Oh, Fire Emblem you have come back and have taken me back to my early gamer days.
Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones was my first entry into the series when I was about ten years old. It really opened a window for me when I was still relatively new to video games. However, after reaching a level that tried to teach you how to pick out your troops for the first time and introduce you to a fog mechanic that hid your enemies from you I soon found myself a bit scared to pick the game up again especially since the game had permanent character deaths. After, missing out on many other games from the franchise I finally picked up Fire Emblem: Awakening after enjoying the Nintendo E-Shop demo I can say that this game had made me excited for new games in the franchise and it has now become one of my favorite games of all time.The gameplay is very similar to the Sacred Stones and other entry's in the series so people who have played any previous games in the series should recognize the familiar controls. Selecting your troops and deciding where to put them is incredibly easy and the game is very friendly in explaining any new mechanics added to this entry in the series. Two of the new mechanics that I think are huge improvements are Pairing Up, which allows you to team two of your troops together to give bonuses to their partner, and the relationship building aspect of the game. The relationship building part of the game is one of my favorite aspects as it allows you to really get to know the characters and with the new Casual Play mode you don't have to worry about permanently losing them. Also, if you like shipping characters then you will definitely love the marriage system that is in place here, but it only supports boy and girl relationships so don't be too disappointed if you can't see two guys confess their love for each other. The games strategic gameplay, simple menu navigation, and pick up and play design makes this game a must have in the series. Even if you're not a fan of strategy game you should still give it a chance. Who knows, this might be the game that gets you into strategy games.
