Fire Emblem: Three Houses

April 7, 2024

The battle is the main subject

A fun Switch-exclusive game that divides gameplay into three main mechanics:

Turn-based skirmishes: the mechanic that carries the most weight and is the foundation of the saga.
- Simple objectives: eliminate the stage boss or all enemies.
- Move, attack (different weapons, tactics, battalions, abilities), heal, boost ranged attacks (arrows, magic), melee combat.
Visual novel: the story is told in the purest Japanese “visual novel” style, where we make important decisions to follow different paths.
Third-person movement: for a large part of the game, we can move freely in a 3D environment within a limited area (the school), where we complete missions to obtain resources, interact with characters, improve stats, play mini-games, harvest food, among other things.

What I liked the most

Good replayability. Even being a long-duration game, it may feel appealing to return to it once we reach the end. Depending on the house we choose (there are three available options), the decisions along the way, and our relationship with the characters, we will have different battles and storylines.
The interaction of our protagonist with the other characters is quite deep, promoting a more immersive experience. Through gift-giving, searching for lost items, tea or meal dates, we have the opportunity to form bonds with them.
The story is interesting, and you constantly feel like you are making decisions that affect it.
The classic mode adds more excitement since the characters you control can die and will never be selectable again. This makes you not take decisions lightly and adds more emotion when a character you care about dies after so many hours of play.

At times, it can become repetitive due to the large number of “pick & delivery” type missions.
The game is perhaps too “dopaminergic” in my opinion. The characters are constantly improving their multiple stats, and the amount of stimuli and sound effects can be overwhelming:
- Landing the final blow on an enemy.
- Learning during lessons.
- Earning points: motivation, affinity, charisma, grace.
- Exams to level up.
Unnecessarily long. I think it could have been simplified, making it equally or more interesting. Some battles seem like filler and don’t add much narratively, just like many of the optional missions during our stay at the school.