Why is it the Best Game

[Marich123]

Out of all three FE games on GBA which is the best but also want to know you're reason as to why it is the best.

[Constable Reggie]

A tie between 7 and 8 imo. Fe6 had pretty lame maps that really hurt the game and felt somewhat basic. Fe7 had greatly improved map design, a pretty awesome story, and great characters, but Fe8 had arguably a better cast of characters and characterization, a (imo) better art style, and pretty interesting replay value in Valni/Lagdou. The story felt weaker than 7's (oh god the flashbacks) and it was quite easy, though. From a purely rose-tinted glasses point of view though, probably Fe7 for the dozens of playthroughs I went through as a kid.

Edited February 4, 2013 by Constable Reggie

[Guy Starwind]

FE7. I felt the characters were all a lot of fun and I actually wanted to get all the support convos. I also like the more straight forward style like most FE games have. What I mean is no world map. I felt FE8 was far too easy with abusing the world map and buying stat boosters and gaining xp from the ruins and monster tower. I hope FE13 doesn't abuse this. However, you have FE6 which you can't beat unless you unlock all the secret chapters and if you miss one you wish you jad the world map. It's pretty lame if you don't know what you're doing. I think that the rng in FE6 is pretty random too. Not to mentions swordmasters with a crit of like 70 and most of characters suck. So, in the long run I think FE7 is the most balanced between the three.

[Ϲharlie]

Blazing Sword is my favorite of the three. I could take some time to contrive reasons that appear to have some sort of intellectual merit, but the truth is it was the first I played, and I feel a bit nostalgic towards it.

[Thor Odinson]

I enjoy FE6 the most because it has the only hard mode I personally found remotely challenging, but FE7 feels definitely more polished. FE8 has interesting class systems, but was too easy in terms of gameplay and too short.

So FE7 is probably best overall in terms of design, but I still like FE6 better.

And FE8 has the best OAs.

[MacLovin]

I think fe6 had the best promo gains, fe7 had the most polished feel and fe8 had the easiest difficulty but alot of post game stuff.

fe6 because it had alot of fun things.

[Integrity]

Blazing Sword is my favorite of the three. I could take some time to contrive reasons that appear to have some sort of intellectual merit, but the truth is it was the first I played, and I feel a bit nostalgic towards it.

Swap the references from 7 to 8 and this is me.

Good old nostalgia.

EDIT: Also the lack of a base shop fuels me with an irrational dislike for FE7.

Edited February 4, 2013 by Integrity

[ZemZem]

FE6 is definitely my least favorite GBA FE (as well as my least favorite FE overall) because of a lot of nitpicky reasons, but the game still had some good music, characters I liked (Tate specifically), and the HM is probably my favorite difficulty of the GBA FEs, and doing the bowmen challenge was really fun.

FE7 is my favorite of the three, and my second favorite FE (after FE4). If the game had a postgame like FE8, it'd be perfect. As Sharpy said, the game was polished well, the chapter design was great, I loved the soundtrack, most of the characters were awesome (Priscilla and Wil to me mainly), and it's the one I replay the most.

FE8 is awesome. I don't know why not a lot of people like it, but I sure did. It's the one I have the most memories playing, and the soundtrack is my favorite in the franchise. My only qualm with it is that the main game was too short, but the postgame was fun. If it had more chapters, it'd probably be in the running with FE7.

[redturtle806]

7 was my first FE game, so I'm probably biased. But it felt like the most polished game of the 3, and the story was just.... epic. It had awesome characters, even better villains, and a well written plot all around. I think if FE 7 had been released as a movie/book, it would have been a huge success.

I did like the post game of 8 though, and I got pretty into the story the 1st I played it I guess.

[Icon of Sin]

I liked FE8 best due to its customization.

FE6 was challenging but took away way too many things that made the SNES FEs more interesting as a whole. FE7 feels pretty bland compared to the other two, despite having more gameplay elements than 6 and a better story than 8.

As a whole the GBA era was one of the weakest in FE series IMO.

