After 150+ hours of playtime spread across a little over a month, I've finally finished my latest playthrough of Three Houses. With that, I can finally finish writing this blog entry. Strap yourselves in, because this may be a long one. BACKGROUND:
As I explained on my post talking about Byleth as Smash DLC, my interest in the Fire Emblem series began like nearly everyone else: it was rooted in the curiosity Smash piqued within me. I've only played a few games in the series since then, but I've played enough to say that I'm a fan of the franchise's gameplay. As for Three Houses itself, my interest in it specifically wasn't all there at the beginning. I was initially worried about the game being delayed, and I was skeptical of the whole "school" aspect of it. My tune changed a little after release, when I got to see a little more of the game and had a chance to talk with trusted friends who were playing it extensively at the time. I'm several months late to the party, but I did eventually get to buy the game. PLOT: Three Houses is set in a continent called Fódlan, a land split into three different nations: the Adrestian Empire, the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, and the Leicester Alliance. All three factions are governed by a nobility system established by the Church of Seiros, the main religious organization of Fódlan. Nobles are defined by something called Crests, mystical markings that grant the bearer unimaginable power, including the ability to wield legendary weapons known as the Hero's Relics. It is said that these Crests were gifted by the goddess to a number of legendary individuals in Fódlan's history, and that they have been passed down across the generations, manifesting within the nobles of present day. Your player character (default name: Byleth) is the son/daughter of a renowned mercenary, and during a fateful encounter in battle, is thrust upon the complicated status quo of Fódlan. You find yourself in Garreg Mach Monastery, the central body of the Church of Seiros. Within this monastery is the Officers Academy, where students from the Empire, Kingdom, and Alliance gather to learn. For whatever reason, Byleth is entrusted with the mission of becoming a professor in the academy, and that is where the story really begins. At the beginning of the game, you are asked to choose between the eponymous three houses of the Officers Academy: the Black Eagles (students from the Empire), the Blue Lions (students from the Kingdom), and the Golden Deer (students from the Alliance). Whichever one you pick decides your roster in battle, and will decide the story route you go through in your campaign. There really isn't a right choice: just pick the one with the characters you think you'll like. A big deciding factor in this regard is each house's leader, who each end up being prominent characters in the story. Regardless of which story route you pick, the story will be divided into two parts. The first part is your time as professor in the academy, and the missions will be more or less the same no matter which house you pick. The only differences you'll be experiencing in this first half are revolved around the students you're mentoring, as their dialogue varies even if the events that transpire are mostly the same. At the tail end of this first arc, a pivotal event occurs that completely changes the story's complexion. Outside of it being a shocking reveal, this sets the stage for the second half of Three Houses, which is centered around the consequences of this event. The students you've chosen and Fódlan at large change significantly during the second half, and it is here where the story diverges depending on which house you picked at the beginning. There are four story routes total in Three Houses. The fourth route is actually a "secret" branching path that can be accessed by picking a specific house at the beginning, and while I wish there were more branching paths in the other houses, it only really makes sense in this specific instance. Each route feels different and features unique endings, but on multiple playthroughs, you'll notice that there's a lot of overlap across specific routes. This didn't bother me that much (the game does well to present similar things under different circumstances), but if you're looking for a truly different experience every time, you may find this irksome. I played through every story route, which is why this blog entry took so long to write. For the most part, I enjoyed them all, as they each tackled some serious themes (race, religion, class disparity, etc.) while also providing compelling character arcs for each house leader (who each end up becoming the lead during the second half of their respective story routes). My only issue is the lack of payoff for the antagonists of the first half, as they're either forgotten or abruptly dealt with depending on the story route. I wish they were established a bit more in the story, because they end up feeling like an afterthought when the story's big twist is revealed. It can also be argued that some of the endings don't quite work, but I didn't find them to be egregiously terrible or anything like that. This is an aside, but I liked how they handled multiple story routes in this game. The choice is given to you right at the beginning, which means setting up multiple playthroughs isn't a slog. And while the first half is mostly the same regardless of your choice, it still feels different because you're interacting with different characters each time. Best of all, I didn't have to buy a separate game to experience everything (glares angrily at FE: Fates). CHARACTERS: Though this game's