With the release date of Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave steadily drawing closer, Nintendo has started to reveal more details about the next chapter in its longrunning tactical-RPG series. Ever since Fire Emblem: Awakening successfully brought the series back from the brink of cancellation, the series has gone from strength to strength over the years, evolving its signature gameplay in well-received successor titles like Conquest, Revelations, and Three Houses.
While 2023’s Fire Emblem: Engage may not have reached those same heights, Fortune’s Weave looks like it’s aiming to return to the standard set by Three Houses with the return of Sothis, Crests, and other familiar gameplay mechanics. Today’s Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave Nintendo Direct had plenty of new details to reveal about the game, and in case you missed it, we’ve gathered them all up below to show you how the game is shaping up ahead of its September 17 launch for Switch 2.
Four heroes, one true protagonist
Fortune’s Weave features four heroes as part of the game’s prologue, individuals who all enter the Dagdan Games for their own personal reasons.
- Cai – An inhabitant of a peaceful village, Cai fights alongside his childhood friends so that he can free his imprisoned father.
- Dietrich – A battle-hungry warrior, Dietrich narrowly survives an attack from a giant sea monster, washes ashore, and competes in the games to quench his thirst for combat.
- Theodora – A citizen of the kingdom of Saramis, Theodora competes to restore the honor of her goddess and defend her nation.
- Leda – Hellbent on taking revenge against her father’s murderer, the noble Leda enters the tournament after she learns that his killer will be fighting there.
Once the Dagdan Games end, the story of Fortune’s Weave will move forward five years. At this point in the timeline, the Dagdan Empire has fallen, the four heroes who competed have vanished, and the revived demon god, Balor, is on the cusp of victory. The progenitor god Sothis calls forth the game’s protagonist–who is something of a blank slate, like the heroes of previous Fire Emblem games–and tasks them with saving the world.
Players will have to make a choice, as they can either face the demon god on their own, or use the goddess Fortuna’s time-traveling powers to change fate and enlist the four missing champions to their side.
You won’t have to play through Fortune’s Weave four times to get the full story
You won’t be locked to the story of a single hero when you play Fortune’s Weave, as you can freely switch between them during the campaign. Thanks to a little time travel magic, you can save your progress with a current hero and return to an earlier point in the story when you choose a different champion, allowing you to experience each story in parallel.
What are the Heroic Games?
A series of matches held in tribute to Dagda, the Empire’s first king, the Heroic Games are overseen by the empire’s current monarch, Solel. Victory is no easy task, but to the winner, Solel will grant one wish.
There’s more to Fortune’s Weave than battle
While the core gameplay revolves around the established Fire Emblem formula of tactical turn-based gameplay, unit management, and improving members of your army, you’ll also have a chance to explore what lies beyond the arena. Between battles, you can prepare for fights by purchasing new equipment, earning blessings from the local temples, and improving your skills with training exercises. You can even venture outside the city walls–if time permits between matches–to strengthen your team further and gain new allies.
On the world map, you can visit local towns to gather information and take part in skirmish battles, explore dungeons, and take on quests from villagers.
Class warfare
Mastering classes is the key to success of Fire Emblem, and in Fortune’s Weave, you’ll have plenty to choose from. There are five beginner classes to choose from when the game starts, and each one forms the foundation of how your soldiers will move and attack. At this level, players can choose to have all-rounder Gladiators, magic-wielding Diviners, and Ornius Riders with increased movement on the battlefield.
Once you reach the stage of specialty classes, you can choose from 10 variants. From what Nintendo has revealed so far, each one of these classes is fine-tuned toward a particular role and includes Armored Knights for defense, Wing Soldiers who can leap over obstacles, and Charioteers who can strike multiple enemies when they move in a straight line.
Finally, advanced classes are masters of their craft, with some of the options here being armored infantry Catapharacts, Guardians who can use both white magic and spears, and Elephant Riders who can stomp out any opposition.
Combat and Blaze Arts
Every weapon in Fire Emblem has limited durability, but if you’re in a pinch, you can sacrifice the longevity of your tool with Combat Arts. These attacks have more power and other advantageous effects, and when used at the right moment, they’ll turn the tide of battle. Alternatively, Blaze Arts are special moves that are fueled by health points, so you’ll want to reserve these moves as a last resort. Cai can unleash a wall of flames, Dietrich can warp out of danger, and Leda can buff allies.
Let’s do the time warp again
Want a redo? With Fortuna’s Blessing, you can turn back time to any previous point in battle after you make a move–perfect for when you need to rethink your tactics.
Fire Emblem has guns now
Or firearm-inspired gauntlets, to be exact. But we know a gun when we see it, and some characters are definitely packing heat in Fortune’s Weave.
