Fire Emblem Awakening: Difference between revisions

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'''''Fire Emblem: Awakening''''' ({{hover|ファイアーエムブレム覚醒|Faiā Emuburemu Kakusei}} ''Fire Emblem: Awakening'') is a [[Nintendo 3DS]] game released in 2012/2013. It is the thirteenth overall game installment in the {{FES}}, the eleventh original title and the first in five years following {{title|Radiant Dawn}}.  It is a distant sequel to {{title|Mystery of the Emblem}} and {{title|New Mystery of the Emblem}}, set thousands of years in the future of the continent [[Archanea (continent)|Archanea]], now a very different world.  It follows the story of [[Chrom]], prince of [[Ylisse]] and distant heir of the Hero-King [[Marth]], as he leads [[Shepherds (group)|The Shepherds]] in observing and combating the bizarre activities of the neighbouring country [[Plegia]].

''Awakening'' is the first title on a [[Nintendo]] console to facilitate the creation and sale of [[List of bonus chapters and downloadable content in Fire Emblem: Awakening|paid downloadable content]], here coming in the form of purchasable maps and characters, sometimes providing completely unique [[class]]es and [[skills]].  A special edition package for the game was produced and available in both Japan and America, containing a ''Awakening''-themed "Cobalt Blue" Nintendo 3DS system with unique printing on the shell; the Japanese version of the package also contained a physical copy of the game and 1000 eShop points, while the American version has a digital copy of the game pre-installed on the Nintendo 3DS system.  The European release received a similar bundle, except with a ''Awakening''-themed Nintendo 3DS XL, the larger variant of the console.<ref name="europe"/>

Originally released in Japan in April 2012, ''Awakening'' was not released internationally until the following year. A European release was tentatively confirmed in February 2012, with no specific release date provided, and a United States release was accidentally confirmed by [[wikipedia:Reggie Fils-Aime|Reggie Fils-Aime]] at the [[wikipedia:Electronic Entertainment Expo 2012|Electronic Entertainment Expo 2012]];<ref name="usleak">Nintendo World Report: [http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/30615 Fire Emblem: Awakening Coming to North America]</ref> solid release dates were not confirmed until December of that year.<ref name="america" />  In the United States of America, ''Awakening'' was the subject of an extensive advertising campaign to a scale unprecedented for the ''Fire Emblem'' series, receiving extensive preview coverage on Nintendo of America's Facebook page.

Over one thousand years have passed since the Shadow Dragon [[Medeus]] died his final death at the hands of the Hero-King [[Marth]] and the continent of Archanea was united under a single flag under his rule.  In this time, countries have come and gone, Archanea has once again split into three nations, and the descendants of Marth and his wife [[Caeda]] are now the royal family of [[Ylisse]], a peace-loving nation which reveres the [[Divine Dragon]] [[Naga]]; this royal family possesses the [[Holy Blood|Brand]] of Naga on their bodies and are the owners of the divine blade [[Falchion]] and the [[Shield of Seals|Fire Emblem]].

In the time of the rule of Exalt [[Emmeryn]], reports of bizarre and dangerous behaviour have emerged concerning [[Plegia]], a kingdom neighbouring Ylisse which instead worships [[Grima (character)|Grima]], the Fell Dragon which once threatened mankind and opposed Naga.  In response to this troubling news, Ylisse's Prince [[Chrom]], Emmeryn's younger brother, has convened a small militia called [[Shepherds (group)|The Shepherds]] to observe Plegia's actions and repel violent acts from their neighbor.  Among all of this, there are reports of strange undead creatures roaming the lands, and [[Masked Marth|a swordsman claiming to be the Hero-King Marth himself]] has appeared, wielding the same Falchion now in Chrom's possession.

* The [[world map]] system, similar to that of {{title|Gaiden}} and {{title|The Sacred Stones}}, allows the player to walk across the map to different locations to battle or shop.

* As in {{title|New Mystery of the Emblem}}, the [[Avatar (Awakening)|Avatar]] concept is used again - a customizable main character, representing the player and playing a large part in the story.

* Also returning from ''New Mystery of the Emblem'' is the [[Casual Mode]], a gameplay option which disables the series' traditional permanent death and allows "dead" characters to return at the beginning of the next chapter.

The main story of ''Awakening'' is comprised of 28 chapters - an introduction, a prologue, 25 chapters, and the finale. Additionally, there are 23 [[sidequest]] chapters in the game, six of which can only be received via [[SpotPass]]. 25 completely new chapters can also be obtained through [[List of bonus chapters and downloadable content in Fire Emblem: Awakening|downloadable content]].

The core game of ''Awakening'' features 49 playable characters, divided roughly into three groups.  There are 30 initial units, comprising a "first generation".  These thirty characters can, like in {{title|Genealogy of the Holy War}}, be paired up to have a set of children characters who join in [[sidequest]] chapters. With [[Lucina|one exception]], the children characters are completely optional, and it is entirely possible to not receive them by simply not pairing up the parents or by not visiting the [[sidequest]]s in which the children are recruited.  An additional six characters are available in [[SpotPass]] sidequests unlocked only immediately prior to the [[Grima (chapter)|Endgame]]; these six can only support with the Avatar.

Outside of the core 49, a vast array of [[bonus units]] can be obtained through [[List of bonus chapters and downloadable content in Fire Emblem: Awakening|downloadable content]], [[StreetPass]] or [[SpotPass]].  A total of 120 unique units are available through SpotPass, comprised of an assortment of returning characters from prior {{FES}} titles, with another 17 available with redesigned art through downloadable content.  In addition to this, the Avatars of players are transmitted to other players through StreetPass and can potentially be recruited in the same way.  Any single save file can only have twenty such bonus units active in their party at a time.