story is pretty solid, the heart of any FE game lies in its characters. Here, you have around 40 characters total to get to know, so there's plenty of possibilities in terms of interaction. Getting to know each character lies in the support conversation feature. During certain activities (such as battling), support levels between two characters build up. Once they reach a certain point, you unlock a support conversation, which is a cutscene of the two characters interacting with one another. There are multiple levels to support conversations (starting from C, eventually ranking up to A), and by working towards the top rank, you're getting a sort of mini-story where the two characters are the main focus. These support conversations are both a great way to connect with the game's many characters, see fun or profound interactions, and even add a bit of world-building Fódlan's already rich lore. In my many hours building up support levels between characters, I've discovered interesting tidbits of lore not otherwise shown in the main story, connected with characters I didn't initially like, and come across interesting or funny relationship dynamics between two characters. Through this, the characters felt more than just units I use in battle, and keeping them alive in battle had more weight to it than just "I need them for the next chapter." Barring a few one-note exceptions, every character feels like a fully-fledged person as opposed to a personification of a singular characteristic. Sure, they each have that one "defining" trait, but once you build up certain support conversations or get to certain parts of the story, most of them have something more to show. Some of the characters with clear flaws reveal their humanity, seemingly "perfect" characters make mistakes, others open up about tragedy, and a few even share their hopes. Much like in real life, these people have multiple facets to them, and discovering them via support conversations ended up being more than worthwhile, and enriched my experience as a whole. Perhaps the only characters that truly falter are some of the villains (who you don't get to spend a lot of time with) and the player character themselves (who is mostly a silent protagonist). The latter baffles me a lot, as Byleth does show emotion and has voice-acted lines, but a lot of their character is established by other characters talking about them instead of exhibiting a personality outright. In a few previous FE games (Fates is the go-to example), the nature of many support conversations (especially the ones with your player character) were derided as matchmaking, dating sim bullshit, and thankfully, that was reduced significantly here. For one, only a few interactions really lean towards romantic, which I truly enjoyed. For another, child units were no longer a thing, so I didn't have to stress out about "sensible" pairings (this was genuinely something I dealt with during Fates) or some such nonsense. The dating sim elements are still here in the form of support conversations with the player character, but it's mostly just the S-level support you get at the end of the game (which decides who you marry, which is totally not weird at all given most of the characters were your students....), so I don't really mind. There is also the tea party feature, but that's completely optional, so if you really hate waifu/husbando shit, you can get through the game without ever having to deal with it. In addition to support conversations, you can also play through Paralogues, which are self-contained side missions you can play through outside of the main story. These are often centered around specific characters, and it's a great way to learn about their backstories. PRESENTATION: This is the first time Fire Emblem has been in HD, and it mostly looks good. The 3D models don't look 100% clean, and there are weird clipping issues, but overall, everything looks fine. The only thing that looks really off to me are the character animations, which cycle through the same 10 lackadaisical, unnatural movements, as well as the hit-or-miss lip syncing. Maps and backgrounds are the most detailed they've ever been, but given the overlap in the story routes, you don't get too much variety in terms of overall aesthetic. You also spend a substantial amount of time in the monastery, and while the monastery looks impressive, it kinda gets old on the fourth playthrough. Character designs are solid, with everyone having a unique look or feel to them (a challenging feat to pull off, given the students wear uniforms that look mostly the same). Outside of a handful of characters, no one outright screams "I'm hot, I'll be your waifu" with their outfit, which, after living through Camilla from Fates, I'm relieved about. The more interesting design elements in my eyes lie in the more mystical elements of the game. The Hero's Relics have this unique, bony aesthetic to them that stood out to me, and as I found out, there's a story reason to that. It's always cool when visual design and story go hand in hand, and we do get a bit of that in Three Houses. In big moments during the story, there are fully animated cutscenes that look like they could be their own anime. These look absolutely fantastic, and they make me wish Fire Emblem anime was a thing. Whereas the 3D models occasionally falter in expressions, the voice acting in this game is second to none, with the cast giving in their all in even random dialogue. There is so much expressiveness and emotion in the voice acting that looking at the less expressive 3D models felt super weird. Like most FE games, the music in the game is phenomenal. The battle themes are