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Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 35 / 39
Date: December 28, 2005
Author: Amazon User

On the field of battle, there are ultimately two outcomes: victory and death. Despite the fantastical setting, no series understands this better than Fire Emblem, where your slain comrades are beyond the power of any salve or spell to save. When you lose a loyal soldier-and you will-there won't be anyone to blame but yourself.

Besides the inevitable (but disappointing) transition to 3D, there are two minor tweaks to formula: the ability to push lighter units out of harm's way and the ability to earn bonus experience by completing a chapter quickly (eliminating the tedium of dispatching every enemy to level up).

Aside from some anime-styled cutscenes, the story is primarily handled through nearly immobile talking heads and huge amounts of text. To summarize: as the blue-haired mercenary leader Ike, you're charged with defending the sole surviving princess of a wrongly invaded nation. Soon enough you encounter the half-beast laguz, capable of becoming fearsome beasts in combat. (As in any good fantasy, real-world issues such as racism are treated within the context of the setting.) I found the concept of several diverse cultures uniting together out of necessity to be deeply redolent of the Suikoden series, which is high praise coming from me.

Still, any SRPG ultimately stands or falls based on the gameplay, an area in which Path of Radiance remains strong. This Emblem is one you'd be proud to wear.

Anyone who hates this game, hasn't played it.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 14 / 15
Date: November 05, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This game rocks!!!

There are so many awesome things, but lets start with characters. There are like 30+ different characters you can earn and unlock. One cool thing is that each character joining is different. Some only join if Ike (the main character) talks to them, some only join if you have someone of the same type to talk to them (mage, archer, knight, etc), or, some just join you after the chapter (level). Each character is different. Some have really good armor, others have awesome attack power some can't be hit, others land critical strikes 70% of the time, etc. In "Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones." you got certain talismans that could upgrade characters but by the end you'd only have half your group upgraded. Not here. This time they evolve right after level 20.

The graphics are b-e-au-tiful. The characters are very detailed. Every wrinkle, every frown, every scar is shown. As my mom said "oh my gosh... that sky is so beautiful. *gasp* wow" So yea... i guess the enviornmental graphics are pretty good too. The map designs are very unique and interesting. A couple of fields are wide open, no hiding, no cover, just an all out dog fight. Some maps have rooms or rocks a character can hide in or by. Other maps are very complex and have narrow paths, many obsticals and few doorways. (Perfect for rangers, not so good for knights...)

Last thing is the story. Now, i can't give an accurate telling of this story, due to the fact that i'm approximatly only half-way through it. But so far Ike joins his father's buisness- being a mercenary. So Ike and about 5 other mercenaries set off to random spots and assist thoughs who call. Later Ike's father meets up with a mysterious black knight who talks to him as if he knows him. Ike's father does know him, but won't tell us who it is. Also, later in the story, it appears another character was hiding in the woods while Ike's father battled the Black knight. These events lead into Ike escorting a princess to help her stop a war from breaking out in the land.

All in all this game is awesome, if you get the chance to play it take it!!!

Fire Emblem! Woo Hoo!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 12 / 12
Date: December 04, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance is a really fun game. Here's the story...

The main character is Ike, who is a mercenary living in the country of Crimea with his father, and several other mercenaries. One of your fellow mercenaries has been studying in the capital of Crimea, but comes back to inform you that Crimea and Daein (another country) have begun a war against each other. What side should you fight for? Of course, the mercenaries decide to fight for Crimea once they find Princess Elincia, princess of Crimea.

You can choose who you want to train. For instance, if you loathe someone -cough-Nephenee-cough, then you can decide to just not send them into any battle... and stuff.

Like the other reviewers have said, this game involves using your brain. (For most people, that is) It's strategy. Yeah. And you don't literally control the characters, as you know if you've played the other two Fire Emblem games for USA. You do get to choose where they move, but you can't press a button to use their weapon or anything. It's sort of hard to explain.

The graphics are really good, and I like the music as well. Conversations between the characters can be long, but I like reading all of it.

I really like this game, even my mom likes it. And she doesn't like many video games. I think it's because it doesn't really involve any hand coordination or skill. Ha ha! ^__^

Another Great Fire Emblem Game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 15 / 17
Date: October 24, 2005
Author: Amazon User

When the first Fire Emblem game came out in the US, I was thrilled. I loved the characters from Super Smash Brothers Melee and wanted it very bad. I got the game and played it an entire summer non-stop. All the plot twists, the character development, the leveling system, it waqs just all so simple to play and yet complex to win. You actually ha to have a plan going into each level. When The Sacred Stones was announced, I waited until the day it came out and got it. I did the same with Path of Radience.

