arts // no. 8

Fire Emblem releases
its newest instalment

> Why this turn-based RPG strategy game series is worth

checking out

Rebecca Peterson
Staff Writer

 

ll preface this by making it

clear that this isn’t a review
for Fire Emblem: Fates. ’m
excited to play it, of course, but
it’s midterm season and I’ve
been dedicating most of my
brainpower to ocean science and
philosophy. This is, however, a
great opportunity to talk about
the series as a whole.

The Fire Emblem franchise
has been running for 26 years
now, the first game being
released in Japan for the NES
in April 1990. Developed
by Intelligent Systems and
published by Nintendo, Fire
Emblem was one of the first
tactical role-playing fantasy
games ever made. The first six
instalments were exclusive to
Japan, but after some of the
characters from the franchise
were introduced to the Smash
Bros. lineup in 2001, the North
American audience voiced their
interest in the game, and the
seventh title went international.
Since then, the franchise
has grown exponentially in
popularity with audiences
worldwide.

Aside from being
revolutionary in its initial

 

concept and design the Fire
Emblem series has a knack for
blending strategy with story
and style. Strategy games often
don't offer the same freedom of
movement and world exploration
that other RPGs can grant you.
To keep players invested in

the story, the story has to be
done well, and the battles that
you fight really need to mean
something to the player beyond
just being an elaborate game of
3-D chess.

Discovering each character’s
specific romantic and friendship-
based subplots, and choosing
which characters will end up
together, is one of the main
draws of the story. As someone
who didn't really have video
games growing up, except for the
PS2 Harry Potter games, | still
find that amount of character
control and manipulation
amazing. I’m very easy to please
in this way.

What I love about Fire
Emblem’s battles is that a lot
of the wild unpredictability of
other turn-based combat systems
isn’t there. Not to say these
fights aren’t challenging—they
are—but you base your moves
on reasonable assumptions
of what the enemy will do.
You're provided with success

percentages that give you an
accurate guess as to howa
confrontation will occur. For
best results, you can match
your characters up against the
enemies they'll have the best
chance of defeating.

The newest instalment,

Fire Emblem: Fates, came out
this past week to rave reviews.
Primarily, many players are
excited about the advanced plot
options the new game offers.
Whereas personal decisions and
dialogue choices in Awakening
didn’t largely impact the overall
outcome of the game, the new
game gives far more weight

to your decisions. Like many
modern console games, the
experience provided to each
individual player is far more
unique, and the plot changes
based on each choice the player
makes.

If you're looking for a series
of games that are big on story
and design, I would absolutely
recommend the Fire Emblem
series. Even if you’ve never
played this kind of RPG before,
the system is intuitive and the
series is a great introduction to
the genre. Above all, it’s fantastic
fun, and I’m very excited to see
what Fire Emblem: Fates has in
store.

E

Image via www. puolenkuunpelit.co

   

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theotherpress.ca

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CRIMINALS

ONE WEIRD TRICK

  

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Art by ChipiZdarsky

Comic Corner:

All's fair 1
and cash

> ‘Sex Criminals Vol
review

Brittney MacDonald
Life & Style Editor

n love
revenue

. 1: One Weird Trick’

Fraction’s concept is
pretty awesome, and the

 

OOOO

eve all heard Uncle

Ben’s old adage, “With
great power comes great
responsibility,” but what if
that wasn’t true? What if you
chose not to bea hero, and
instead be as selfish and self-
serving as possible? It would
be tough to deny that kind
of temptation, and this dark
comedy from the mind of Matt
Fraction explores just that.

Sex Criminals follows the

life of Suzie. She’s a mostly
normal woman, except for
the fact she has the ability to
stop time when she orgasms.
Eventually she crosses paths
with Jon, who can do the exact
same thing. Now, I know what
youre thinking—this brings
a whole new level to tantric
love-making. But rather than
cuddle, Suzie and Jon prefer to
rob a few banks after coitus than
reaffirm their co-dependence.

dialogue in the novel is funny
and surprisingly upbeat for
a story about a crime spree.
The comic’s best feature is
how Fraction developed his
characters. Suzie and Jon are
completely unlikeable. At no
point in time was I ever rooting
for them, but rather than be
annoyed by this, it just seemed
to add to the overall tone of
the narrative. I wanted to keep
reading, not for the characters,
but for the overall story itself—
and to see them get caught.

One thing I was not a fan
of was the art style. Illustrated
by Chip Zdarsky, the panels
look like something out of
classic Archie—everything is cell
shaded, there’s very little detail,
and the anatomy is bubbly.
The overall aesthetic looks
incomplete and does not fit the
sophistication of the writing or
the narrative’s adult themes.

If you're okay with skimping
a little on the art in favour of a
good story, I would definitely
recommend picking this up.