The most recent entry of the Fire Emblem series, Fire Emblem: Three Houses is one of the most popular and most successful entries in the franchise’s history. As the sixteenth entry of the series, Three Houses had a deep history to build its framework upon. However, while Three Houses may have made many strides forward for the series, there were numerous areas in which Three Houses took a step or two backwards.
Whether a mechanic was watered down or removed entirely, the Three Houses design team chose to focus on specific elements of the game, bettering some areas while leaving others behind. So today, we’re going to examine five ways that Fire Emblem: Three Houses improved the Fire Emblem series and five ways it moved backwards.
10 Forward: Numerous Routes Done Right
Numerous Fire Emblem games of the past have attempted to include numerous routes. While games such as The Blazing Blade let players choose their primary lord, these routes were largely the same. And while the route split of Fates greatly altered the story, it was little more than a cartoonish decision of good or evil.
In Three Houses, the house selected by a player greatly shapes their experience as they play. Each route gives differing insights into elements of Fódlan and its inhabitants, allowing players to see the world from differing perspectives.
9 Backward: Lack Of Transforming Units
The Fire Emblem series is often characterized by the large pool of recruitable units that a player may employ in their army. These characters often come along with their own distinguishing factors that set them apart from each other such as class, stats, and skills. However, Three Houses does not feature one of the most unique unit types in the series: transforming units.
Most frequently appearing as Manaketes and Laguz depending on the given game, transforming units engage in combat by taking on a bestial form such as that of a dragon or animal. While there are numerous characters in Three Houses capable of such a transformation, none are playable, making this feel like a missed opportunity.
8 Forward: Battalions And Gambits
One element of strategy in every Fire Emblem game is found within a unit’s inventory and weaponry. Three Houses adds yet another form of equipment that a unit can possess: Battalions. A group of hired soldiers that support a unit, Battalions provide that unit with stat buffs as well as powerful gambits that can be used a specified amount of times each chapter. These Battalions are an excellent addition to classic Fire Emblem gameplay, adding an additional dimension that must be accounted for when strategizing.
7 Backward: Removed Weapon Triangle
Three Houses‘ removal of the series staple weapon triangle was polarizing to pre-existing fans of the series. Present in every game from Genealogy of the Holy War to Fates, the weapon triangle gives sword wielding units an edge over axe-wielders, giving axe-wielders a leg up on lance-users, and incentivizes lance-wielders to attack sword-wielders.
While the weapon triangle was not present in Shadows of Valentia, the previous entry in the series, that game was a remake of Fire Emblem Gaiden, a game that did not feature the weapon triangle as well. This means that Three Houses was the first entry in the series (besides remakes) to not feature the weapon triangle since 1994.
6 Forward: Character Customization
No other Fire Emblem game comes close to allowing players as much immediate freedom when it comes to customizing their units as Three Houses. Due to the game’s teaching mechanic, players can teach their student according to how they want to train that given character. This allows any character to theoretically become any class in the game (save for a few gender-locked classes).
5 Backward: Homogenized Characters
Allowing any character to be made into any class is as much of a curse as it is a blessing. While this allows for players to customize characters to their liking, it removes a great deal of character and individuality from every unit in the game. While in previous titles, characters would stand out due to their blend of stats, abilities, and class, it’s hard to stand out when every character possesses much of the same utility in being able to serve any role in a player’s army.
4 Forward: Brawling
While previous entries of the series had traditionally stuck to the primary physical weapon types of swords, lances, axes, and bows, Three Houses spiced things up by adding the gauntlet weapon type. Unlike other forms of weaponry, gauntlets allow their wielders to consistently hit a foe consecutively, allowing for more chances to deliver a critical hit. While this may sound absurdly powerful on paper, they were smartly balanced, by not being wield-able by units riding mounts such as horses and wyverns.
3 Backward: Lack Of Class Balance
While Three Houses possesses a significant amount of classes for their units to attain, these classes are laughably unbalanced. Most notably, between its stats, abilities, and mobility. the game’s Wyvern Lord class is so absurdly powerful, that it practically invalidates the majority of alternatives available. This lack of class balance unfortunately subverts a great deal of the unit customization, as it often feels like the “right” option is to simply train all of one’s units into the game’s most blatantly powerful classes such as Wyvern Lord and Gremory.
2 Forward: The Monastery
While games such as Path of Radiance and Fates would give a player a home base in which they can unwind and prepare for the next chapter. Of any home base in the series, The Monastery is by far the most developed. Providing player’s with numerous activities such as gardening, fishing, dining, and tournaments, the Monastery can provide a reprieve from combat while serving as a cozy place of familiarity.
1 Backward: Recycled Maps
One element of Three Houses that rubbed many players the wrong way was the game’s repeated use of recycled maps. While many previous entries in the series provided a new and unique map for every chapter and paralogue, there are numerous maps that are repeatedly reused for prologues throughout the game. Players who seek to complete every paralogue and side-quest are subjected to the same few maps time and time again.
Within the Azure Moon route alone, Felix, Sylvain, and Annette’s paralogues each take place on the exact same map. This greatly detracts from the game’s paralogues and makes them feel more like monotonous slogs rather than they enjoyable additional chapters they were meant to be.
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