It’s time to show our appreciation for the best Fire Emblem games of all time!
It’s no secret that these games are classed as Nintendo’s very own Final Fantasy series, but they’re way more than that.
These games shook up the RPG genre forever, especially once they finally arrived on Western shores.
With memorable characters, epic quests, and some of the finest tactical gameplay that I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing, the Fire Emblem franchise isn’t just a contender for best RPG series ever – it’s a frontrunner.
But, you didn’t come here to listen to me bang on about how much I like this series; you came here to find out which are the best Fire Emblem games to add to your collection!
So, I’m going to give the people what they want. Check our favourites out below!
Table of Contents
15. Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon (2008)
Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon kickstarts our list of the best Fire Emblem games of all time! It’s a Nintendo DS classic and the game that brought the Super Smash Bros wild-card Marth to the table.
Players move across the world of Archnea following Prince Marth. He’s been banished by a tricksy little dragon and has to fight his way back to his former position, thwarting said Dragon in the process.
You already know how great these games are, so I don’t need to sell them to you. Develop characters as you move through the levels and immerse yourself in turn-based shenanigans on both DS screens,
The lower screen boasts a map of Archanea and the top screen is where all the exploring and fighting happens.
The characters are a little flat, but it did come out 13 years ago at the time of writing, so I guess we can forgive it!
14. Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest (2015)
Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest makes up one of the three Fire Emblem Fates Games alongside Revelation and Birthright. But, to be honest, Conquest is my favourite of the bunch.
Maybe that’s because it’s the first one I played (and I’ve played them all), but there’s something about this game that just gets me every time.
I guess I like the fact that it kind of pays homage to the early F.E games in terms of gameplay too; always pay your dues!
Customise your characters, play the brutal enemy-revival ‘Pheonix mode’ and build relationships as you fight.
Conquest is also the most progressive of the three titles too, allowing for both opposite and same sex couplings.
Customise villages and castles, upgrading them as you progress through the game too. It’s up to you which buildings and shops you position in each place too, so pick some useful ones that are going to help you on your mission!
13. Fire Emblem: Thracia 776 (1999)
Fire Emblem: Thracia 776 takes the 13th spot in this list of the best Fire Emblem games of all time!
It’s not technically a sequal to the next game in our list; more of a parallel game that happens alongside it…
… an ‘at-the-same-time-quel’, if you will.
A lot of the same faces crop up in both games as both main characters and cameos. Just think of it as an extra excuse to play even more Fire Emblem!
Follow the troublesome struggles of Lenster’s very own Prince Leaf as he tries to thwart attacks on two fronts.
Yes, the Loptus Religion and the Grandbell Empire are threatening to overcome his kingdom, but we’re not gonna let that happen!
Experience new features such as night battles and fog, as well as having the ability to steal other weapons from opponents.
12. Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War (1996)
So, Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War is the game that goes alongside Thracia 776.
Genealogy of the Holy War, mostly referred to as Fire Emblem: Seisen no Keifu, is actually the 4th ever Fire Emblem game to hit consoles.
Play as two characters through GotHW; Prince Sigurd and his son in two different game chapters. It’s basically a 2-for-1 offer!
All the usual turn-based antics occur alongside a new weapons system that works a little like the elemental weaknesses in Pokemon.
Put simply, spears beat swords, axes beat spears, and swords beat axes.
Got it? Good, now let’s continue.
With massive levels to work through and that classic top-down view, this is a proper blast from retro gaming past that you need in your life.
You can even play it on the Nintendo Switch if you want to get your Fire Emblem fix on the go!
11. Fire Emblem: Warriors (2017)
Speaking of the Nintendo Switch, Fire Emblem: Warriors takes the 11th spot in this list of the best Fire Emblem games of all time!
Prince Marth is back alongside other legendary faces from the world of Fire Emblem for some serious hack and slash action.
If you think that Dynasty Warriors: Gundam is still one of the best Gundam games, then this title is going to be right up your street. There are more enemies to beat back here than there is people at Best Buy on Black Friday, so be prepared.
