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A Well Made Strategy Game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 50 / 50
Date: November 17, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I will be objective and critical in my reviews.

This game is a true sequel to Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance.

-An example of the game. Imagine: your forces (about 18) and your computer ally (about 20) vs. enemy (about 60). you have to defend the castle entrance (you have long range attackers) and the only way for the enemy to go there is through the stairs. You block off both sets of stairs with your strong melee guy with an archer/mage behind for long range support. The enemy is approaching, then both of you are at a stand still, but they attack the one blocking. Your HP is slowly draining from the close and long range attacks by melee, arrows, and/or magic. You need to heal him/her now (or you'll lose that character in the game). If you use a Vulernary (HP potion), you could get attacked by an enemy with 1 hp (which you could have defeated if you attacked instead of healed). If you have a priest heal you, an archer could shoot over your character and hit your priest (who has very low max hp and defense stats). If you attack, you may defeat one more, but what will take it's place? What would happen if I did this, or that, or... What would you do?

PROS:
-Customize the strength, material, weight, and other stats of weapons
-Objectives are interesting and challenging: DEFEND THE CASTLE, ROUT THE ENEMY, DEFEAT THE BOSS, SURVIVE FOR X TURNS, DEFEND "PERSON", AND MORE.
-Story, although not always presented well, is very engaging
-Even just reading the scrolling story is very interesting
-This game is really fun, it's gonna eat up your free time.
-Challenging strategy game. Really makes you think
-If you wanna keep all your characters, you will appreciate the challenge
-About 45 hours of gameplay, not counting the unlockables and how many times you will reset the game because you realize you made a wrong move. (this is a good thing by all means). So this means about 100 hours in real life. Great length and depth.
-Difficulty is appropriate, definitely not too easy and there are MUCH harder levels
-Gameplay is just as it was in FE:POR, it's simple, yet complex and very effective
-The cutscene movies are very well done
-Music is orchestrated, sounds great.
-Gamecube controller compatible

CONS:
-Like I said, about 75% of the cutscenes are scroll and read types
-Not enough movie cutscenes, which make the game seem more sub-par
-I'm NO graphics-nut, I'm a GAMEPLAY-nut, but the developers could have stepped up the graphics to have more detail There's more graphics potential in the Wii than the Gamecube, and they didn't improve other than progressive scan and 16:9 support. I think the developers were just lazy in the graphics area.
-I have to reset the game to go to the main menu from the battlefield, come on, this is just poor development. Disappointing.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
PERSONALLY, I REALLY REALLY REALLY LOVE THIS GAME.
Those reviewers and critics giving this game a bad rating most likely aren't strategy-fans. Not everyone likes strategy games, but those who do should give this game high marks.
-If you like strategy games, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS GAME.
-If you are new to the strategy genre, get the prequel to this game FIRE EMBLEM: PATH OF RADIANCE (ALSO WELL DONE) first.
-If you do not like RPG strategy games, I don't recommend this game because this is a true RPG strategy game.
-If you are a graphics-nut, this game will disappoint you.
-If you are a gameplay-nut, you will really enjoy this game. I did.
-If you liked FIRE EMBLEM: PATH OF RADIANCE, don't hesitate because of the other negative "CRITIC" reviews, it is really, really worth it.

-TO RESPOND TO THE CRASHING INCIDENT IN THE THREE STAR REVIEW: I THINK IT WAS PROBABLY A PROBLEM WITH THAT PARTICULAR PERSON'S WII OR MEMORY CARD BECAUSE MY CLEAR DATA FROM FE:POR TRANSFERED FINE WITH NO CRASHES.

Prima facie evidence of why the Wii is outselling PS3 and XBOX

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 44 / 65
Date: November 25, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Intelligent Systems (the Nintendo developer) has mastered the genre of the tactical RPG. When they deliver product, you can be assured that you are getting a game that is top tier (eg Advance Wars / Fire Emblem / Paper Mario).

But Fire Emblem : Radiant Dawn is not what you would call a graphical powerhouse. It doesn't use extensive amounts of CG, or pump out billions of polygons. Rather, the game stands on its own merits as an RPG.

