While magic users may sometimes seem excruciatingly sluggish, certain characters—like swift thieves or graceful swordmasters—are more enjoyable than others. Overall however, there seems to be enough diversity for everyone to find something they enjoy.

It's easy to imagine musou games are merely large, clumsy button presses if you've ever seen one in action. However, they do need some strategic thinking, particularly with the Fire Emblem spin-offs, which adds to the experience and makes it seem a lot more immersive, almost like a third-person Total War game.

For instance, you may commit all of your forces to rescuing a civilian who is imprisoned in a fortress on the other side of the map if that is your primary goal. However, it may not be the greatest course of action since you might be caught off guard by enemy counterattacks, ambushes, or a variety of other side missions.

You may thus use the map screen to command your soldiers in order to resolve this issue. You may use them to defend someone or something, take on a large monster, or strengthen your character's link by using them as an adjutant (which takes them out of combat but increases the damage from your special attack). Generally, you simply have to pray that everything goes according to plan.

Even with the occasional error, the most of the early fights run rather well when I play on the normal setting. However, later on, you can often feel so exhausted and overwhelmed that winning seems like a really earned victory. The real pleasure begins when you narrowly escape with your life.

Nonetheless, the game is considerate in that it offers you a variety of alternatives to lessen the intensity of the experience. At any time throughout the game, you have the opportunity to choose between a speedy and efficient mode and a leisurely and steady one. While the latter does away with several stat and instructional pop-ups and provides you with all the strategic information before combat, the former may make battles seem more fluid.

Additionally, you have a choice between casual and classic; but, after your game has begun, you can only switch down from classic. In traditional mode, slain comrades are gone forever; in casual style, they will reappear after the combat. This is the classic Fire Emblem experience, where you really worry about the consequences of your choices since losing characters might cause you to miss out on their whole journey.

Permadeath didn't seem to matter in the first ten or so hours of the game until I increased the difficulty, but as the game was getting close to its conclusion, I found myself having to retry fights a few times since I wasn't prepared to lose any of my characters. That is essentially dishonesty, and I apologize for that. However, be aware that the second half offers the classic, intense FE experience if that's what you're looking for.

Because of all this large-scale battling, the framerates of most musou games are rather poor. I'm happy to report that this isn't the situation. There is a slowdown, but it only happens at really congested times. It was almost like a prize whenever I could get the framerate to decrease, as if the game was telling me, "Look, you got so many enemies into this wacky katamari that I can't handle it anymore." There's still not much to be concerned about since these instances likewise lasted just a few seconds.

You are presented with a big map to access all of this combat, the kind that a medieval commander might use to arrange his wooden warriors for battle strategy. You can see many targets for you to assault as well as your camp (more on that later) on this map. You may only go on to those that are next to a combat you have previously won, thus you are not required to finish them all.

You now have a few options. Do you train it exclusively for the next major conflict in order to advance the plot? Or do you carefully remove everything off the map? If the former, then the plot progresses quickly but the major, chapter-ending fights will be a bit harder to win.

This is due to more than simply the loot you take home from fights, such as money and construction materials that fortify your troops. You may also use several tactics to change the course of a combat, but you can only get the cash for them and learn about some of them by winning other optional battles.

These tactics may be very game-changing, like the convince tactic, or rather basic, like adding a few more men to a vital bastion. You often encounter and must battle people from the other two houses because of the scenario. You may convince them to join your side instead of killing them if you use the persuade approach. After that, they may be played, which is crucial if you like a certain character.

Furthermore, this game doesn't cut corners when it comes to characters. There are other characters from the original work in addition to all of the students from the three distinct homes. It seems as if everyone is present.

Well, except from Three Houses' protagonist Byleth. In this other world, Byleth continues to serve as a mercenary and does not become a teacher at Garreg Mach monastery. Rather of dressing in their black robe, you get to play as Shez, a hired gunman with an enigmatic power inside, and - in typical Fire Emblem form - a voice inside their mind named Arval, who resembles a humanoid Pokémon.

At the start of the game, Shez meets the three house heads and receives an invitation to return to Garreg Mach as a student. You choose your residence at that point, and one of the three tales will lead you through. The three tales intersect, but they also stand alone and provide a broad perspective of the enormous battle destroying Fódlan. I played the prologues of the other two storylines and completed the Scarlet Blaze path, joining the Black Eagles home.

I spent around 40 hours on all of it, and each hour was jam-packed with plot points. As far as I can tell, the other two plotlines are equally rich, providing endless amounts of dialogue between the various students and several memorable tale moments, such as the timeless FE heart-to-hearts. It is amazing how much content this game contains—it almost equals the original work.

However, uninteresting content is bad, and while Three Hopes lacks the polished feel of Three Houses, it still requires a very sharp eye. The language between the characters is very well handled, and there are some really humorous exchanges as well. For those who are ardent fans of Three Houses, the game's abundant material seems indispensable.

But in addition to seeing folks argue about the morality of a battle that may shatter Fódlan's long-standing peace, you also get to spend time at their camp. Though it is a bit smaller and has fewer activities, the camp functions similarly to the monastery in Three Houses. Along with your buddies, you may embark on adventures, prepare meals, clean up, or practice for the next fight.

All of this strengthens the relationships that you have with various individuals and that they have with one another. Here, the old-school Fire Emblem system is just as captivating. Increasing everyone's links opens up dialogues that further develop the personalities and inter-character interactions, adding another satisfying aspect to a title full with them.

So, it's evident that this game has a ton of things to do. There are the administrative tasks and the well calibrated fights. Everything that has to do with a menu is the admin. When you first start off, it might seem like there is too much to remember—bonds, inventories, weapons, classes, skills, consumables, magic, etc. However, if you've played Three Houses, you'll find it lot simpler to understand and once you do, it becomes a delightfully satisfying jumble of various game principles.

After all of this, I have one big question: For whom is Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes intended? It's as fantastic as any of the greatest, so fans of Omega Force's earlier Warriors games will like this one as well. However, I also believe that any lover of Fire Emblem: Three Houses will fall in love right away. Although there aren't any tactical fights in Fire Emblem games, is that truly the point of the game?

Because there is a rich and captivating narrative to get engrossed in if you can tolerate moving from tactics to hack and slash. You immediately feel at home since everything about Three Houses—from the menus and food to the conversation and main plot—feels familiar. Then, in a fresh setting with the same fervor, you get to spend time and form ties with these folks once again.

My point is that this game is appropriate. The characters are logical. The narrative seems significant. Outside of the hack and slash, Fire Emblem is evident in every aspect of the gameplay. It has a cozy, warm, and familiar feeling.

Three Hopes, the Fire Emblem Warriors series, raises the bar for what Koei Tecmo can do with a high-caliber Nintendo IP. Whether it's the characters or the battle, it has so much to enjoy and does it all with such elegance, care, and thought. If you are invested in these individuals, you will enjoy every exchange, mini-sode, dramatic moment, and comedic sketch—and there are a ton of them. Being back with all of them is just so satisfying.