Of Marth and men.
Looking to create a narrative-focused RPG, Shadow Dragon took us to Archanea, playing as Prince Marth.
Kaga and the team wanted us to care about these characters, making them unique with different unit classes.
It all helped define tactical RPGs - though you wouldn’t know it in the West.
But I’m getting ahead of myself there.
Back in the 90s, Nintendo realised it had a hit, and sequels swiftly followed.
This time, we visited the neighbouring continent, Valentia, a land split between two warring nations.
Come 1994, Intelligent Systems returned to Archanea on SNES with Fire Emblem: Mystery Of The Emblem.
The end result was Fire Emblem’s most successful game in sales until Awakening.
64 would’ve featured Roy as the main lord, who curiously was first known as Ike.
Both were well received, though Blazing proved a major turning point.
For the first time in its history, Fire Emblem had been localised in the West.
It wasn’t until the 3DS that we finally saw another original entry, and it certainly paid off.
It’s no stretch to say Fire Emblem Awakening could’ve been the series' last hurrah.
2017’s Shadows of Valentia remake aside, several Fire Emblem spin-offs also appeared.
All in all, a mixed selection.
Then came Three Houses, kicking off the Fodlan series.
Looking back, elements of those early games remain clear even in new entries.
Casual mode has become a mainstay, yet Classic mode remains for those willing to risk it all.
