If fans have played one game in this series, they've played them all. Fire Emblem Engage is not that different from previous entries in the series. The biggest change is the inclusion of Emblems, which is a special power players can use in battle.
Emblems take the form of past heroes from the series, like Byleth who was the player-created character in Fire Emblem: Three Houses. Characters can fuse their powers into Emblems to gain stat boosts and special attacks. Other than that, Fire Emblem Engage is more great tactical action on the Switch. For beginners that never have played a game in this series before, here are some more need-to-know tips.
8 Go With Normal Casual
Players can choose between three difficulties at the start along with an assist mode. Between Normal, Hard, and Maddening, go with Normal but this setting can be changed. A more permanent setting is between Casual and Classic which dictates whether characters suffer from permadeath or not.
As this series has evolved to make characters more important than ever, it’s recommended to play through on Casual to not miss out on any story opportunities. Also in the settings, be sure to turn off battle animations and speed up gameplay.
7 Chapter 5 Opens Up The World
The game starts slowly in a linear fashion, but things will open up in Chapter 5. Players will get their home base at The Somniel, which houses a lot of familiar gameplay mechanics. Players can cook meals, train with allies, buy things in shops, and the list continues.
The world map opens up as well and after Chapter 6, the possibility of Skirmishes will appear. Skirmishes are optional battles that randomly appear on the map, or so the in-game text explains. There is a trick to activating them though.
6 An Easy Way To Grind
Even on Normal Casual, Fire Emblem Engage can put up a fight if players don’t take care of their party. Money can also deplete quickly if they aren’t careful but players can grind for experience and money at their leisure like in a normal tactical RPG thanks to Skirmishes.
What the game doesn’t explain is that real-time will dictate when a Skirmish will appear. Simply change the Switch’s internal clock to a day ahead and players should see random battles pop up. This can be done infinitely, just make sure to make these changes while not on the world map like at HQ.
5 Pairing Up With Allies
Fighting next to allies in battle can increase their affinity for one another. This will unlock Support Conversations back at home base as well as how well they fight with one another. Alear is the only character that can match up with anyone, but the others are pickier.
Before jumping into battle, make sure to check the affinity chart. This can also be accessed at any time during combat in the Reference part of the menu. Find some characters that work well together, pair them up, and create a little death squad for combat. Also, Alear is the only character that can step into a romantic relationship and that can only happen in a Paralogue at the end of the game.
4 How Bond Rings Work
The game is not clear about how Bond Rings work. A new addition to the game is the aforementioned Emblems, which allow players to summon past characters from the series to help out. There is a forge wherein players can use the acquired Emblems as a base to summon other rings.
This will not duplicate the Emblem but instead, summon other characters from their respective games. For example, using the forge on Lucina could grant players a ring with Chrom, or Robin attached. These rings will increase stats like equipment in most RPGs, but will not summon these heroes to the field. So, fire up that forge and find some more classic characters to summon to battle.
3 The Best Use Of Money
Always go into battle with plenty of healing options in Fire Emblem Engage. Give the mages with healing powers staves and every member of the team should have a full stock of Vulneraries. Be sure to restock these things after battle if necessary.
Don’t bother buying equipment as the drops should be frequent enough on the battlefield. Money should be saved whenever Mastery and Second Seals unlock and when that happens, buy the whole stock of both. Finally, donate 5,000 gold initially to every nation to get bonuses within those borders on the world map.
2 Save Tips
Players get to mess around with ten save slots in the game and there is one autosave slot as well. Players can save anywhere and at any time in the game without restrictions, unlike other games in the series. Players can save during a battle and these saves use the same slots.
It’s always a good idea in RPGs to rotate between three save slots in case there are reasons to go back, or if there is a glitch. Do this in Fire Emblem Engage too, but also keep the battle saves away from the non-combat saves. Use an empty slot as a reminder to keep them separated like a border.
1 A Warning About The Plus Button
Don’t get caught off guard by the plus button on the Switch. It’s one of the most useful buttons in the game because it can skip past turns if players don’t feel like completely turning animations off, for example, in the menu. Hitting the plus button during a conversation will skip that scene completely.
Most games tend to warn players that they are about to skip a scene, but not this one. Just be careful about finger placement to not miss out on any juicy story details. Hopefully, this tip can spare some tears for a few players but accidents do happen.
Fire Emblem Engage was released on January 20, 2023, and is available on Switch.