Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave felt enormous almost immediately. Once the four hero paths opened up and I started building my army for the Heroic Games tournament, I realized how much there was to do outside battle. Before long, I started wondering if the series had finally added too much around its turn-based combat.
Most of those extra layers end up mattering once combat starts. Recruiting someone new or developing a unit can change what you’re able to do in the next fight. Exploring Dagda also lets you decide how much preparation to put in before moving the story forward.
It isn’t seamless. Dungeons become repetitive, and travelling across the world map can drag once you already know where you want to go. There’s also a lot to keep track of between major battles. Even so, I was always thinking ahead to the next tactical fight and whether my army was ready for it.
Let’s get into where all that extra scale works and where it starts slowing things down.
Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave details
Platform(s): Nintendo Switch 2
Reviewed on: Nintendo Switch 2
Developer(s): Intelligent Systems
Publisher(s): Nintendo
Genre: Tactical RPG
Modes: Single-player
ESRB Rating: T for Teen
Four hero paths come together across Dagda
Cai, Dietrich, Theodora, and Leda arrive in Dagsion, the imperial capital, for the Heroic Games. The tournament promises its winner a wish. Each hero also brings a separate goal and a different group of characters into the story. Their paths start apart before the larger conflict across Dagda begins pulling them together.
You aren’t locked into one route for the entire game, and that works especially well once the stories begin crossing over. Seeing Dagda from different perspectives keeps the four paths distinct and gives the supporting cast more room to matter.
That structure takes some time to get going. Each hero needs an introduction, so parts of the opening cover similar ground before the four paths begin connecting more often. Some stretches also run longer than they need to. That becomes more noticeable when side quests and recruitment sit alongside several active storylines.
The characters carry those slower sections better than I expected. Many of the people you meet can eventually join your army, so conversations outside the main story can have a practical payoff later. Once the routes begin crossing more often, the battles mean more because you understand who these people are and why they’re fighting.
Tactical battles put your army building to the test
The tactical battles are still the part of Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave I enjoyed most. Positioning matters, and a strong unit can’t solve every problem by itself. You quickly need to learn who can protect another character or reach an enemy the rest of your army can’t.
Blaze Arts bring some extra risk into those battles because using one costs HP. These powerful abilities can solve an immediate problem and leave that character more exposed afterward. That risk made me think about when I actually needed the extra power instead of using it every time it became available.
Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave also supports mouse controls with the Joy-Con 2 controllers. I liked using them to move units into position and check information before committing to a move. You can switch back to button controls whenever you want, so you’re never locked into playing one way.
The battles also change things up enough to stop the larger campaign from becoming one long string of similar fights. Different objectives and battlefield layouts force you to adjust instead of relying on the same formation every time. Terrain and unit placement can completely change how safe an approach is. That becomes important when several enemies can reach the same part of the map.
What I liked most is seeing the work between battles pay off once combat starts. Developing the right characters can open options that weren’t there before. A weak area in your army can also become obvious very quickly. I took preparation more seriously because the next big battle usually put those choices to use.
Training and recruitment shape how your army grows
Building the roster takes more involvement than simply reaching the next chapter. Some characters need attention before they’ll join you, so relationships become part of how you plan the army. Recruitment doesn’t happen automatically in the background. You have to decide who you want to invest in.
Training has the same practical value. Characters can improve their weapon skills, work toward new classes, and develop new abilities as they meet the right requirements. That lets you shape a unit around what your army needs instead of leaving everyone in one fixed role.
There’s a lot competing for your time. You can spend a long stretch developing characters, building relationships, or preparing for the next major fight. If you enjoy tinkering with a roster, there’s plenty to work with. If you mainly want to move from one tactical battle to the next, the preparation may slow things down more than you want.
The world map turns preparation into another strategic choice
Travel across Dagda uses time, so a detour can affect what else you’re able to do before the next big fight. Exploring can uncover another quest or recruitment opportunity, and moving between locations advances time. Having control over how much preparation to do before advancing worked well for me. You can keep developing the army or move ahead earlier and deal with a harder fight.
That freedom is one of the biggest differences I noticed compared with Fire Emblem: Three Houses. Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave lets you decide where to go across Dagda instead of tying so much of the experience to one central routine. It also means you need to decide when enough preparation is enough.
Dagda opens up Fire Emblem, but the dungeons wear thin
Dagsion acts as the main city where you can prepare, build relationships, and handle other activities before heading back across Dagda. Leaving the city breaks up that routine and makes the world feel broader. Detours can lead to quests or recruitment opportunities instead of turning everything outside battle into a menu.
The characters look great in the story scenes. Models are detailed, the animation is strong, and the voice acting gives the four routes plenty of personality. I also really liked the music throughout the game.
Dungeons are where the expanded structure starts to lose some of its appeal. Exploring them can uncover materials, treasure, and battles, but the process becomes repetitive. Branching paths and repeated searching don’t stay as interesting as the main tactical encounters.
Their simpler environments don’t do them many favours either. After spending time with the more detailed characters and larger outdoor areas, the dungeons can look plain. They still serve a purpose in progression. I was usually more interested in getting back to the world map or the next major battle.
Travel can create similar friction once you already know where you want to go. The world map is at its best when you’re deciding whether another stop is worth the time. It’s less interesting when you’re simply trying to reach a known destination. Those slower stretches never ruined exploration for me, but they’re where the game’s size becomes most noticeable.
Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave rewards the time you spend building your army
Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave works for me because so much of what you do outside battle comes back to your army. Recruiting and developing characters change how prepared you are, and exploring Dagda can open more opportunities before the next fight. Most of that preparation connects directly to the next tactical battle.
That’s why the game’s size pays off more often than it gets in the way. I didn’t mind taking extra time with recruitment or training when I could see the results on the battlefield. The repetitive dungeons are the bigger exception. Travelling across Dagda can also slow things down once you already know where you want to go.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Positioning and army preparation matter in every major battle | Dungeons become repetitive and look plain next to the rest of Dagda |
| Recruitment and training let you shape units around what your army needs | World-map travel can drag once you know where you want to go |
| Four hero paths give you different views of Dagda before their stories connect | The four hero paths take time to connect |
| Character models look great, and the voice acting and music are strong | There’s a lot to keep track of between major battles |
If you enjoy building an army over time, experimenting with characters, and seeing those decisions tested in increasingly demanding battles, there’s a lot here to dig into. Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave is a big time commitment, but a lot of that time goes toward developing your army and preparing for the next fight. If you want something shorter and more streamlined, the amount of preparation between battles may be more than you want.
Overall assessment of Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave
Gameplay: 4.8/5
Graphics: 4.6/5
Sound: 4.7/5
Lasting appeal/Replayability: 4.7/5
Overall rating: 4.7/5 (94%)
You can shop Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave for Nintendo Switch 2 at Best Buy Canada, or check out the Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave Dagdan Collection.
