First/Earlier personal experiences with Fire Emblem

[Busterman64]

The Fire Emblem is my favorite video games series of all time (Megaman Battle Network being my second as you can no doubt tell from my profile picture :3)! As I get older, I have my moments when I reminisce on my earlier/first experiences with all the video games series I've enjoyed over the years. Fire Emblem is no different, and since it's my birthday (making me officially legal :3 ) I wanted to kinda honor, share, and hear about other people's experiences with this beautiful (and kinda crushing) series.

Back around, I believe, 2007, my friend got me into using emulators (mainly GBA). I didn't really know about many games or game genres considering I had been playing 3D platformers for the past 4 or so years at the time on my playstation(which disappeared some time later) and my new Gamecube. Thankfully my best friend slowly introduced me to a few series here and there. However, they were mostly fighting or action games and I didn't really venture for different games on my own until...well... after Fire Emblem). One day, me and my friend were taking on the phone when he brought up Fire Embelm. When I asked about it, he didn't really know much other than it's a strategy game and if a unit dies, they are gone for good (and..well..the obvious Marth and Roy in Smash Bros Melee). As you could probably guess, I was pretty hesitant at first to try and play it. Thankfully, I was a pretty curious (and brave) kid so after a while I just said, "...alright...I'll give it a shot". THANK. YOU. GOD! And from that day, I really liked Fire Emblem. To be honest though, I wasn't that great and I screwed up...a lot. I didn't like the thought of my units dying for good so I would restart......with...save states. Ok, nothing against save state, but I save stated my way through the whole dang game (and when I say I save stated, I mean I save stated many times during 1 turn) and after beating the game and getting a little older, I felt a little dirty doing that. Actually, I did that a lot with the games I played on the GBA emulator. And like I said, after a while, I felt a little dirty doing that, so one day I decided to go through the whole game without save stating. Thus, the true experience of Fire Emblem began... The joy of getting good levels, the crushing pain of screwing at the end of a chapter and restarting at the beginning, the joy of having my unit clearing the chapters without much of a challenge because they are awesome, the joy and pain of seeing your unit gets a crit right when you needed it and right when it was the worst possible moment (Ex. your unit gets swarmed by enemies in a one way or door and just when the second to last enemy attacks them, protecting them from further attack and death, only for them to get a very out of nowhere crit, killing that enemy and letting another enemy come over just to spear them to death! ......Dang it Roy......), and much more.It also left a big impression on me(especially Lyn . She left a MAJOR impression on me as a kid and it made her my first coolest/B.A. female protagonist in video games. Actually, main protagonist in general) Although, I didn't feel all that to the fullest, really get into, and straight out loving the series until I got my hands on Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance. When I finally got the game (after it taunted me for months at GameStop) , I feel in love with the series from that point on. I loved it so much, it kinda started to deep root it self into my love for strategy games as a whole. I probably wouldn't love games like Orge Tactics, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, and Shining Force: Resurrection of the Dark Dragon (great game by the way, give it a shot) as much if not for Fire Emblem. I know that's a pretty bold statement (:3), but for me, it's pretty important.

That's a lot on my part (and there's more if anyone else wants to hear about it), so I want to hear others peoples experiences. Whether it be long or short, I wanna know. I'm interested in what others may have experienced. So let loose!

(Also, after slowly getting older and playing through the games games multiple times, you notice more things. Like for example, Hector is freakin' awesome or Luck betters your dodging skills or how usable a lot of the units are! While some are more obvious, you really notice and appreciate it later on. Know what I mean?)

[maybe]

happy birthday get drunk

I bought awakening and played it

then I bought Shadow Dragon and played it

then a friend of mine said to play FE4 because some of his friends had played it and said it was really good

I played it for a few minutes, didn't know what to do, and didn't play it for a long time

then I played again and actually really liked it

then I played FE6 a little and gave up because bad at game

then I got FE7 and really liked it

the end until I play another

[alatartheblue42]

Happy Birthday!

So yeah. FE7 was my first Fire Emblem, and I started when I was 7 or so. I played through Lyn's mode Easy, and I got a really good score, so I thought I would try Hector Hard Mode (my brother's had already beaten the game multiple times). It was a rude awakening. So I decided to get better. It's been nearly ten years, and I'm still enjoying the FE series.