The American and European Nintendo eShops each released a playable demo of ''Awakening'' for free download, released on January 17, 2013 and March 28th, 2013 respectively.<ref>GoNintendo: [http://www.gonintendo.com/?mode=viewstory&id=194036 DLC Keeps the Epic Adventure of Fire Emblem Awakening Burning Bright (demo next week)]</ref>  It allows the player to create an Avatar, albeit restricted to being male and lacking some other design choices, and play through the entirety of [[The Verge of History|Prologue]] and [[Unwelcome Change|Chapter 1]] before ending.  All three [[gameplay modes|basic modes of difficulty]] are available for play, but Classic Mode is not available and the player is forced to play in Casual Mode. The demo is restricted to being played a maximum of thirty times in the American release, and ten times for the European release.

The demo possesses a glitch: the [[Bullion]] item does not exist in the demo, but [[Leif's Blade]] (which is available through [[event tile]]s) exists unmodified and so still attempts to load the item if its chance to "steal" a Bullion activates; as there is no Bullion item, the game crashes.<ref name="leifblade">Serenes Forest Forums: [http://serenesforest.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=37074&view=findpost&p=2250914 USA DEMO UP!!!!]</ref>

In a level unprecedented for the series' international incarnation, the United States release was in high demand before and at release with high numbers of pre-orders placed; this resulted in the physical release being marred by shipping delays, with demand far outstripping supply at the release date.<ref>GameInformer: [http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2013/02/03/fire-emblem-awakening-delayed-due-to-shipping-error.aspx Fire Emblem: Awakening Delayed Due To Shipping Error]</ref>

Japanese gaming magazine [[wikipedia:Famitsu|Famitsu]] scored ''Awakening'' at 36/40, broken down between its four reviewers as 9/10 each.<ref name="famitsu">[http://the-magicbox.com/1204/ The Magic Box]</ref>

''Awakening'' has received widespread critical acclaim from western reviewers.  The game currently has a rating of 92 on Metacritic<ref>Metacritic: [http://www.metacritic.com/game/3ds/fire-emblem-awakening Fire Emblem: Awakening for 3DS Reviews, Ratings, Credits and More]</ref> and 92.52% on GameRankings,<ref>GameRankings: [http://www.gamerankings.com/3ds/643003-fire-emblem-awakening/index.html Fire Emblem: Awakening for 3DS]</ref> both the highest of any installment in the {{FES}}.  A common theme of critical praise for ''Awakening'' is its success at striking an ideal balance between accessibility for those new to the series, and with the high intricacy and difficulty for which the series is known.

[[wikipedia:IGN|IGN]]'s Audrey Drake awarded a score of 9.6/10 to ''Awakening'', commenting: "Boasting both the depth and nuance that tactical RPG fans crave and the ease-of-use and fluid tutorial system that newcomers require, Awakening is the ultimate portable strategy RPG, and the new crowning jewel of the Nintendo 3DS’s fledgling library."<ref>IGN: [http://uk.ign.com/articles/2013/01/30/fire-emblem-awakening-review Fire Emblem Awakening Review]</ref>  [[wikipedia:Destructoid|Destructoid]]'s Chris Carter gave ''Awakening'' a score of 9/10, saying: "While Fire Emblem: Awakening may not turn the notch up to 11, it's everything that's right about strategy RPGs. Whatever options you choose to go with at the beginning of the game, it's either one of the most accessible strategy games to date, or one of the most difficult."<ref>Destructoid: [http://www.destructoid.com/review-fire-emblem-awakening-242449.phtmlReview: Fire Emblem: Awakening]</ref>  The Game Informer review scored the game at 9/10,<ref>Game Informer: [http://www.gameinformer.com/games/fire_emblem_awakening/b/3ds/archive/2013/01/30/fire-emblem-awakening-review.aspx Lighting Your Brain With Brilliance - Fire Emblem: Awakening - 3DS]</ref> as did Electronic Gaming Monthly, despite their misgivings about the visual style of the game's battle models.<ref>EGMNOW: [http://www.egmnow.com/articles/reviews/egm-review-fire-emblem-awakening EGM Review: Fire Emblem: Awakening]</ref>  The Escapist awarded the game a perfect 5/5 score,<ref>The Escapist: [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/reviews/10165-Fire-Emblem-Awakening-Review Fire Emblem: Awakening Review]</ref> and both GameSpot<ref>GameSpot: [http://www.gamespot.com/fire-emblem-awakening/reviews/fire-emblem-awakening-review-6403250/ Fire Emblem: Awakening Review]</ref> and GameTrailers<ref>GameTrailers: [http://www.gametrailers.com/reviews/t3dgyn/fire-emblem--awakening-review Fire Emblem: Awakening Review]</ref> gave it the equivalent of a 8.5/10 score.

File:Ba america fe13.png|American (NTSC) box art of ''Awakening''.

File:Ba japan fe13.png|Japanese box art of ''Awakening''.

File:Ba europe fe13.png|European (PAL) box art of ''Awakening''.

File:Ba america fe13 special.png|American special edition box art of ''Awakening''.

File:Ba japan fe13 special.png|Japanese special edition box art of ''Awakening''.

File:Ba europe fe13 special.png|European special edition box art of ''Awakening''.

File:Fire Emblem 3DS.png|The ''Awakening''-themed special edition [[Nintendo 3DS]] console.

File:Prepaid card.png|The ''Awakening''-themed pre-paid card for the Nintendo eShop.

File:Prepaid card holder.png|The ''Awakening''-themed pre-paid card for the Nintendo eShop, still in its holder.