Fire Emblem is one of Nintendo’s longest-running turn-based tactical series, going all the way back to 1990 on the Famicom, and has since spawned a number of titles as well as spin-offs.
Most recently was 2019’s Fire Emblem: Three Houses on the Switch, which featured a new world story and cast of characters. Three Hopes features the same setting, with recurring characters and some key story elements, however, there's a brilliant twist.
Three Hopes is not the first Warriors cross-over or even the first Fire Emblem spin-off, back in 2017 Koei Tecmo created Fire Emblem Warriors which merged classic Fire Emblem characters with the Warriors style gameplay, and while it was well regarded for its action and compelling gameplay, it didn't really incorporate Fire Emblem's strategy elements.
In ‘Musou’ or Warriours games, you control a small, elite team which you can switch between while travelling through an open map, battling through hordes of foes.
You capture strongholds and complete objectives but the battlefield is dynamic and your objectives can change, some levels feature a boss which is usually one of the heroes of a rival faction.
In the beginning, there are a lot of decisions to make not only which of the three houses you will side with, but also whether you want to play in 'classic mode' which means if any of your team falls they are permanently dead, which I've always found rewarding in Fire Emblem games.
You then select the gender of the protagonist Shez but also of Byleth too. Depending on how you play you can choose between a slower more tactical approach allowing you to plan ahead or a faster-paced version of the game which is better suited to newbies.
The game is set in Fódlan, a fantasy world of warring factions and three kingdoms are the main powers of the land, exist in peace with the Church of Seiros, the main faith of the region, sitting in the middle, housing an academy for teaching the future leaders of these kingdoms.
While taking place in the same setting as Three Houses, Three Hopes is set in an alternate universe, where the characters and events from the previous title exist but with some differences.
However, just as in Three Houses, war breaks out leading to past friends becoming dangerous enemies and the majority of Three Hopes is set during the war, unlike Houses, which I also preferred as I was never a fan of the school setting.
The game begins with the protagonist, a mercenary named Shez witnessing their whole army wiped out by Three Houses’ main protagonist Byleth, aka The Ashen Demon. Drawing parallels from Three houses a mysterious creature called Arval awakens in you, giving you the power to fight back.
Shez swears to track down and defeat Byleth and on your journey come across and sides with one of the three house leaders and future rulers of their respective kingdoms.
I really enjoyed the twist on Three houses by making the previous protagonist the villain with unknown motivations.
Visually the game looks very similar to Three House however, Three Hopes looks better than the original Fire Emblem Warriors and even slightly better than Three Houses. The improved character animations and post-processing really show how the engine has been refined.
Performance was slick, hitting a consistent 30 fps most of the time in docked with no noticeable stutters and frame drops and the occasionally hitting 40, action was also surprisingly pretty smooth in handheld too.
There are also a lot more cutscenes with lots of time and attention paid to characters and the story which isn't typical for Warriors games but it's definitely something I appreciated more.
The excellent Fire Emblem Three Houses score is here as well as some new rearrangements with screaming electric guitars and a faster-paced which made me feel like I was in an anime, which helped to get me hyped.
The ability to explore your camp and interact with your teammates has returned, but there have been many more elements added to make your camp exploration more worthwhile, and this time the calendar system is also thankfully removed.
You have a finite number of activity points, much like in Three Houses that you spend by taking part in activities in the camp.
However, this time training uses a different resource both training and activity points are refilled at the beginning of a new chapter, with any unspent points lost, however, are sometimes given as a reward on the War Map.
Chores can reward you with resources and will strengthen the bonds of all the participants. Preparing food and eating together not only enhances social ties like before but can also add temporary buffs for battles which is a great addition.
You can go on expeditions instead of tea parties this time around too.
Training is an important part of camp, it allows characters to master whichever class they currently are in and change classes. You can also spend gold to level up members of your team to match your highest-level character.
You can buy or repair weapons you find on the battlefield as well as buy presents for teammates to further ingratiate them to Shez.
Support points and conversation return allow you to build bonds between teammates by fighting together, completing choirs and training together.
This opens up some of the character's stories and motivation as well as makes them more effective at working together.
You can also upgrade these camp facilities making them more efficient or unlocking more abilities, which not only makes the camp sections much better but also offers more incentive to complete missions, replay them and reach for S-Rank.
In the War map stage, you can plan which mission to undergo next as well as take part in timed missions, catch up with merchants and collect resources from surrounding areas you have liberated.
Combat is fairly typical for a Warriors game with simple combos and devastating special moves allowing you to cut through armies of foes with the occasional special enemies, bosses and monsters thrown in the mix.
Aside from light, strong attacks as well and dodge and block you have a number of devastating moves to help you completely dominate foot soldiers and bosses alike.
Combat arts returns, you can equip two and these attacks will allow you to do devastating special moves that degrade weapons' durability, however, unlike Three houses the condition is reset after each battle, which takes away the need to manage weapons as much and makes you much less cautious. Combat arts also level up to become even more powerful.
Awakening gauge, when in this 'Super Sayan-like' state your attacks will have a high chance to stun enemies, you'll receive massive bonuses and you're health will not be able to reach zero.
You also have a Warrior gauge which is filled by taking or receiving damage and when full allows you to release a powerful attack.
Keeping an eye on these gauges, your team, their health and your weapon's condition are the key to difficult battles as well as perfectly timing your dodges and blocks.
Each faction has its own unique team which changes not only the combat but all the small character stories between missions.
Some characters are much better suited to particular classes and it will also vastly change how you play when you control them.
You can now also issue basic orders on the battlefield. You access this by heading to the map screen, which pauses the game. With this, you can then send units to capture a stronghold, defend an ally or you can order them to attack a particular foe which gives you their odds of success and whether their class has an advantage or disadvantage against that enemy, giving you simple and useful information to inform you battlefield decisions, you can tell them to heal or everyone to attack one target.
Shez also has the unique ability 'shadow slide' a limited number of times which teleports to already taken areas of the map, solving one of my key frustration of previous Warriors games, having to trudge across the map to save a teammate or stop and enemy escape.
I also appreciate how your characters will now take the initiative and seek out fights or actively defend rather than just standing there like in past titles.
The rock, paper, scissors weapon triangle of past Fire Emblem games makes a return making certain types of weapons more effective against others which adds a nice pinch of tactical gameplay into the mix.
You are ranked after each battle and your rank will determine how much gold, resources and special items you will receive which helps incentivise replaying some missions.
Being a Fire Emblem RPG your characters level up and gain increased stats that allowed the to do more damage resits attacks etc, Character levels can also be increased to match your highest level character by spending gold back at the camp.
Verdict 4/5
Fire Emblem: Three Hopes is not just the best Warriors game to date but a stand-out title in the Fire Emblem series. Being able to issue slightly more detailed orders to your team allows you to be far more strategic, making Three Hopes feel more like an authentic FE game but in real-time.
The hack and slash nature seem at odds with Fire Emblems' slower more tactical approach, however, Three Hopes offers the perfect blend of both styles of gameplay and combined with various improvements and more emphasis on story it really elevates Warriors/Musou games to new heights.
With a multitude of systems and mechanics that seems daunting at first, Three Hopes is incredibly deep although fans of Fire Emblem and Three Houses will get the most out of it but it's also surprisingly open to newcomers.
A free demo is now available for Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes on the Nintendo eShop it contains almost the first five chapters and allows you to transfer your save file to the full game.
Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes is out June 24 for £49.99 on Nintendo Switch, OLED and Lite
