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00:00Our victory must be absolute, no matter what it may take.
00:05Welcome to MojoPlays, and today we're counting down our picks for the greatest games under
00:11the Fire Emblem banner.
00:12For this list, we're looking at the entries that best represent what makes Nintendo's
00:16tactical RPG series so beloved.
00:19Memorable characters, gripping stories, brutal battlefield decisions, and that special kind
00:25of emotional damage that comes from watching a favourite unit permanently die because you
00:29miscounted one enemy's movement range.
00:40Before we begin, we publish new content all week long, so be sure to subscribe and ring
00:46the bell to get notified about our latest videos.
00:50Fire Emblem Echoes, Shadows of Valencia.
00:59It's my turn now.
01:03Remaking one of the strangest games in the series could have gone horribly wrong at every stage.
01:09Instead, Shadows of Valencia transformed 1992's Fire Emblem Gaiden into one of the franchise's
01:15most distinctive adventures.
01:16Arm and Celica lead separate armies across Valencia, giving the story two perspectives while allowing
01:21players to explore villages and actual 3D dungeons between battles.
01:25Voice acting adds much needed personality, while characters like Burkut elevate the comparatively
01:30simple original plot into something genuinely tragic.
01:33You must make Valencia a land not of gods, but of men.
01:42A world where people never again are corrupted by divine power.
01:49Some of the map design remains frustratingly faithful to its Famicom origins, with plenty
01:55of empty fields and enemy summoners testing everyone's patience.
01:58Still, the gorgeous artwork, memorable soundtrack, dungeon exploration, and compelling sensual duo
02:04make Echoes one of Fire Emblem's most successful reinventions.
02:16Fire Emblem Fates Conquest
02:25The story of Fire Emblem Fates remains one of the franchise's most fiercely debated subjects,
02:31but most are in agreement that of the three titles, Conquest remains the must play.
02:35Choosing Knorr locks players into a more traditional Fire Emblem experience, with limited opportunities
02:40to grind, meaning every resource, unit, and tactical decision matters.
02:45Enemy formations are vicious, and objectives extend beyond simply defeating every enemy.
02:50The result is arguably some of the best map design the series has ever produced.
03:05Corrin's decision to remain with the family who raised them creates plenty of dramatic potential,
03:10even if the writing doesn't always capitalize on it.
03:12While mechanically speaking, Conquest is Fire Emblem operating at maximum cruelty,
03:17and fans absolutely reveled in it.
03:20I believe in you.
03:23I can help you!
03:25Nice work!
03:27Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn
03:37Most Fire Emblem games ask you to become attached to one army.
03:41Radiant Dawn decides it would be more interesting if those armies occasionally had to fight each
03:45other.
03:46The sequel to Path of Radiance dramatically expands the Tellius saga, shifting between
03:51Micaiah's Dawn Brigade, Ike's returning Grail mercenaries, and several other factions, as political
03:56tensions erupt across the continent.
04:00Micaiah!
04:01I've got you now!
04:04The Electron!
04:07My eyes!
04:09That rotating structure creates some fascinating battles, especially when characters you trained
04:15earlier suddenly appear on the opposite side.
04:18The massive cast and uneven availability can make unit development awkward, while the game's
04:23difficulty famously does new players few favours.
04:26Regardless, the scale of it all is still worthy of praise, and we can't knock it for being
04:31so ambitious.
04:40Fire Emblem The Sacred Stones
04:52may not reinvent Fire Emblem, but sometimes refinement is exactly what you need.
04:58Twins Erika and Ephraim lead separate campaigns against the invading Grado Empire, eventually
05:03uncovering a supernatural threat surrounding the Sacred Stones and their childhood friend,
05:07Leon.
05:08That relationship in particular gives the story its emotional core.
05:21Leon isn't simply another evil emperor waiting to be stabbed.
05:25He's a sympathetic figure whose downfall directly affects both protagonists.
05:29Branching promotions provide more character-building freedom, while the world map and optional Tower
05:34of Varney let players grind if permadeath anxiety becomes overwhelming.
05:38For players wanting classic Fire Emblem without excessive complexity, The Sacred Stones remains one
05:43of the easiest games to recommend.
05:53Fire Emblem The Blazing Blade
06:04For many western players, this wasn't merely a great Fire Emblem game.
06:09It was their first Fire Emblem game.
06:11Released simply as Fire Emblem outside Japan, The Blazing Blade introduced audiences to permadeath,
06:17support conversations, weapon triangles, and the horrifying experience of losing somebody
06:22because an enemy landed a 3% critical hit.
06:25Its greatest strength is in its trio of protagonists.
06:36Lynn provides an excellent introductory campaign, while Eliwood and Hector subsequently take center stage
06:42in a much larger story, involving political intrigue, assassins, dragons, and the mysterious Nurgle.
06:49Hector in particular became one of the franchise's most beloved lords,
06:53thanks to his blunt personality and enormous acts.
06:56The colorful sprite animations still look fantastic, the maps remain tightly designed,
07:01and the cast is packed with boundless personalities.
07:08Are you an old school Fire Emblem fan, or recently jumped on the fantasy bandwagon?
