I love my wife.  She knows me.  She gets me.  We just celebrated our first anniversary just a month ago, and this wonderful woman got me a toy that I’ve been wanting for a while: A Nintendo 3DS.  Not only that, but she got me the XL and she got me a blue one to boot.  To sum up, I’m a very, very happy nerd.  Also, a lucky one.

The 3DS has only recently been on my “Want” list since its been a little sparse on games up until now.  Fire Emblem: Awakening was the first game that I knew I wanted to play.  Sure, there were random other games that I was kind of interested in.  Ocarina of Time, which I’ve never played before, sounded like it would be perfect in 3D.  The new Kid Icarus also looked interesting and there were few others that were popping up.  Still, Fire Emblem was the kicker.

I’ve played some Fire Emblem games in the past but I don’t think that I’ve ever really gotten into one and beaten it.  The whole “permadeath” of units isn’t something that sits well with me, and Fire Emblem is a little notorious for having a very unforgiving nature.  Still, I needed a tactical RPG before the system would really be worthwhile, so it was the first thing I picked up when I was gleefully breaking the system in.

Seventy hours later, I have finally put down the final boss.  I admit, I also put it off for way longer than I needed to.  My main fighting force were all leveled to the point where they were gods compared to whatever else the game might throw at me.  The final boss, even at an impressive skill rating of 200 didn’t manage to hold a flame to me.  My average skill strength was 200 per unit, with several of the stronger ones approaching 250.  Skill rating is the sum of all the units skill points, and gives you a quick idea of how strong a unit is.  For example, the final boss was at 200, the enemies leading up to him were between 100 and 150, chumps are usually at 60-90.

So…yeah.  I really got into the game.  I dig tactical RPGs.  I love being the general and commanding a flawless campaign.  I also love RPGs, seeing units level up and become stronger; nursing them through the low levels and slowly making each a bad ass in their own way.  Fire Emblem is great for this.  Its also great in that you need some real tactics to make it through some challenges, and you find that as you learn more about the game mechanics, the better you do in matches.  Here’s a few things that I learned:

1. No one goes off by themselves … unless they’re Donnel (more on him in a bit).
2. Build relationships. The conversations are fun, but the bonuses you get from having units that get along with each other are more than worth it.
3. Whenever possible, have units fight next to each other.  Not only does this build their relationship level (see above) but it also limits the number of attacks a unit can take AND provides chances for the units to work together to mitigate damage or dual attack.
4. Do not underestimate the power of ranged attacks.  Get a couple good bowmen, and a couple good mages.  Make sure your melee units all have a way to range attack later in the game too.  Most weapon types have a “throwable” weapon.
5. Save your powerful expensive weapons for when you need them.  This is just basic economics, since your weapons wear out and you have to buy new ones.  Better to use up your cheap Iron Spear rather than the rare and powerful Silver ones.
6. Don’t use Master Spheres and Second Spheres too soon.  You want to get both skills (at least) out of a class before you change their class.  Also have an idea of what you want to do with each unit.  Don’t take your mage and make him an archer.  Keep him magicing it up to build his Magic stat as high as possible.
7. Don’t be afraid to grind.  This will help you both build experience and relationships between units.
8. Don’t be afraid to reset.  Unless you want to accept the death of a valuable character.  I could not do it.
9. Accept that you’re going to be losing quite a bit of time.

I’ve got more, but that’s probably enough for now.  In short, I loved the game.  The game play was top notch.  The graphics, especially the 3D was beautiful.  I’ve got a friend who doesn’t play with the 3D on unless his system is plugged in, but I’m more than willing to wear the batteries down.  The story was marvelous, and building relationships between units was worth it, if just for the little conversations that go on between them.  One of the characters, Gregor, a mercenary with a Russian accent, routinely cracks me up.  There’s a ton of content and downloadable bonus maps and challenges; there’s even DLC available with more on the way (from what I understand).

If you like tactical RPGs in any way, you should give Fire Emblem a go.  This game alone made the 3DS worth owning as I’m going to be coming back to it for years, trying the campaign on higher difficulty settings, and besting challenges.  If you’re a fan of the Fire Emblem series, you really should play this game.

A final note for those who follow my advice.  Early on in the game, you’re going to get the first paralogue and in it you will have a chance to recruit Donnel, a seemingly useless villager.  MAKE SURE YOU DO THIS.  He will look like the weakest unit in the game and will be for a while, except for one thing.  He comes with a talent that gives him a bonus to skill growth.  If you take a little time, and nurture him along he will become the DESTROYER OF WORLDS.  He will be your boss slayer and none shall stand before him.  By the end of the game, I was leaving him out of my party half the time because he was taking experience away from other units.

Ok…now on to more writing endeavors.  I’ve got some Edge of December to work on.