Fire Emblem: Fates
2012’s Awakening for the 3DS was the game that saved the Fire Emblem series from being canceled by Nintendo. So it makes sense that with its follow-up, Fates, Intelligent Systems would want to build on elements that helped make Awakening such a success, extending the customizability of individual units and drastically expanding the marriage system. Unfortunately, they went too far. Characters had so many potential supports with one another that each one felt less impactful than the conversations from Awakening. Characters also felt less mechanically distinct, since the relationship system allowed you to reclass them as almost anything you wanted—or affect their stats in certain ways. Fates gave us absolute gameplay freedom and interesting maps at the cost of a coherent story. And for the love of god—please no more child marriage.
