Why we (still) love Fire Emblem Heroes

Fire Emblem Heroes can take a minute to figure out. You’ll fail. But the glee of knocking out enemies with a formidable squad of immaculately dressed magic-slingers and armoured airborne equestrians will keep you hooked.

We haven’t stopped playing since it came out in early 2017. And thanks to new features, it’s only got better since then. Here’s why we know you’ll love it too.

‣ In Fire Emblem Heroes, you assemble a team of four fighters. They carry swords, giant axes, spears, magic staves, bows and other exotic battle paraphernalia. Some ride dragons. Some turn into dragons. They are all exceptionally fashionable.

They also play specific roles. Archers destroy anyone in the air. Blue fighters are strong against red, red will seriously mess up green, and green wrecks blue. So you build a team that covers all the bases, then manoeuvre your squad so that, turn after turn, you’re always in an advantageous position.

‣ Every hero has skills, from counterattacks to healing spells, armour boosters to movement modifiers. Figuring out what works best takes time. But fine-tuning your squad until all skills, colours and weapons sing in harmony can feel like successfully building a complex machine. You solved the puzzle of combat. You willed the desired outcome into existence.

Granted, it’ll take a while to get there as you level up and customise every hero, unlock and upgrade skills, and manage a vast system of virtual rewards and items – you’ll oversee every little gear modification, stat bump, sword slash and magic blast. You raise these warriors. The pride is almost parental.

‣ Initially you’ll battle through story missions, which not only give context for all the combat but help ease you into the routine of competing, collecting and customising. Nintendo has added plenty of story-driven content since launch, so if you’re new, there’s a lot to dig into.

Beyond that, there are training levels, special maps that can reward you with new heroes, an arena to battle against other players’ teams and occasional special events for the community. You can ignore all these special features and just log in occasionally for a few fights, or go all-in and dedicate yourself to perfecting a team for every situation.

When you’re ready to suit up for battle, we’ll see you in the arena.

Fire Emblem Heroes

Strategy RPG

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