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Fire Emblem: Awakening - The best handheld game ever made?

I really hope that in some fashion FE7 and PoR get reprinted/eshopt/vc/something so that people entering the series with Awakening can try them at a reasonable price. They are amazing games.
 
Damn, I'm gonna say that excluding ports/remakes...

Link's Awakening
Pokemon Crystal
Golden Sun 1&2
Phoenix Wright Series
Tetris
GTA: Chinatown
Metroid Fusion

Would be the first games to pop into my head when saying "best portable games ever"... but I still like too many to decide. Can't wait for the XL to get to my hands :D
 
Close, but no cigar.

Kid-Icarus-Uprising-Box-Art.jpg
 
Kozak said:
Wow so China Town wars was really that good huh?

I played a bit of it and liked it but damn.
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Not really. In the age of 3D GTAs it's really behind the times and not as good or fun as those. It relies too much on touch gimmick minigames too.

It looks even worse considering it came out in a handheld generation that had 2 3D GTAs that were almost exactly like the PS2 games.
 
Magnus said:
Pokémon. Is there even any contest? It was designed for handhelds, excels on handhelds, exemplifies the easy-to-learn but complicated-to-master deep mechanics system, promoted competitive play and trading which (once upon a time, but maybe still now?) are hallmarks of the handheld gaming space, and it's a branding professional's absolute dream project because of the way it can systemically expand, sell more product and build dramatically on the existing product (you can always make more Pokémon to catch)....it's just the perfect handheld product and absolutely brilliant game design.
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I agree.
I have yet to play Fire Emblem though since I'm in Europe. I'd also add Jump Ultimate Stars, Ouendan and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance 2 to the runner-ups. Wonderful games.
 
You guys are making me want to play Link's Awakening. I always liked how colorful everything was in Oracle/Seasons.
 
The_Darkest_Red said:
Link's Awakening is a phenomenal game, I will definitely give that one to you guys. It's in my top 10 for sure.


Specifically talking about handheld FE's though, which one is better? And why?


Haha, I promise that timing was an accident!
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It's just that the pair up mechanic makes the whole game fall apart 10 chapters in, and that's excluding all the wireless features you can use to overpower your units, which makes the strategy aspect dwindle significantly.

I do however love everything about it' tag teaming enemies is great (thank you rng gods), campaign is huge and the risen and spotpass stuff reaaaaally add to the game's value. DLC is pretty awful however, but it still adds to the game. Love its aesthetics as well fo sure.

So yeah Blazing Sword and New Mistery of the Emblem are better for me, in therms of core mechanics
 
Derrick01 said:
Not really. In the age of 3D GTAs it's really behind the times and not as good or fun as those. It relies too much on touch gimmick minigames too.

It looks even worse considering it came out in a handheld generation that had 2 3D GTAs that were almost exactly like the PS2 games.
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I really enjoyed it, definitely even more than GTA IV and it did get me to actually tacke the game's storyline for the first time in me playing the series. I think it might have had something to do with the fact that it was "formatted" in such a way that it lent itself better to short bursts of gaming. I remember the drug minigame was seriously fun.
 
Not sure if I would take P4G into consideration for the "best handheld game". I think that title should go to a game that really was build from the grounds up for a handheld and not to a port/remake. Otherwise... it just doesn't feel right.
 
Crewnh said:
FE7 is more balanced, you can't grind your way to victory, every character is unique class wise, there aren't broken abilities, critical hits actually look good, story is better, characters are less goofy, etc

At most, FEA is the best 3DS game. But best handheld game ever? pshaw
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Your points regarding balance, grinding, and exploitable skills are all valid and I agree with them, but I don't play FE:A with the intention of exploiting the game, so none of that really affects my opinion of it in the end.

I think critical hits look cooler in FE7 but I love the battle animations in Awakening and they've grown on me so I don't think that's too important a point. I also agree that the story and characters are slightly better in FE7, although I think that's marginal as well.