We've reached a point where adding 10 channel surround sound or 8 GPUs does not make a video game any more fun. Developers now need to get back to making games that have depth, story, and playability. Intelligent Systems GETS IT. They understand what gamers want. IMHO, if you do decide to buy this game, your chances of enjoying it are very high.

First-Time Strategy RPG Gamer

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 11 / 11
Date: December 25, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Let me preface my review by stating my background with these kinds of games: none! With that said, I am a very experienced RPG gamer--I've played every Dragon Quest game (Japanese and American), Final Fantasy games, Breath of Fire games, and a slew of other PC RPGs. So, this is the first time I've tried my hand at a strategy RPG.

Since I'm used to RPGs I felt that the story began slowly. I felt a little lost and somewhat bored because the story feels like a continuation from the middle of another story. From reading many Fire Emblem forums I have come to the conclusion that this is because the story is carried over from previous games in the series (unlike most RPGs). However, as the game progressed, the story became very involving and the characters became very well developed.

In most RPGs you control where your characters go and how. This game does not allow you to control what cities/towns/places your characters will go to (not counting bonus material); you are limited to how the story progresses. However, this game doesn't center on exploration nor on adventure. If I had known that, I certainly wouldn't have expected it.

Many other reviews have mentioned the graphics and the non-existent use of "Wii" like controls. This game certainly has no need for those controls. The main gameplay involves moving your characters on a grid-like map. Battles are handled much like traditional RPGs with the computer doing all the work. I honestly see no reason for additional controls. The graphics, on the other hand, are ok. The colors are a bit drab and the battle scenes and characters could be rendered more fully. However, that does not deter from the overall gameplay and experience.

The greatest feature of the game (and the main reason I have fallen in love with Fire Emblem) is the ability to control the destiny of your characters. Your character development ultimately leads to the final battle of the game. Depending on what kind of strategy you want to use for this game (magic attacks, brute force, stealth) is how you will develop your characters: who you will use, who to give certain weapons to, and who you will never use; the choice is up to you. Because of this flexibility and control, I have found the game to be extremely entertaining and very involving. Also, replaying the game feels like a new experience because I'm using different characters and playing other characters than I did the first iteration.

Overall, this is a great game. I have enjoyed every minute of it and plan on playing this game multiple times. If I had the option to add anything to the game I would provide more control over where the characters can go by walking around on a world map. I would also have some kind of multiplayer capability. As far as subtracting things from the game I wouldn't take away any option or component.

Good game, but crashes Wii

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 17 / 27
Date: November 09, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I have been waiting for "Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn" since I bought my Wii at launch and was pretty happy to finally get a chance to pick it up. That was until I got it home and attempted to import my data from "Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance". It seems that if you played "Path of Radiance" on easy mode and attempt to import your save game data to "Radiant Dawn" it causes your Wii to crash. This sucks because since "Radiant Dawn" is a direct sequel, you can't carry over your interactions with the character that reappear.

If you give up in frustration, like I did, and start the game without the save game data, you'll find that "Radiant Dawn" plays like "Fire Emblem" should. While it doesn't really take advantage of the Wii's controls, it still plays great.

For those who are new to the "Fire Emblem" series, you might find the game to be frustrating at times as once your character dies in game, they are gone forever. I have a ready had to start a battle over a couple of times because I have made bad moves and gotten a character killed. I think this is one of the things that make the "Fire Emblem" series great. You have to play close attention to your character placement to make sure all your characters will survive the battle.

In closing, I think "Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn" will be a great game for the tactical RPG fan. Hopefully Nintendo will find a way to fix the crashing problem so those of us who played through "Path of Radiance" on easy will be able to carry on our relationships with the characters from that game.

Hooray for Fire Emblem!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 7
Date: November 12, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I have been waiting for Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn to be released ever since I received a Wii. Finally, its here!

Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn was worth waiting for! FE has "nice" graphics for the Wii (though they won't win any prizes...),the depth of the characters and storyline are quite good, and the game takes 40+ hours to complete the first time through. There is no using the Wii remote in a unique way in FE, but this type of game does not require that.

