Last shown at E3 2017, by Fire Emblem Warriors they practically lost track until last September. Either because it belongs to a genre necessarily niche in the West, or because Nintendo also has to manage something much more important (read: Super Mario Odyssey), the title developed in collaboration with Koei Tecmo remained a bit 'in the shadows.
And we can't deny that we too were a little reluctant to take the Joy-Cons in hand. Fire Emblem who becomes a musou? But what, really? It is not the first time that Nintendo draws on a well-known brand to apply the mechanics of the genre, see the episode a couple of years ago with Hyrule Warriors (fair title, by the way). But thinking about Fire Emblem automatically leads to making a connection with tactics, strategy, well-thought-out action. The musou are instead a run, hit and repeat.
After spending a lot of time in the company of the title, we are ready for the final verdict: we only anticipate that we have had a more than decent title in our hands, which is logically not a Fire Emblem as you are used to knowing the series, but not even a musou. like many. If it is true that virtue is in the middle ...
What remains of Aytolis
If it is true that we are not used to expecting an Oscar-winning plot from a musou, Fire Emblem Warriors has no intention of breaking tradition. The narrative premises are minimal and completely occasional: the kingdom invaded, the villain on duty, the heroes ready for anything and take the field. However, continuing in the 21 chapters of the story, the player manages not to get bored just to complete his mission linked to the salvation of the world, orienting himself in a pleasant and sufficiently well told plot. The story is presented mainly through static images with scrolling texts (fortunately in the Spanish language) and with a few cinematic sequences real (few but good), reward for defeating the final boss of some dungeon or in any case the enemy of the moment.
The protagonists of the title are Rowan e Lianna, completely new characters introduced to the Fire Emblem universe for the occasion. Heirs to the throne of Kingdom of Aytolis, he devoted to weapons, she to the study (just to consolidate the clichés), on a sunny day dedicated to meeting his friend Darios at Gristonne the unthinkable happens. Unthinkable also because clear narrative forcing aimed at leading hands: the sky tears apart and gives
Dimensional gates of alternate dimensions burst demons upon demons to invade the Kingdom. In general panic, overwhelmed by the horde of enemies, the young people are saved, they bring with them the gift of the queen mother, Shield of Flames. Obviously it is the only tool capable of saving the whole world, as it will soon be discovered, it will be enough to find five warriors with five pyrogems able to restore the order of nature. Easier said that done.
The invasion by alternative dimensions, the smartest will have already understood, is an excellent expedient also to justify the presence, in the same Kingdom, of warriors from the most famous Fire Emblem series. In the course of the adventure, the well-known faces of Marth, Corrin, Ryoma, Xander and so on. A point in favor of variety, with a large and interesting group of characters.
Different genres, winning fusion
Against all odds, the fusion of Fire Emblem and the musou genre in Fire Emblem Warriors works much better than in Hyrule Warriors. The characters of Intelligent Systems they are simply transposed into a different type of combat, more frenetic than turn-based ones, focused on hack 'n slash rather than meditation, but still rewarding once the player is mastered. There customization of the equipment and the mechanics of weapons triangles, where certain types are more effective than others on certain occasions, make it more interesting.
Il control system is incredibly simple, without falling into banality: the keys of the Right Joy-Con they control the hero's attacks, with heavy, quick hits and the custom “special move”, which can be performed after filling a gauge at the top left of the screen, eliminating several enemies on the field. The Left Joy-Con instead it is delegated to the movement of the warrior and to the attachment of the enemies through the dorsal button. You can also dodge incoming shots, but except for a few bosses it is a mechanic that leaves the time it finds, since the difficulty level is tending to the bottom and that the enemies are very slow in executing their shots.
Fire Emblem Warriors it shows minimal forms of hybridization with strategic genres, but its heart remains devoted to musou. This means that, as expected, we will find ourselves inside medium-sized internal or external areas, with details and scenographic elements reduced to the bone and chock full of enemies, hundreds of enemies to be annihilated with the sword. Our hero will be enormously more powerful than standard opponents, able to take them down with a couple of hits; different for the "guardians" placed to defend doors that must be unlocked or bosses at the end of the dungeon, whose movements must be studied more carefully and perhaps set aside a couple of bars for special moves along the way. But nothing to tear your hair about, we repeat: Fire Emblem Warriors, unless you want to activate the permadeath mode in which the characters who died in one level will remain dead in the following ones, it remains an accessible title and also usable by non-experts.
Fluctuating performance
For Fire Emblem Warriors Koei Tecmo has studied a technical sector capable of adapting to the two modes of use offered by the hybrid of the Kyoto House. If it is true that Nintendo Switch is enjoyable both in portable mode and on the TV at home, the same can be said for the game in question, but with some necessary clarifications. First the frame rate is locked at 30 fps for basic settings, accompanied by 1080 p on TV e 720 p in portable mode.
But here's the beauty: do you prefer fluidity and rapidity of movement to sharpness and a glance? You can then set the mode 720 on 60 fps on TV, a welcome addition. The same cannot be said for the portable mode, where instead the frame rate is not modifiable as well as the game resolution. Let's sum it up: Fire Emblem Warriors looks good and plays smoothly in both modes, but the best experience is in the dock (on TV). Don't even think about the local multi-player, everything becomes chaotic due to the size of the small screen, the minimap almost disappears from view, and the frames begin to decrease dramatically.
Final comment
Fire Emblem Warriors is an excellent musou, the most interesting currently on Nintendo Switch. It offers a large and varied park of characters, both in the moves and in the balance, as well as various innovative strategy elements for the genre to which they belong, also coming from the products of Intelligent Systems. If you are a fan of the genre and look with interest at the charisma of the characters of Fire Emblem, the purchase will certainly not disappoint you. If, on the other hand, the musou don't convince you, don't buy the title just because it features characters you know: it's not a classic Fire Emblem. Everyone else can safely expect a price cut.
