Customer Reviews

Fire Emblem (Prima's Official Strategy Guide)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I strongly discourage the purchase of this guide. Prima demonstrates in this guide that, yet again, if you can't play the game their way, you can't play it at all. The guide is set up in a step-by-step format, telling you specifically what characters to be used, and when they are to be used, turn-by-turn. Because of Fire Emblem's chanciness, the advice offered by this guide is just short of absolutely useless. Utter garbage. Its sole saving grace is the art featured throughout the book.

I'm a Fire Emblem veteran, so I usually don't go for guides, but my siblings wanted to play, and I thought this would help them. I was wrong, apparently

Just to note, do not confuse this review with a review of the game. Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn is an excellent game, and well worth playing. Back to the review of the guide:

The guide is basically a diary of the author's playthrough. Each chapter chronicles what HE did on HIS game, with no variation or differing choices. It would have been nice to see different strategies for the different teams a player might like to use. For example, I like to use a party that consists of mages, with a few melee units to back them up. The author of the guide actually advises against mages, while recommending units that are so overpowered, they feel cheap to use. Yeah, they'll win the game for you, but where's the challenge? The game is balanced enough that you can win using anyone, but according to the author, the cheap way out is the only way.

There is also a lot of missing information. There are special conversations, hidden scenes, and a secret ending that are all absent from the guide. I had to find out online about one of the game's biggest spoilers that you can unlock. But is it in the guide? NO! Of course not!

In conclusion, I can't recommend this book. If you want a diary of a guy playing a game, this is it. However, there are better guides for free online. While the artwork is good, it is also available for free.

I was flipping through my friend's Fire Emblem Strategy Guide, and I almost died laughing wondering why he even bought the book. I don't think it was worth $14.99 (or $10.49 for Amazon :P), except for the artwork.

The strategies weren't that fabulous. Actually, a player could have done better on his (or her, in my case) own without the book. The game is not that hard, although at times rather long and frustrating (but beatable). However, I did have trouble in one stage, and I read the guide, and I thought it wasn't worth it. Well, the guide did point out some hard-to-find secrets, though, but that's about it.

Side note: There are some grammatical errors and whatnot - in books like these, there shouldn't be errors like that. Where was its editor?

One thing I do like is the official (anime) artwork. It's beautifully drawn, and there's lots of it, too. A decent buy for people who like anime gaming artwork.

If you're looking for help on the game, I suggest you look somewhere else. Anime artwork, you might want to consider this.

When people buy strategy guides there are looking for a collection of facts that will allow them to develop a better strategy. This "guide" is little more than the author's turn-by-turn diary of the way he played the game. The enemy locations and stats are often wrong and only offered for Normal Mode, so if you're playing easy of hard mode you're on your own. The maps are often too dark or too small to get a good idea of how to approach the chapter (especially the one with the bridge). There is hardly any artwork, just screen shots of the game Dan Birlew (author) played. Its almost as if Prima new this guide sucked when they released it with the name premiere edition, certainly suggesting it wouldn't be the only edition. I really wish Nintendo Power would make their own (instead of teaming up with Prima) because their efforts on previous fire emblem game guides were far superior.

It was sent on time and it made it here before it was scheduled to. So I would like to buy again from this seller!

I bought the guy with the purpose to find secret characters and items on the maps. I bought the Path of Radiance from Nintendo Power, which was absolutely fantastic. But in the case of this guide, I should be asking for my money back.

Items on maps are misplaced in several locations. Also a step by step guide, wow. I think in this kind of games is impossible since strategies change every time, plus they already picked up characters for you. Why do I have to bring Rhys or Laura to the final chapter if Micaiah is preselected and she masters light magic? And why should I just load my "Chosen Ones" army with Laguz if I'll run into DEEP trouble when I run out of the transformation gauge and Laguz stones?

Also its' just only me or someone else got really tired of looking at Skrimir every 5 pages?

There's also several mistakes on the gameplay. Especially if you want to get the game finished at 100%. You'll have better chances checking Fire Emblem Wiki online, I did it and finally managed to get my game at 100%.

The stategies offer is so-so.

Too little artworks.

Flaws and inaccuracy in the data section.

This guide gives you every item you need to beat all of the different obstacles you may (..cough cough..) be struggling on. It has all of the levels in detail and gives you the information you want, not the boring stuff like where to find some stupid item worth nothing. It also can help you squeeze by any seemingly impossible obstacle. Either way it is a great guide book.

I bought the game for my son, a 13 year old. He has been gaming for a few years, but for the tougher games, he like the manuals to help along the way. Otherwise, you spend $50 on a game and it sits unused because it get too tough for a younger player. He loves the game and only checks the help manual every so often. Good manual.

This book is a great help for beginners and helps you reveal secret items around every corner within the game. But if you're planning not to spoil yourself like I myself. My words to you would be, not to buy it and experience all the action without the unnecessary spoilers for upcoming battles.