Is it worth buying the DS FE games?

[henrymidfields]

Once I finish Awakening Hard Mode, I am thinking whether I should play the DS Games as well. I heard that the DS remakes aren't very good remakes for the international audience, and I'm wondering whether it is worth spending the money or otherwise. For reference:

• I have a 2DS which I played both Pokémon Y and Pokémon Black 1+2 prior.
• I am currently playing FE Awakening, 2nd lap, Hard Mode.
• My previous experience with FE is: Binding Blade (first) -> Sacred Stones -> Awakening (current).
• My 2DS is Australian, and I'm not sure whether New Mystery of the Emblem is region-locked or region-free. I want to play both Akaneia remakes.
• I am a native speaker of Japanese, thus I can just import NME and start straight away.
• EDIT: I don't have a Wii U, and I can't access VC.

[bookofholsety]

fe11 is decidedly not going to blow you away any time soon, and it suffers from not really attempting to do much to enhance the original narrative, but it's quick and simple and some of its writing contributions are surprisingly nice; for instance, i adore it for the lovely characterisation arc it gave marth. fe12, on the other hand, is sort of its opposite. if fe11's problem is not changing enough (and it is), fe12's problem is that they fiddled with the source way too much, warping the story to accommodate avatar ego-stroking and mishandling much of the characterisation established in the original material (with marth in particular being really fucked over compared to fe11). both are very simple and minimalist in terms of gameplay, but have got some decent stuff to offer

fe12 is region locked, fe11 is not. if you've got a wii u, you'll be better off picking fe11 up via virtual console than you would be tracking down a hard copy since it'll likely be cheaper. as far as 12 goes, i'd say go for it if you've got another game you want to import and thus something else to better justify picking up a japanese 3ds

[vonretic]

You want to support the developers? Buy them through virtual console. As the post above said FE 12 is region locked though, while FE 11 is not.

You really really want to play them on your DS (3DS, 2DS)? Try to find them at a cheaper price than retail (eBay, wathever...).

And finally you can play them on a DS emulator, where you can also play FE 12 in English because it was translated by fans and you can find the patch on the internet.

Overall the games are worth playing if you are bored (I would rather recommend playing the original ones instead of the remakes), from my stand point of view they are my least favorable FE games (remakes) in the entire FE franchise. I kinda agree with the post above about both of the games and how they play, and I really don't consider the character art to be that appealing (they look like dressed mannequins to me).

[henrymidfields]

You want to support the developers? Buy them through virtual console.

if you've got a wii u, you'll be better off picking fe11 up via virtual console than you would be tracking down a hard copy since it'll likely be cheaper.

VC is not an option for me as I don't have Wii U, and I also don't have reliable 2/3DS-compatible internet.

[vonretic]

VC is not an option for me as I don't have Wii U, and I also don't have reliable 2/3DS-compatible internet.

Then buy the physical copies, otherwise play them on an emulator, if you really want to play them.

[eclipse]

See if you can find something on Amazon for FE12. . .though getting it to where you are will not be cheap!

I'm not sure whether you're near a store that sells used DS games, but if you are, keep an eye out for FE11. Sometimes, it crops up.

[Jedi]

FE12 is arguably the best designed FE in terms of difficulty, because Lunatic is really well designed unlike FE13s.

[sirmola]

FE12's region locking is weird. It is only in effect on the the DSi and all versions of the 3DS (including the 2DS). If you can get your hands on a original DS or DS lite, it will not be region locked. (also, i believe the fan translation cuts the region locking out.)

[henrymidfields]

I just realized that I have a DS. I forgot whether it is a DSi, but if it isn't, then I could go and play both DS games.

[Lord Tullus]

fe12 is region locked, fe11 is not.

Really? I have the original FE 12 on my 2ds in Japanese, and It works just fine.

EDIT: Confused 2 ds with DS Lite. Sorry. It's the original DS Lite (American).

[Wickymoi]

If you don't want to buy them both, maybe you can get a ds flashcard to play them.

[Etrurian emperor]

I'd say no. I personality don't think there's much worthwhile to be found in Shadow dragon. In the gameplay department its just more of the same as the other games without being significantly better and in the story department it barely has a story, no supports and pretty much no villain has much screentime. 
The gameplay is at least functional so you could get it if you're that interested in seeing how Fire emblem had its start but if you started with any other Fire emblem then this game may feel like several steps back.

I was going to say you can't buy New mystery since its Japanese only but if you speak Japanese you very much can. I think this one is definitely worth picking up. It got several great maps, a much better story and some basic but functional supports. Gameplay wise I think new mystery might even be one of my more favored Fire emblem games. 

[Flee Fleet!]

Honestly speaking, I found Shadow Dragon boring and a bit too faithful to the original. I much prefer FE3. So...I say you shouldn't buy Shadow Dragon, but if you really want to play it, go ahead. I would suggest emulation for it instead of paying for it, but that's up to you.

New Mystery is...well, it's different, but mostly in a good way. It's got good gameplay, good maps, some basic supports, having an avatar...basically, it's got enough new things that makes it worth checking out. I suggest you buy it.