[Busterman64]

happy birthday get drunk

I bought awakening and played it

then I bought Shadow Dragon and played it

then a friend of mine said to play FE4 because some of his friends had played it and said it was really good

I played it for a few minutes, didn't know what to do, and didn't play it for a long time

then I played again and actually really liked it

then I played FE6 a little and gave up because bad at game

then I got FE7 and really liked it

the end until I play another

Thanks, but I'm not that legal yet! I still got 3 years before I can even attempt that. :3

Awakening, while not my favorite, is awesome for the lift off support limits alone.

Shadow Dragon......I can't.

FE4 does take some time to adjust to it.

FE6 weapons have 10% lower hit rates than FE7 (from what I've read) .

FE7 was my first game amd has a special place in my heart.

Happy Birthday!

So yeah. FE7 was my first Fire Emblem, and I started when I was 7 or so. I played through Lyn's mode Easy, and I got a really good score, so I thought I would try Hector Hard Mode (my brother's had already beaten the game multiple times). It was a rude awakening. So I decided to get better. It's been nearly ten years, and I'm still enjoying the FE series.

Thank you!

Playing Hector Hard mode after Lyn Easy mode.You poor thing......I've never attempted Hector Hard Mode as of yet ( I am playing Hector Normal mode right now though), but maybe one day (it should be called lunatic mode though......which is kinda what I am in Fire Emblem with my tactics somethimes). Beside, with so many chapters, it means so much experience! :3

[Ambulz]

I was like, 8 or 9, playin' my GameBoy. Big bro comes up to me and is like, "'Ey, play this game." Fire Emblem 7. Played it. Was shit. Had a good time anyway. Wanted more. I've played Geneaology, every GBA title, the Tellis duology, and Awakening since. It's been a fun ride.

Edited September 24, 2015 by Ambulz

[The Geek]

I had had earlier experience with a similar kind of game (the GBA version of Lord of the Rings the Third Age), and wanted to see if there were other games like it. I heard that Fire Emblem was like that, and as I was actually quite into SSB fanfiction at the time I was kind of familiar with Marth. This was in 2010, so the most recent and therefore easiest to find FE game was Shadow Dragon.

I played and enjoyed Shadow Dragon (though it took me a few tries as I kept letting people die and getting stuck when none of my units were strong enough to contend with late game enemies) and I wanted to play others but I couldn't find any anywhere.

This changed when in 2012 a used game store opened up within walking distance of my house, and there I was able to find a copy of Sacred Stones and play it. I had thought Shadow Dragon was good. Sacred Stones blew Shadow Dragon out of the water and remains my favorite FE game to date.

I had reservations about emulating, but as time grew and I got more and more tired of waiting for FE games to show up in the used game store I relented and got a GBA emulator and FE6. I was still pretty bad at FE and so this game kicked my ass. This is the only time I've used arena grinding and savestates to beat an FE game. I am currently in the process of doing a more standard run.

Around this time I met a guy who was also into FE and it so happened that we each had FE games that the other did not. I had Shadow Dragon and Sacred Stones, and he had Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn. I was able to borrow each of those games from him and beat them as he borrowed Sacred Stones and Shadow Dragon, though he did get a little mad about how long it took me to beat Radiant Dawn. I have never been able to get these games for myself though I've spent years looking.

In the lands of emulation I had been hearing from many people how FE4 was the best game in the FE series. I played through it and enjoyed it though I disagreed that it was the best though I could definitely see how other people felt this way.

Soon after I beat FE4, I heard that there was a brand new FE game coming out for the 3DS. I was able to get one for Christmas, and it just so happened that this game came out not long before my birthday and so I was able to get Awakening right as it came out. I went through a long period of having a love/hate relationship with Awakening where I liked the characters and easier gameplay, but hated how it was very derivative (having taken a lot of stuff from previous FEs) and had a lackluster story. After awhile I came to the conclusion that it was still a good game but definitely not the greatest as I had initially thought.

It was during one of my moments of feeling tired of Awakening that I found myself at the same game store where I got Sacred Stones. I knew a guy who worked there and he showed me a special box they had in the back of GBA games that were waiting to cycle into the display case. Right on the top of the games in that box was a copy of FE7. I got it and played it and it too is one of my favorite FE games.

