Intelligent Systems – Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade (2003), 5/10

The Fire Emblem franchise was introduced to North America with the Game Boy Advance iteration Fire Emblem (or Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade), a fitting title in that it presents a rather generic representation of political fantasy along with a well-established strategy format, following up Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade which brought the franchise and its stylistic shift to GBA in Japan. Its combat is variegated by classes and weapon/magic types, and while difficulty can be frustrating to downright manipulative at times, it generally feels rewarding and reacts based on strategic decisions.

The individual side-character stories are where this version shines, yet they are hit or miss. The combat can be very frustrating at times but feels generally rewarding. The progression system is strong, with character promotions feeling strategic and worth the patience of leveling and item use. The story seems to be crafted primarily for a younger audience or maybe just for children alone in a way that is regrettable and could have easily been avoided in favor of a more general audience or perhaps a hybrid one. There are narrative moments that work particularly well such as Jaffar and Nino’s chapter, creating a feeling of lost potential in comparison to the main storyline. 

But this title is limited by its scope, rather than being bolstered by magnitude similar to bigger RPGs such as the Elder Scrolls franchise, Fire Emblem has optional chapters that would feel ridiculous to skip out on outside of the context of a speed run. Still, the combat, animations, and art are worth the time it takes to complete the game, even though it runs on the longer side in terms of story, trial-and-error, and game progression. You get out of this title what you put into its characters, story, and the building tension behind strategic decision-making. It loses some of its steam towards the end of the story, especially with lengthy un-skippable dialogue, but is worth its roughly 30-50 hours playtime depending on completion percentage.