07:13Draw your sword, scan the QR code on screen, and head on over to Mojoplay's 24 hour livestream
07:18for more gaming content.
07:20To upheave the world, be gone from us.
07:29Fire Emblem, Genealogy of the Holy War
07:39Genealogy of the Holy War is the Fire Emblem game that looks at family drama,
07:43and decided to up the ante until it boiled over.
07:46Its maps represent entire regions rather than individual battlefields,
07:51with castles changing hands and armies marching across distances that make other Fire Emblem levels
07:56look like neighborhood disputes.
07:58The real innovation however, is in its two generation structure.
08:11Characters can form relationships, producing children who inherit stats, skills, equipment,
08:16and most importantly, the consequences of their parents' decisions.
08:20Then the story reaches its infamous midpoint, and proves that nobody is safe.
08:25Political betrayal, forbidden bloodlines, religious persecution,
08:30and generational revenge makes Genealogy one of the darkest and most ambitious narratives
08:35Nintendo has ever published.
08:37Its systems can feel archaic today, but its influence can be felt in every game that followed after.
08:51Fire Emblem Awakening
09:06If Awakening had failed, there is a very real possibility
09:10that the series could have disappeared.
09:13Instead, it became the game that transformed Fire Emblem into one of Nintendo's flagships.
09:18Krom, Robin, and Lucina lead a wonderfully likeable cast through a story involving war,
09:23time travel, alternate futures, and an apocalyptic dragon.
09:36The pair-up system allows characters to fight together,
09:39while a colossal selection of support conversations lets relationships develop both on and off the battlefield.
09:45And yes, characters can get hitched.
09:47Those chosen couplings eventually produce child units,
09:51who travel backwards through time to join the fray,
09:53turning what could have been a simple romance mechanic into an important part of both gameplay and narrative.
09:59It remains the most pivotal moment in the franchise's history,
10:02and remains a stellar gaming experience all these years later.
10:07I think not!
10:09Don't try this at home!
10:15You gotta be kidding me!
10:30Ike doesn't begin as royalty, a chosen one, or somebody blessed by divine destiny.
10:35He's just a mercenary trying to finish the job his father started.
10:38That grounded perspective carved the foundation of one of Fire Emblem's strongest narratives to date.
10:45Ike's journey across Tellius explores prejudice between Bay Ork and Laguz,
10:49political corruption, slavery, nationalism, and the consequences of inherited hatred,
10:54without completely losing the adventurous spirit of a traditional Fire Emblem campaign.
11:06The supporting cast is also equally strong,
11:10with characters like Soren, Titania, Jill, and Alincia receiving meaningful development.
11:15Bonus experience, skills, and the introduction of Laguz units add plenty of strategic depth.
11:20But it's Ike himself who elevates the overall experience.
11:23Watching a blunt mercenary gradually become one of Tellius' most important leaders
11:28feels earned rather than predetermined.
11:30We'd follow this man anywhere!
11:41Fire Emblem Fortune's Weave
11:44Hear me now as I declare that the heroic games have begun!
11:52Recency bias aside, Fortune's Weave has come out of the gate swinging.
11:57Rather than choosing a single army, players follow four distinct protagonists across the heroic games,
12:03building relationships, recruiting allies, exploring between missions,
12:07and eventually watching their separate journeys converge.
12:10Its ambition is so immense it's outright baffling,
12:14but the tactical battles are where this new entry excels.
12:18For that reason, I refuse to die.
12:24Maps constantly demand clever positioning, character builds offer ridiculous flexibility,
12:30and its new systems expand Fire Emblem's formula without burying what already worked.
12:35Honestly, when Fortune's Weave is firing on all cylinders, it's a marvel.
12:39It honestly feels like Nintendo took the best aspects from Three Houses and Engage,
12:44fine-tuned them, and wove together a title that could easily become a generation-defining RPG.
12:52Or travel beyond Daxian's walls to gain experience.
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13:24Fire Emblem Three Houses.
13:29There it is.
13:32Garrick Mach Monastery.
13:33Awakening may have planted Fire Emblem's flag among the gaming mainstream,
13:37but Three Houses catapulted its popularity to stratospheric levels,
13:42and it's not hard to see why.
13:44As Biolith, players become a professor at Garrick Mach Monastery,
13:47where they must choose between a trio of houses to instruct.
13:50The Black Eagles, Blue Lions, or Golden Deer.
13:53That decision determines which students you teach,
13:56which relationships you develop,
13:58and eventually, which side of a continental war you'll support.
14:07Its brilliance comes from how it develops and incorporates its characters before everything falls apart.
14:13Edelgard, Dimitri, and Claude each represent radically different views for the lands they seek to rule,
14:18and none of their routes provide a completely comfortable answer.
14:22While replaying the earlier sections can become repetitive across multiple playthroughs,
14:26the incredible cast, flexible class system, branching storylines, and time skips create extraordinary emotional investment,
14:33quickly becoming one of the pre-eminent RPGs of the modern era.
14:38Bernadetta is best girl.
14:40Did you agree? You mean it? You're the greatest! I love you so much!
14:48Do you agree with our picks? Which Fire Emblem characters are your ride or die? Let us know in the
14:53comments.
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