I also tried FE3 but found it to be a little too clunky. I may try it again.

I tried to find a good ROM of FE5 but was unable to.

And that is all the FE I have played so far.

[EricaofRenais]

Happy birthday hope you have a good year. My first FE was Sacred Stones which I found in the Circuit City sale bin when my mom was looking at computers back in 2007. I was 16 and started playing it that night and liked it, but life happened and I did not pick the game back up for a while but after I did I loved it and played every FE released in the US. I even dressed up as Erika for Halloween (no one knew who I was but I had fun) and I kept trying to get my now ex friend in to the games but they would have been wasted on her so I guess its ok she never played them.

Edited September 24, 2015 by EricaofRenais

[Busterman64]

I played and enjoyed Shadow Dragon (though it took me a few tries as I kept letting people die and getting stuck when none of my units were strong enough to contend with late game enemies) and I wanted to play others but I couldn't find any anywhere.

This changed when in 2012 a used game store opened up within walking distance of my house, and there I was able to find a copy of Sacred Stones and play it. I had thought Shadow Dragon was good. Sacred Stones blew Shadow Dragon out of the water and remains my favorite FE game to date.

The fact that you had to kill off units to get better units (or more in general) and to access gaiden chapters in Shadow Dragon erked me so much. I have never gone past chapter 5 in that game. It isn't terrible, but that one thing erks me so much!

Oh, and Sacred Stones is pretty awesome! Not my personal favorite, but a joy to play through netherless.

Around this time I met a guy who was also into FE and it so happened that we each had FE games that the other did not. I had Shadow Dragon and Sacred Stones, and he had Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn. I was able to borrow each of those games from him and beat them as he borrowed Sacred Stones and Shadow Dragon, though he did get a little mad about how long it took me to beat Radiant Dawn. I have never been able to get these games for myself though I've spent years looking.

The difficulties in Radiant Dawn are misleading. Easy is actually Normal mode, Normal is hard mode, and Hard mode is Maniac Mode(or Lunatic, especially since you lose the ability to use Battle Save). It's a harder game and will kick your butt hard if your not ready (Although you start to notice the enemy A.I. hates unit that can counter attack) . It makes you feel like a B.A. though (The Greil Mercenaries make you feel awesome)!

In the lands of emulation I had been hearing from many people how FE4 was the best game in the FE series. I played through it and enjoyed it though I disagreed that it was the best though I could definitely see how other people felt this way.

Ditto!

Soon after I beat FE4, I heard that there was a brand new FE game coming out for the 3DS. I was able to get one for Christmas, and it just so happened that this game came out not long before my birthday and so I was able to get Awakening right as it came out. I went through a long period of having a love/hate relationship with Awakening where I liked the characters and easier gameplay, but hated how it was very derivative (having taken a lot of stuff from previous FEs) and had a lackluster story. After awhile I came to the conclusion that it was still a good game but definitely not the greatest as I had initially thought.

Yeah, I really like Awakening (especially for getting rid of the support limit in previous games), but I prefer the older games before it.

Happy birthday hope you have a good year. My first FE was Sacred Stones which I found in the Circuit City sale bin when my mom was looking at computers back in 2007. I was 16 and started playing it that night and liked it, but life happened and I did not pick the game back up for a while but after I did I loved it and played every FE released in the US. I even dressed up as Erika for Halloween (no one knew who I was but I had fun) and I kept trying to get my now ex friend in to the games but they would have been wasted on her so I guess its ok she never played them.

Thank you so much! :3

Ah, one of the curses of Fire Emblem. It's so popular and loved, yet not many people know of it either (Just like the "Tales of." series). Unless it's, "Oh, I know insert FE character here from Super Smash Bros."

[VROOOOM]

Happy birthday

My first experience was when my brother brought some gba games home. Among them was blazing sword. I didn't actually get to play it though. He wanted to see if he could get some money for it first. A month later I found my gba, asked again, popped it in, and stopped functioning properly since I was too busy playing it.

[Busterman64]

A month later I found my gba, asked again, popped it in, and stopped functioning properly since I was too busy playing it.

