Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia Reviews
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Fire Emblem has come to be one of Nintendo's premier franchises, with Shadows of Valentia further cementing the series' sterling reputation.
While it's definitely atypical for the series, Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia is a polished masterpiece, and an absolute joy. Not only do I hope to see other earlier Fire Emblem titles given the same loving remake treatment, but I'd love to see some of the fine-tuning carry over into the next brand new title too.
Shadows of Valentia is more Fire Emblem but also a change of pace. More recent fans might not like the missing romance options, weapon triangle, and battlefield changes. These are sometimes dramatic differences, but those looking for a compelling strategy game with the series' staple excellent characters, will be pleased by what's included as well as the new features this remake has up its sleeve. Just be ready for some enemy AI shenanigans along the way.
A great swan song game for Fire Emblem on the 3DS
Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia is an interesting, experimental and awkward game. When it shines, it really shines, but moments of iffy design both leftover from the NES era and baked into the new gameplay changes drag it down a little. It's a fun game if you're willing to look past some rough spots. It's different enough from other Fire Emblem titles that longtime fans are not necessarily going to love it, but it's also good enough that those who don't normally like Fire Emblem may enjoy it. It's a welcome breath of fresh air for the franchise, and it's a solid send-off to the 3DS for the Fire Emblem franchise.
It's a game for the here-and-now, made to give the 3DS one of its last hoorahs with a major franchise before all of Nintendo's developers move fully to the Switch.
Fire Emblem: Echoes - Shadows of Valentia seeks to bring a Japanese exclusive title to international audiences. It does a great job of that, but it might not be for everyone...
Fire Emblem Echoes changes enough to make you play the game differently while retaining most of the key aspects of what makes the series so great. The characters and story all connect well, the presentation is top notch and most importantly, the game is still very fun to play. While Awakening and Fates feel like more fleshed out experiences, Echoes bucks Gaiden's legacy of being the black sheep of the series by not only providing the solid Fire Emblem experience that has resonated with me for so long, but also providing a new, interesting way to play the game.
While the Nintendo Switch is getting a lot of attention, Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia is a great reminder that the 3DS can still deliver great games. This is the first must-own 3DS title of 2017.
Fire Emblem Gaiden was the most atypical chapter in the series, containing elements which were later abandoned in the future iterations of the franchise. Thanks to its renewed graphics and some features that make its gameplay less cumbersome and inflexible, Shadows of Valentia could be considered the sum of what Fire Emblem saga has proposed so far.
Review in Italian | Read full review
The game felt somewhat on the easier side and the dungeons could've had a little more to do. Those are minor things in a journey that doesn't slow down from start to finish. If you're here to be enchanted, Fire Emblem Echoes delivers in spades.
This is decidedly a very classic feeling Fire Emblem, with enough freshness to captivate even veterans of the franchise and comes with a welcome accessibility that makes it the easiest for newcomers to get into. This entry goes to show that there's room within the franchise to make different looking Fire Emblem entries that still feel true to the series but which also dare to not only tread new ground, but to do so in a great way. It's a well rounded package that is well balanced to please the majority of its audience, like the entire trilogy of Fire Emblem Fates before it, but while keeping it all confined to just one game with the complete epic story being accessible just from buying this one piece of software instead of it being spread out, and that's something to be thankful for. Overall, Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, while feeling like an older entry, might very well be moving the series forward in certain aspects that could potentially return in future outings.
Shadows of Valentia is a remake done right. The aesthetics are charming, the characters are lovable, and everything that made the original stand out is retained. Rather than mess with the base too much, Intelligent Systems stayed wholly faithful to the core of Gaiden — and with a few minor exceptions, it paid off. It was a joy from start to finish, and I found myself satisfied by almost every aspect along the way.
All in all, I quite enjoyed how Echoes brought Fire Emblem back to its roots. While I have enjoyed recent forays in the series, this felt more like the Fire Emblem I grew up playing. For $39.99, you get a ton of content, and that’s not even taking into account the DLC, which I didn’t sample in order to keep my experience more pristine. There’s a lot of replay value as well, with optional quests aplenty and many hidden memory prisms which unlock more lore. It’s also a long adventure, as my final playtime with the game was just short of 40 hours, longer individually than either Awakening or Fates. While not everyone will appreciate the hardcore emphasis of the game, I feel it’s a great sendoff for the Nintendo 3DS, which has done so much for the series. Now I just have to patiently await the next great adventure in Intelligent System’s fantastic tactical RPG saga.
Fans of the series will find a lot to love in Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, and if the over complicated nature of the series acted as a deterrent to you before then there has never been a better entry to jump in on. Intelligent Systems takes a good game and adds an insane amount of polish.
"Echoes from the past."
Review in Finnish | Read full review
Overall, Shadows of Valentia delivers a new personal favorite Fire Emblem game. There are a lot of additions I would love to see return in the Nintendo Switch entry, and there was never a time I found myself frustrated, and wanting to put the game down. This game is an excellent last hoorah for the series on 3DS. The future looks even brighter for this franchise.
Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia is an interesting throwback title, because it reminds me of what made Fire Emblem such an enduring video game series with many traits that have trickled down through the years. However, there are some unique aspects to the game as well, that also shows me how much the series has grown as well.
It’s great that Intelligent Systems and Nintendo is trying to further the genre, but this time they haven’t succeeded.