The new Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes trailer gives fans a better picture of what the spin-off entails. In the absence of a truly new Fire Emblem game, this alternate take on Fire Emblem: Three Houses will provide fans something to enjoy over the summer. Three Hopes is the second Warriors spin-off the Fire Emblem franchise has seen, and the fourth full Warriors game using a Nintendo franchise. Tecmo Koei’s Musou titles are uniquely appropriate for adapting Fire Emblem, given that Dynasty Warriors is also a fantastical and tactical representation of wars.
While the first Fire Emblem Warriors was met with a lukewarm response, Three Hopes has the chance to fix its issues. The game looks to be launching with more strategically minded mechanics and map objectives, as well as improving on its original character protagonist. Players will take control of Shez, a new mercenary hired in place of Three Houses' Byleth. Byleth is not gone, however, and will meet Shez as the Ashen Demon, contrasting Shez's enthusiasm with quiet stoicism. Much like in Three Houses, players are given the choice of three story routes to go down. However, Three Hopes should provide a more definitive resolution upon completing them all.
Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes' Story Paths Will Feel Familiar
Like in Three Houses, Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes’ different routes will be decided early on, and will affect both the plot and playable characters. Players can choose to side with Edelgard and the Black Eagles, Dimitri and the Blue Lions, or Claude and the Golden Deer. As of right now, there is no word on whether the Garreg Mach Monastery faction or the DLC Ashen Wolves will be available. Three Houses and Three Hopes are not the first time Fire Emblem has experimented with multiple routes, with Fire Emblem Fates also presenting three major paths. Even so, Fates gives players some time to meet the opposing factions before making their choice, and the “true” route is DLC for most of its releases. Three Houses made players choose their story immediately, and it looks like Three Hopes will follow suit.
Fortunately, Tecmo Koei and Omega Force are suited to adapting games with multiple routes. Past Musou games have included multiple faction stories, specifically Dynasty Warriors 7 and 8. These two titles feature three different story modes collecting most of the playable characters, as the rosters were growing too large. Three Hopes won't have so many faction-exclusive characters, so players should be able to recruit and play with their favorites earlier. However, Dynasty Warriors 7 and 8 do one more thing that Three Hopes should take note of: they introduce a new route after the other three are beaten.
Adding a Final Scenario to Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes
While Fire Emblem Fates eventually added its Revelation story to be played after one or both of its other paths, Fire Emblem: Three Houses did no such thing. Its DLC took place midway through other routes, and aside from the path split offered by the Black Eagles, there is no story overlap or progression between the factions. One of Three Houses’ greatest weaknesses is that while every story is distinct and contributes to the overall narrative, they are also mutually exclusive. There is no bonus for completing every route, and many story elements are locked behind specific Houses. This is where Dynasty Warriors 7 and 8 could provide a solution to Three Hopes, with a new route set after or near the end of the others that unifies the storyline.
This “final story” could play out a lot like those found in the Dreamcast and GameCube-era Sonic the Hedgehog games. After all of a given entry’s stories were complete, one final scenario opened up. It usually consisted of a boss fight and a proper ending that brings the whole cast together. Sonic Adventure 2 has a fitting format for Three Hopes, as it includes a fair amount of regular gameplay in its Last Story, and the regular stories run parallel to each other. Each route in Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes will presumably be much shorter than a complete run of one Fire Emblem: Three Houses equivalent, so expecting the player to play all of them and more could be reasonable. Allowing fans to experience the entirety of this alternate Three Houses story and get a new ending for every faction would help make Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes a surefire hit.
Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes will release June 24, 2022 for Nintendo Switch.