Yeah, I know that feeling well! :3

[Shadowess]

Happy Birthday! how late am I

First experience was SBB4. I used to main as Robin/Lucina all the time, with the occasional Marth and Ike. I was curious about it, so I researched it a bit and decided to get the most recent game (Awankening) and got addicted to it. The end.

[Radiant head]

Long before I touched any FE game, I was really drawn to the FE characters in Smash. Marth ruled in melee, and I loved playing as both Ike and Marth in Brawl. Had bought a 3DS with the intent of just playing Link Between Worlds, but Awakening ended up being my foray into the franchise. I liked it fine, but that's what lead me to play the Tellius games, and that's when I became an obsessive fan.

[Icemario]

Many years ago (like 2008), I played Blazing Sword, and loved it. So I played Sacred Stones six months later; admittedly I didn't like it as much, but still massively enjoyed it. Then Binding Blade after discovering a way to play it a year later, and it was harder than both so I instinctively didn't like it too much.

Then in 2013, I found this game called "Fire Emblem Awakening" and thought it looked really cool but doubted I'd be able to play it. A year later, I snagged the game myself for my birthday and loved it, thought it was the best thing.

This year when discussing Awakening, I remembered those GBA games I played years ago, and thought "I don't remember these", so I went back and played Blazing Sword again, and realized "wow this game is so much better, where am I at", and all the memories came flooding back, fully rekindling my love for the series. So I played New Mystery as a suggestion earlier this year, really liked that, then a month or two later went back and played Gaiden, and adored that, and this summer, got through Genealogy of the Holy War, and that was no exception.

Now I'm playing Shadow Dragon.

The only effect Smash had on me regarding my exploration of the Fire Emblem series was my initial observation of Hector in-game, thinking he was Marth's brother or something, and my confusion with Roy's game being Japanese-only.

[Busterman64]

Long before I touched any FE game, I was really drawn to the FE characters in Smash. Marth ruled in melee, and I loved playing as both Ike and Marth in Brawl. Had bought a 3DS with the intent of just playing Link Between Worlds, but Awakening ended up being my foray into the franchise. I liked it fine, but that's what lead me to play the Tellius games, and that's when I became an obsessive fan.

So the Tellius games got you the same way too? :3

Many years ago (like 2008), I played Blazing Sword, and loved it. So I played Sacred Stones six months later; admittedly I didn't like it as much, but still massively enjoyed it. Then Binding Blade after discovering a way to play it a year later, and it was harder than both so I instinctively didn't like it too much.

Then in 2013, I found this game called "Fire Emblem Awakening" and thought it looked really cool but doubted I'd be able to play it. A year later, I snagged the game myself for my birthday and loved it, thought it was the best thing.

This year when discussing Awakening, I remembered those GBA games I played years ago, and thought "I don't remember these", so I went back and played Blazing Sword again, and realized "wow this game is so much better, where am I at", and all the memories came flooding back, fully rekindling my love for the series. So I played New Mystery as a suggestion earlier this year, really liked that, then a month or two later went back and played Gaiden, and adored that, and this summer, got through Genealogy of the Holy War, and that was no exception.

Now I'm playing Shadow Dragon.

The only effect Smash had on me regarding my exploration of the Fire Emblem series was my initial observation of Hector in-game, thinking he was Marth's brother or something, and my confusion with Roy's game being Japanese-only.

(Forgive my small rant) Yeah, the older games do something better than Awakening ... giving you the feeling of accomplishment. In the GBA games, when your units became awesome, you feel like you personal made an army full of B.A.'s (if not RNG screwed). In Awakening, you could grid to your hearts content. Now while in Sacred Stones you have that option also, it feels more rewarding in Sacred Stones than in Awakening. Not to mention Pair up made most of your units a bit broken, even more so when their support is maxed. Lastly, you can make your units almost any class, making each character a bit less unique (although, a few characters like Morgan and Donnel I kinda let slide since they aren't really given a specific class). Awakening is still a great game, don't get me wrong. However, it kinda loses it self a bit, but that's my opinion.

[Batter the Beast]

I really liked playing as Marth in Melee as a kid, so that's technically my first experience. Yes, I was one of those guys who thought Marth and Roy were in FE7, which idk how I got it but it was my first.