Edited February 4, 2013 by Doga Blockovich

[Marich123]

A tie between 7 and 8 imo. Fe6 had pretty lame maps that really hurt the game and felt somewhat basic. Fe7 had greatly improved map design, a pretty awesome story, and great characters, but Fe8 had arguably a better cast of characters and characterization, a (imo) better art style, and pretty interesting replay value in Valni/Lagdou. The story felt weaker than 7's (oh god the flashbacks) and it was quite easy, though. From a purely rose-tinted glasses point of view though, probably Fe7 for the dozens of playthroughs I went through as a kid.

I agree FE 8 had probably the best supports and characters. The plot is fairly well but I don't think its as good as FE 7. And yeah FE 6 didn't have the best maps

[CT075]

i like fe7 because it's the easiest to hack

[RJWalker]

I feel that Sacred Stones is the most polished GBA Fire Emblem. Besides, it's my first FE game so it's my favourite.

[Just call me AL]

In before General Shock starts going on a hate tangent.

I don't particularly like Sacred Stones all that much. Don't get me wrong, it's a fine game by itself. But in comparison to other games in the series, I just find it kinda lacking when in comparison to other FEs. I don't necessarily find the characters all too great. (Really. I think only Joshua, Duessel, L'Arachel, Rennac, and Dozla, Garcia, Ross, and Eirika Mode!Lyon only really got my attention.) But I will admit the characters are (at least somewhat) better than (most of) those found in Sword of Seals. (And Shadow Dragon, where character personality is non-existant, which was a mistake that was thankfully rectified by New Mystery.) I also find that it has the weakest story among the GBA games. The postgame, though a nice idea, just seemed to get boring afterwards. And the difficulty and length? I don't have to say my thoughts on either. But I am not gonna write some four or five page essay that contains nothing but blind hatred towards something that isn't my favorite. (I will also admit that it also has the best art style among the GBA games.)

Sword of Seals on the other hand, well... Yes its maps are rather dull, and yes, it basically took away a large number of the things that made the SNES games interesting, making feel rather basic and dull in the process. But I do appreciate that it provides the toughest challenge among the GBA games. (Its difficulty was considered to be two steps below FE10 hard if I'm not mistaken.) And I do like the fact that it fully introduced supports (though why there wasn't a support library is beyond me, and not to mention supports themselves were very limited), and that it tried to establish some form of postgame. (The exact postgame form in question, doesn't come up again in the series until FE9.) And there's also the fact that it introduced one of the most interesting antagonists to ever grace the FE series. But unfortunately, the cons outweigh the pros in this case. I've already mentioned the removal of features in the SNES to GBA transition, but there's also lenient in-game ranks, lack of a support library (noted earlier), general characterisation, and the fact that the interesting antagonist in question is notoriously easy. However, the cons are not enough to the point I would consider it the least the GBA titles have to offer. I would like to see some parts of it expounded upon in the future. But considering why GBA FEs in general were made, I have my doubts as to if that'll happen anytime soon.

I feel that FE7 is the closest thing to "the perfect FE" that the GBA games have to offer. Like others have stated, the chapter design was great. The story is arguably one of the best in the series, the characters and characterisation are awesome (Though there may be some exceptions, but then again when aren't there?), it's easily the most balanced GBA game and arguably among the most balanced in the series, the replay value is among the highest in the series. Heck, it was the only other game in the series where getting support conversations didn't feel like such a chore. (The only other game that I feel did this was Path of Radiance, as I have yet to play Awakening.) My only gripes are that the rankings, while good in themselves, do have contradictory requirements, and that some of the story details (such as who is Ninian's and Nils's father) and extras (such as ending CGs) do require slowing down to be able to be seen/obtained. (I can only think of four things that don't do this, but still require you going out of your way to be able to see them anyways.) And there's the lack of a postgame. But I digress. It's quite easily the most polished of the three. I agree with ZM that if FE7 had a postgame, it would be perfect. Just add difficulty and SNES features.

Sorry if I happen to sound like I'm gushing over one and being all "meh" with the other two, but that's how I honestly feel.

Edited February 5, 2013 by Little Al

[Marlowe]

Fire Emblem 7 for me. The simple reason why, in my opinion, is twofold.

One, 7 took the streamlining mechanics 6 had started and expanded them with things like Merlinus leveling up, balancing swordmasters and shamans (though I don't think they ever got Dark Magic quite right), item drops, etc. The result is a more balanced game in my opinion, in the sense that just about every unit is usable (I can probably count on both hands the units I haven't used in any playthroughs, and that's my own laziness).