Despite all of that, Awakening has enough to put it ahead of FE7 in my mind. The support conversations are infinitely superior, the pair-up and dual-strike systems are fun to use and add a lot to the core gameplay, the chapters are more memorable and unique in terms of design, the skill system is a great addition, the ability to marry characters and
use their children
is a ton of fun, there is much more room for diversity in terms of party make-up (thanks to Second Seals and promotion choices), and the presentation is much better (not talking about sprites vs. 3D, just everything else).

Point being, I agree that FE7 is better in some ways but I don't think it's fair to act like Awakening has zero superior elements (or just plain additions).

Boney said:
It's just that the pair up mechanic makes the whole game fall apart 10 chapters in, and that's excluding all the wireless features you can use to overpower your units, which makes the strategy aspect dwindle significantly.

I do however love everything about it' tag teaming enemies is great (thank you rng gods), campaign is huge and the risen and spotpass stuff reaaaaally add to the game's value. DLC is pretty awful however, but it still adds to the game. Love its aesthetics as well fo sure.
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I've played the game for 85 hours and I haven't touched the wireless content. If you feel like it detracts from the experience then why not avoid it entirely? And regarding pair-up, the game was designed around the mechanic so I don't consider it broken, just very good (and very fun).
 
I found CTW far better than console 3D GTAs.

It's definitely different, I suppose whether it's better or worse depends a lot on what you like. It's much more "gamey" than GTAIV. I found the touch minigames cool, they don't repeat much and they are either genuinely fun or quick and novel.

To me it was a GTA without the BS.
 
Solstice said:
I would say P4G is the best handheld game ever made
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I agree, even more with your avatar choice!

I don't think FE:A is the best handheld game, but so far (chapter 11) it's one of the best I've ever played.

What I can for sure say it's the hardest game I've ever played.

I bought Link's Awakening more than a year ago, but when Vita came out I forgot about it...until today. Gotta get back into it somehow.
 
I don't think anything will ever come close to dethroning 999 as my favorite handheld experience. I can count the number of games that've sucked me in to that degree on one hand. But I definitely see FE:A among the best portable gaming has to offer. It's a bit of a two steps forward, two steps backward as far as contender for best FE goes, but it's up there with FE6, PoR, and Genealogy for me.
 
The simple story is one of the things that really makes this a fantastic handheld game, and I know that's going to bum out some of the Fire Emblem purists who were disappointed by Awakening's story. RPGs are probably my favourite genre of game and yet they're incredibly difficult to get back into thanks to convoluted plots and a forward momentum that's easy to lose once you take a break for a while.

I've been a little busy the last couple weeks so I haven't been able to put much time into Awakening recently, but I feel like at any moment I could pick up the game, play a chapter or paralogue, or even half of one, and then come back again days later without a second thought. The pacing and game structure is phenomenally accessible and well-tuned to the "handheld experience".
 
Well, its my best handheld game, but I have rather limited experience with handheld gaming.

That said, I like the depth that Fire Emblem offers on a handheld. I am sure that I could get lost in other games - the Personas come to mind - but I haven't tried them out yet.
 
Maybe if it had a "Normal Person" difficulty mode. As it stands, it has 3 modes: one for children, one for obsessive and one for absolutely crazy obsessive.
 
The_Darkest_Red said:
Your points regarding balance, grinding, and exploitable skills are all valid and I agree with them, but I don't play FE:A with the intention of exploiting the game, so none of that really affects my opinion of it in the end.

I think critical hits look cooler in FE7 but I love the battle animations in Awakening and they've grown on me so I don't think that's too important a point. I also agree that the story and characters are slightly better in FE7, although I think that's marginal as well.

Despite all of that, Awakening has enough to put it ahead of FE7 in my mind. The support conversations are infinitely superior, the pair-up and dual-strike systems are fun to use and add a lot to the core gameplay, the chapters are more memorable and unique in terms of design, the skill system is a great addition, the ability to marry characters and
use their children
is a ton of fun, there is much more room for diversity in terms of party make-up (thanks to Second Seals and promotion choices), and the presentation is much better (not talking about sprites vs. 3D, just everything else).