If you can’t get enough of Hyrule Warriors, then this game from the same creators should keep you occupied for the rest of your natural life.
Issue commands, discover secret characters, and pair up to take down enemy factions, all the while wielding insane weaponry and the sharpest blades in all of gaming history.
Just remember that weapons triangle and gear up accordingly!
10. Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem (1994)
Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem is technically another two for the price of one game in the sense that it’s actually a remake/expansion.
Yep, this SNES classic is an updated version of the very first Fire Emblem for the Famicom with some new parts of the story added in for good measure.
There are 2 books in this game; Book 1 is the original title, and Book 2 adds to the story with new elements for players to enjoy.
Tackle the evil Gharnef and the maniacal Dragon Medeus as you and Marth try to bring peace back to Archanea.
Fight on horseback, or for the first time get off your steed and take the fight indoors.
Is nowhere sacred!
9. Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance (2005)
Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance takes the 9th spot in this list of the best Fire Emblem games ever made, and it’s one of the best GameCube RPGs that I’ve ever had the privilege of playing.
This game feels like an interactive version of Risk, which is honestly the greatest accolade that I can give.
Plus, the plot could have been lifted right from the annals of Tolkien’s mind and then moulded with the greatest D&D campaign of all time.
Yeah; it’s that good!
Players must make their way through the nation of Daein in Beorc. Yes, this game is full of place names like this including character with equally weird names such as Greil, Elincia, and Ashnard.
Oh, and the Smash Bros Brawl favourite Ike is the main protagonist this tine, working his army through puzzle and challenged after puzzle and challenge.
Fight the forces of evil while interacting with a total of 46 different characters. It’s one of the finest examples of the Fire Emblem franchise and a real must-have if you’re curating your collection of the best GameCube games.
8. Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light (1990)
I know I’ve said this a lot before in this article, but the plot to Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light is spectacular.
Set in the land of Aritia, Dark Forces are trying to desecrate the land. You’ve regrouped on Tamis to try and and figure out what’s going on, but now pirates are attacking Tamis too.
Talk about having a lot on your plate all at once!
If you’ve played a lot of Risk Legacy, then you’ll be totally into the turn-based battling and counterattacking between you and enemy forces. And the best bit is that there are no dice involved whatsoever!
The battle animations are great to say that this game came out in 1990, and although the maps look real simple by todays standards, the same gameplay and tactical thinking that makes these games great runs deep throughout.
7. Fire Emblem Gaiden (1992)
Fire Emblem Gaiden takes the 7th slot in this list of the best Fire Emblem games of all time, bringing more classic NES vibes to our list.
Get closer to the action in this sequel to Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light. Players control Alm as he leads a gang of rebels to overthrow an unjust ruler.
Now, this entry might be a bit shocking for some readers. Many consider Gaiden to be one of the weaker titles in the series and one of the worst titles for the NES, a little like The Adventure Of Link.
If that’s you, then you probably won’t like the title at Number 3 in our list either…
Still, I think it gets a bit of a hard wrap. It’s a classic Fire Emblem game and still has all the essential features that make these games great.
6. Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn (2007)
It might have taken a while for us Western gamers to get our hands on Fire Emblem titles, but we all made up for that last time by putting tonnes of hours into Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn on the Nintendo Wii.
A lot of the explorative action in RD takes place from a top-down perspective like the Fire Emblem games of old, and you’ll need the tactical mind of Charlemagne if you want a hope in hell of completing it!
Slay dragons, fight back forces, and led the Darn Brigade into grid-based battlefields for epic showdowns.
If you like Jeanne D’Arc, one of the best PSP games, then you’ll slip into Radiant Dawn like a seal in a bath tub (no, I don’t know where that came from either…).
The storyline moves and swaps between different army factions in the kingdom too, allowing gamers to see multiple parts of this war-torn world and gives us plenty of story elements to delve into.
Be careful though; some players die and never come back, so look after them and keep them safe! Yeah, Fire Emblem just got real very quickly!
5. Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia (2017)
Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia takes the 5th spot in this list of the best Fire Emblem games. It’s a remake of fire Emblem Gaiden and sees Alm and Celica working together to bring peace back to the land of Valentia.
As with all the best RPGs, players can choose from a class such as Paladin, Archer, or Mage. Build your character through epic battles and uncover mysteries in every corner of the spectacular world map.
Speaking of the world map, everything looks fantastic popping out of your screen in glorious 3D.
Echoes has fully fully voice-acted cutscenes too, so there’s no messing around reading text on the screen like the games of old.
For many without Japanese NES systems, this could be the first time that they’ve actually played this classic game. It’s certainly one of the best Nintendo 3DS games and one for JRPG fans to soak up like a sponge in tactically-enhanced water.
4. Fire Emblem Awakening (2012)
Let’s continue the 3DS theme with Fire Emblem Awakening, another tactical title for Nintendo’s revolutionary handheld.
With four difficulty modes and two modes of play where characters can be revived or alternatively die and don’t ever come back, there’s lots to delve into and multiple ways to play.
Oh, and you can shack up with a member of the opposite sex and create kids that will grow into soldiers too…
… because who doesn’t want their own private army!
The story follows the Chrom as you move around gridded battlefields in a Link’s Awakening-esque top-down fashion.
There’s also a cool multiplayer mode where you can team up with a mate to take down enemies.
And, sticking this into 3D mode never gets old either, especially with some of the sick weapons that this little guys carry.
If you love Strategeo and wish it was a 3D fantasy experience, then get in on the action.
3. Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones (2004)
We’re down to the final three titles in our best Fire Emblem games, which means it’s time for Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones.
The Sacred Stones is actually only the the second Fire Emblem game to come out of Japan. That means that there were 7 games that came out before it that we all had to catch up on once we figured out how to buy Japanese systems.
Still, I more than made up for it once this game slotted into my GBA. I think I played it so much that I considered getting hair like Dozla at one point…
How many of you wanted to actually visit Magvel in real life? It’s filled with turn-based battling like the other titles but differs slightly with its make up gameplay taking place in different nation states.
There wouldn’t be another portable Fire Emblem title for another 8 years after the Sacred Stones, which meant that everyone played this game to death.
Work through the main solo mode or play multiplayer over local link up and square off against your pals.
The 320,000 people that bought it in 2004 alone can’t be wrong, right?
2. Fire Emblem: Three Houses (2019)
The latest Nintendo Switch epic Fire Emblem: Three Houses takes the silver medal today. This game is an absolute belter and look stunning on the Switch.
Three houses, three different paths, three different ways to teach your students in the art of turn-based combat.
It’s like if you want to Hogwarts to learn how to be in the Fellowship of the Ring… kind of.
Everything we love about the Fire Emblem series has been finely tuned into an immersive experience like no other…
… I’m not belittling the other titles in this list at all, but Three Houses just rules!
The emphasis is more on teaching your students to survive in the wider world as well as leading armies to victory. But, with an imaginary character that only you can see and characters that you must glean intelligence from hiding around every corner, this game quickly morphs into a deep mystery that only you can unravel.
1. Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade (2003)
And finally, Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade takes the top spot in our list of the best Fire Emblem games ever made!
We’ve all played as Roy on Super Smash Bros. Melee before. Heck, with the C-stick slashes, he quickly became my favourite character!
It’s also his inclusion alongside Marth in Melee that finally prompters the Fire Emblem series to be brought over for Western audiences, mixing up the RPG genre forever!
With dragons to spay, epic collectibles, and some of the best explorable levels on the GBA, The Blazing Blade more than deserves to top this list.
Plus, it kind of needs to be in the top spot as it’s the first title that we all got our hands on…
… it’s only fair, right?
I can’t imagine what life would be like if we’d never discovered these games. They’ve brought so many gamers so much joy over the years all over the globe. And for me, The Blazing Blade remains not only the best, but the title that that I have the fondest memories of.
Like finding out Darth Vader is Luke’s dad, playing this game for the first time is a revelation you only get once. If I could relive that feeling again for the first time, I’d do it in a heartbeat!