Two, 7 had the most expansive and unique plot since Genealogy of the Holy War. The other GBA games follow the "stock Fire Emblem plot" that started with the very first game, with their own twists (dragons, monsters, etc). 7 threw that out completely and wrote a new plot with the constraints of its nature as a prologue. The result is a completely unique plot in the series, which you don't really get again until Radiant Dawn.

[Constable Reggie]

Heck, it was the only other game in the series where getting support conversations didn't feel like such a chore. (The only other game that I feel did this was Path of Radiance, as I have yet to play Awakening.)

Wait, what? Fe7's support growth, while not as stupid as Fe6's, was still pretty ridiculous. Still too many +1 per turn supports that take forever to get, even including Hector and one of his possible endings, Farina. Fe8 helped this a lot by allowing support growth in outside chapters and only having one +1 per turn support. I personally waited several turns after I essentially beat the chapters in Fe7 to raise growth, since glueing two characters together for 200+ turns is outlandish.

[Duff Ostrich]

FE6 had the largest cast, the most challenging scenarios and the most thoughtfully designed maps. The enemies (on HM, the definitive mode) actually have some bite to them, which is unique among the GBA titles. FE7 did have the better story, and FE8 had a fun postgame, but those are small points when compared to everything else.

[Just call me AL]

Wait, what? Fe7's support growth, while not as stupid as Fe6's, was still pretty ridiculous. Still too many +1 per turn supports that take forever to get, even including Hector and one of his possible endings, Farina. Fe8 helped this a lot by allowing support growth in outside chapters and only having one +1 per turn support. I personally waited several turns after I essentially beat the chapters in Fe7 to raise growth, since glueing two characters together for 200+ turns is outlandish.

Let me rephrase that. I actually wanted to get support conversations in FE7 due to how the characters were. The characters in the other two games didn't click enough for me to want to get support conversations.

Edited February 8, 2013 by Little Al

[CT075]

I feel that Sacred Stones is the most polished GBA Fire Emblem. Besides, it's my first FE game so it's my favourite.

as much as i agree with the way fe8 is on the surface, taking one peek at fe8's actual inner workings completely destroyed this for me

[Bronnichiwa]

FE7.

I only played through 6 once, although I really enjoyed it, but the nostalgia value makes 7 take the cake. 8 was good, but I disliked the ability to grind. 6 and 7 (as opposed to 8, as well as later games in the series), seemed harder because you could only get experience in story levels so you had to watch how you played really carefully. When that was taken away, the difficulty dropped several levels.

[Murdok Dracul]

7 and 8 have enjoyable maps. I don't really like 6's maps very much for some reason.

8 has the most customisation, and that's what I look for in RPGs. (It also has Joshua.) 7 has a great story and characters but no customisation. Same with 6, but its story isn't as good, and it's really hard to like its characters when they all suck except for Rutger.

Difficulty generally has little to do with what I think makes a good game, but Sacred Stones' Hard Mode is an enjoyable level for me to play at (but admittedly the final chapter is far too easy; there should be more Dracozombies and LV20 monsters in the late game). Besides, what about the Tower of Valni and the Lagdou Ruins? Don't they get hard on their later floors? (I don't actually know because I've not got very far in either of them.)

About grinding making FE8 easier - it only happens if you actually make the effort to grind. Why don't you just play through the game without getting into skirmishes or visiting the Tower?

And it's perfectly possible and quite easy to grind in 6 and 7 as well (arenas), and along with experience, you get loads of money for doing it.

I wouldn't dis a game for the potential to grind.

That's story and gameplay discussed. Finally, music: FE7 has Together, We Ride. And a bunch of other great tracks. Yeah, its music is awesome.

So for me, the GBA games go:

1. Sacred Stones

2. Fire Emblem

3. Fuuin no Tsurugi

[PuffPuff]

FE6

Pros

-Isn't demanding in Tactics rank like FE7 is.

-Don't have to save too much money unlike in FE7 for a good funds rank.

-Can buy stat up items.

-Enemies are most challenging than the other 2 GBA's as the other two don't have good luck and speed to get it so that almost anyone is usable.

-Has a tutoring system with Cecelia.

-Great story. Not as good as the first two.