First of all, if you enjoyed the previous titles you will absolutly love this one. It has stunning graphics, hours and hours of gameplay, and cool characters. Finally a lord is cool AND strong!!! While the plot is straight forward as of level 8, it still makes you want to know what happens next. The game also has several cool anime clips that are very well done.

Here are the Pros and Cons:

Pros:
+Amazing Graphics
+50 Hours of Gameplay
+A good Lord for once!
+New classes(Animal races!)
+Interesting Characters

Cons:
-They took away choosing classes!
-Plot develops later
-Annoying Music while attacking
-Missing FE theme

Terrific game in an unrepresented genre

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 13 / 14
Date: March 29, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance is one of the best SRPGs ever made for any platform. Along with Tales of Symphonia, it stands out as one of the two "must-have" RPGs for the Gamecube.

The story is a real highlight of the game starts off in a somewhat typical fashion. The young man rescues the princess in need and sets out to save the kingdom. The story is simple in concept, yet its real world undertones of racial dispute and wartime friendships help form characters that you care about. Even though you can recruit a plethora of characters, the support conversations really lend personality to even the minor ones. Much of the story is serious, but there are some humerous moments that will certainly make you smile. The story is delivered in a "talking heads" manner between battles and there is a good amount of reading to do. This is no Xenogears in terms of complexity and depth, but it's certainly far above most RPGs because it sticks to a safe formula.

The music in the game accompanies the plot well and generally enhances the mood, though some of it is played excessively and may wear on you after awhile. The sound effects are good for a game of this type.

The gameplay itself is one of the games strongest features. Even on easy mode, you may have to redo a battle several times before you develop a winning strategy. If characters are defeated in combat, they are gone forever, so save often so that you can restart the game if you lose a person. The maps are diverse and there are several unique ones that require the player to be very observant and adaptable. The battle in each "chapter" is usually not very long, and most of the missions can be completed in half an hour, thus allowing a player without much time in one sitting to get a little bit done. There are different objectives that you are required to complete in order to clear the stage to add some variety. It takes a well thought out and executed strategy to overcome some of the end game battles, and without the proper balance of classes, you'll find things even more difficult.

The graphics in the game are okay overall. The 2D artwork is vibrant and colorful. However, the same can't be said for some of the maps, which can appear drab and washed out. It's sometimes difficult to distinguish between different classes on the battlefield. The battlefield models are exceptionally poor for a Gamecube game and the houses, buildings, etc, do not look much better. The combat character models look good and the combat window displays the surrounding terrain instead of a generic background, which is a nice touch. The cutscenes are wonderful, but there aren't enough of them.

There are some bonus extras available once you complete the game. These are actually worth spending some time with. You can also go back and level characters at a "fixed" rate after the completion of story mode, which means only attributes relevant to the class will level up. There may not be enough additional content to make a player want to clear the game again, but the bonuses in the end are a nice touch to the game and are certainly worth checking out.

I'd recommend this game to any RPG fan or Gamecube owner. Sadly, this seems to be one of the few bright spots in a relatively new crop of games for the GC.

Chess-like strategy, cool weapons, and a great story

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 8
Date: February 02, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Pros:
+ like chess
+ excellent story
+ cool weapons
+ well-designed graphics
+ 30+ characters
+ no blood or gore
Con:
- lots of talking

Would you rather be a General commanding, or a foot soldier fighting? You must ask yourself this question if you want to buy Fire Emblem. In Fire Emblem, instead of shooting, jumping, or running, you plan strategies. If you like punching you should look elsewhere, but if you like planning you should buy this game. What I like about Fire Emblem is that it has chess-like strategy, cool weapons, and a great story.

Fire Emblem is like chess. It involves planning, strategy, and a knowledge of detailed rules. As in chess, once you lose a character it is gone for good. This limit has bothered other reviewers, but I like it because it makes the game more challenging. As in chess, each character moves in his or her own way. At every move, you must predict whether your enemies will be upon you or not. In chess, a pawn cannot attack as well as a queen, but a pawn has its uses. Likewise, Nepheri cannot attack as well as Trina, but she has her strengths. In Fire Emblem, you have to balance your use of strong and weak characters so you won't lose your strongest characters, but you'll still complete the mission. So if you like strategy games like chess, you will love Fire Emblem, like I do.