Point being, I agree that FE7 is better in some ways but I don't think it's fair to act like Awakening has zero superior elements (or just plain additions).


I've played the game for 85 hours and I haven't touched the wireless content. If you feel like it detracts from the experience then why not avoid it entirely? And regarding pair-up, the game was designed around the mechanic so I don't consider it broken, just very good (and very fun).
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When S ranks pair ups make every unit godly tanks there's an issue in balance, which is why that's my argument against it and not the optional wireless stuff. Stat boosts you get are insane, helping cover characters weaknesses or continue building on the strengths to absurd levels, not to mention you get like an 80% activation of attacking and like 25% if defending for zero damage, on top of that you get the insane dodge and crit bonuses.

If the game was really well designed around it, you'd see enemies doing it as well.

Wireless stuff is pretty cool, you should give it a try though, I'd expected that would've been one of your top arguments for it, seeing it adds a shitload of stuff, althiuh fe12 wireless stuff was way cooler (yeah i know half were the sattelaview stuff)
 
kpjolee said:
Best 3DS game in my opinion. Vita has the best handheld game so far in P4G. I better hide.
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No need to hide, it seems a lot of people share that opinion. It's kind of funny how the timing worked out but I actually just finished P4 Golden and I can definitely understand why so many of you guys love it. I even listed it as the first runner up for me in the OP.
 
Nope. Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past was on GBA so this debate was over before it began.

If you don't want to count rereleases, any of the Castlevanias are better.
 
People saying catlevania makes me wanna driwn in my own vomit though


Personally I think it's Mother 3, but if god tier is cheating I suppose Zero Mission would have to come second.
 
Link's awakening and Kid Icarus Uprising both tied as the greatest handheld experiences I've ever had. Kid Icarus, especially. Such a perfect game.

Edit:
Just remembered the first Advanced Wars and FFT: Advance. THOSE games were something else. Easily logged in over 150 in both.
 
I'm actually quite sure after my second playthrough that it is the best FE. It blows the rest of the series out of the water in presentation and while it isn't the most difficult or complicated of the games it is the best total package.

Handhelds have been my jam for awhile now and while I wouldn't put it above Link's Awakening It's definitely in the hunt along with Super Mario 3D Land, Pokémon Black 2, Kid Icarus:Uprising, Donkey Kong, Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town, and FF V:Advance for top ten material.
 
The_Darkest_Red said:
No need to hide, it seems a lot of people share that opinion. It's kind of funny how the timing worked out but I actually just finished P4 Golden and I can definitely understand why so many of you guys love it. I even listed it as the first runner up for me in the OP.
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I might just tackle P4G after I'm done with Awakening. That could be another month yet, but I'll get to it! The game's been sitting in a cupboard since November.
 
Boney said:
When S ranks pair ups make every unit godly tanks there's an issue in balance, which is why that's my argument against it and not the optional wireless stuff. Stat boosts you get are insane, helping cover characters weaknesses or continue building on the strengths to absurd levels, not to mention you get like an 80% activation of attacking and like 25% if defending for zero damage, on top of that you get the insane dodge and crit bonuses.

If the game was really well designed around it, you'd see enemies doing it as well.
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On Lunatic, you need those S-rank bonuses. Hell, even on the hard difficulty, support bonuses aren't enough to break the game without grinding.
 
I think anyone that has played and beaten Persona 4: Golden will most likely agree its the greatest handheld game ever made.
 
The_Darkest_Red said:
Your points regarding balance, grinding, and exploitable skills are all valid and I agree with them, but I don't play FE:A with the intention of exploiting the game, so none of that really affects my opinion of it in the end.

I think critical hits look cooler in FE7 but I love the battle animations in Awakening and they've grown on me so I don't think that's too important a point. I also agree that the story and characters are slightly better in FE7, although I think that's marginal as well.

