Fire Emblem: Three Houses

By LYNN YUAN ‘21

The Switch, Nintendo’s newest console, has prompted the release of many highly rated games in the past year, such as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Fire Emblem: Three Houses is another one of these big name games released in 2019 as a Switch exclusive. The latest title in the long running Fire Emblem series, the game retains many aspects of the series’ uniquely tactical role-playing mechanics while also introducing new mechanics for players to enjoy. 

Set in the world of Fodlan, a peaceful continent where the Church is the dominant political power, you enter the game as a professor at the Officer’s Academy at Garreg Mach Monastery. There, players have to make the choice of which of the three houses they wish to instruct: Blue Lions, Golden Deer, or Black Eagles. Each house is led by a leader who is the royal heir to one of the three countries on the continent. The main storyline compels players to spend the majority of their days at the Academy teaching, holding training exercises, and crushing rebellions; however, the game also offers optional off-days for players to deepen bonds with the extended cast of characters, explore the grounds, and complete optional side quests. While the game allows players to recruit favorable characters from other houses into the player’s current house, the importance of the player’s original choice of house is revealed when war breaks out across the continent, as you must follow your house into battle against old classmates and friends turned enemies. 

The first Fire Emblem game released since 2017, Three Houses utilizes many classic game mechanics such as turn-based, tactical gameplay and the grid-like battlefields. The game also maintains the permanent death mechanic of characters that the series is known for, but also implements a “casual mode” where characters revive after the battle. Other interesting new mechanics, such as unit-commanded battalions, were also introduced, but the most important addition to the game is the ability to interact with characters outside of the battlefield, allowing players to discover the different personalities and quirks of both team members and enemy characters. Fully-voiced dialogue accompanies through the main plotline and all player-character interactions, immersing players in the world of Fodlan. 

Playing a single route takes around 20 hours, but most players end up playing all three available routes in order to grasp a true understanding of the conflict. The Black Eagles route, in particular, reveals the corruption and injustice of the Church, while the Golden Deer route examines the xenophobia in the continent. Luckily, the game provides a New Game+ option to support your endeavors and makes your second and third playthroughs considerably quicker. I personally like the Blue Lions route ending best, but why don’t you try the game and find out which ending is best for yourself? 

Image courtesy of gamestop.com