Anyway, after that I decided to look into more FE games and fell in love with the Jugdral games for the dark plot of FE4 and the unfairness of FE5. Sadly, my other FE friends find these games too complicated so I don't really have someone to talk about them with IRL.

[Glitchy]

Sacred Stones through the Ambassador Program was my first FE experience. At first I thought it was boring, but then I got to the gameplay and thought it was fun. Then I got stuck at Chapter 3 and forgot about the game. When I heard about Awakening I was like "Oh I liked the GBA one, I should try this", and I got back into the series.

[Lantairu]

As many people did, I first heard about Fire Emblem through Smash, specifically Brawl where Ike was my main for a little while. I also remember briefly seeing Radiant Dawn at my friend's house one time. Then I got Awakening as a surprise birthday gift I never saw coming.

[SSbardock84]

My two older brothers and I first had Fire Emblem Blazing Sword and Sacred Stones like when it came out and we played it all the time. I remember growing up with them and were my favorite games. I remember how excited we were when we saw Path of Radiance and its graphics for the GameCube. I've been buying Fire Emblem games forever and have always enjoyed them. They are the games I put the most time into.

[Taka-kun]

Like many others, I heard of Fire Emblem back in the days of Melee but was more invested in IS's companion game, Advance Wars, since I was more interested in modern warfare than medieval ones. As I aged though, I found myself liking medieval fantasy (mostly low though) but warfare more than heroic adventures. Hearing that, my friend recommended Awakening to the 3DS, since I am also keen on tactical and strategy games (which was in shortage on the 3DS at the time). I wasn't really sold until she said that the main character is a tactician, which I am thoroughly fond of (kudos to anyone who can deduce that from my profile pic).

So yeah, that's how I got hooked to FE. I played some of the older games, such as Shadow Dragon and Radiant Dawn, but none were as accessible as Awakening. Also, none had Robin. Whom I really like.

[RidellCrimea]

I first heard about FE thanks to SSBB. Marth and Ike's design intrigued me and I decided to try them out. I really liked Ike's fighting style, so he was one of my mains of that game and I ended up having a crush on the dude :P. I then went on to search for info about FE games. I wanted to start with Ike's game first but couldn't find them anywhere, so I started with the GBA FEs first as I already had a Gameboy Emulator. Blazing Sword was my first FE if I recall correctly. I knew it was my kind of game after just a few chapters. I've become a fan of the series since then, and I've played FE6-12 so far. I'm also very looking forward to playing the Jugdral series and Awakening when I have the time. And needless to say, I adore this series.

[Sarthanta]

My first experience with FE was with Melee when I was a wee lad, but I don't remember actually playing as Marth until Brawl came out. I thought him and Ike looked like neat characters and Snake's codecs with them sounded cool. The first FE game I actually knew existed was Shadow Dragon, which I discovered while I was reading Nintendo Power. Even then, I had no interest in actually playing the games since I thought they looked as complicated as rocket science. Skip to 6 years later. Fates/If was announced, and it looked cool so I thought "Hey, maybe I should actually play these games." The rest is history.

[spiderbrush]

...Hmm.

I suppose my first experience with Fire Emblem started when I saw a game called "Radiant Dawn". I thought it'd be a nice game to have.

...Unfortunately, that's back when I cared about game reviews, and its supposed "punishing difficulty" noted by one of them kinda... made me lose interest, in guess?

Looking back on it now, perhaps I should have bought it anyway...

Apart from that, there were also a few characters from Awakening I became aware of, through my friends' fan art/fan fics and such.

And then Fire Emblem Fates was announced this year. I became instantly interested. I thought, "might as well buy Awakening, then!"

...or something like that. Anyway, Awakening was the first Fire Emblem game I played.

Awakening really made me interested in playing more of the series, so later on I bought Sacred Stones.

I'm still really, really bad at this series (and I ~kind of~ have a love-hate sort of relationship with the whole permadeath thing), I've still liked what I played. I can't wait for Fates!

[The Geek]

...Hmm.

I suppose my first experience with Fire Emblem started when I saw a game called "Radiant Dawn". I thought it'd be a nice game to have.

