The Fire Emblem series has always been linear, though it is time that should change. Fire Emblem: Three Houses dabbled with the idea by opening up the series’ storytelling by having multiple different routes players could choose from depending on which house they joined and the decisions they made. However, taking things further and giving players even more freedom by going open world would take the series to new heights and provide new ways to play.
There are numerous possibilities for how Nintendo could interpret the open world of Fire Emblem on the Nintendo Switch 2. Typically, most probably think of open-world RPGs like The Witcher 3 or Skyrim, but this wouldn’t work for Fire Emblem. Rather than going for a truly open world where the player can do what they want, Fire Emblem better fits an open decision style that offers a sandbox experience.
Take Fire Emblem: Three Houses for example. Once players hit the time skip portion, they are shoehorned into a particular path for the rest of the game. With an open-world Fire Emblem game, the player would have more freedom in their decisions and how they want to lead their forces.
The best way to handle this would be a more linear prologue that introduces the player to Fire Emblem and its mechanics. This could extend into the first few missions to give a proper tutorial. Fire Emblem has a lot of systems to learn, and permadeath can make these punishing for new players. Including this tutorial early on allows Nintendo to teach players the game before opening up. It could be a past event that creates the history and nations in the game allowing it to fit any story Nintendo creates and the player’s choices.
To give the most open experience and branching story with choices, this Fire Emblem game should allow players to choose from multiple factions. Then, as most Fire Emblem games do, the story would lead to war. However, with an open-world design, Nintendo could give players a large world map and put them in charge of who to attack and where to direct their forces instead of a linear story.
The player’s starting location and units would depend on what faction they choose at the beginning of the game. This would force them down certain paths early on but ultimately branch out into multiple ones. Players could decide who their nation wishes to attack and which they want to make alliances with, further giving them control over the story.
Another choice comes in what units the player wishes to recruit. Fire Emblem games have always had recruitable characters with many of the games allowing players to recruit rival or enemy characters. This could open up the potential for rebellions to grow if a player recruits too many characters from a rival nation or possibly recruits enough from a rival nation to cause them to overthrow the government and join with the player’s nation.
With an open-world design and multiple fronts, Fire Emblem can finally take advantage of its expansive character roster. Typically, players rotate between select units while others are unused. However, going open world would let the player have multiple forces and station them in different areas. Partnering units together for different offensive or defensive locations would play to the numerous characters and their strengths.
This would also lead to another aspect of more recent games in the series: romance. With this freedom of choice, a player’s choice of romantic partner becomes even more important. While many players choose their love interest in Fire Emblem: Three Houses based on looks and personality, an open-world design adds the aspect of alliances for consideration.
Players could capture and marry a prince or princess to force a nation to join with them, or they could court a member of royalty related to the thrown and encourage them to overthrow the king or queen. One nation may take offense at the player for marrying a character from another and declare war on them. Or, a rival nation may seek to end conflict by offering an alliance through marriage.
Another aspect with new potential from an open world would be permadeath. Fire Emblem could expand permadeath and the role it plays not just in gameplay, but also narratively. While losing a unit would affect the player’s army, the story could really dive into these losses. A battlefield could be turned into a grave marker for a fallen hero, or a nation could claim renown by defeating a major power player.
Additionally, it would take an area Nintendo has been exploring more with Fire Emblem and make it more involved and robust. Both Fire Emblem: Three Houses and Fire Emblem Engage contain explorable areas with a third-person perspective. Going open world would give Nintendo a chance to fully flesh these out.
Players could have a central hub where they make most of their decisions, and this could act as a deployment point. Capturing key locations in other nations could offer up forts, villages, and more to explore. Each could have unique shops with items or structures that provide different bonuses. With an open world and more discoverable areas, players’ choices would be even more strategic.
Finally, if Nintendo opts for the customizable avatar system, an open-world Fire Emblem could add different options for this feature. Players could get unique looks, outfits, and weapons that fit the nation they chose. Perks could be changed based on the starting location and be used throughout the game in combat and when making diplomatic choices.
Going open world is a bold choice, and many fans may be reluctant to it, but it would introduce numerous new strategic choices for players in Fire Emblem and make it one of the most expansive entries in the series. Enhancing Fire Emblem: Three Houses’ narrative and gameplay choices would take what many consider to be one of the best Fire Emblem games and make it better. The depth of this decision choice would change the series forever, and the Nintendo Switch 2 is the perfect opportunity for it.
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