-Gives out powerful weapons alot earlier.

Cons

-Has a clunky RNG.

-The secret chapters often has dullish tunes.

-The characters stat RNG is more clunky than any other GBA game.

-Have to find every secret chapter which is much more demanding than finding the 5 orbs in Archanea's tale.

-Has terrible music than the othr two.

Rating

4/5

FE7

Pros

-First game to be ported outside of Japan.

-Can mine glitch the game to get items and fool the enemies man.

-Great story. Not as good as the first two.

-Has a tutoring system which the first 5 titles didn't have.

-Can glitch the arena with Ninian's relics along with rescuing the unit.

-Has great music.

Cons

-Too demanding in the rankings.

-The game is too easy except for Hector Hard Mode.

-Cannot buy stat up items. Not that you need them at all in this game.

-Gives out powerful weapons way too late.

Rating

3.5/5

FE8

Pros

-Has better post game quests than the other two.

-Can get unlimited stat up items boots.

-Has better color pallettes than the other two.

-Has great music.

-Get powerful weapons earlier.

Cons

-Bad story. Preventing the awakening of a demon isn't exactly an in depth story.

-It gets boring real fast because of the grinding.

-Has lesser replay value than any other game in the series.

-Battling just monsters in some chapters is boring.

-There's almost no point in going to war at all over the disagreement of two countires that were once allied without any depth to the story.

-It's shorter than the other two games.

Rating 1.5/5

So....

I would say that 6 is best.

Edited February 24, 2013 by Katarina

[Constable Reggie]

I'm not sure how you can rag on Fe8's story while praising Fe6's when Fe6's is literally just Fe1's with a few extra bells and whistles (complete with underdeveloped and uninteresting characters). Also, how does Fe8 have less replay value than the other two gba's, let alone all other games?

Edited February 24, 2013 by Constable Reggie

[PuffPuff]

I'm not sure how you can rag on Fe8's story while praising Fe6's when Fe6's is literally just Fe1's with a few extra bells and whistles (complete with underdeveloped and uninteresting characters). Also, how does Fe8 have less replay value than the other two?

Plainly, it's boring. It's repetitive by putting in unlimited Swiftsoles for instance and that the post game is just completely pointless with characters that don't have any supports, or quotes. Since they are already dead. Carrying around the undead while fighting the undead isn't exactly my forte of wanting to do. Talking about keeping the stones safe to prevent a revival of a demonic god isn't exactly inspiring. Two armies going to war over disagreement with no backstory of other than "Emperor Vigarde's orders". "Your castle is mine." Died sometime ago, yes. But what's the point of this games existence for a god that isn't even actually evil, but misunderstood about the facts of life?

Sure FE6 was just a complete rip-off of Archanea's tale. Which bothered me with some of the same elements. But at least their extra elements were more in depth storyline-wise that doesn't take minutes to make and entirely think of.

Edited February 24, 2013 by Katarina

[Constable Reggie]

I disagree with all those points. And you're getting a few facts wrong about SS. Swiftsoles aren't buyable (in Fe6, they are). The post game doesn't just consist of only extra characters, you can use everyone and build their supports, ie not pointless. The extra characters are just that: extra (Fe6 also has them). You're not required to use them or anything, they're just small rewards for postgame. The whole "Emperor Vigarde's orders are law" motif of Grado was the main point of the story. It was something so unreasonable that everyone questioned why what was happening was happening. It instigated intrigue and mystery for the characters, and as a result, for the player too. They weren't collecting stones from the start, it was a plot twist found out after Grado's fall. It wasn't just typical bullshit like Fe6's "Bern is evil, they're invading everyone, we must stop them!" storyline with no interesting twists or thrills. Also, where does it say anywhere in the game that Formortiis is understood or the like?

Fe8's story itself may not be the best story in the series (that goes to 4 or 7 imo), but it's still definitely miles ahead of Fe6's because of a) It's at least a unique story, unlike 6's, and b) the characters in Fe8 greatly enhance the plot and makes it much more engaging, something Fe6's lame cast does not.

But at least their extra elements were more in depth storyline-wise that doesn't take minutes to make and entirely think of.

Like what? Everything ended up being "Bern instigated this".

Edited February 24, 2013 by Constable Reggie