...Unfortunately, that's back when I cared about game reviews, and its supposed "punishing difficulty" noted by one of them kinda... made me lose interest, in guess?

Looking back on it now, perhaps I should have bought it anyway...

Apart from that, there were also a few characters from Awakening I became aware of, through my friends' fan art/fan fics and such.

And then Fire Emblem Fates was announced this year. I became instantly interested. I thought, "might as well buy Awakening, then!"

...or something like that. Anyway, Awakening was the first Fire Emblem game I played.

Awakening really made me interested in playing more of the series, so later on I bought Sacred Stones.

I'm still really, really bad at this series (and I ~kind of~ have a love-hate sort of relationship with the whole permadeath thing), I've still liked what I played. I can't wait for Fates!

I had a similar problem. I held off on getting FE for a long time because the idea of permadeath scared me but I eventually decided to try it anyway. Took me a long time to get used to it.

This is why I'm a big supporter of Casual Mode.

[Busterman64]

...Hmm.

I suppose my first experience with Fire Emblem started when I saw a game called "Radiant Dawn". I thought it'd be a nice game to have.

...Unfortunately, that's back when I cared about game reviews, and its supposed "punishing difficulty" noted by one of them kinda... made me lose interest, in guess?

Looking back on it now, perhaps I should have bought it anyway...

Apart from that, there were also a few characters from Awakening I became aware of, through my friends' fan art/fan fics and such.

And then Fire Emblem Fates was announced this year. I became instantly interested. I thought, "might as well buy Awakening, then!"

...or something like that. Anyway, Awakening was the first Fire Emblem game I played.

Awakening really made me interested in playing more of the series, so later on I bought Sacred Stones.

I'm still really, really bad at this series (and I ~kind of~ have a love-hate sort of relationship with the whole permadeath thing), I've still liked what I played. I can't wait for Fates!

A good chunck of FE fans have that kind of relationship with the permadeath thing too. It's an interesting & unique idea that keeps you on your toes and requires you to really think about your moves, but if one character dies, you do one of two things:

1.)Keep fighting on even though you lost someone

or 2.) Curse your luck or possible stupidity, get ticked off and RESET.

(and/or possibly stop playing for a few minutes or hours so you can cool off [or go cry in a corner] due to so many deaths & restarting the same chapter so many times).

I had a similar problem. I held off on getting FE for a long time because the idea of permadeath scared me but I eventually decided to try it anyway. Took me a long time to get used to it.

This is why I'm a big supporter of Casual Mode.

Same here. When I learned about the series existence, it took me a few weeks (or months, I forget. It was when I was around 9) just to get the courage to try out the game due to the whole permadeath thing scaring me off a bit! Personally, I prefer Classic mode (despite some of the pain, anger, and/or sadness it may cause me sometimes), but I think since Intelligent Systems put Casual mode in Awakening, it's accessible to a lot more people now ( a great addition/option for fans and newcomers alike)!

[Kirb]

The very first Fire Emblem game I 'picked up' and played was The Sacred Stones. It was actually thanks to the Ambassador Program on the 3DS that I got to play this game, although I never once touched this game until sometime in 2012. I'd heard occasional talk about this series with friends on Twitter, and decided to check it out. Despite people claiming it to be one of the easiest entries in the series, for a complete new player, it was the most confusing thing. I believe I played up to chapter four before giving up, unable to understand even basic mechanics as characters fell and I used a single weapon for each character. I would like to formally apologise to Eirika's Rapier right here. I'm so sorry for abusing you.

I returned to the Fire Emblem franchise when Awakening was released, and it was there I began to understand the game's mechanics. I allowed the permadeath system, learning the hard way in playing the game. If it weren't for this game's easy difficulty, I probably would have never gotten into the series. After that, I returned to FE8, and sometime during the middle of my playthrough, Blazing Sword was released on the Wii U eShop. I played those two during the same time period, and while also watching a Let's Play of FE7, truly began to understand everything about the series. My strategic gameplay was much improved, completing FE8 first before the other. After FE7's completion, I became quite fond of the series, wishing to play more. As much as I liked Awakening and I do acknowledge it introduced me to the series in a more positive light, I feel my love for the gameplay came to be sometime when I was playing those two GBA games.

And then the rest is history.