The many weapons in Fire Emblem give you a good variety when you choose your characters' weapons. You earn money and buy weapons to keep up with your enemies. Your enemy's pace forces you to work hard. You can create your own weapons which have unique attack stats. I like that you can change the color as well. After a set number of times the weapon will break. This limit makes the game realistic and challenging.

I think Fire Emblem has a great story. The story is not complex, but it is interesting. You want to follow it as the story gets more absorbing. Characters have good back stories for added complexity. Your decisions alter the story. For instance, if Boynd dies maybe Oscar will take his speech. I think that this shows the hard work done by the programmer.

In conclusion, this is a great game for people who like strategy and watching fights.

A Good Game, But Lacking the GBA Games' Soul

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 9 / 10
Date: May 31, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Path of Radiance marks the ninth Fire Emblem in Japan and the third in the United States, and the series has gone on strong for at least that long in both countries. The last two entries, "Fire Emblem (Blazing Sword", and "The Sacred Stones", were amazing games, featuring long main stories, deep characterization, and the need for a strategic mind rather than being a shoot-reload-shoot some more game (*cough*Halo*cough*). Path of Radiance succeeds that tradition as the first Fire Emblem in full 3D. Its story starts off a bit lackluster, but becomes more intricate and interesting than either of the previously mentioned games.
Path of Radiance, however, suffers one major problem in the transition to 3D- it became annoyingly bland. To provide possibly the most jarring example of this, Joshua, "The Sacred Stones"' Swordmaster, is capable of critical hits - for him, that means fading back into five translucent Swordmaster sprites, weapons drawn, each of which strikes the enemy one time then melds back into the real Joshua, who does the damage. Stefan, this game's Swordmaster, simply runs forwards and hits five times, lacking the ability to draw excitement that Joshua's sprite-based assault did. The graphics in the game don't exactly push the envelope for the Gamecube either. Though they're certainly bearable as games go, nothing truly made my jaw drop as I played.
If you liked one or both of the GBA Fire Emblems, I suggest you rent this one to see if you like the changes before buying it. If you don't but have a passing interest in strategy games, Advance Wars, Marth, Roy, etc. buy this one and go back to the Gameboy games afterwards.

Pros and Cons

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 10 / 12
Date: December 17, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This may be one of my favorite games ever. Here are its pros and cons.

Pros:
1. It has a good plot.
2. There is also a strong main character that you don't have to worry about dying.
3. You need to use at least some strategy to win.
4. Pick who you want to fight in each battle from out of a possible 43 characters.
5. Good art and cut scenes.
6. A lot of hours of gameplay.
7. Good replay value. If you're bored you can make a new game and try using different people and strategies.

Cons:
1. Can be confusing at first.
2. A little to much talking between the battles. Sometimes, when I would be in a hurry, I would have to skip the plot in order to save the game.

Can go either way:
When a character dies in battle you can't get him back. Instead you have to restart the level. However it also adds more strategy to the battles.

9/10
I beleive this game is worth buying.

Best Fire Emblem Yet

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 9 / 12
Date: December 09, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I have this game and have beaten but boy it was hard. It took me like a month to beat it. What I love about it is it's on the Gamecube, their are little movie clips, the action and the adventure you take. I don't like that they took choosing classes away and the plot is later on in the story. BUY THIS GAME NOW!

BEST GAME I'VE EVER PLAYED!!!!!!!!!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: November 16, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This is by far, the best game I've ever played. I couldn't stop. I'd play until 11:00 at night and get up at 4:00 to make up for the lost hours at school. I've almost beaten twice. I think the second time is even better. You try to upgrade the units you left out during your first run at it.

Anyway, it centers around a new mercenary named Ike. His father is the leader of the group. Well, while out on a patrol, they run into their country's princess and learn their country is being conquered. So they flee to a country called Begnion to look for support to Liberate Crimea. To find out the rest, you'll have to play it. During the game you can award extra experience points you earned on the battlefield and have support conversations with forty-something characters (if they don't die.)

Overall, I loved this game. I hope Nintendo and Intelligent Systems come out with another Fire Emblem game for Gamecube (Revolution?) As soon as possible, or translate all the Japanese versions and bring to the U.S. Until then I'll play what I got.

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