among some of my favorites in the entire series, and the music in certain big moments are as epic as they come. Some of the tracks even have an EDM vibe to them, which doesn't sound like it would work in a game like Fire Emblem, but it does. GAMEPLAY: Fire Emblem is a turn-based, tactics-style strategy RPG. It's a game where you move units on a grid-based map (much like a board game) and engage in battle by interacting with enemy units on the map. Think of it like chess, except when you try to capture a piece, the two pieces battle each other before someone dies. Your units are none other than the students you chose at the beginning of the game, plus yourself. Each character has a character class (which dictates their abilities, among other things), weapons, and stats (from HP to Strength to Charm), all of which can be altered or modified as you go through the game. It seems like a lot to manage (multiplied by how many characters you have to keep track of), but the game eases you into it, and you can always view info on specific things at your leisure. There are multiple weapons in the game, ranging from the typical swords, lances, and axes, to ranged weapons like bows, as well as magic. Each weapon has their own stats (like damage) and may have special abilities, so it's best to explore your options. As you use these weapons, the character's proficiency levels up, allowing them to use more powerful weapons, as well as unlock new abilities. Unlike before, there is no weapon triangle (the rock-paper-scissors rule in every other Fire Emblem game), and depending on what your expertise is in games like this, you may find that this either simplifies or trivializes the game. Certain weapon types are notably absent, like daggers and beast-type units. Magic also works differently, as they're no longer a physical item that must be in one's inventory, but are simply just accessible and equippable as long as you've learned them. Healing staffs/staves have been reworked to be white magic instead, and are treated similarly as attack magic. There's also an all-new weapon type called Brawling, which consist of the unit literally punching enemies to death. Magic staffs still exist somewhat, but they're an equippable, non-weapon item that simply gives you buffs (such as increased range or healing). Other such items exist in the game, such as shields (pretty self-explanatory) and rings (which increase stats or provide other passive buffs). Character classes also work a little differently this time around. As you play, you can gain the option to change a character's class. This allows you to change them to, say, a cavalier, which puts them on a horse and grants them significant movement and a different stat spread. Most of the classes in this game are from older games, but a few are unique. Three Houses is a little more lenient with classes in terms of weapons this time around, as before, your class used to determine what kind of weapons you can use. Now, it's a little more freeform, for as long as your character is proficient in a certain weapon, they can use it regardless of class. There is only a restriction when it comes to magic, as those can only be used by classes where magic is explicitly stated to be usable. In addition, classes also have a sort of "proficiency" you have to level up, and doing so unlocks new abilities that you can equip to your character. As such, it may be to your benefit for a character to master different classes, so that they have access to good abilities. Weapons and magic have a set durability, which decreases for every use of the weapon. Once it hits zero, your weapon breaks, and you'll need to repair it to be able to use it at full strength. This adds a layer of strategy to combat, as you can't spam Heal or use the same weapon over and over. Each character has a personal inventory with which you can have them hold multiple weapons — it's one of many ways to work around this limitation. New to Three Houses is something known as Combat Arts. Leveling up weapon proficiency unlocks these Combat Arts for use. Most of these Combat Arts are attacks; in exchange for a significant amount of a weapon's durability, you can unleash a powerful attack, or an attack that does something special (like increase Crit rate or Dodge rate). A few Combat Arts aren't combat based, like the movement arts (like Swap, Reposition, etc.) and stuff like Healing Focus. I got by not relying on these Combat Arts, but they're useful in a pinch. Another new element to Three Houses are Battalions. You can equip these Battalions to characters in order to give them buffs, but more importantly, they allow the equipped character to use Gambits, powerful moves that can do things like deal massive damage or heal. You can get by without ever having to use these, but they're really handy to have, especially in tougher maps. The Crests I mentioned before also factor into gameplay. Certain characters possess these Crests, and there are many kinds to speak of, each with various effects. These effects are activated at random, so while they can tip the scales in your favor, you can't really rely on them. The most important thing about Crests is that they allow the characters who possess them to wield legendary weapons (like the Hero's Relics). The effects of these weapons can only be activated if they are held by a character with the corresponding Crest, so it's more than worthwhile to give them to their respective owners as soon as you get them. Three Houses does away with the Pair Up mechanics from previous games in favor of Adjutants. When you get to a certain point in the game, you can "equip" any units not currently