Yes, the game can be a challenge at times, but who would want to play an easy game that can be beaten in a few hours? And the "extras" music and image gallery-LOVE it! Even after my first play through, I want to play this game again and again. I highly recommend this game to anyone who is looking for a solid, challenging, enjoyable game for the Wii.

Everything you loved about 'Path of Radiance' is back

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: November 12, 2007
Author: Amazon User

When I started playing 'Radiant Dawn,' I couldn't help but feel as though Nintendo had just added several more levels to one of my all-time favorite games. To me, this is a great thing - 'Path of Radiance' shone on the GCN and 'Radiant Dawn' is the most fun I have had since buying my Wii.

Despite the returning style, there are a few surprises in store - I loaded data from my completion of 'Path of Radiance' on Hard Mode. It might be because of this, but I am finding 'Radiant Dawn' to be more challenging than the previous installment.

It is important to know that development for this game started on the GCN, but was moved to the Wii when it became obvious that GCN's shelf life was quickly fading. What you won't get is waggles and IR; what you will get is the best writing and strongest storyline yet to hit the Wii.

great game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: November 25, 2007
Author: Amazon User

great game there are so many classes to choose from and the plot is rock solid, also the abililty to upgrade units twice is insane I love the marshall. Some poeople dont like the game solely because it has no intuitive wii remote controlls but if you have played any other fire emblems youll know that its great because of the plot and the units.

Burning Gem

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: November 23, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Alright this is my second review for this game and apparently the first one was too short. Gameplay is a combination of srpg and "rock-paper-scissor" sword beat axe, axe beat lance, and lance beat sword. Nice character designs and is a direct sequel to the gamecube game. You gain new character throughout the game but be careful because once they're dead they're gone forever. Game save features allows you to load your gamecube saved data and transfer over to the wii version. Overall much hasn't change from its predecessor but thats a good thing, if it ain't broken don't fix it. Highly recommended, please buy this game and spread the word. Fire Emblem needs to be in the top ten wii games sales chart.

A Radiant game that will Dawn over you (pun intended)

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: November 20, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I just got the Fire Emblem game from Amazon.com, and I can say truthfully I am a newb. But my friends are FE freaks, and seeing as how I'm one of the guys who dosen't want help. So rest assured, this game is hard. I have pretty much finished Part 1, and can successfully say as a FE newbie, this game is fun addicting.

From the makers of Advanced Wars, comes Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn. A game which speculates the user into amassing the army which will begin and hopefully end the rebellion, depending on how well you strategically play. This game can become addicting, and overly exciting. I will not go into detail since most people have had played these games, seeing as how this is the tenth installment. But I highly suggest whether or not you never played FE games, or you have played games like Advanced Wars, Three Kingdoms, or other strategy games, etc. You will enjoy this game, along with wonderful gameplay, beautiful graphic cinematics, and just plain enjoyment.

Graphics- B+

Gameplay/Storyline- A

Sound: A

Visuals/Systematics- A-

Overall A

Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn, or Path of Radiance II

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: December 02, 2007
Author: Amazon User

For those who have played Fire Emblem before, most notably Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance on the Game Cube, this Wii follow up to that game gets a 9/10. For those who haven't played FE:PoR, or Fire Emblem in general, this game gets a 7/10.

This turn-based tactical game returns with an installment that boasts over 70 playable characters, about half of them returning characters from FE:PoR, and too many characters overall for my taste. This game divides itself into four parts, but the latter chapters generally revolve around the returning characters from FE:PoR. You're missing out on understanding the history of the game as well as a few character backgrounds if you haven't played the previous installment. This new installment also has a few great cutscenes as well.

Also returning is the notorious "permanent character death" aspect. When a unit dies midbattle, they are gone forever, unless you reset. It becomes frustrating, but it defines the series' desire to create a chess-like challenging environment. This installment has a new "Battle Save" feature which allows the player to create a save state in the middle of a chapter, a feature sorely needed for those tired of characters dying after an hour or so of meticulous gameplay.

For those who have played Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance on the Game Cube, you can expect the same feel and challenge, except longer. But for those unfamiliar with the series, this is not the game to test the waters. Rather, if you're truly interested in a game that requires strategy and PATIENCE, get the cheaper Game Cube game first, then make a decision whether or not to buy this follow up.

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