Despite all of that, Awakening has enough to put it ahead of FE7 in my mind. The support conversations are infinitely superior, the pair-up and dual-strike systems are fun to use and add a lot to the core gameplay, the chapters are more memorable and unique in terms of design, the skill system is a great addition, the ability to marry characters and
use their children
is a ton of fun, there is much more room for diversity in terms of party make-up (thanks to Second Seals and promotion choices), and the presentation is much better (not talking about sprites vs. 3D, just everything else).

Point being, I agree that FE7 is better in some ways but I don't think it's fair to act like Awakening has zero superior elements (or just plain additions)
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I'll give you being able to support as many people as you want in the barracks. I wouldn't say the actual conversations are betterThe pair up is unique but I feel like they just nerfed the characters or strengthened enemies so you have to pair up. None of the characters are unique because of reclassing, that addition has made so many characters completely pointless to use now. There are unit types that serve no purpose now. Why would you want a general or great knight or paladin or archer or falcon knight, etc after getting their abilities? Then there's the lack of magic triangle, the pointlessness of magic other than dark. I like the skill system and children mechanics but the reclassing man, it stinks. And you have to make use of it in lunatic and lunatic+.

The chapters are memorable and unique in design? How so? All they do is have enemies rush you and reappear in forts or outside the screen. None of the maps are special, they have no terrain hazards, no terrain differences other than sand and woods, no weather, no special landmarks, there's no optional objectives, no seize the throne, no defend for this many turns to win, etc.
 
Crewnh said:
FE7 is more balanced, you can't grind your way to victory, every character is unique class wise, there aren't broken abilities, critical hits actually look good, story is better, characters are less goofy, etc

At most, FEA is the best 3DS game. But best handheld game ever? pshaw
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Yeah, I think I fall in this camp too. I enjoyed Awakening and thought some elements were improved, like the music, but I still hold FE7 and Path of Radiance as my favorites.

I thought they were waay better written and smarter. I'll probably be the only one on GAF that thinks this, but I didn't like the cussing in Awakening. At the least, I would've liked it if MU and Chrom were clean.

Too bad we didn't get the mute MU option like the Japanese do. :(
 
Boney said:
When S ranks pair ups make every unit godly tanks there's an issue in balance, which is why that's my argument against it and not the optional wireless stuff. Stat boosts you get are insane, helping cover characters weaknesses or continue building on the strengths to absurd levels, not to mention you get like an 80% activation of attacking and like 25% if defending for zero damage, on top of that you get the insane dodge and crit bonuses.

If the game was really well designed around it, you'd see enemies doing it as well.
Click to expand...
It doesn't make every unit a godly tank, though. The stat bonuses are indeed massive and incredibly powerful but an individual unit still has to be fairly competent to run out into a pack of enemies with no regard for their safety, regardless of who they are paired up with.

I mean, surely the designers chose the stat bonuses and activation percentage formulas, right? So while they might be very powerful it seems obvious to me that the intention is for them to be very powerful. Yes, you will eventually be rolling around with pairs of units that are all but untouchable, but didn't the same thing happen with individual units in previous FE's (or any SRPG, for that matter)? Hector towards the end of FE7 was untouchable too, you know?

The bigger issue regarding balance is the ability to freely grind as much as you want, but I've made a conscious choice to avoid doing that for the most part. I was skeptical of the world map when I went in (I wasn't a fan of it in Sacred Stones) but considering how many characters there are in Awakening I'm actually glad the option is there.

Also, I haven't finished the game on Lunatic but I'm guessing it isn't too easy regardless of how many s-ranked pairs you have running around. We'll see, I suppose. Either way I do see where you're coming from and I do think pair-up could probably use some tweaks, but I think it's disingenuous to make it sound like its power is an unintended consequence.
 
As much as I love it, I'm not sure that it's the best portable game ever made. I would probably give that honor to one of the Pokemon games personally...

Maybe Dragon Quest IX?

Hell... I don't know. Maybe it is the best.
 
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