deployed to active units. Doing so can activate certain effects in favor of the lead unit depending on the Adjutant's class (ranging from healing, to follow-up attacks, and damage reduction), and resolving battles with the lead unit also grants the Adjutant experience. Building support between characters provides benefits in battle as well. Units with a good support level gain stat boosts when they're next to each other on the battlefield, and Adjutant effects are more likely to trigger the higher the support level. The reverse is also true, as good map positioning and the use of Adjutants raises support levels. There are three difficulty levels: Normal, Hard, and Maddening, as well as two play modes: Classic (which means permadeath for any character of yours that dies in battle) and Casual (characters who die aren't lost). I played primarily on Normal/Classic, which was manageable (but not a pushover). Based on my past experience with Fire Emblem, Hard is probably quite rough, and Maddening would probably piss me off. Choose your modes depending on what you wish to get out of the game (whether that's experiencing the story or challenging tactical gameplay). THE MONASTERY: Battling is the main hook of Three Houses, but what do you do in between battles? That time is spent in the monastery, and there is plenty to do there. Each story chapter takes place over the course of a month (denoted by a calendar that the game shows you). The main mission is often at the end of the month, so that leaves you some time to do other things. You can do these other things on Free Days, of which there is one per week. One of the things you can do is explore the monastery. Here, the game enters a third person exploration mode where you can wander Garreg Mach and interact with people. You can talk to the various characters, clear some fetch quests, go to the marketplace for some shopping, manage your inventory, and look at support conversations during this time. The most important thing you can do in Explore mode are Activities. Some of these activities (like fishing) can be done at your leisure, but the rest can only be done once a week. These range from sharing meals (which raises support levels), planting seeds (which can be harvested the following week for items), receiving training from faculty (which increases Byleth's proficiency in weapons), going on tea parties (also raises support levels), and more. These seem like a waste of time, but a lot of these activities do help you improve in battle. In addition, performing these activities increases your Professor Level. Doing so allows you to perform more activities per free day, among other things. During free days, you can also go on a set amount of battles. You can get in some extra training for your units this way, as well as acquire rewards like money and items. It is also here where you can access the aforementioned Paralogues, and completing those often gives you unique rewards. Once the free day is over, the following week starts anew, and that usually means Lecture Day. During this phase, you can instruct your units on certain fields, and doing so levels up their proficiency in the chosen fields (like weapons or magic). Your ability to instruct your units is dependent on their Motivation, which is increased when you build support or participate in Activities with them on free days. Instruction is the best way to improve your units outside of battle, and doing so efficiently will make them stronger/allow them to reclass into better classes faster. Nothing actually happens during the rest of the calendar days, save for the occasional random event (like support conversations and such), so in truth, your time at the monastery is actually just a few free days and a couple of lecture days. That said, I still really like this approach of dealing with downtime, as doing shit in the monastery actually benefits me in battle down the line. It's also just fun to interact with people in the monastery, so much so that I went out of my way to check out the new dialogue for everyone every free day. VERDICT: Fire Emblem: Three Houses has ascended to become my favorite FE game so far. The changes to the gameplay ended up being for the better, adding new twists to an already-satisfying tactical formula. The game also strikes a perfect balance with the character interaction aspect and the battles, with the monastery segments aptly demonstrating how one can complement the other. Take all of that and mix in a compelling narrative set in a lore-rich world that tackles heavy themes, a solid cast of interesting, three-dimensional characters, brilliant music and voice acting, and you have yourself a damn near perfect package. Although I had to play the game multiple times to see everything, I thought it was worth it, as every playthrough featured character interactions I've never seen before, bits of lore that expanded upon or clarified shit I saw in previous playthroughs, and combat with a new cast of characters allowed me to try new things in battle. Even with all that said, there's still stuff in the game I haven't seen and done (and that's not even taking into account the DLC). The fact that I went out of my way to experience as much as I can should speak to the quality of the game, no? The month I spent playing through this game was absolutely worth it, in my mind. Three Houses is excellent in nearly every aspect, and I highly recommend it, especially to RPG fans. If you've never played a Fire Emblem game before, this is the one to start with. - end -
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June 2024
Derryck
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