Preview: "Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave" is absolutely overwhelming
13.8.2026
Translation: machine translated
Pictures: Domagoj Belancic
A new installment of Nintendo's "Fire Emblem" series will be released in September. I have already played the strategy game and am thrilled. "Fortune's Weave" will be the next big exclusive title for the Switch 2.
Overwhelming. That is the best way to summarize the first 25 hours I have spent on this preview report for «Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave». Yes, you read that right. 25 hours. Just for a preview.
Despite the advanced playtime, I still feel like I have only scratched the surface of what this monstrous strategy RPG has to offer. «Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave» is shaping up to be one of the biggest and most ambitious games Nintendo has released in recent years.
Five protagonists, one epic story
The story of «Fortune's Weave» revolves around the so-called Hero Games, a brutal gladiator competition in the capital of the Kingdom of Dagda. The winning team is granted any wish they desire. Accordingly, the tournament attracts fighters from all over the kingdom – including the game's protagonists: Cai, Dietrich, Theodora, and Leda.
Source: Nintendo
So, now it gets a bit more complicated. The actual plot begins a few years after the Hero Games. The returned demon god Balor is terrorizing the continent with an army of the undead, Dagda is on the brink of destruction, and the four heroes are dead.
At the start of the game, I take on the role of the mysterious warrior (in my case: a female warrior) Eshmel, who can travel through time. My goal: I must save the four heroes in the past from their fate so that they can stand by my side in the present in the fight against Balor.
I decide which of the four heroes I play as in the past and lead to victory in the Hero Games. Eshmel remains in the background, only steering the fate of the heroes in a different direction at crucial moments.
Every saved hero joins my army in the present. Theoretically, Eshmel can also head into the fight against Balor without any support. A starting situation that reminds me of «The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild» – there, too, I could rush to the final boss Ganon alone right after starting the game.
I like this setup. The contrast between the epic «I have to save the world» overarching plot and the four individual, more intimate stories of the heroes creates an exciting dynamic. I get to know the protagonists and their allies really well, learn what drives them, and what wishes they have.
For the preview, I am playing through three stories. Cai is an inconspicuous boy from a fishing village who wants to save his father from the death penalty. Dietrich is a murderous psychopath and a gifted swordsman. He takes part in the competition to finally find worthy opponents. His dry yet insane manner provides the funniest moments in the game. Leda is driven by revenge. She wants to kill the man who murdered her father years ago during the Hero Games.
The overlaps between the story paths are particularly well done. With Cai, for example, I encounter Dietrich's team during the game. Later, I play Dietrich's story path and experience the same encounter from his perspective. This makes the non-linear story feel like a big puzzle. With each playthrough, I learn more about the characters and understand certain mysteries better because I view them from a different perspective. Truly great stuff!
«Fire Emblem» battles with new twists
Anyone who has ever played a «Fire Emblem» game will feel right at home with the turn-based battles. I command my team on a grid-based battlefield. Each unit belongs to a class and has individual weapons, ranges, strengths, and weaknesses.
Essential for success is the interplay between different class and weapon types. Archers are effective against mounted enemies, magic helps especially against well-armored foes, and agile units can drive powerful but cumbersome classes crazy with evasive maneuvers.
New, unexpected weapons (including a sci-fi pistol) and classes provide a breath of fresh air. These include huge, mounted elephants or brutal chariots that destroy everything in their path. So far, I have only experienced these new classes as enemies – it will probably be a few more hours until I can unlock them myself.
Also new: the so-called «Brand Attacks». The four heroes carry magical weapons with which they perform particularly powerful attacks. Cai sets the ground under the enemies' feet on fire, Dietrich teleports across the battlefield, and Leda summons wild beasts that fight by her side.
The catch: Every Brand Attack costs health points. Using these powerful attacks is therefore a risky strategy that can quickly tip the course of a battle in one direction or the other. And because the Brand Attacks of the four heroes differ significantly from one another, the battles in the various story paths each feel unique.
Between board game and dungeon crawler
In all four story paths, the battles of the Hero Games are fixed points in the plot. The teams around Cai, Dietrich, Leda, and Theodora must prove themselves in the colosseum at irregular intervals to advance to the next round.
Between the battles, the teams are free and can do whatever they want. In these segments, «Fortune's Weave» switches to a life-sim mode à la «Persona». I have a fixed time budget that I use up with various actions.
In the capital Dagsion, I can recruit mercenaries, train my skills, unlock blessings (temporary perks for battles) in temples – and much more. With «Fire Emblem: Three Houses», the series has already experimented with similar life-sim elements. In «Fortune's Weave», the mechanics mesh much better and do not feel forced or exhausting.
The residents of Dagsion occasionally approach me with side quests – these also consume my time budget. The more side missions I complete, the higher my reputation rises, and the more weapons, items, and time-wasting features I unlock.
Many side quests lead me into the world outside the city walls. I explore the overview map like a board game – every move costs me valuable time. Running around aimlessly is therefore not a good idea. There is a hell of a lot to discover: distant villages with valuable goods, bandits who want to be beaten up, and secrets that are not initially marked on the map.
The most significant pastime on the overview map, however, are dungeons. I search dungeons for valuable loot and fight against all kinds of human and animal enemies. My resources (health, attack points, and magic) are limited – every excursion is also a risk.
I am particularly impressed by the combat system of the dungeon excursions. I see enemies in real-time, can run away from them, or attack them to provoke a fight. Then the game switches to a turn-based combat system that is reminiscent of classic JRPGs. My units have the same weapons and attacks available as in normal battles – but they function completely differently here in some cases. For example, my entire team shares a health and magic bar as well as «Link Points», which I use to trigger devastating combo attacks.
The overview map and especially the dungeons are welcome additions to the «Fire Emblem» gameplay mix and further loosen up the already varied package.
Finally beautiful
Compared to the often washed-out graphical mush of the «Fire Emblem» games on the first Switch, Intelligent Systems has managed a huge graphical leap. Mind you: «Fortune's Weave» doesn't look breathtaking either, but the visuals are mostly convincing.
The detailed character models and the beautiful cutscenes deserve special praise. At times, I feel like I'm playing an interactive anime.
The quality of the environmental graphics still fluctuates. From beautiful battlefields and cities to dreary low-poly environments with muddy textures, everything is there. However, the art design is always convincing – with a mix of influences from ancient Rome, Greece, and even sci-fi elements.
This game will devour all my free time
I don't know when a game last grabbed me as much as «Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave». Nintendo and Intelligent Systems have bundled gameplay elements from past «Fire Emblem» titles into an epic and extremely ambitious overall package.
After 25 hours, I have only experienced a fraction of the addictive potential of this strategy blockbuster. And the best part: I have no idea what gameplay surprises still await me and how the time-travel story might end. The only thing that is certain is that I will have no time for other games in the coming weeks besides this monster strategy game.
«Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave» will be released on September 17th for the Switch 2. Nintendo provided me with a review copy. A detailed review with a final rating will follow.
Header image: Nintendo
Domagoj Belancic
Senior Editor
Domagoj.Belancic@digitecgalaxus.chMy love of video games was unleashed at the tender age of five by the original Gameboy. Over the years, it's grown in leaps and bounds.
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