Unlike those games, however, it's not a strictly linear progression: you have a world map that allows you to fight side battles and visit shops in-between story events, which makes managing your gear and leveling up some of the lagging characters much easier. Like previous Fire Emblem games, Awakening is divided into chapters consisting of story sequences and battles. The burgeoning friendships and affections between allies carry outside of battle, too: visit the barracks to get a glimpse of how characters interact with one another in their off-duty time (as well as potentially gain experience and items), which is a very charming touch. Characters can sometimes help each other in more direct ways, such as following up an attack with an extra strike and shielding each other from damage by foes, and these actions are also affected by how strongly their interpersonal relationships have developed. In some cases, they can even fall in love and further increase stat boons when they are next to each other in combat. Keeping two characters in close proximity to each other can allow you to increase their relationship status between battles. However, positioning is more important now than ever: standing next to allies can grant stat boosts, additional attacks, and protection. Odds and percentages are a key part of formulating your strategy, since some units also have a higher potentiality to hit or miss than others.
Archers have attack boosts against airborne units, magic spells can crush the defense of heavily armored fighters, and a host of other factors come into play. Certain units and attack types have priority over others: the three main weapons (swords, lances, and axes) form a rock-paper-scissors-style relationship. Like in many strategy RPGs, you move individual units around a grid, attacking foes while using terrain and character placement to get the upper hand. While the narrative is filled with interesting melodrama and political intrigue, the unwavering evilness of some of the villains is ridiculous and makes some parts of the story hard to take seriously.įortunately, Fire Emblem: Awakening is more than just talking heads spouting off about vengeance and crushing foes before them: it's a robust turn-based, grid-driven strategy game. Plegia is looking to incite a war based on past transgressions of Ylisse's rulers, but there's more to the sinister goings-on: strange beings called Risen are attacking towns, and a mysterious masked warrior named Marth claims to see a future in which humankind has been destroyed. The Shepherds protect the interests of the citizens of the kingdom of Ylisse, which has recently been targeted by bandits from the kingdom of Plegia. The story in Awakening opens with your player-created avatar waking up in the company of a roving band of soldiers called the Shepherds. Now Playing: Fire Emblem: Awakening - Review By clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's